Wishes for Writers

I hope your book gets wrecked.

I hope the wonderful, pristine object you are so proud of becomes tattered and stained.

I hope the spine gets cracked from being opened over and over, and the dust jacket (if you have one) gets torn and fuzzy around the edges. I hope that phrases get underlined or highlighted. I hope that page corners get dog-eared because the reader needs to re-read certain parts so many times that a bookmark just won’t do. I hope someone scribbles yes! In the margins.

I hope your book travels. I hope it gets passed from hand to hand, from friends who want other friends to read it. I hope it gets hastily stuffed into bags and pockets because someone was so engrossed in it that they didn’t notice the bus or train arrive and have to suddenly run to catch it. I hope it gets rained on. I hope the cover fades in the sun. I hope it gets fingerprints and mug-rings and permanently bent pages.

I hope someone finds it at a second-hand store or a rummage sale, takes a look, and can’t put it down. I hope someone gives it as a gift, saying, “this is one of my favorites.” I hope someone finds your book at the library, bar-coded and labeled and taped back together, and is intrigued.

I hope it is loved.