Carolyn Hughey on getting THE CALL and a Giveaway

Today I’m thrilled to have Carolyn Hughey, also known as K.T. Roberts, here on Happily Ever After Thoughts to tell us about the day she got the call. Carolyn/K.T. is also giving away 4 books! But you have to find the right answer to win :-) Welcome Carolyn!

First, I’d like to thank Lexi Post for inviting me here today. It’s always a pleasure to receive an invitation to such a notorious blog. 

Today, I’ve chosen to relive that glorious moment of when I received the call because it’s something an author never forgets. 

When I first joined Romance Writers of America, I was anxious to finish my first manuscript because quite honestly, most members don’t despite the encouragement of chapter mates. Finishing it also meant I was committed and this was going to be my new career and not a hobby. 

As an incentive to its members, RWA has two groups that disseminate writing information, PRO and PAN. Because I knew very little compared to those who’d been writing a long time, PRO, which stands for professional sounded pretty appealing to me because I was a newbie trying to learn as much as I could, and receiving information from the big guys was a big deal—at least to me it was. PAN was another big deal because it’s the Published Authors Network and a goal all writers aspire to be a part.

Once the manuscript is done, the rules read that the author needs to either have the President of your chapter sign off verifying that you did in fact finish the manuscript, or you provide copy of the submission letter you sent to a publisher. I chose the latter.

Time seemed to slip by and once it was beyond the first year and I’d heard nothing, I figured the fact that it was chic-lit might have been the reason, so I convinced myself that the publisher thought the manuscript was crap and had someone shred it into strips and gave it to a local Veterinarian to use as bedding for stray animals.

I was living in California at the time, exactly three hours behind EST. When my phone rang twenty minutes after I’d gotten out of bed in the wee hours of the morning, I hadn’t had that first cup of coffee that you so desperately need to get rid of that muzzy head and croaky voice. I contemplated letting it go to voicemail and if it hadn’t been for the family living on the east coast, I might have, but curiosity got the best of me and I answered it anyway. The call went something like this:

This is Erin Cartright from Avalon calling for Carolyn Hughey.

In my muzzy mind, I thought she said, Avon, and I immediately tried to figure out how the hell Avon got my book when I sent it to Avalon. Fleeting conversations from authors on our chapter loop surged through my mind about submitting something to Harlequin and if it was the wrong editor, they’d pass it along to the right one, went through my mind, so I was silent at first. 

EDITOR; May I speak to Carolyn?

ME: This is she.

EDITOR: I’m calling about Cupid’s Web.

ME: You are?

EDITOR: Is it still available?

ME: Uh huh.

EDITOR: Well, we’d like to buy it.

ME: You would?

EDITOR: You sound surprised.

ME: Uh well (I scrambled trying to find something sensible to say here), it’s been a long time.

EDITOR: Yeah, it has been a long time. How long?

ME: Thirteen months.

EDITOR: Wow, that is a long time. Well, we’re a little backlogged. So, can we buy it?

ME: Yes.

EDITOR: Wonderful. Okay, well I can’t make you a formal offer yet because we have to wait until the next cycle, but we want it. Here’s my number for you to call me directly if you have any questions.

Still stunned, my head was numb as I tried to absorb all that she’d said, but the one thing I knew was that I was going to be a published author. 

We disconnected and I ran into the living room where my husband was reading the newspaper. He asked who called and I was having a hard time getting a full sentence out of my mouth. I was slapping my hand against my chest like we were playing charades. A concerned expression capped his face because I was pounding my chest, and I knew if I didn’t say something soon, the man was going to call 911. I finally got out my character’s name, Cassie Pirelli, and he said, who’s that? Finally, sold and Cupid’s Web came out of my mouth and he understood, and then we were jumping up and down like two kids, laughing and crying all at the same time.

Several more months went by and I still hadn’t received a formal offer. Now, I was convinced that she’d decided she didn’t like my blasé attitude and wasn’t going to make the offer after all. So I called, pretending to say hello—see how things were going. It didn’t take much for Erin to figure out my insecurities, and she assured me they were definitely buying it, and I continued to tell her, I knew. Of course, I didn’t really know even though they’d said they would. And then, the contract from Avalon arrived in the mail and I was floating on air.

I get such a warm fuzzy feeling whenever I tell this story. It’s something I’ll never, ever forget! That glorious day will forever be ingrained in my mind.

Now, seven years later, and thirteen books under my belt, I write for Montlake Romance and Kindle Worlds, I can honestly say, receiving the call never gets old no matter how many books you have published!

The moral of this story is for those of you who are on the verge of giving up. PLEASE DON’T! Just keep submitting, and learning more about your craft because dreams really do come true. I promise!

**Want to win a copy of Magnetic Attraction? You'll find the answer to my question on my website at www.carolynhughey.com  in the excerpt under Magnetic Attraction. The first four people who give me the correct answer win a copy.

"Who does Jordan Bailey meet in the men's room and what does she do to the person?"

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Here’s a blurb from one of my K. T. Roberts series. This is from Book One of three in the Kensington/Gerard Detective series on sale for a limited time only at $0.99:

NYPD detectives Tate Kensington and Zachary Gerard are convinced one killer is at work, but proving it seems an impossible feat until a pre-teen prank blows the case wide open. 

They both have their own pasts to haunt them - Tate's ex-flame is now her boss, and Zach's estranged father is counsel for the defense. Complicating things even more are death threats, witnesses going AWOL, and an increasing attraction neither of them can continue to deny. Can the pair put away a killer on a paper-thin case? Or will their disappearing Jane Doe prove to be...THE LAST WITNESS...

 http://amzn.com/B00JPN8D5M

About Carolyn:

Multi-published and internationally recognized author, Carolyn Hughey traded in her chef's hat for a computer. Originally a Jersey Girl, Carolyn and her real-life hero, Bob, currently reside in Arizona. They have four children and when Carolyn's not writing, she's studying her craft, or whipping up some gastronomic delight for family and friends.

Carolyn began writing in 2005 and sold her first book, Cupid’s Web to the first publisher she had submitted to: Avalon Books. Now an author for Montlake Romance and Kindle Worlds, all of Carolyn's books are available in digital as well as paperback formats and include Cupid's Web, Shut Up and Kiss Me, and her series, Romancing the Chef's Toque, which includes, Dishing Up Romance, One Menu at a Time and Catering to Love, a series her publisher requested. These last three books are available with lots of family favorite recipes. If you like to cook, if you like to eat, and if you like to laugh, then you'll enjoy these books and the hilarious things that happen in restaurant kitchens.

Carolyn's Kindle Worlds fan fiction stories, Gossip Girl: Lovers, Liars and Thou, and Gossip Girl: Murder & Mayhem have been ranked in the top 100 best selling Kindle books!

If you like Christmas novellas, look for Insanity Claus, her latest release.

About K.T. (Carolyn’s alter ego)

K. T. Roberts writes mysteries with a little bit of romance and a lot of twists and turns. Good news in the mystery department, The Last Witness and Elusive Justice were both ranked in Kindle’s top 100 best selling books for more than ten months.

And because you've asked, K. T. has thrown in a few vanilla spice contemporary romances with Educating Daphne and Magnetic Attraction.

K. T. Roberts’ newest release is the third in her Gerard-Kensington Detective series titled Deadly Obsessions.