In Answer To Your Question

Several of you, and by several, I mean at least three of you, have asked similar questions regarding my publishing contract, my book, and my overall level of sanity. It’s been a while since I’ve posted a blog, so I figured I’d address some of those questions here. (Except for maybe the sanity bit.)

Have you written the book yet?

Yes. That’s why I have a contract.

I’ll admit, this question surprised me. Especially since so many of you (again, three) have asked it. But then I realized other than sharing some blog posts from time to time that ramble about a whole manner of topics—like maple syrup disease, my father’s love for his cat, and my inability to shake people’s hands normally—I’ve never shared much about the actual books I’m writing. 

So below is a brief(ish) recap for all of you (which I’m assuming is down to two at this point) who are interested in learning about those books. 

Around five years ago, I got hit with the overwhelming urge to write a novel. So, I did. And it was a complete disaster—a romantic suspense story set in Montana that read more like a romantic comedy despite the psychotic serial killer and crusty sheriff who appeared halfway into the story when I started watching Longmire and decided my story needed a psychotic serial killer and crusty sheriff. 

Like I said, complete disaster. 

But I loved it. 

I had a blast creating my own story and wanted to do it again. Only better. So I buckled down on studying the craft of writing. I read books about writing. Followed blogs about writing. Listened to podcasts about writing. Joined groups about writing. Most importantly, I kept writing.

My second story, a romantic comedy set in a small fictitious Illinois town about two young strangers sharing a house together under the same wrong impression that their housemate is elderly, turned out much better—except for one major hiccup. The story had zero suspense. Which is a problem when you think you want to write romantic suspense. And at the time, that’s exactly what I thought. 

So, I set the story aside and started working on the next book, determined to make it a romantic suspense. And for the first five pages, I succeeded. It was somewhere in the next two hundred plus pages that I lost control and ended up with another romantic suspense story that sounded a lot like a romantic comedy.

You’d think at that point I would have started to get a clue that maaaaaybe romantic suspense wasn’t my forte.

But no. I did not get a clue. 

I entered this story into a contest for unpublished writers under the romantic suspense category. And I won. See? It wasn’t my fault I kept thinking I should write romantic suspense. Six judges heartily agreed. Of course, those judges had only read the first five pages, so . . .

Still under the illusion I was meant to write romantic suspense, I entered this story into another contest, hoping to catch the eye of an agent or editor this time. And I did.

But not in the manner I thought I would.

You see, as much as I thought I wanted to be a romantic suspense writer, there was a part of me that simply adored that little romcom story I wrote about the young strangers swapping notes back and forth under the same roof, never realizing they kept bumping into each other around town. I’d go back and tinker with it from time to time, not sure what I’d eventually do with it, but unable to let it go either. 

It was this story that caught the attention of an editor in the contest. I’d entered it as almost an afterthought, figuring it was an inexpensive way to get some feedback on my writing. I never expected it to make it into the second round, let alone win the contest. 

It was this story that led me to my agent and then, a year and half later, my first publishing contract. It’s this story that will release (if the world doesn’t end before then) as my debut novel in early 2023.

Hopefully that answers some of the questions you (pretty sure we’re down to one person now) had about my books. Turns out I’m a romantic comedy writer. Who knew? (Everyone. Everyone knew, but me.)

Any other questions? Send them my way, and I’ll be glad to answer them in a future blog post.