What a difference a DAW makes.: seanan

What a difference a DAW makes.

One year ago today, I got up, got dressed, and went to work. I put on jeans, a bright yellow tank top, and my pink-and-yellow Chimera Fancies pendant that reads "fairy changeling this is all a dream." This sentiment would become very, very easy to believe, very, very soon.

One year ago today, The Agent was out beating the streets as she looked for the right house for my Toby Daye books. Actually, we knew what The Right House was: it was DAW Books, the very first publisher we'd been in contact with, after being referred there by one of their existing authors. They had exactly the right sort of atmosphere, and they'd published a lot of books I've really loved. I wanted to work with these people. I just had to hope that they wanted to work with me.

One year ago today, my phone rang. My display informed me that it was The Agent (which is actually what her number is saved under in my phone, because I am occasionally bizarre like that), so I excused myself to take the call.

One year ago today, The Agent said these words to me: "We got DAW."

This was followed by a lot of other information about contracts and money and publishing schedules and blah blah blah fishcakes, because I had really checked out completely. Out of the conversation, out of body, out to lunch, buh-bye. I made all the appropriate noises of assent, and managed to sound like I wasn't crying, because years of fake-it-til-you-make-it has made me really, really good at that sort of thing. (Severe back injury plus chronic pain issues plus "suck it up" equals I can sound perky and happy about my situation while being consumed from the toes up by a giant snake. It's awesome. Also sort of bad, because my automatic response to trauma is frequently "gosh, what fun.")

Eventually, the call ended. I went outside. I called Vixy. I made horrible shrieky bat-noises, causing dogs all around San Francisco to bark themselves hoarse, run in circles, and slam into trees. Pigeons lost the ability to fly, and splattered down on the pavement like really disturbing rain. Vixy, upon determining that I was shrieky with joy, not distress, made suitable noises until I calmed down enough to tell her what was going on. Then she started shrieking, too. It was a shrieky day.

One year ago, I sold my first trilogy. Today, I have three framed cover illustrations on my living room walls, I have cover blanks on my dresser, and I have stacks of ARCs on my bedroom floor.

One year ago today.

Wow.

alanajoli

May 13 2009, 15:20:05 UTC 8 years ago

New comment

Happy anniversary!

technoshaman

May 13 2009, 15:57:28 UTC 8 years ago

No, no, no, that's happy anniverscary!

Really looking forward to the book.

seanan_mcguire

8 years ago

autographedcat

May 13 2009, 15:20:15 UTC 8 years ago

You deserve all good things, my love. All good things.

batyatoon

May 13 2009, 23:40:12 UTC 8 years ago

This.

*many, many hugs*

kathleenfoucart

May 13 2009, 15:20:17 UTC 8 years ago

Happy DAW-i-versery! :)

So, so exciting. What's the countdown at?

May 14 2009, 01:02:18 UTC 8 years ago

One hundred and ten days.

Gulp.

kvtaylor

May 13 2009, 15:23:11 UTC 8 years ago

Hmm I kind of made horrible shrieky bat noises just reading that. Happy anniversary!

May 14 2009, 01:02:28 UTC 8 years ago

Thank you!

stevenagy

May 13 2009, 15:29:17 UTC 8 years ago

Anniversaries are fun. :-)

May 14 2009, 01:02:42 UTC 8 years ago

Yes. Yes, they are.

Deleted comment

May 14 2009, 01:02:49 UTC 8 years ago

Heeeee.

ladyqkat

May 13 2009, 15:30:36 UTC 8 years ago

Awww. This is such a cool story. Even more so since most of it is true. (I have my doubts about the pigeons. I used to live in the Bay Area. Pigeons do that no matter what.)

Happy anniversary.

May 14 2009, 01:03:11 UTC 8 years ago

True enough; there was hyperbole about the pigeons. The rest...

Let me know when your ARC gets there!

May 14 2009, 01:03:28 UTC 8 years ago

It's entirely possible that somebody may have advance copies at the con.

xjenavivex

May 13 2009, 15:49:15 UTC 8 years ago

Thank you for sharing the anniversary with us.

May 14 2009, 01:03:36 UTC 8 years ago

apocalypticbob

May 13 2009, 15:53:04 UTC 8 years ago

*Dance of GLEE*

And soon, we can all hold your first book and read it and pet it and call it...well...Toby.

May 14 2009, 02:06:52 UTC 8 years ago

How 'bout Rosemary and Rue instead? ;)

kyra_neko_rei

May 13 2009, 16:01:21 UTC 8 years ago

Happy Anniversary!

Don't giant snakes consume you from the head down, though?

dornbeast

May 13 2009, 17:50:54 UTC 8 years ago

Well, let's go talk to Uncle Shel Silverstein:

"Oh, I'm being eaten
By a boa constrictor,
A boa constrictor,
A boa constrictor,
I'm being eaten by a boa constrictor,
And I don't like it one bit.
Well, what do you know?
It's nibblin' my toe.
Oh, gee,
It's up to my knee.
Oh my,
It's up to my thigh.
Oh, fiddle,
It's up to my middle.
Oh, heck,
It's up to my neck.
Oh, dread,
It's upmmmmmmmmmmffffffffff..."

It appears that some giant snakes start from the toes.