Friday afternoons at the publishing house are perfect long meetings. Or for getting those difficult e-mails out, the ones that need extra time to think things through. While the publisher is doing the first, I am sitting in the room next door carefully weighing my words. It’s summer and the room feels like a steam room. The sun has heated up the publishing house since early this morning. The old building is now almost deserted, and right outside the terraces are filling up. I hear people laughing and celebrating the start of the weekend.
´Mare, could you step inside or a second, here’s someone I would very much like you to meet.´
The publisher keeps the door open for me and I step inside. His room is like a sauna too, in spite of the windows being wide open. I shake hands with a very attractive man. His face is familiar; I’ve seen it on books, in magazines and on TV. He is a philosophical writer who already has written several successful novels. The publisher tells me that the two of them have just reached and agreement: his next novel will be published at our publishing house. I nod happily: I’m also very pleased that I went with my instincts this morning, and put on my new summer outfit despite the heat. The pale blue-grey of the linen suit compliments my eyes. A first impression is everything; it’s not every day that I meet such a good-looking writer. The publisher now turns to the writer and explains to him what it is I do. The writer is leaning back in his chair, very much at ease and listening intently. I am standing in front of him, and during this introduction of the publisher we briefly exchange looks. His eyes smile. I get a little confused by this, standing in front of this very nice looking young man, with all that curly hair.
When finishing his lines, the publisher gives me the opportunity to add something.
‘So please,’ I say, and straighten my back and look at him confidently. ‘Should you ever have any questions, feel free to ask me anything.’
‘Your fly is open.’
I feel, I look and know he is right. As I hasten to correct this, I hear someone speak. Oh no, please tell me that’s not me.
‘But it is a very small fly.’
The words keep lingering in the thick warm air. They stick to me as I walk out of the room. I softly close the door behind me and sit down at my desk.
I still haven’t moved when the publisher comes back in from walking our new writer to the door.
‘Well Mare, you’ve made a huge impression on him.’
Maai’s Creative Portfolio 
hahahahahahah i loved this! what a great story. i think you’re gonna marry him. how’s that for an ending! 🙂
You asked me on Twitter to write a comment here and so I will do my very best to express what I feel about your stories, about your writing.
As I told you it’s a very subjective matter and only the fact that I like one story less than the other doesn’t mean at all that the said one isn’t as good as the previous ones.
What I admire in really most of your stories is a very dense atmosphere, the figure of speech, the way to describe and to evoke images – one word your passion. Only when reading the last blog post which you called First Impression, I kind of missed the very special feeling. I don’t think it’s because it’s a humorous story but I assume it’s because it’s a situation you often can read in so called romantic novels. You are very good in describing the course of events, but it’s predictable. All your other blog posts were open till the end and often are even ending with a surprise, but not in this case.
As I believe, that’s what made the difference for me, that’s what made be saying that I would be indecisive.
Sorry for being a bit critical but as you know I love to read your stories and I’m really impressed. It’s only as you asked me to answer in detail. Please keep on writing and posting all you stories here.
x Michèle