Representation - Accepted!

Well, I'm back and I've got exciting news - my dream agent, Kate Schafer Testerman, offered to represent BOTH my manuscripts yesterday! And of course - you know the ending to that story - I said yes! (Those sassy red heels are for the holidays and you, KST - hope you like!)

I listened to Kate moderate a First Pages session at our local SCBWI conference last spring with Arthur Levine and I thought at the time, 'there's the perfect agent for me'. So about a month after the conference I submitted a query and she requested a partial of THE GETHEAS STONE (formerly The Legacy). Then the full. In the meantime, I wrote another manuscript, THE FAERIE RING (formerly The Thief's Apprentice). In September Kate asked for revisions on TGS and said she'd read TFR in the meantime. Well, I finished my revisions about two weeks ago and she's interested in both manuscripts. Yay! :)

We're going to go out with THE FAERIE RING first so I'll keep you posted. Set in London, 1871, TFR is the story of 16 year old Tiki, an orphan and pickpocket, who steals the Queen's ring. What Tiki doesn't know is that the ring is a reservoir that holds a truce between man and the fey. Rieker, a thief from the North End, takes a sudden interest in Tiki and accuses her of taking the ring. Tiki denies the crime, but Rieker begins following her and tells her that not only are the royals seeking return of the Queen's ring, but faeries, some quite vicious, are after the bauble too. Tiki isn't sure what to believe until Clara, a frail and sickly five year old she cares for, is stolen by Larkin, a faerie obsessed with Rieker. Who can Tiki trust? Can she get Clara back and get the reward for the return of the ring?

So, with all the excitement I thought hmmm, maybe I should check my website. It was down. So hopefully that will be fixed sometime soon. Then I wandered over here to the woefully neglected blog. Hmmmm, guess I need to do a little better on the posting thing - but NOW, I might have to something to post about! Woo hoo! Stay in touch - hopefully more good news to come!

First Draft Completed!

Hello, from the horribly negligent Blogger universe....let's just blame it on summer vacation, okay?

Hope you're enjoying your summer. My agent quest is still in process. I have two fulls and a partial out on THE LEGACY right now so keep your fingers and toes crossed. This is a bit off subject but I like looking at pictures so here's a picture of my koi pond with all 16 of my koi. They all have names and are quite beautiful. Picasso, Fanny, Doggy Paws, Sushi and Pete (for Mustachio Pete) etc. They are such curious creatures. They totally recognize me, even through the kitchen window and they'll come zooming over when they see me because they think I might feed them. The whole pond, fish, waterfall thing is incredibly soothing.

But back to the writing world - which was the original purpose of this blog....Good news! - I just finished my first draft of The Thief's Apprentice today! Yay! I'm so excited about this manuscript. I still have to go through and tie up loose ends etc. but so far, so good and in record time! I'm trying to figure out how to post the beginning on my website, but I don't think there's room unless I take something down. Anywho...that's a problem for another day.

Stay tuned and I hope you're enjoying your summer!

(Don't you love this orange echinachea?)