Christmas Blessings
Dear friends,
It’s been a while since I’ve posted on here and it’s only because of one thing – I have been working like crazy to get the manuscript to an editor because – are you ready for this??? I have a publisher!!!
It’s true! I got an email from a publisher – it may have even been spam!! – inviting me to send in a query package. I read through it and realized that this was not a self-publisher and I liked the in-depth questionnaire and its emphasis on marketing with a clear program of what I would be expected to do and what help they would provide. There was no upfront outlay of my funds required and it all just felt good after I had filled out their forms. They said I should hear something in 6-8 weeks and if I hadn’t heard by then to assume that they thought I’d be a better fit with another publisher. (Isn’t that a sweet way to put a rejection?)
So I sent off a prayer and clicked send on the email with its precious cargo. Four days later I got a phone call from one of their representatives asking me if I was serious about publishing my book and how close it was to being finished. I almost fell out of my chair! Four days – not four weeks! And there was no “well, maybe we’d be interested” or “we’re considering this” – the guy told me if I was willing to move forward, it was just about a done deal. They still have final refusal if they decide they don’t like the final manuscript but this guy told me that his boss had never done an over-ride on one of his choices – except for one Dr. Jekyll/Mr Hyde character that turned into the alter ego when he talked to the boss and he didn’t like him.
I told him – don’t worry – what you see now is what he and everyone else will ever get – I am the real thing and I don’t play. He liked that and I liked him – when we hung up, he told me that his job now was to cajole, push, prod, bully, encourage, and basically do whatever it took to keep me motivated and my only job is to get a completed manuscript to him as soon as possible.
That’s where I’ve been for the past few months – I was working on it at the time but had to ratchet it up a few notches as I found several parts at the end that weren’t anywhere near complete – a fact that had completely slipped my mind. I called my editor who has evaluated the first part of the book, absolutely loves it, and was waiting for me to call back. She said she would have the time to do the edit if I could get it to her within the next week because her family was coming for Christmas and they had already laid down the law about her needing a vacation. So I wrote like mad and I made it.
She has it and will have it ready in a week so I can do the final changes and get it to the publisher, hopefully by the 2nd week in January. I can hardly believe this is happening – this has been my dream for so long that I keep pinching myself to see if I’m still dreaming! Well, it hurts when I do that so I’m not dreaming!
My big job now while I’m waiting for the edited manuscript is to put together a marketing plan that has to be submitted with the manuscript – once they approve everything, we sign the contract and they say the book will be printed immediately and guess what then??? You get to buy it! And tell all your friends to buy it!! And tell all your enemies to buy it – heck just tell anybody anywhere – that’s what I need – the proverbial and never-failing word-of-mouth promotion program.
I have to say – I am so grateful to all of you who have weighed in here and those who have emailed me and to all my family and friends – your encouragement and kind words have kept me going and going and going . . .I really do feel like the Energizer Bunny of the Computer Keyboard – I just type and type and type and type – well you get the picture.
So, you must be wondering about the Christmas Blessings, which is the title of this blog. So, here’s my thing about blessings – they are gifts and they can come from anywhere. Here are my Christmas Blessings:
1. I am blessed by the gift from the God of the Universe who loved me enough to give me the wondrous gift of being able to communicate my feelings and beliefs through simple words.
2. I am blessed by the gift from the God of the Universe who loved me (and all of you) enough to give me a Savior, who in turn loved me enough to hang on a cross, suffer, and die for me.
3. I am blessed by the opportunity to stop and celebrate the birth of my Savior with all my faith singing loud and clear “Joy to the World, the Lord is come!”
4. I am blessed by the opportunity to stop and celebrate this sacred moment within the love of my family and friends, and I am particularly blessed that my son and family are staying home this year!
5. I am blessed by all who believe in me and are genuinely happy that I have finally finished this labor of love.
4. I am blessed by the stupendous gift of an editor who loves my book and a publisher who is excited about getting my book out into the world where everybody else who will love my book will buy it!
5. I am blessed by something that feels like a combination of courage, insanity, confidence, cockeyed optimism, and a whole lot of faith. This blessing has resulted in my resignation from the “day job” at AAA, where I had become increasingly unhappy and stressed out and has me in front of my computer at home full-time. I am waiting for all the blessings that I know will be coming from my websites and freelance writing jobs!!
6. My blessing for you all is that God will continue to shower blessings on you as we approach the Christmas season and start a new year. May you enjoy all the blessings of the season with your family and friends.
So keep watching – very soon you’ll be getting the big Publication Announcement and you’ll be able to tell everybody – I have this friend who wrote a book . . . .
Merry Christmas to you all and may the year to come be filled with blessings from everybody and everywhere, but especially from our loving and generous God.
Susan+
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As you can tell, Susan Bowman, the “LadyFather” has written a book on her experiences in the ordained ministry. Aptly named “Lady Father,” it is now available for purchase on Amazon.com. Register below to receive her newsletter and important emails and don’t forget to check out Susan’s Facebook page at http://facebook.com/ladyfather.
