With Great Thanks and Appreciation

Christmas is less than 50 days away. Thanksgiving, I can tell you exactly, is 21 days away. Spring is many, many days away.

But let’s look backward for a bit. To 2008, and you know what happened about this time of year, if you read my blog post a few days ago. So, if I were to thank anyone at all for my latest book being written and published, it would have to be my kids, Nick and Val. I am as proud of them as any mother could possibly be. How they turned out as good as they did when I think of what I put them through when they were at such tender ages. They are both amazing adults now and I take no credit.

Move forward to the spring of 2010. I still have to thank my co-worker and neighbor, Ron, for talking me into going to a writer’s conference, which inspired me to go to my first Green Lake Christian Writers Conference. You may recall how I can trace the roots of my first book to that conference, but what about my second book.

At that first writers conference, I met an author by the name of Marshall Cook. He has written many mystery novels as well as “How to Write with the Skill of a Master and the Genius of a Child”, which I won in a contest during the talk he gave. In addition to that inspiring talk, he offered personal critique sessions. Because this was my first conference, I was too green to think I could send in my work to be critiqued and then actually meet with an actual writer to discuss it. The first day, though, when it was announced that Mr. Cook still had appointment times available, I decided, why not? And signed up.

The material I shared with Mr. Cook was the very rough draft of “The Christmas Story in 40 Days”. He made some helpful suggestions, but overall thought that the concept was great and that I should be able to find a suitable publisher.

Flash forward three years and seven rejections.

Jeremiah Zieset, with Life Sentence Publisher – my publisher – was getting on the elevator to head home. I never take the elevator – I am claustrophobic and a control-freak. I can’t tolerate the speed of a mechanical device dictating how long it will take to go from one floor to another. The voice in my head told me that I better just get on the elevator anyway.

He asked if I had any other books in the works which they could publish for me. I gave him the “elevator speech”. As we stepped off at our floor, he said he would love to read the book. We talked some more and I promised I would email the manuscript in the next few days. You know what happened after that. I can’t thank Jeremiah enough for once again having so much faith in me and my random words.

Then there are all the people on his team, people I have yet to meet. Amber Burger who once again came up with an outstanding cover design. Laura L. Paulson who edited the first draft and caught all of my amateur writing mistakes. Sheila Wilkinson, who edited my first book, did the final proofread on this one. She continues to be one my most dedicated Facebook supporters.

And final the greatest thanks of all goes to the technical person who put my pictures, words and some music I downloaded off the internet into this beautiful video of my first book. 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5TEuaoViua8

I thank you all for letting me accomplish my dreams. And praise God for standing by us all.