The voice on the phone

When I first started sending out manuscripts in the hopes of selling one, I ran to the mailbox eagerly each day. Okay, I was about twelve, but I think at any age a writer nurtures dreams and fantasies of that wonderful letter of acceptance.

Well, as a beginner, I did receive a few. A small essay published in the readers’ section of a teen magazine. A poem here. A book review there.

But as I grew up, I discovered that mostly what comes in the mail are rejections. Although I’ve sold 80 books over the past 25 years, my rejections are probably (no exaggeration) ten times that many. I could paper my two-story house if I’d saved them all.

Creative people are really good at finding ways to torture ourselves. (Maybe my story is totally off-base … I didn’t put in enough sexual tension …it can’t possibly compare to all those wonderful books I see at the store.) Rejection hurts because it makes us doubt ourselves. And that gets old fast.

What never gets old is the voice of an editor on the phone saying, “I love your book. I want to buy it.”

There are variations, especially in an ongoing editor-author relationship. Sometimes it’s more along the lines of, “It’s a go. Now for the revisions…” Or, “This works fine. But about those contract terms…”

But buried inside is the happy news. There’s going to be a beautiful book – or two or three -- with your name on it.

I’m pleased to report that last week I once again heard a voice on the phone. For Harlequin American, my editor bought a trilogy about a group of neighbors who could give Desperate Housewives a run for their money. It’s going to be fun to write and, I hope, fun to read when it comes out in 2008.

I’ve earned another chance to touch readers’ hearts. What more could an author ask?