Why a Good Friend Refused to Send my Memoir to Tom Hanks

Taking ownership over your words and accepting the consequences

Photo by on

Before my publisher finalized my book contract, they (editor and team) asked what I would bring to the table. Yes, even when dealing with traditional publishers, you are expected to produce numbers. Numbers as in followers. And they better be significant.

The less the publisher has to do, the happier they are. Which was a huge problem. After pecking on my keyboard for four years, my numbers were paltry. So, having mingled with celebrities during my three decades as a model and commercial actor, I generously plated their names and huge followings. Nothing like a celebrity endorsement to whet a publisher’s appetite.

The contract was signed, and I received the first half of my advance.

If I’d thought writing was hard, it was nothing compared to the grueling task known as marketing. Had I known writing was not the autonomous, liberating career I’d imagined, I would have never written my book. Ignorance is bliss, though, and I learned about the groveling part after the fact.

And don’t mistake that marketing isn’t, at its basic level, groveling. It’s like a pig with a pearl necklace hoping you won’t notice the mud.