This is a tad late. I think it's maybe because I thought I was dreaming? I'm not sure. If I am, this is a super long dream and I work too much ;)
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| This is me, pointing to my signature |
So. A few months ago, I signed with Jordy Albert for Monster Whisperer, my picture book I wrote for my two littlests, so they wouldn't be afraid of the dark. Here's my story:
Before I got my agent, I had
published thirteen novels through a small publisher and self-publishing.
Monster Whisperer was something different though. It was a picture book, and I
had no idea how to do that on my own. So I started querying and entering contests,
not with a lot of hope, because I had queried my debut novel, Feudlings, for a
year with many, many rejections before my publisher, Clean Reads, found me. But
the contests were fun, and I liked to meet other authors who were in the
trenches with me.
I entered the Twitter Pitmad
contest, where you try to describe your book in less than 140 characters, and
make it interesting enough to catch attention. Somehow, miracle of miracles, I
caught Jordy’s eye, and she asked to see it. Since it’s barely 1,000
words, I sent the whole thing. And then…I
waited. While I waited, I continued to query and work on other projects to save
my sanity. A month later, she sent me an
email asking if I was still seeking representation.
I may have squealed. A lot.
Then I wrote her back and said yes,
yes I was, and I think I used a lot of exclamation points. We set up a time to
chat on the phone, and then I waited some more. Unfortunately, I am TERRIFIED
of the phone. My adorable husband came home from work so he could offer moral
support during the call, and I paced back and forth and back and forth, like, a
gazillion times through my kitchen. Honestly, I can’t remember much of what we
talked about. I had researched questions to ask ahead of time, and things to
think about and things to watch out for, but I didn’t remember anything.
I do remember, though, how nice she
was. We had similar interests and I told
her the story of Monster Whisperer, which was based on my two little ones and
their fear of the monsters in the dark. She then said she had to talk to her
partner about representing me, and she would send a contract. In celebration, I
bought thigh-high pink boots.
So there it is. How I got my agent.
And she is awesome!
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| My pink boots. I still haven't found anything to wear them with yet |
