A Publishing Journey: Holy $hit...I got offered a publishing contract!

It's. Happening. I stared at my email and there it was... a response from Fiery Seas Publishing offering to publish my novel. The week before I sent them my novel, and now they are offering to take me on as an author and publish my manuscript. I'm going to be an author. (Insert squealing here.)

It was a typical fall morning. My father-in-law was over helping to mow the yard. He took a break from lawn-mowing and was chatting with me through the screen porch like we did most days. It's a bit of a ritual we have and something I have come to look forward to when I hear him start up the mower. I wait until he comes ambling around the back of the house and I hop outside and greet him on the porch. We chat about all sorts of non-sense. I love hearing his old stories and all about what's happening in his life. It was on one of these days that I was chatting with him when my phone beeped. I had a new email. I opened it up and saw the message from Fiery Seas waiting for me. My heart stopped momentarily while I touched the screen with my finger and clicked it open. The words "I'm thrilled to offer you a contract..." flashed before my eyes as I struggled to process them.

"What's wrong?" he asked immediately. As a retired police officer he could tell instantly something had changed. I'm sure the color had drained from my face while I stared dumbfounded at my phone. Emotions flooded over me. First excitement, then panic, then excitement again, then some more panic. I kept reading the words over and over again. They were offering me a publishing contract.

"Are you OK?" he asked again.

"Holy shit, Dad!" I finally sputtered out. "I've got a publishing deal!"

"No shit?" he asked as he stepped closer to the porch, peering into the screen.

"No shit. They are offering to publish my book."

There I was, standing in my pink, fuzzy robe and grey slippers staring at my iPhone with my father-in-law trying to process this life-changing information. We were quiet for a few more moments before I let the excitement win the battle.

"Dad! They are publishing my book! Holy shit!" I started jumping up and down hoisting my phone over my head like a well-earned trophy.

"Holy shit!"

We might have continued several more loops of 'holy shit' before more appropriate words found their way into the conversation. My dog, Walter, came tearing around the corner to see what all the excitement was about. He started hopping up and down with me as I danced around the porch while my father-in-law laughed down below. It was happening... my book was going to be published!

After alerting the rest of my family I decided to keep this little bit of information to myself until I had a chance to have my contract vetted to make sure it was a good deal for me. It's been two weeks since I received the offer and I am excited to type that as of twenty minutes ago I signed the contract. This next step to becoming a published romance author is almost complete. The contract heads back to Fiery Seas and then I await their experienced hands to guide me in the next direction.

They will have their editor make the necessary changes to my manuscript to get it publishing ready. Then a cover designer will get to work while they get it formatted and polished for release. Finally, they will give it a snappy title and we're off! I'll get cracking on getting my social media started and telling everyone I know that this small-town girl is about to see her very first book published.

Stay tuned as we go on this crazy adventure from manuscript to published novel! I'm so excited to start this journey!

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