Celebrate!

True, I write about Savannah, and houseboat living, and even writing, but I’ve been silent about my search for literary representation.  Why? Because I’m superstitious about saying something too soon.  Plus, the road to publishing is slow; imagine watching an upended bottle of molasses….actually, that’s a poor analogy because you can watch molasses flow….let’s just say I kept you in the dark FOR YOUR OWN GOOD.

You’re welcome.  

A few years ago I met author Tim Maleeny www.timmaleeny.com at the Book Passage www.bookpassage.com Mystery Writers Conference.  Tim’s writing and our dinner conversation made an impression.  

So, when I was ready to begin querying agents for representation I researched his agent, Jill Grosjean, and subsequently sent her a letter about All Things Unusual.  She responded with a request for the full manuscript.

Yes, I was excited, but I didn’t blog about it because…..I’m superstitious that way.  After the initial excitement of shipping off the manuscript came the fear of rejection entertaining part.  This is where you imagine the pages of a calendar turning…April…..May…..time passed and I bought this necklace:

You’re probably thinking, ‘She bought a necklace? That’s kind of random.’ Not really. I bought it as a talisman; Lulu, the main character in my novel gets a tattoo with a crescent moon and stars, and when I saw the necklace I decided it would bring me good luck (because I’m kind of superstitious  that way).  I began wearing the necklace and traveled with it to Savannah:

In my last post I wrote about returning home from that trip after midnight. Here’s what I didn’t tell you, because, yes, I’m superstitious that way: I opened my email at 1:24 a.m. and a letter from literary agent Jill Grosjean was waiting for me.

Jill wrote that she had begun reading my manuscript, loved it so far, and wondered if I was still seeking representation.  The week passed as she read the full manuscript, there were more enthusiastic emails, and on Friday we spoke by phone.  She told me about herself and how she works, shared her ideas for submissions to editors, and offered representation. I liked her, thought her ideas for representation were terrific, and…

Voila! I am now represented by the Jill Grosjean Literary Agency.

I hope you’ll join me for a glass of champagne.  Superstitious, or not, this is a slow process and I believe in celebrating when I can!