A New Gig

Today I signed another agreement - to be an editorial intern for Entangled Publishing. They're a new company with an innovative revenue model that has resulted in skyrocketing growth. Recently they signed a worldwide distribution agreement with Macmillan.

I've wanted to be an editor since I was a kid. That's odd, isn't it? Most girls back then wanted to be ballerinas or nurses or teachers. But I adored books, a love sparked by the library in Readfield, Maine, an ancient Colonial house crammed with dusty books. From then on, I was a voracious reader. I devoured every single Nancy Drew--and all the Hardy Boys. Fairy tales, adventure, 1950s sci fi, mysteries, historical sagas...anything I could get my hands on.

It seemed like a dream job to work with actually producing the books.  Still does. Recent experience mentoring three writers for PitchWars, an online agent contest, sparked that interest again. It was pure fun reading their work and providing feedback they said helped them improve their books.

When I saw that Entangled had an editor, Rochelle French, interested in cozy mysteries, I knew it was a match. I not only write them, they are one of my favorite genres. Along with dark and suspenseful, but hey, I have eclectic tastes in both reading and writing. 

This is another step toward the career I want to live--immersed in books and screenplays and creative projects. Along the way, I hope to help other aspiring authors see their books in print!

Signed for Creative Woman Series!

Today I received a very exciting piece of mail--a contract to write a cozy mystery for the Creative Woman Series. This series, featuring a Scottish craft store owner and set in Oregon, is published by Annie's as part of their book club. Their marketing concept is really cool. As a direct mail seller of craft supplies, they have created several mystery series of interest to their target audiences. The books are not sold in book stores or to libraries.

Annie's will be publishing the book with my name, unlike other series publishers. Nancy Drew, for example, was actually written by several writers but all books were published under the fictional name, Carolyn Keene.

I look forward to seeing my original books in print but in the meantime, I'm going to enjoy writing Book 12, untitled for now. The first step was writing an outline, something I never do, and it was actually fun.