The "Email"

After 13 years of writing, I finally got the email on May 10th of this year. And let me tell you, it was the best mother's day gift ever!

Lill Farrell from The Wild Rose Press sent me an email to let me know that my request for contract on my paranormal romance, OUT OF THE DARKNESS, had been accepted for publication!

After so many years of writing, one would think that I would have been thrilled, but I'm holding off on the happy dance because I've been this close to publication before and if fell through. Still, I am very optimistic and smiling widely.

In late 2006 I went through two rounds of revisions for Out of the Darkness (then called something else) with an editor from a well-known New York publisher, but before any contracts were signed, the editor moved to a different line and the editor who took her place requested different changes to the story. By the time I made those changes (which were totally different from the changes requested by the first editor) the second editor "just wasn't in love with the story" and she asked if I could send her something else.

Well, I'm not the world's fastest writer. I have a day job as a radiologic technologist/mammographer that actually pays the bills, so I didn't have anything new to send her. And time passed and I moved on.

Then in 2008, I sent my manuscript to The Wild Rose Press because my critique partner, Regency and mystery writer, Amy Corwin (http://www.amycorwin.com/) had had some success with TWRP and suggested I send my manuscript to them. And so I did. And I waited.

And my luck being what it is, the editor I sent it to at TWRP left. But then I was asked to send manuscript to another editor in November 2008 and I got a positive answer in May, faster than I had ever heard from other publishers. Wow!

I've already signed the contracts and filled out numerous forms: manuscript information sheets, author information sheets, and a marketing form and now I'm just waiting for my first edits to arrive so I can get started making Out of the Darkness into the version that will get published in both e-format and print.

I've also set up a myspace page at www.myspace.com/lillygayle and have contracted agwdesigns at http://www.agwdesigns.com/ to design my web page. When the page is completed, the web address will be http://www.lillygayle.com/, so check that site often to see when it's up and running! I can't wait to see it.

And I can't wait to see my book in print!

Until then, I'll post updates on what happens when a new author finally gets a contract. I really don't know what I'm doing, but I'm willing to learn on the job!

And I'll keep you posted on my progress!