One down, one to go.

I learned my placing in Heart of the West. Pleased to say The Impetuous Amazon was second. (Actually, those of you who know me realize I really wasn’t pleased. I’m very driven and hard on myself. I wanted the win.)

PASIC is in the middle of announcing the Book of Your Heart placings. I don’t hold out a lot of hope for that contest. While I think The Reluctant Amazon is a great book, the editor had seen a very early version of it for Where the Magic Begins and placed it third out of three. Unless she really, really liked the changes — and there have been quite a few based on her suggestions — I don’t expect it to win.

I guess I’ll have to wait and see.

I’m waiting out my last few contest finals.

I should hear results from PASIC’s Book of Your Heart soon. The Reluctant Amazon is a paranormal finalist. They were supposed to announce last Saturday, but I think they extended the entry deadline. That always means everything else gets pushed back too. I think Heart of the West gives their final placings at their conference this weekend. The Impetuous Amazon is being judged there.

I will miss being a contest diva. That adrenaline rush when you get the call or email that you’re a finalist is exquisite. A final means validation. A final means other people truly appreciate your work. And a final means you don’t feel quite so alone.

The only thing that gave me a stronger endorphin high was when Maureen called me to offer representation. I seriously don’t remember much of what I said. I was too busy trying to get my heart to stop pounding so that the “whoosh whoosh” sound would die down and I could hear her voice.

I finished the rewrites that Maureen and Katie requested on The Reluctant Amazon, and I’m waiting to hear if I’ll need another round. I sincerely hope I pleased them both and that we can start submissions.

I’ll keep you posted on any news from contests, but with my track history of always being a bridesmaid rather than the bride, I wouldn’t hold your breath.

My critique group met today after a long drought.

I’d forgotten how inspiring my Critters are! We welcomed Leshia Stolt to the group, and we worked together very well. The diversity of our writing amazes me. Judith’s story is about special ops military meeting up with techno whiz girl. Very entertaining and high on the “heat” meter. Judie wrote about the seige of Natchez during the Civil War. Her writing is poetry to read, and the storyline was super. Adrienne had a story that crosses between Single Title and chick lit about a rich girl visiting her Indiana aunt. Sort of The Devil Wears Prada meets Green Acres. Leshia’s story was a definitely hot and very modern romantic comedy. I gave them the introduction to the third Amazon book.

I received Katie’s (she’s Maureen’s right hand lady) editorial letter for The Reluctant Amazon and have been working hard on making the changes. I am evidently an oddity among writers — I really like doing edits, especially when I think they’ll make the manuscript stronger. The things Katie pointed out were insightful and will help pick up the pace in the first part of the novel.

So… If you’ll excuse me, I have a date with my laptop.

Parent/teacher conferences are over, and I can finally catch my breath.

Oh, wait. I can’t catch my breath. My silly heart still skips a quick beat when I remember that Maureen Walters is my agent. I can’t tell you all how proud I am that an agent of her caliber is taking me on. I’m really looking forward to working with her and her assistant Katie. They’ve been so helpful and so encouraging, and I feel very blessed to be their client.

I was “tagged” by Lainey, and I actually sat down to write about my six personality quirks when it dawned on me that I had already done something very similar on my blog. Looked back and found this entry that is probably more than most of you really need or want to know about me. So the tag stops here.

Working hard on the third Amazon book as I wait for editorial revisions from Maureen and edits from BookStrand. How weird am I to look forward to revisions? But I am. I feel so energized and so ready to dive headfirst into what now might be a promising writing career.

Each new day is truly an adventure.

I have never been more pleased or more proud. Yesterday, Maureen Walters of Curtis Brown, Ltd. offered to represent me.

It’s a rare occasion, but… I’m actually speechless.

I was right. The week wasn’t over.

I’m not sure if the planets were in alignment or if my chakras were balanced or if it was just plain dumb luck, but I have been given contracts for all three sequels to Murphy’s Law. BookStrand will release Free Falling, All the Right Reasons, and Faith of the Heart.

I spent most of Wednesday night crying like a baby I was so happy. The wonderful things my editor said about my writing — especially after I’d just soldiered through a very disappointing rejection — hit me on a level I didn’t know existed. I’ve always been emotional. Shoot, I write romance, remember? But when she told me my writing was “superb,” I couldn’t do anything for a few minutes except stare at the email and sob. Pathetic, ain’t it?

I’m so grateful to BookStrand, especially to my editor Diana, that I can’t even properly express myself. Bad thing for a writer. I am looking forward to everything — from the edits to writing the blurbs to knowing one day soon, I’ll be a published author.

Life doesn’t get much better than this.

This has been a wild week.

First, I found out I finaled in another contest. Faith of the Heart is a series contemporary finalist in Reveal Your Inner Vixen. I was thrilled. That story has been a finalist in every contest I’ve entered with it. That makes me very proud.

Second… even better news. Murphy’s Law has found a home at BookStrand. I’m happy to say the epub version will be released in March and the print will be out in August — my birthday month! What better present could I possibly receive?

A huge thanks to my friends and fellow writers for all the wonderful posts on my group loops and the emails I’ve received. I couldn’t survive the perilous world of publishing without all of your love and support.

And who knows what’ll happen next? The week’s not over yet.

A little more good news…

Faith of the Heart has been named as a Single Title finalist in the Lone Star Contest. I’m as pleased about this as I was with The Reluctant Amazon being a paranormal finalist in PASIC’s Book of Your Heart because both contests have the published and unpublished authors in open competition.

Maybe I can hold my own with the big girls now.

Aren’t people supposed to develop more patience as they age?

Yeah, well… I seriously doubt patience will ever be one of my virtues. Looking back on my life, I realize that my impulsiveness has gotten me into trouble on many an occasion. The worst thing ever for someone like me was the invention of email.

Back in the day (as I like to tell my history students), if you were mad, you could write a letter. Then you could put it aside and by the time you got around to mailing it, your temper would have cooled and you’d rip it up and throw it away. But no… Email allows you to pour out anger and frustration and instantly make a fool of yourself by hitting that “send” button. And there’s no “oops, I want that back” button to save your fanny. It’s not like I have done anything to embarrass myself. At least not recently. Just a general observation.

In my case, my impatience leads to frustration. That frustration leads me to compulsively reading the emails from an agent I desperately want to want me and an editor who has her hands on my story. Every word drips with potential and possibilities. I read and reread, hoping to see some hidden meaning between the lines. Geesh, I need to stop doing that. It’s like putting my hopes and dreams on a rollercoaster.

So I will try to practice a little of that wonderous yet elusive patience. Publishing is not a “now” game. Never has been; never will be. Even in the age of electronic submissions and instant email. And I’m stubborn enough that I’m in this for the long haul, so I better learn to cope. I have one book coming out. Those of you who know me well will quickly realize that isn’t enough to please me. I want more. Much, much more. I want a writing career.

I just need to stay out of my own way.

It was really crappy of Elvis to die on my birthday.

Of course, it’s been thirty-one years. You’d think that reporters would be past the King’s death by now. I actually made it all the way to dinner this year without hearing about it. Maybe by the time I’m fifty, Elvis dying will only be a blip in the This Date in History blurb on the second page of the Indy Star.

We don’t have any big plans for my thirty-fifteenth. Jeff took me to The Cheesecake Factory. Let’s face it. The James household is party central. The best part of the day was turning on the television and finding The Phantom of the Opera on Oxygen.

So, if you’ll excuse me. Gerard is waiting.