Monday 16 August 2010

It's away Part 3

So the revisions are done and have flown away to Mills and Boon land.  And I know they've landed because I've had a lovely email to tell me.  So what now?  Because this is the time that the crows of doubt usually land.  And they've been known to heckle me quite a lot.  So I'm looking back through my lists and thinking "Did I capture what they want?" and "Will I be in with a shot?"
Then there is the really big question - WHAT IF THEY HATE IT?  What if they think we've given her two chances, she hasn't delivered, let's just ditch her.  In the meantime Harlequin has a medical fast-track until the 24 August.  If I hadn't had this opportunity I would have submitted. 
Then there is the New Voices contest.  Would I be brave enough to submit a chapter for the whole world to read?  In the meantime I have decided to plan ahead.  I have last year's story to rewrite.  This time with a POV.  I've done the first three chapters but will continue with the rest.  It's good practice in rewriting and editing.  I am also doing Shirley Jump's online class From Good To Sold.  Halfway through and it's proving quite inspiring.  It really nice to read the whole classes homework and the changes she suggests.  I am also planning towork on something else and try and put a synopsis together.  So this is me trying to be calm while I'm waiting, what do you think?

And finally, a big congratulations to two Australian Medical Romance Authors who won a R*BY for their stories.
Sharon Archer for Marriage Reunited: Baby on the Way Winner of Short Sweet
Amy Andrews for A Doctor, A Nurse: A Christmas Baby Winner of Short Sexy
It's lovely to see medical authors getting recognition for their work, sometimes medical books aren't eligible for some awards, or are overlooked, so I was delighted to see some medical authors waving the flags.  Well done Ladies!

17 comments:

  1. Good luck, Susan! Yes, I was lucky enough to be at the dinner where they won - cool eh? And I had a little chat to Sharon Archer about blogging. She was lovely.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Okay. I don't know where my comment went so I'm trying again. Sorry if it posts twice!

    Beat those crows of doubt off with a stick, or have your boys do it! You are going to make it work. Fingers crossed this is the last step before contract! Good luck! (And at least your revisions are done. I'm still plugging away.)

    ReplyDelete
  3. Huge congrats on subbing your revisions! Fingers and toes crossed for you!!! Hope you don't have to wait too long but think you're right to keep plodding on with other wips while you wait.

    I was stoked for Sharon and Amy on Saturday night and as Amy said, it was great for people who don't usually read medicals (of which I am NOT one - I love em) to realise they can also be sexy novels. As Jackie said, Sharon is an absolute doll and the award is so well deserved. Amy is also a lovely person who deserves to be rewarded for not only her writing but also all the hard work she puts in as a key RWA Oz volunteer!

    ReplyDelete
  4. Wow - you made fast work of those revs! Well done and wishing you best of luck. I was lucky enough to meet Sharon at the conference too and met Amy last month. Both very lovely and very deserving winners!

    ReplyDelete
  5. THIS COULD BE IT SUSAN!!!!!!
    I so hope so for you.

    I reckon you should still think about the comp in the mean time though - it's a chance to have an extra sub in, although fingers crossed that by the time judging comes around you will be disqualified because you've SOLD!
    x

    ReplyDelete
  6. I've come round to the view that it's always good to have another iron in the fire and the comp is a good opportunity to get editorial feedback on a new story idea. So if you've the time...

    Fingers crossed they like your revisions. You know I'd actually forgotten I'd sent my partial in until I saw your post! LOL Today is a very zonky day, if anyone wants to NTAI just acquire a brain injury ;-)

    ReplyDelete
  7. Susan,

    Congrats on getting that sub out. And, you're doing the right thing: continuing the forward momentum by continuing to write.

    And I think entering the New Voices comp is a good idea.

    Abbi :-)

    ReplyDelete
  8. Thank you Jackie, I'm so jealous that you got to meet Sharon Archer. How long have you been waiting now to hear back? It seems like ages x

    Wendy, thank you for dropping by. I have my fingers and toes crossed for your revisions, hopefully it will be good news!

    Rachael I feel as if you've all been at the party without me! And well done you for getting your homework in on time, I am well impressed!

    ReplyDelete
  9. Janette - aren't you waiting to hear back on revisions too? You looked fab in Rachael's pics, very glam and very tall! x

    Joanne, I've read your second lot of homework and I loved it - and that was before Shirley made any suggestions! She hardly made any comments this time so you are obviously doing something right! Me, I think I've been sent to the dunce's corner this time! Never mind, thank you for your good wishes x

    ReplyDelete
  10. Lorraine you need to get a pinboard with one of those pads that you can tear the days off and jog your memory, you might be really lucky, I heard after 4 weeks on my partial. You might too!

    Abbi, still swithering about New Voices, trying to work out whether I'm brave enough to post online and let everyone read it. What about you? Do you have something ready?

    ReplyDelete
  11. Susan,

    I haven't thought that far ahead . . .

    So, I guess the answer is no, I don't have anything ready to go at the moment. I need to do it though. I will be good for me to hear feedback from people who don't know me.

    ReplyDelete
  12. Hi Susan - good luck. I'm sure you don't need it though, you sound as if you're very much on the home straight. I'm waiting for a response on a medical fast track I tried, I just couldn't let the opportunity pass by. As soon as it went I was stupidly checking my in box, I just can't help it. Waiting is horrid, horrid, horrid! I was just the same when I was waiting for a response from a magazine for a serial idea I had. It's total, utter agony. The only solution I have found is to start something new. Get the brain rolling and writing always feel lovely when it's new, before you've got yourself tied in plot knots that it's difficult to get out of. It's the only thing I know of to help calm me and stop me checking those darned e-mails. Fingers crossed for you, I'm so looking forward to reading your pubished novel!

    ReplyDelete
  13. Yay Susan, hoping this is *it* for you. Super excited, how they get a response to you fast so your wait is short and sweet :-)

    ReplyDelete
  14. Hats off to you Abbi for being brave! Good luck with the contest, I'll vote for you!
    Cara have you heard back from the medical fast track yet? I know some people have heard back in a few days, crossing my fingers for you!
    Thanks Joanne, only been waiting a week so think I better dig in for the long haul x

    ReplyDelete
  15. Hi Susan, thanks very much for asking, I did hear back from the M&B fast track and got a very standard, couple of words rejection. I was hoping for just a bit more of a steer as to where I've gone wrong because I have about twenty M&Bs at the moment by pepole like Sarah Craven, Kate Hardy, Penny Jordan and Anne Fraser all which I've been working my way through and had thought I might have got some idea of what they were after. Ah well, such is life. But I'm wanting you to get there even more just to prove to me that it can be done. Watching this space avidly......

    ReplyDelete
  16. Yay, Susan - well done for getting it away. Will keep fingers crossed for good news soon.

    You're right, there are lots of great opportunities at M&B just now. Very exciting.

    (I'm really sorry to be so late with this - think I'm losing marbles at a rate of knots, could have sworn I'd already left a comment on this post).

    XX

    ReplyDelete
  17. A huge congrats on finishing and submitting your revisions!!

    I've got my fingers crossed!

    I think you should definitely enter New Voices, the editors think you've got the chops for revisions what's a couple of billion people? Go on, you know you want too ;)

    ReplyDelete