My First Sale by Robin Owens

Welcome to the My First Sale series. Each Friday, Dear Author posts the first sale letter of bestselling authors, debut authors, and authors in between. Robin Owens writes paranormal romances for Berkley. Her book 7th Celta’s Heartmate book, Heart Fate, is in stores now.

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I sold in January 2001. In November of 2000, I’d given up writing for publication. I wearied of struggling every spare moment to craft good stories. HeartMate was at HardShell and Berkley, and I WOULD keep writing, but it wouldn’t dominate my life.

I don’t often remember to check my voice mail, so it was Superbowl Sunday and I was washing my comforter and cleaning, enjoying the freedom from guilt that I wasn’t writing. The air vent suckers were supposed to call and set up an appointment for Monday (thus the cleaning, you know how particular those air vent suckers are). I’d vacuumed and taken out the trash, so I decided to check my messages.

THE CALL. “I don’t usually leave messages like this on answering machines, but I really enjoyed HeartMate and want to make you an offer.” NO! Listen again. And again. Between pants, start calling critique buddies, first Sharon Mignerey, “Sharon,” gasp, “Sharon….” I don’t recall what I said, something like “gobble, pant, gobble, spit,” ending with hyperventilated breathing.

“Robin, has something happened to your Mom?” asks a concerned Sharon.

“Berkley!” I shriek. We talk. I get on-line and INSIST everyone in my e-crit croup come to the chat room. There I yell, faint and carry on. At the end of the day, I put away the brass-rubbing that I’d broken when I’d reeled into a wall and I notice that my cat Maddox (now known as “The Cover Cat”) has groomed himself on my clean, beige comforter, leaving tufts of black hair all over it. Life goes on.

May all our writing dreams come true, Robin.