Why I Didn't Toss My Laptop Out the Window

 



Sometimes when I am really tired and on deadline and have a sink full of dishes and a pile of laundry that is nearly to the ceiling (okay. It's only to my knees, but still...), I want to toss my laptop and whatever manuscript happens to be driving me batty into the nearest trashcan or out the nearest window (which, at the moment, is a tempting two foot away). Generally, right around that point where the laptop is heading for the window and I am heading for the nearest vacation location (or loony bin), God sends me a little boost to keep me going. The other day, at one of my lowest points of the year (I'm sure there will be more seeing as how it is only the very end of February), I received this:

 

Dear Mrs. McCoy,

I was astonished of your book Cold Case Murder Without A Trace. Personaly I think you should win a Gold medal for it.
My favorite line was when you said your bluntness is charming. When you write me back I hope you can tell me some more names of your Books because your book that I've read is the best one yet and I really don't like to read but you have inspired me to read more.

Sincerly,

Dion Henden


It made me smile. It actually made me laugh. No one has ever told me I should win a gold medal for a book. I smiled. I laughed. I remembered exactly why it was that I didn't want to toss my laptop out the window and abandon my latest project forever. I wrote the student and mailed a copy of my newest release, and then I got back to work.

So, Dion, wherever you are, thank you for saving my laptop from death by two-story fall into a snowy yard and inspiring me to work through another mucky middle of the manuscript!

I personally think you should win a gold medal for your effort!

So, My Sister Got THE CALL (or, so you want to get published)

If you're an aspiring writer, you know exactly what that means.

She got THE CALL. The one that brought her from unpublished novelist to published novelist.

The phone rang. She looked at the caller ID. There it was, bold as you will - Harlequin.

Seconds later, she had an offer she couldn't refuse.

Well, she could have, but it would have been a little strange seeing as how she'd actually spent time writing a manuscript that fit the Love Inspired Suspense line.

Now, to be clear, Sara was already published in the non-fiction arena. This isn't her first sale, but it is her first BOOK sale.

She is now officially writing for Harlequin, and, to make things even more fun, she's writing for the same line I write for.

I'm over the moon with excitement for her, and I'm already planning the book signings we'll do together, the research trips we'll go on. Who knows? Maybe one day we'll even work on a continuity together!

I'm getting all twiterpatted just thinking about it!!

How is it that we both ended up in the same house in the same line?

Well, it's like this. Love Inspired Suspense needs authors. Really. Seriously. The editors are  looking for authors. They are going above and beyond the call of duty to find authors. To do this, they are running fast track events that give writers a quick way to get their work in front of the editors' eyes.

I heard about these fast track events and encouraged a friend to submit. When another one came along, I called my sister Sara Parker (remember that name and look for her book next year) and told her she should do it. She already had a couple of manuscripts under her belt, and this was another opportunity. Why not take it? She listened to me (because who wouldn't?) and just as quick as that, she got an editor's attention. It wasn't long before she got THE CALL.

Why am I telling you this?

Well, first, I am proud of my sister.

Second, if you're an inspirational writer and want to try your hand at romantic suspense, Harlequin is a great company to work for. Manuscript are 55-60K and the books go out in book club (read that as instant sales!). They're also on store shelves all over the country.

Interested?

Check this  out. You can read the rules, chat with editors about what they're looking for, ask just about any question you want.

What could be cooler?

Not much.

So, really, check it out! This might be the golden opportunity you've been waiting for.