C.J. Miller

For any writers reading this, I thought it might be useful to post my progress in getting my promotional and marketing tools configured, so it might be a jumping off point for your own website creation. Before I was published, I didn't worry about selecting a pseudonym or creating a website. Not only did I not want to jinx myself, I figured when I got published, I would worry about the administrative stuff that comes along with being a writer and setting up a business (more on this later). When I first started looking into creating a website, I was a bit overwhelmed and unsure where to start. I'm going to break the process down into pieces and maybe I can save someone else confusion. Pseudonym: After grappling with several name choices, I decided to pick a pseudonym that is a variation of my legal name. Because my last name is pretty common (Miller), I wasn't too worried about privacy issues. I wanted a name I would respond to, and a name I could easily sign without...

Most authors love to read. I'm no exception. I love to read and have since I was a child. Just thinking of Nancy Drew, Sweet Valley High, and the Babysitter's Club makes me warm with nostalgia. My late grandmother had shelves filled with Harlequin romances. I think they were Harlequin Presents, although I couldn't swear to it. My mom and aunt read them too and they would pass books by the bagful back and forth. When I could get my hands on one, I would sneak off with it and spend the afternoon reading. That's how I became a 3rd generation Harlequin reader. My love of reading led my imagination to create stories of my own. When I told my husband, who writes as a hobby, about the stories in my head, he said, "Why don't you write the stories down?" From the moment I started to write, I felt something click into place. This isn't to say that anything I wrote that first year (or second) was publishable. But I persisted. Every day, without exception, I...

A brief recap, for writers looking for time lines for their submissions (although it does seem to vary, these are just my dates - roughly): May 2010: submitted a query letter to Harlequin Romantic Suspense (was called Silhouette Romantic Suspense at the time) July 2010: received a request for the full manuscript and mailed it October 2010: received a request for revisions November 2010: mailed revisions March 2011: received a request for a 2nd round of revisions April 2011: mailed revisions July 2011: followed up via email on my submission. September 22, 2011: Got the CALL!

I love reading stories about writers who get the call from an editor or agent when their book is going to be published. In my writer groups, this telephone call is referred to as "The Call." This differs from the dreaded "R," which is a letter of rejection. So without further ado... my story! I had heard that HRS was increasing their word count and I had assumed that when I heard back about my book, it would be either a rejection or another request for revisions to make the book longer. I was cleaning up the kitchen and getting ready to start dinner when I heard the phone ring. It was a 212 number I didn't recognize. I thought the call might be from a contractor we'd hired to install a new front door in our home. I answered and the person asked for me. She identified herself as Shana Smith from Harlequin (at this point I started shaking) and she said they wanted to publish my book (at this point I almost started to cry with happiness). For one small mo...