Joel Frey: November 2008

About Two Sides of a Cypress Wall

Despite a solid GPA, several glowing letters of recommendation, and being named “Outstanding News-Editorial Graduate” by his journalism professors, no one seemed to care about Joel Frey after he completed his undergraduate studies.

With no employer seeking his “semi-professional” services, he left school behind and crashed with his mom and dad. He worked a couple of jobs that did not require a degree. He drank too much and escaped to the comfort of old friends whenever the opportunity arose. Most of all, he wondered what it was going to take to shake off the desire to be nothing more than a carefree college kid.

Two Sides of a Cypress Wall is a bittersweet story of coping with the discovery that life in your early twenties is more than just finding a real job.

Payday

I forgot to update you all on a recent JAF Publishing Inc. milestone. Last month, I received a check from Barnes and Noble for its first order last summer.You gotta love 90-day payment cycles. Just in case you think I'm telling a whopper, I've attached a pic. And, good news, I should be getting another one in the next few weeks.

Since no one has sent me a "Hey Joel, where's self publishing tip #8?" email, I'm going to abandon that idea and focus my future posts on ones that are more literary. Since Cypress Walls was published, several kind readers have asked me about my plans for writing a second book. The standard response to that question has been along the lines of "Not until I'm finished paying for the first one." Even though I'm still whittling down the debt I incurred in getting Cypress Walls to press, I have had a number of ideas and themes floating around in my head lately that I'd like to expound upon. This forum seems like a logical place to begin recording them. They may not be any good, but I know I can rely on ya'll to tell me if they suck. Expect to see the same diary-like format I used in Cypress Walls.

Thanks for stopping by and enjoy your weekend. It should be a quiet one here in El Paso. Oh, and a happy early birthday to Sister Kristin. She celebrates tomorrow. Hopefully Aaron and Lucas won't forget to bake a cake.