About Me: Gary the Pessimist (Not Really)

I often get accused of looking at the world as a "glass half empty" guy or always looking for the negative in things. And while I tend to be something of a laid back and carefree type of person, I do see the world through the more pessimistic viewpoint. I do look for the downside of things because there's usually at least 1 downside to everything we as people do and if it is never taken into consideration then you're just asking for trouble at some point.

But I don't like to think of myself as a pessimist but more as a pragmatist. I don't make decisions because I think the sky is falling. I don't avoid people because I think all people are untrustworthy. Instead, I take a neutral position and research items, places, people, whatever, and then I draw conclusions based on what the details reveal. When it comes to interactions involving my books, most of those conclusions are that the people on the other end are not trustworthy and/or capable. That's not me be pessimistic about the world around me but simply me being real about the world we live in today and what my research has shown me about the other people that I have to share this world with.

And while I may talk about becoming jaded after so many people reaching out to me about my books over the last few years only to discover that most (maybe all) of them were associated with very negative online reviews, listed on other websites  as potential scammers, and more, the reason I continue to engage and research these groups is on the off chance that I might find one that stands above the rest. I mean, I may not have published all of my books with Newman Springs but I had no major issues publishing the 3 books I did through them. Sure, there were some bumps along the way, some bigger than others, but there seemed to be good communication for the most part and we were able to work through and resolve any differences or issues that allowed them to produce a quality product of my work. I never felt betrayed by Newman Spring. I felt they were being shady or just out to get my money before running off. None of that happened. I never got the impression that was how they operated. Nothing.

I liked working with NSP for the most part which shows that there are groups out there that can do good for authors like us but we have to keep our eyes open to find them. I'm not naive enough to think that anyone who calls or emails me about my books is a good person or works for a respectable group without asking a few questions but I'm also not so jaded and pessimistic that I instinctively shut down all contacts without questions under the impression that they're all scum either.

I'll give anyone the benefit of the doubt for free. But when you come calling wanting money, I'm going to see if your someone I should give my money to and if not, I'll cut you loose and never think twice about it. My day job in IT reaffirms for me at a daily level that there unscrupulous people out there looking to profit from our ignorance, blind trust, and hopeful dreams.

You have to stay vigilant unless you want to be a victim. There's nothing pessimistic about it, that's just fact. And that's true for far more than just the literary world.