I’ve always loved to tell stories. From songs and short stories as a kid to novels later in life, words have always held an importance to me unlike most anything else. I revel in crafting an interesting tale, then watching for my audiences’ reaction. Even my day job is in marketing and communications and my top StrengthsFinder strength is Communication.
As an author, we’re often advised not to read reviews because they can be cruel, hurtful, and soul-crushing. But they can also be encouraging, gratifying, and soul-filling. I know I can’t please everyone and that my books aren’t for every reader, but when they find the RIGHT reader, it’s the absolute best feeling in the world. Those reactions are a dopamine hit for me, and I always want more.
My biggest struggle as an indie author has been reaching more readers. The majority of my reviews have been positive — I’ve often thought that maybe the bad reviews haven’t hit me as frequently because not as many readers have found my books — but I always feel like something’s missing. Am I truly a good writer if “the masses” don’t know I exist?
It’s no secret that I’ve queried literary agents over the years. Flicker was the first book that got real attention (I cherish the fact that the full manuscript was with Veronica Roth’s agent at the same time it was announced that Divergent was being made into a movie!) and The Slope Rules got even closer. With the Campfire series, I chose indie from the start, but The Quiet Unraveling of Eve Ellaway (formerly The Other Me) was different. The story was the most complex I’d ever tackled and I knew early on that a) I didn’t want to market it on my own and b) I wanted — needed — to reach a broader audience than I ever had before.
I began querying a few months before the pandemic, and despite a lot of initial excitement, the timing just wasn’t right for my dark, psychological suspense book. I spent a LONG time weighing my options (remember my sabbatical last year?) and as I came up with my 50th bucket list, decided that I was ready to publish Eve’s story on my own. But I was going big. If I wanted to reach more readers, I couldn’t rely on my previous launch plans. And so far things are going as planned.
During the pandemic, I participated in an online writers workshop with my friend Stacey’s agency, 3 Seas Literary Agency. She and her agent-mate Michelle Grajkowski talked about traditional publishing — querying, synopses, and what to expect when publishing — and asked me to present the self-publishing perspective. Michelle and I hit it off and I decided to query her after the workshop, but it didn’t lead to representation at the time.
Cut to two months ago. I’d stopped querying well over a year prior, changed the title, and had just announced the publication date when I reconnected with Michelle. She asked if I had anything unpublished that she could read, so I sent her two unfinished drafts (and tried not to panic about an agent reading not one but two unedited first drafts). A week later we had a delightful phone call where she raved about my writing, we talked about which of my manuscripts best fit the current market, and discussed what I wanted from my writing career.
AND THEN SHE ASKED IF SHE COULD SEND ME A CONTRACT OFFERING REPRESENTATION.
I don’t think I even took a breath before saying yes, and by the next day I’d signed the contract!
This video was taken after I finished writing one of the Rules books, but it seems appropriate here.
For years, my dream has been to be a hybrid author, meaning I’ll continue self-publishing and also *fingers crossed* publish in the traditional market (with the “New York publishers,” among others). It’s also worth noting that signing with an agent doesn’t change any of my plans with The Quiet Unraveling of Eve Ellaway. Eve will still launch on February 25, 2025. What I’m most excited about is the opportunity to finally reach more readers!
In the meantime, I’ll be busting my butt to finish the YA romantic suspense I started writing in 2023 so Michelle can submit it to editors. Cue an entirely new kind of anxiety!
It still doesn’t quite feel real that I have a literary agent. I wrote my first manuscript in 2007 and queried for the first time in 2008. There were times I was sure it would happen, and times I gave up all hope. Since that life-changing phone call, I’ve joked that I’m like that saying about how you won’t find love until you stop looking. Just when I decided I was content with my place in the publishing industry, everything flipped upside down.
And I can’t wait to see what happens next.
