Interview with a writer...

Hello, one and all.  My name is Jan Meredith.  I am a registered nurse, and I have an addiction...to chocolate, and romance!  Whether I'm reading Sherrilyn Kenyon's demons, demigods or futuristic League Assassins, Lyndsay Sands' laugh-out-loud nano-vampires, the brilliance of Nora Roberts or hammering out my own story, I love reading about hurt souls coming together with a happy ending.  And I like to do it while eating chocolate.

I recently entered an Editor's pitch challenge with Harlequin Mills & Boon in February, was one of six chosen out of thirty-nine to pitch online to the editors of the Medical Romance Series and submitted three chapters.  Six days later I received the most complimentary letter--"What we really enjoyed about your submission was the fun, sassy and individual writing style.  The warmth and humor in the tone of your writing felt fresh, contemporary and unique.  There is potential here for a heart-warming story of two hurt souls who will come together to form the wonderful family they have always wanted. We do think you have a lovely writing style, your sass and unique voice is eye-catching."  However--my hero needed more conflict--a very common editorial complaint with new authors submitting to series Category Romance.  I was asked to set it aside for now, start something new and fresh and they would be happy to see another submission.

I made myself dizzy alternating between the happy dance at the compliments in that wonderful letter, and stomping around in frustration at having my work rejected...even though it was the "first" time I'd submitted to Harlequin M&B!

I'm Irish.  I'm stubborn.  I rebound nicely.

I am currently submitting this story to another publishing house, looking to the writing Gods with hopes of a request for a full manuscript, and all the R&Rs that go with it.  In the mean time, I'm working to polish a completed manuscript to submit to Harlequin American Romance later in the summer, as they rumored there would be another Editor's Pitch or Fast Track for that series down the road--a little longer in word count, an opportunity to introduce my all time favorite secondary characters and family members, and expand on the story.

I began writing in the late 80s when my sons were small...and very demanding, as sons will be.  (it seemed there was a cosmic message sent out to them whenever I sat down to the "manual" typewriter with my whiteout.) I worked under the guidance of the late Adele Leone for a while, but as life will jump in and screw with the most well laid plans, my writing was shelved--pun intended.  But the voices in my head never left.  So, with college behind me, and a nursing career under my belt (for of which were in the ER) those voices are screaming once again, "What if...?"