REMEMBERING MY FIRST TIME
(getting published, that is)
Once upon a time, long, long ago, I fantasized about being taken aboard the Starship Enterprise by Captain James T. Kirk and being the one female in all the Universe he couldn’t leave behind. Since I couldn’t turn that fantasy into reality, I decided to write a science fiction tale that allowed the hero and a lucky Earth girl (namely me) to have a happily ever after. Unfortunately, the publishers back then believed crossing genres was completely out of the question.
Sometime around my 70th rejection letter, I attended a Florida Romance Writers conference, where every editor and agent I approached confirmed the futility of writing the stories I wanted to tell. Thus, no longer caring what they thought of my mental stability, I attended a cocktail party and freely regaled the crowd with some off-color police stories. (Oh, it might help if you knew I was married to a Miami-Dade cop for a couple decades.) At the end of one anecdote, a young woman declared, “I want that book! When can you get it to me?” She was a Harlequin editor who thought I was relating an opening scene rather than an actual event. Although I had never read a category romance let alone considered writing one, I paused only a moment before replying, “In four weeks.” Although it wasn’t exactly Captain Kirk and the Enterprise, I figured this stranger was still offering me a shot at the stars.
Because of that unexpected opportunity, the anecdote became the opening scene in DAYDREAMS, my first published novel. It was released in 1991 (yep, you read that right), under the pseudonym Marina Palmieri (my Sicilian grandmother’s name), because back then, publishers often included a clause in the contract whereby they legally owned the author’s name, even if it was her true name. Also way back then, I handwrote my manuscripts then typed them on a correcting Selectric typewriter. Adding one paragraph meant retyping a whole chapter. My first personal computer, a Commodore 64, was still a few years away (I was a bit of a holdout). Cell phones and the world wide web were in their infancy and I did research using a set of encyclopedias.
Well, I’m sure you are all aware of just how much technology has changed since then. So you can imagine how very excited I am to announce that, after substantial revisions and updating—technology is not the only thing that's changed—DAYDREAMS is now available in e-book at www.belgravehouse.com and most major e-tailers.
I think the new cover image perfectly depicts the tone of this contemporary romantic comedy about a yummy Miami cop with a penchant for daydreaming and a feisty housekeeper with a grounded agenda that leaves no room for a man in her life.
Blurb: From the day he mistook Kathy Alvarez for a burglar, Officer Jake Slaughter’s daydreams focused on making her his wife. But Kathy’s marital experience convinced her to never give another man control over her or her child, no matter how sexy or considerate he is. Convincing Kathy to change her mind takes every seduction skill Jake has…and one he has yet to learn.
Tripling my delight, also re-released in e-book this month are PRETTY MAIDS IN A ROW and SEE HOW THEY RUN, the two sexy thrillers that put my name on bestseller lists fifteen years ago.
I always enjoy hearing from readers and invite you to visit my website to check out some of the other things I've done.
MARILYN CAMPBELL
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For excerpts and buy-links, please visit my Amazon Author Page:
