I wanted to let you all know that I had some huge news a few weeks ago. I got THE CALL!!

For those of you who don’t know, THE CALL is when a writer like me, who’s been working on my writing for many years and has been submitting to agents and publishers (as well as self-publishing), finally gets notified in some way, either through an editor or the writers’ agent, that they’ve sold their first manuscript to a publisher. This is definitely a Squee!-worthy moment. šŸ˜€

In the writing world, we call the events surrounding thisā€”THE CALL STORYā€”and I finally have mine!!

As some of you may know, Sourcebooks has a program on Wattpad where you can tag your manuscript submit2sourcebooks and it goes directly to an editor. It almost feels like a secret back door into the Sourcebooks clubhouse because not many people know about it, and it doesnā€™t feel like youā€™re going through ā€œofficial channelsā€. You donā€™t have to write and submit a query letter, blurb, synopsis, or partial manuscript, and there arenā€™t any e-forms to fill outā€”nothing. If your manuscript is complete and already on Wattpad, all it takes is about thirty seconds to tag it correctly.

I had a pretty quick response from Sourcebooks saying my book, The Sons Of Gregor MacLeod, a historical romance set in the Highlands, was under review and theyā€™d get back to me in 2 ā€“ 3 weeks, which is REALLY fast in publishing terms. In the end, it took longer than three weeks, but I thought that was probably good news because maybe the manuscript had been kicked up the ladder.

I donā€™t know exactly how long it took the editor, Cat Clyne, to get back to me because honestly, Iā€¦umā€¦forgot about it. I was a Golden Heart finalist at the time, and I was super busy with that, plus Iā€™d self-published two short contemporary romances called The Fabrizio Bride, and its sequel The Dā€™amici Mistake, and I had recently done a MAJOR revision on the beginning of The Fabrizio Bride despite the fact that it had already been published for a while (yay for self-publishing!).

So when I received Catā€™s enthusiastic message on Wattpad about my manuscript, I was thrilled! Unfortunately all I could read was the first few lines of the message on my phone and my laptop was deadā€”yup, that happenedā€”and I had to run out the door to get my kids to preschool, so I couldnā€™t even wait for the laptop to power up. DOH!

Needless to say, I now have apps on my phone for most of my social media and email. šŸ˜›

After rushing back home, I finished reading Catā€™s lovely email, in which she praised my book and the series potential/hook (five foster brothers), sent me her direct email and asked me for more information on the series and myself, plus the full manuscript. I didnā€™t have time to do all that right away, so I just sent a note saying I was interested and would send the material ASAP. She got back to me asking to meet for coffee at RWAā€™s National conference, which I was attending in a few weeks for the Golden Heart awards.

Slow lizard blink, umā€¦YES!

I sent her the material sheā€™d requested plus a note about the revisions I had planned for the book. Unfortunately, it was now the weekend, and I had to wait. But by the time I woke up Monday morning (west coast time), Cat had responded with another email, calling my book ā€˜Highlander catnipā€™ and asking if I wanted to set up a phone meeting to go over my planned revisions.

This is when the clouds opened up, sunlight poured down, and the Heavens sang.

Iā€™d been close to a sale several times with my writing in the 27 years since I wrote my first romance. Iā€™d been agented twice for both novels and screenplays, Iā€™d won or placed in several big writing contests, even winning $1000 in one contest, Iā€™d worked with editors, agents, and producers on several different projects, and Iā€™d been paid to revise other peopleā€™s work, but thisā€”a revision meeting with an editor at a good publishing house on a manuscript/series Iā€™d started almost ten years ago that was so near and dear to my heartā€”felt different. I thought, maybe I could finish the revisions in time for Nationals, and Cat would offer for my book after that.

I prepared for my phone meeting by writing up a revision plan and sending it to Cat ahead of time, arranging for my kids to be out of the house, and telling my fellow Golden Heart nominees about my progressā€”to resounding cheers and support! One nominee in particular (waving at Diane!) said maybe Cat would offer on the book during the phone callā€”she wouldnā€™t go to all the trouble if she wasnā€™t really keen.

I laughed, thinking wouldnā€™t that be nice, but then totally dismissed it. I was having a revision meeting. Iā€™d impress my potential editor with my professionalism and insight, and Iā€™d show her I could take notes and work with someone else to make a better book.

The day came, the kids vacated the house, I printed off multiple copies of my notes, got a fresh notepad, and tested several different pens to take notes with during the callā€”and I spread them all out perfectly on my dining room table. Being a theatre grad, I even did a few voice warm-up exercises, so Iā€™d speak more clearly.

The phone rang, and all that was promptly forgotten as I chatted with Cat (who may be the nicest person in the world!). When it came to talking about the revisions, I did most of the talking until she said something along the lines of: Actually, Iā€™m prepared to offer on all five books in the series. I stopped talking. I no longer had any words in my head.

I couldnā€™t have been more shocked. And I was excited, yes, but really just so damn stunned. Then I tried to be all cool (ā€™cause selling your first book happens every day) and not emotionally vomit all over my new editor. Oooh, and didnā€™t that sound amazingā€”MY EDITOR!!

Yup, here came the emotional vomiting, although by then I think weā€™d finished the call and hung up. Now there was fist pumping and spasmodic happy dancingā€”and no one to share it with. I called my husband and got his voice mail, my dad was out of town, the kids were gone. Thank goodness my writing bestie picked up or I may have imploded. I HAVE A FIVE BOOK DEAL FROM SOUCEBOOKS!!

I talked to her for almost an hour, walking around my house because I couldnā€™t sit still, mind reeling, occasional spurts of tears. Finally my hubby called, the kids came home. I emailed my dad, Skyped overseas friends, and announced to fellow Golden Heart nominees and my local writing chapter that Iā€™d SOLD!

Still, it didnā€™t seem real. It seemed more real when I got my agent Kevan Lyon, met with Cat at the RWA National convention, went to the Sourcebooksā€™ author dinner, and had to give my agent due dates for the rest of the books, including the due date for the first book, which I was still revising.

But you know when it became really real? One week ago when I hit send at 5:30 in the morning and sent Cat my first book.

Yup. Shite just got real (it is a Scottish historical, what did you expect?). Now onto book two. šŸ˜€

The Sons of Gregor MacLeodā€”a five book Highlander historical romance series, coming out the Fall of 2017 by Alyson McLayne.