Some of the most impressive feats of athleticism I saw
during London 2012 were the handstands in the diving competitions. For someone
who can’t do a forward roll, the perfectly controlled handstands were a
revelation. That they were performed on the edge of a ten metre high drop in
front of millions of spectators all over the world was miraculous. What if,
after all that effort and a beautiful handstand, the diver belly flopped into
the pool? The failure would seem worse for the elaborate overture.
As I prepare to release Wild
Rose as an Ebook I feel like the diver in a handstand on the edge of the precipice.
I started writing the novel in 2008; coincidentally, it was in America just as
Barack Obama was campaigning for his first term. At first I didn’t talk about
it because I wasn’t sure I could do it. Once the book was written and I began
making decisions based on pursuing a career as a writer, I had to own up. Between
that moment and now there has been a lot of talk about Wild Rose. After the long build up I am aware of the drop into the
pool and the danger of a belly flop.
Another extraordinary dive was that of Felix Baumgartner who
last month fell to earth from thirty nine kilometres up, breaking the sound
barrier on his way down. I have no idea how he could bring himself to step off the platform and just drop:
I can’t watch it without feeling sick.
However, there’s no point in the build up without the jump.
I am standing on the platform. (If I could do a handstand I would.) It’s taken
me a long time and a lot of effort to get there. Now I just have to summon up
the courage to fall off.
