I have a very frustrating issue to deal with right now; it involves one of my books, the first one I ever wrote. The first version of that book is much shorter than the subsequent edition. I had entrusted it to a publishing company which turned out to be a scam. Out of inexperience and naivité, I fell for all the compliments and flattery, and I was snagged. When it became clear that this company was not what it was supposed to be, I moved on to someone else. Eight years later I rewrote it, expanded it, and added “second revised edition” to the cover. Here’s the frustrating part: That original version, shorter and filled with typos and bad editing by the scam company, is still for sale on Amazon. I have been told a comprehensive list of things I should have done, or should not have done, or things I should have done differently. That’s fine for the future, but for now, it doesn’t help. I was told to call one company to demand my rights – literally, my copyrights. Then I should call another company and file a case against the scam company, which happens to no longer be in business with the same owner, because he was arrested. I was told to fight, fight, fight for what is mine, mine, mine. I realize I have a legitimate legal issue, and other people should not be able to profit from what’s not theirs.
However, perhaps there’s another issue here. How much does this issue really matter, and how much is my ego? I understand rightful ownership and building a personal brand and reputation. But if no one is really making a profit off of that old book (it’s listed at over $900 for a one-hundred-page paperback book?!?!), and my current, legitimate edition with my name on it is offered (almost three hundred pages for $16.99), why is it creating in me so much anxiety and anger? Yeah, I know, it’s just not fair. But will it really matter a year from now? Five years from now? How many things that are “so unfair” can I desperately hold on to or feverishly track down before my life becomes an unending road of anger and resentment?
Chasing down my anger takes so much time away from pursuing things that will actually define who I am. Do any of us want to be defined by our anger? Most people would say no to that question, but our passions and how we spend our time do end up defining us. We need to decide which issues we shouldgrab onto with all our might, and which ones are not going to help us grow. Fighting to maintain our beliefs, or to help others, or to defend those who can’t defend themselves, or to achieve a goal, or realize a dream – those are among the many wonderful reasons to put your head down and charge forward.
Constant anger is so deceptive. It’s like a snowball rolling down a mountain – not only does it pick up speed and force as it rolls down, but it also picks up debris that makes it grow. Anger convinces us to continue picking up more extra junk as it grows; it tricks us into thinking that all the extra junk has something to do with the original issue. Then, when we hit the bottom, like a snow boulder hitting a tree, everything splatters onto everyone and everything, creating irreparable damage.
So, back to the book…who cares anymore? I have moved on and written many other books since then. Whoever is still keeping that old version of my book on Amazon is actually keeping my name in circulation, which can only help in bringing attention to my other books.
2 Timothy 2:23 says “Have nothing to do with foolish, ignorant controversies; you know that they breed quarrels.”
Who has time for that? No one should have their climb up the mountain sabotaged by an angry snowball rolling down on them.
So, I have a choice. We get so few of those in life; I’m going to grab this one. I can decide to let go of this meaningless hiccup and dance on, or I can choose to get stuck in the anger/ego. I could get caught up in the snowball rolling down the hill, collecting more junk as I go, but I think I’m going to
Dance on.
Grace Notes 