Keeping the Gate
May 19th, 2008 bhenricksenLost Hills Books became a reality last December, when the two titles featured on the website arrived from the printer. I promptly sent copies to a person living in my town who writes book news for a magazine. She and I are members of a large, regional writers’ group, and of course I thought I might receive a response. Nope. Recently, I emailed her to ask if the books had been received and if she might be able to mention them in print. She replied that she doesn’t read unsolicited books and that mine had been passed on to charity. Splat.
As a check on my perspective, I’ll tell a story I’ve told on myself before. I taught English at Loyola University New Orleans in the 1970’s, and somewhere around 1977 Walker Percy agreed to drive over the causeway from Covington a couple of times a week to teach a creative writing class in our department. His presence was a gift to the university and a definite feather in our cap. Department members promised to see that things went smoothly for him, which included insulating him from people who might show up seeking favors. Walker had been a bit of a recluse in Covington.
