Great Things to Come

Drowning in anticipation. 

UPDATE: At 4:12 p.m. in my time zone, I had Kindle Press's decision. Awash in Talent is going to be published by Kindle Press! I'm in very pleasant shock. Thank you all so much to all of Awash in Talent's supporters. I hope to personally thank those of you I'm already in contact with; if we aren't already corresponding, drop me a line. Yippee!

As of this writing, I haven't had word as to whether or not Awash in Talent will be published by Kindle Press as a result of its Kindle Scout campaign. As I wrote last week, there were a lot of unexpected elements about this experience, moments in which to learn important lessons. The last unexpected aspect has been that it would take more than a few days to be handed a decision.

Of course I'm searching for meaning in the silence. For example, I know an author who was published by Kindle Press with statistics of being Hot & Trending almost half the duration of his Kindle Scout campaign. On the other hand, we have this author's campaign, in which she was Hot & Trending 98% of the time and was still not picked up. Maybe there's something to the idea that only authors who are already popular can get this contract. (What's the point of attracting those of us who haven't yet found the success we desire, then?)

My husband says the silence is a good sign. It takes time to decide to publish a great book. Maybe right at this moment, the editors are sitting around a conference table, and one of them is saying, "I love Awash in Talent. We should publish it, and no one here is going to stop me." I would be excited to know I had at least one editor on my side! This scenario is based on the editorial meetings we used to have at Fireship Press. I usually got the book in question pushed through, with the notable exception of one of my favorite novels of all time, The Fiery Alphabet. I had to wait until I worked with Loose Leaves, where its literary quality wasn't a liability, to make that editorial dream come true. (Fireship Press is under new management now.)

Like other waiting periods in a writer's life, this one is full of guesswork and the impossibility of processing one's delicate writer emotions or making alternative plans because without word of what's happening, we don't know which emotions to have or plans to make yet. Writers' lives are full of this kind of blank space. No wonder we so often go crazy!

I've let everyone know what I want out of my Kindle Scout campaign. I've done everything in my power, and so have many of you, who nominated Awash in Talent. It's out of our hands now. (Breathe.)

In other news:

The posts about Awash in Talent's Kindle Scout campaign were so popular that my humble blog surpassed 100,000 lifetime views. It's a thrilling milestone, and I plan to celebrate it, albeit belatedly, in April.

Next weekend is the Tucson Festival of Books, the Christmas for all Southwest book lovers. If you're in the area, see you there! I'll be recovering for a while, but will share all the fun Monday, March 21, and on Wednesday, March 16, I have a treat lined up for you with Unusual Historicals. Be sure to check back.