An open letter to the Bloggess’s publishers…
Dear Amy Einhorn Books/Putnam:
Please let Jenny Lawson rest. Please. Let’s Pretend This Never Happened was on the NY Times Best-Seller list for 4 months – often in the top 15 books. You’ve made TONNES of money off it. She’s done her bit with touring and readings and book signings and BIG SURPRISE she ended up suffering from vital exhaustion. Let her rest.
| She should be doing this. |
I’m sure that she, of the diagnosed generalized anxiety disorder, agreed to do all these signings, but dudes, seriously, LET HER REST. And when she says she’s ready to do more, tell her “That’s okay Jenny, we’re good. Thanks for sacrificing your tenuous mental health for our book sales, but we’d rather have you alive and well.”
| This is me, and I’ll throw myself in front of her, so that she has time to rest. |
I’m in Mama Bear mode here. I know that this touring has probably pushed her boundaries in a lot of good ways, and that she may have learned many coping mechanisms to deal with the crowds – all good – but when I read her posts about suffering from Vital Exhaustion – I got scared. And I felt guilty – because I WAS a person in one of those crowds in Toronto – knowing who she was and how she copes (or doesn’t) and I loved hearing her read and speak with clarity and compassion to people in that crowd.
And now, I’m worried for her. I worry that she feels pressure to be in the public eye when she doesn’t have to be. Those who admire her will continue to read her blog and her book. I’ve recommended both and will continue to do so. But now, what I really want, is for her to have time to rest and relax and reboot and concentrate on being less exhausted, so that she doesn’t lose it completely, because frankly, she’s no good to me completely crazy. Selfishly, I want the caustic, cuckoo-bananas writing that I’ve come to crave and if she’s gone completely around the frickin’ bend, I won’t get it.
Please. LET HER REST. There are a lot of us Mama Bears out there. You don’t want us to attack.