Katie’s Choice has launched and it’s time now to view the incredibly awesome cover for the third installment in the Clover Ridge Series. Here it is…Gabriel’s Bride
Personally, I LOVE it! (But green is one of my favorite colors). Weigh in…what do you think?
Every published author has a story to tell about when they first got the call that they were signing with their agent or publishing house. I wish I could tell you this fabulous story about getting the call from Mary Sue Seymour of The Seymour Agency and it being so totally unexpected that it took my breath away. But that’s not how it happened.
Actually, it went a little something like this…
I had sent out 16 (yes, 1-6) query letters to agents. I had decided that if I was going to get anywhere in the writing business, I needed an agent on my side. And I was determined to find an agent. Thankfully I did, and one of the the best. (Waves to Mary Sue).
But as with most transactions in the writing world, there was a lot of “hurry up and wait” that went on. I sent her my query. I got a letter back saying she would like a partial. I sent her a partial. I got a letter back saying she wanted to see the complete. Squeee…I sent it out. And I waited.
Now, I have to tell you that every time I’ve gotten back my manuscript over the years, it has never been good. Nev-ver. So when I got home and saw a big fat envelope-package waiting for me, my heart sank. I didn’t even have to read the return address to know who it was from. I trudged up the stairs to the mail box and pulled it out, telling myself for the millionth time in my days of trying to publish that one more rejection wasn’t going to break me. I wasn’t all that disappointed. (I was crushed, but I wasn’t going to admit it).
I didn’t even open it. I didn’t want to read what she said. If it was anything like my previous letters it would say how my writing was good, but it needed “more”. More what I hadn’t figured out and it was looking like I never would. I sat the package on the dinning room table and walked away.
My son, at the time young enough to covet any unclaimed mail, asked me if I was going to open it. I shrugged. Did I really need to be told again that my characters were lovable and sympathetic but…
“Can I open it?” he asked.
“Sure,” I said, with another half-hearted shrug.
Let me just say that I am so glad I had a young reader! And to think that I had almost shoved it in the filing cabinet without even seeing what Mary Sue had to say.
Not a breath taking moment, but momentous all the same.
Want to read about how other authors received their “call.”? Check out our The Call Blog Hop. Details and a full list of participants are available here: http://www.tonyakuper.blogspot.com/ Be sure to check it out, there are several giveaways along the hop.
My giveaway? A copy of Saving Gideon and a Bag of Swag. To be entered all you have to do is answer this question: Have you ever thrown away an important piece of mail? Or maybe shoved it in a drawer, unopened and forgotten?
Be sure to check my Facebook fan page more ways to increase your chances to win. The winner will be contacted after Friday and so everyone knows, This giveaway is in no way sponsored, endorsed or administered by, or associated with, Facebook.
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Amy-Lillard-Author/177732292332322?ref=hl
Good luck!
‘Tis the season for giving and I’m giving away books! Just in time for Christmas I’m running a contest. The ‘rules’ are pretty simple. All you have to do is leave me a comment here (on this post) or on FaceBook (Amy Lillard ~ Author) and tell me the name of a friend that you would like to win a copy of Saving Gideon. On December the 18th I’ll draw one of the names that were submitted. If your friend wins, I’ll send you *both* an autographed copy of Saving Gideon. And just in time for the holidays! Your friend can be your sister, your grandmother, your niece or just the lady down the street. That’s up to you to decide.
I know you may have seen it before, but never quite like this. (Okay, I’m being dramatic, but we did make a few changes. Maybe I should post them side by side and let you see the differences like those puzzles in the Highlights magazine. LOL)
Just received word that Saving Gideon received 4 stars from RT Reviews!!! Here’s a quote:“A sweet love story with characters who are grieving for different reasons but are brought together by chance and, in the process, help each other get over their pain and deepen their faith in themselves and God. Amy Lillard is a wonderful writer and honors the Amish and their faith with her novels.” RT Book Reviews
Maybe I should have called this the publishing process. So many times I’m asked “How long did it take you to write this book?” Well, I have to tell you that the answer isn’t cut and dried.
I started Saving Gideon in October of 2010. I wrote the series idea, a working synopsis, and a submission synopsis. I wrote the first 50 pages and sent it to my agent. July of the next year (that would make it 2011) We had a publishing house very interested. My agent said it was time to finish the book. So I did, but it topped out at only 65 thousand words. I wasn’t worried. Until I got the contract in mid-September and the publishing house wanted the novel to be at least 80K. I had a little over two weeks to write 15 thousand words. At the time I was working a full time job (44+ hours a week). YIKES!
By some miracle I finished the book, got it to word count and submitted on time. Yay, me!
Then the marketing pages arrived. The forms I had to fill out with pertinent information so that the cover artist could create a realistic and accurate cover. The first pass at a back cover blurb. The discussion questions for the book and interviews.
And then there’s the little matter of the next book in the series. I start it and the ‘macro-edits’ arrive.
Macro edits–the first time I saw that phrase my heart hit the floor. Macro means big, right? Big changes. Holy cow. What had I gotten myself into?
Whew! They weren’t as bad as I thought. I had a month to get them ready and sent in. I made it with days to spare.
And I was finally done, right? Nope. Next came line edits. Line edits are hard. even harder than macro edits. Why? Because line edits are proof that every word I’ve written is not golden. It’s the stuff that tears down a writer’s fragile ego and makes us second guess any talent that we may have. It’s hard to see through the changes and know that the book is going to be better for the effort. All I can see is the many marks of “track changes blue”. Anyone who is a veteran of the line edit knows how tough this time is. But it’s almost over. A polished diamond of a book is almost ready.
Almost.
Almost? How much more can there be? There’s the copy edits. Then the final read, the author’s last chance to make any changes to the manuscript before it goes to the printer.
And I take a deep breath. I sent this last batch of changes in last month. That’s July 2012.
So did it take me two years to write Saving Gideon? Not really. But I worked on it for two years. All the while, working on the second book in the series.
I’m through the line edits with Katie’s Choice. And soon I’ll begin writing text for Gabriel’s Bride. I’m sure while I’m working on Gabriel, I’ll be working on Katie as well. And such is the writing process.
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