Midlist Author

Fell upon a Tuesday when I had just got down to work

And everything went grey

So I caught a bus Wednesday, thought a vacation well-deserved

And all my edges frayed

Address your letters to:

Midlist author

You're never the best but you're never the worst

Why even bother?

You'll never be last but you'll never be first

Have another taste of fame when they mispronounce your name

When they mispronounce your name

Strolled along the seaside amid all the vulgar dreary crowd

And a boy cries for his dog

Stolen by a riptide his mother explains he surely drowned

As he weeps upon a log

And all my readers sing, oh:

Midlist author

You're never the best but you're never the worst

Why even bother?

You'll never be last but you'll never be first

Maybe one more glass of wine will make everything seem fine

Maybe everything will seem fine

And nobody's taking chances

Did all those dwindling advances get you down

They get you down

Shuffling homeward, I check the receiver on the phone

No messages returned

So I started up a new thing,

something about the sea, a boy, and his dog

And these were the first words

Dedication TK, oh

Midlist author, you're never the best but you're never the worst

Why even bother?

You'll never be last but you'll never be first

Maybe novel 22 will make them all remember you