Monday, March 3, 2008

I'm an author!

"Dear Ms. Campbell,Thank you for your excellent submission to our magazine, Garnish. We are excited to be working with you and look forward to publishing an excerpt of your manuscript in our publication. Please find attached a letter from our editorial staff, our Nonexclusive Publication License Agreement, and the edited version of your manuscript. As mentioned in our letter, we would like to include an excerpt of your writing in our A La Carte department, which focuses on experiences with food and meals. Because of this we have chosen merely a short excerpt that best fits our purposes. If it meets with your approval please immediately send an email back to me affirming that we may publish it, and return the contract to Marvin Gardner by Thursday. Thank you and we look forward to hearing from you soon,
Christi Higham
Garnish magazine
The excerpt from your essay is pasted below for your convenience.
Parlez-vous Food?
Molly Campbell
My family speaks the language of food. A cup of hot chocolate can mean anything from "I'm really sorry that your boyfriend broke up with you and you're PMSing and your jeans are too small and you flunked your math test today," to "I'm so glad you're snowed in with me because I have the funniest story to tell you about you-know-what!" Only those who are fluent in the language of food can tell which way to interpret the hot chocolate.
It has gotten to the point that we can walk in from school, sniff the air for smells of delicate simmering sauces or lively and pungent spices, and say, "Mom, you're having another baby!" or "So the report cards came, huh?"
My sister and I often find that these conversations require translation for our husbands. "Curry is hot and spicy, which means someone didn't do too well on their math midterm. Probably Lizzy because she hates curry." In this way, food has become a way for us to relate to each other on a level that only we understand. This is our thing—the thing that makes us who we are. Other families have academics, music, travel, or sports. We have Iron Chef night, tastes-like-toes Tuesday, and gingerbread-house-making contests. For us, food isn't just nourishment—it's conversation.

10 comments:

Cecily Jane said...

Oh, man! I totally forgot to turn mine in! I'm so jealous/proud of you!

P.S. I really love that story.

Natalie said...

Congrats! Way to go! How much of the story was that? Did they cut out a lot? I'd like to read the whole thing!

Starla said...

I'm beaming with pride.

Kent and Leisy said...

FABULOUS! I am so impressed. so so impressed. Keep posting recipes...PLEASE!!

Jack said...

Fantastic! Our little Molly growing up and becoming an author. I would also like to read the entire submission. Congrats and please let us know when the piece will be printed so we can all get copies and frame them.

Mollie said...

WOW! Molly I am so proud of you!

Janae said...

Way to go! That is awesome Molly.

frequentreader said...

molly


thats superdooperlycontinuouslyfabtastic!
(i made that up because your work is indescribable!!)


love anna

Lizzy Meppen said...

by golly molly! That is amazing, congratulations! I love you!

jax from the harmon squad said...

Molly! I love your blog! You have a way with words. Congratulations on getting published- so exciting!