Synopsis
There’s a drawer I never open. It holds a picture I never look at. It reminds me of a day I hate to remember, but I’ll never forget.
I’d give anything to be like the other girls on campus. Going to parties, flirting with boys, planning for a future. But that’s not me. And hasn’t been since the day my parents died. The only thing that got me through was Griffin. Even though I didn’t have my family, I always had him. Only, now I’m not so sure I do.
It’s not just the eleven hundred miles separating us now that I’m at college. And it’s more than his band finally taking off, and all the gigs and girls suddenly demanding his time. It’s like everything is different—the way we talk, the way we text . . . the way he looks at me and the way his looks make me feel.
Griffin has been the only good thing in my life since that horrific day. I can feel our friendship slipping away—and I’m terrified of what will be left in its place…
Goodreads | Amazon | Amazon UK
From a Contest to a Publishing Contract: Marie Meyer’s Publication Journey
Hello,
Everyone! I’m honored to share my publication journey with the Bookish
Treasures readers! Thank you for the invitation, Laura! I’m Marie Meyer. I
write new adult romances. My debut NA contemporary romance, ACROSS THE
DISTANCE, came out on May 5, 2015! It’s been fantastic getting to know so many
awesome readers, bloggers, and reviewers. A huge thank you to everyone who has
read and reviewed AtD. I’m humbled by everyone’s love and support! And if you
just couldn’t get enough of Griffin in AtD, August 4th is your lucky
day! Griffin gets to tell his side of the story in CAN’T GO BACK! I’m so
excited to share Griffin with everyone! I love him dearly and I hope you do
too!
So, I’m
sure you’re all wondering how an elementary school teacher (that’s right, I’m a
teacher by day) got her foot through the publication door. Well, let me tell
you…
My
publishing journey began back in the fall of 2008, when I co-authored my first
novel, a YA paranormal romance. After sending out at least 100 query letters to
agents over the course of three years, my co-author and I kept getting the same
responses: there were too many paranormal romances on agents lists at the time.
With the saturation of PNR, we cut our losses and shoved the YA into a drawer.
But, I
wasn’t ready to give up on writing just yet. After reading Tamara Weber’s Easy, I was hooked on new adult! This
was the genre I wanted to write! I loved the age (18-25), the decisions and
situations characters were faced with, all of it!
In
January of 2013, I sat down and began my first draft of what would become
ACROSS THE DISTANCE. Four months later, I finished AtD and started polishing
and revising.
And
polishing and revising. And polishing and revising.
And
polishing and revising…
You
see a pattern, I’m sure! ;)
When I
looked up from the computer screen, it was November. ACROSS THE DISTANCE was as
shiny as I could make it (but not nearly as shiny as it would become). That’s
when I came across a tweet from Brenda Drake, announcing her upcoming Pitch
Wars contest. I went back and forth, weighing the pros and cons of entering and
not entering. Was it AtD ready? Was I ready? Could I handle more rejection?
The
answer to every one of those questions was, YES! If I was serious about
becoming an author, then I needed to be brave and put myself out there. The
only way AtD was ever going to catch the interest of an agent was either by
diving into the query trenches or toss it into a contest. Throwing caution to
the wind, I entered AtD into Pitch Wars, not expecting much.
But,
come early December, when Pitch Wars mentors announced their teams, to my
astonishment, Lady Lioness (mentor extraordinaire) had chosen my entry!
Over
the course of the next two months, under Lioness’s kick-butt editorial
guidance, I ripped my manuscript to shreds (literally cutting out a major
character and piecing my manuscript back together). I hoped and prayed my hard
work would result in some agent love during the Pitch Wars agent round.
During
the agent round, the agents who participate in Pitch Wars, hop from blog to
blog reading the pitches and opening paragraphs of the Pitch Wars contestants’
manuscripts. If an agent likes what he or she reads, they comment on the blog
post with instructions to send the manuscript along with a query letter.
At the
end of the agent round, I had two agents comment on my entry! Not only was I
still blown away that ACROSS THE DISTANCE had been selected by a mentor, but
now it was getting some attention from agents! I couldn’t believe it!
I sent
both agents the completed AtD manuscript and a query letter, as they’d asked
for (always follow an agent’s submission guidelines!!!).
In the
subsequent weeks, as I waited to hear back from the Pitch Wars agents, I sent
out eleven more queries to other agents. Then, a month later, on Valentine’s
Day, I received an email from Louise Fury, at the Bent Agency, wanting to set
up a time to speak on the phone! I was ecstatic!! A few days later, I had the
pleasure of speaking to Ms. Fury on the phone, which then lead to an offer of
representation!
Once I
signed with Louise, she championed AtD, sending it out on submission to
publishing houses. Eventually AtD found a home with Grand Central Publishing!
Not only did Grand Central love AtD, they also wanted its companion novel,
CAN’T GO BACK (August 2015), and THE TURNING POINT, the contemporary new adult
romance I’m currently working on (releasing in November). At the end of 2015, I
will have published three novels! Unreal!
Writing
takes patience. I’m just beginning my publishing journey with the recent release
of ACROSS THE DISTANCE. But, I’ve been working toward this goal for six years.
Every rejection letter, every rewrite, every revision spurs me on, and makes me
want to do better. Writing takes hard work and dedication and in order to get
better, a writer must write.
If you
have ever dreamed of writing a story you want to share with others, don’t give
up! One day, your story will be in the hands of readers! Oh, and participate in
contests! If I hadn’t done Pitch Wars, I don’t know where I would be today.
Pitch
Wars 2015 is right around the corner! If you would like to know more about
Pitch Wars 2015, the link with the contest schedule is below. If you have a
finished, polished manuscript, the submission day for Pitch Wars 2015 is August
17th. Give it a try! What do you have to lose? J
Again,
thank you, Laura, for giving me the opportunity to share my story with your
readers!
Keep writing
and enter contests!
<3 Marie
About Marie
Marie Meyer was a language arts teacher for fourteen years. She spends her days in the classroom and her nights writing heartfelt new adult romances that will leave readers clamoring for more. She is a member of RWA and the St. Louis Writers Guild. Marie's short fiction won honorable mentions from the St. Louis Writers Guild in 2010 and 2011. She is a proud mommy and enjoys helping her oldest daughter train for the Special Olympics, making up silly stories with her youngest daughter, and binging on weeks of DVR'd television shows with her husband.
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