It is unusual to get have your first manuscript accepted before you even finish it. Although, I would have to claim that it was actually my second manuscript. The first story was one I have yet to finish.
It's a nice, little story, but my characters were too flat, so it seemed to me. I did send it in for the Genesis contest and was roasted over the flames, but not for character development. "Just because you mention a Christian retreat doesn't make this a Christian book". That was hurtful, considering the MC was a woman whose faith in the Lord was strong. "A digital camera does not make barking sounds, it makes a clicking sound". Um...my camera has settings where it barks, chirps, trills, or clicks. Then there were more hurtful statements, but nothing about the mechanics of the story. I almost stopped writing, and when these results came in, I was a quarter way through my second novel. It can be almost devastating when you enter a contest and will be judged by your peers according to your genre. I submitted a contemporary fiction piece and was judged by a romance, suspense romance, and YA fiction writers/agents.
I had friends who cheered me up, helped me overcome the upset of such harsh criticism. I put that novel away and returned back to my Mississippi Nights. This was a story I thought of long ago when I was 14. I resurrected the dead brother, changed the name and profession of the sister's husband, changed the firefighter's girlfriend, and so on. Soon the story took life.
I had already attended the ACFW conference in Indianapolis in 2010. Met many wonderful people and made many connections. Through the ACFW loop, I met some fellow writers nearby and one suggested BRCWC (Blue Ridge conference in North Carolina). I went in May. It is an amazing journey that led me to my publishers.
I saw their photos in the conference booklet and wanted to meet them. They arrived late, and I figured they were not showing so chose other agents/publishers to meet instead. While in line for lunch the next day, I turned around and there stood the CEO of that publishing house. So I did the one thing that was totally so-not-me. I greeted him. We started chatting. I sat at his table. He invited me to dine with him that night. Chatted the next day. He had to leave and invited me to e-mail him when my story was done. I finished the novel in under three weeks after the conference.
When I e-mailed the manuscript to him, he wrote back and said he wanted it, but there needed to be some changes so that it can be sold in both markets. I made those slight changes, so mild that it didn't change the story one bit. I signed the agreement. Editor made some changes, found a scene I had forgotten to insert, and now my book will be on the market in January. E-book formats are already on sell. My author copies arrive tomorrow. And I am working on the next book.
It's a job, no longer a hobby. Hard work, but the one difference is that I listened to God and followed where He led me, no questions asked. Oh, yeah, I was scared, I was worried, I bit my nails off, but I allowed God Room. I did what was humanly possible for me and left everything else to God.
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