“Life is what happens when you’re busy making other plans.” John Lennon said something like that in one of his last songs. How very true!
After Gramma’s death, I’d thrown myself into finishing The Case of the Bouncing Grandma and getting it sent off. By the time I got it submitted to Heartsong Mysteries in April, I’d been in the ER three times, had a CAT scan to rule out a stroke, had an allergic reaction to Demerol (my blood pressure plummeted, and I couldn’t breathe), and had an MRI. Though no one could discover why the headache persisted, the MRI revealed I was missing part of my brain – which has since become a running joke.
I recalled reading Brandilyn Collins’ testimony of a miraculous healing from Lyme Disease (www.brandilyncollins.com/healing.html ) following a session at The Healing Rooms (www.healingrooms.com). There was a branch in a nearby community with sessions every Tuesday evening. Chris (my husband) and I prayed about it, asked for prayer coverage from the ACFW Prayer Loop, then made our way to the Midwest Healing Rooms in Lee’s Summit.
I know God led us to those wonderful people. As their prayers enveloped me, a calm washed through me. By the following morning, the horrific pain had dulled. Riding on the incredible high and closeness to God from my experience at The Healing Rooms, I became caught up in trying to get back to “normal” now that the headache was gone. I was so excited to be doing something positive with my writing that I made plans to attend my first ACFW conference.
But “normal” is only an illusion. As I got well, we learned Chris’s brother had been diagnosed with four different cancers about the same time it was confirmed their mother had Alzheimer’s.
Reeling from the news, the rejection from Heartsong Mysteries seemed even more crushing than usual. I’d been at this place many times before – had once claimed to have enough rejection letters to paper the house – so I knew the drill; knew it by heart: pick yourself up, dust yourself off, and try, try again. But just because you know what to do doesn’t make it any easier – especially when you were certain this one was THE ONE.
If I told you I was a trooper and didn’t let it bother me, I’d be lying. I ranted and raved and made family and friends uncomfortable. I regret that and take this time to apologize once again to everyone. Eventually, I dragged myself up and began submitting to a few agents. They turned me down, too – even the one I’d really, really wanted. But in the meantime, I learned a valuable lesson – writing might be what I wanted to do, but my family is who I am. God taught me that, and I hope I never forget it.
I never made it to the 2006 ACFW conference; we were busy taking care of family business – mourning the loss of Chris’s brother and helping out with his mom. I did, however, go to the small Scene of the Crime conference that October. It had some incredible sessions, several editors and agents available for meetings, and was a terrific experience. I received requests for partials from both agent meetings, and even “won” a Pitch-a-Palooza contest with my spur of the moment pitch for The Case of the Bouncing Grandma (Has Glory hit her head one too many times or was there really a foot hanging out of that carpet?). Even though the agents didn’t work out, I refused to let it get me down.
In November, still on a reprieve from my finger/hand pain, I entered NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writers Month, www.nanowrimo.org ). Not wanting to feel alone during the month-long dash to write 50,000 words, I asked if there were any members of ACFW who would like to join a support group. Ten people responded, and the Naners were formed – most of whom are still in the group. In December, I was notified that I’d won an opportunity to present an on-line pitch to Krista Stroever of Steeple Hill’s Love Inspired Suspense. I didn’t do very well with this venue, but it kept my hopes alive.
After all . . . there was always next year.
