Great News!

This is so amazing.

My computer is broken. The motherboard is fried and I am having a real time getting online to do any work. Meanwhile, the new blog-story-experiment I have been writing and lots of people really seem to like, storyunfolding.net, is almost finished with its first short-story, but I cannot get online to write with my computer down. (I am at the library right now.)

Yesterday night, I logged onto my email with my old laptop. The battery holds just enough energy to keep the monitor on so that I can jiggle the cord when the power-supply blinks out. It is an exercise in frustration, for the most part, but I did manage to collect my email in bed last night pretty late and you will NEVER GUESS the email I got yesterday!

Back in 2009, I wrote my first book. The Disposable Noble Wife (available on Amazon.com) was finished near the end of the year and I posted it up as a print on demand because, as a new author, I could not find an in-house publisher for it. I then spent a few dollars to enter my book into Amazon.com's Reader's Favorite Reviews.  Early in 2010, I found a book agent. The agent put my title in their database after I spent some some MORE money on a professional review. The review was not terribly positive and I got no bites from publishers, but I got some small positive feedback from Facebook friends who suffered themselves to read my manuscript. (Thanks, all.) So I still had hope that the book might be kind of good... maybe.

Fall of 2010, I received an email that my Reader's Favorite review was finished. Excitedly, I checked it out. I got FIVE STARS. I was very excited and truly tickled, but the email said nothing about going on to the next level, so I figured I was done. There are tons of other applicants and this was my first-ever writing. I didn't even have any editing done to it because I am strapped for financial resources. In addition, I have virtually no sales of the title on Amazon.com and the book was turned down by SIX publishing houses that my agent sent manuscripts to, so I concluded that my book must not be VERY good because nobody wanted to read it and I went about my merry way -- writing a second book, starting this blog, beginning my cool storyunfolding.net blog/story-in-progress, making and distributing bookmarks, teasing my daughter about being famous, etc.

Last night's email contained two messages from Reader's Favorite. It turns out there were so many entries they had to extend their submissions deadline by a couple of weeks. Guess what?

I AM A SEMI-FINALIST FOR THE 2011 AWARDS.

The finalists will be announced on August 1st. Keep your fingers crossed for me! :-D