Red Shoes, a guest post by Saundra Mitchell

Today I have a guest post from Edgar Award nominated author Saundra Mitchell.  I've gushed about her book, Shadowed Summer, many many times and it's out in paperback today (Indiebound, Book Depository, Powell's, Amazon)!  YAY!!  Saundra writes about how we became imprint buddies and honestly, it made me tear up a bit.  Saundra is not only a phenomenal writer (seriously, some of her prose makes me want to weep) but she's been a really fantastic friend and critique partner.  I feel very lucky to have met her!

Without further ado, Saundra Mitchell:

Out in Paperback Today!!!

When we're still aspiring, our main concern as writers is getting to the agent, and getting to that contract. As it should be- both of these goals require hard work to reach, and wishing and dreaming is only the fun part.

But what no one tells you is that after you get that agent, after you get that contract- it's a lonely place. You never realize how much time you spent researching and querying, until it's no longer your job to do
those things.

Sometimes, the authors you shared those hardships with can disappear. It's not intentional- you're just in different places, and the support they need, the support you need, diverge. And that's why you need an imprint buddy.

I met Carrie on the Absolute Write boards- and you know how I met her? I was scanning the "New Sales!" thread, and I noticed that she had recently sold to Delacorte Press. Hey! Me too! And- completely out of character for me- I sent this total stranger an e-mail that basically said, "HOMG WE ARE WITH THE SAME HOUSE YAY!"

She replied, "HOMG WE SO ARE YAY!"

And that's how we became Imprint Buddies. Her book was scheduled a month behind mine, so we always had someone to compare notes. If I got my copyedits two months after final revisions, she probably would, too. She got her marketing plan a few days before I did. There was so much to learn about being published, and we never had to wonder, "Is this just me?"

Having Carrie for my imprint buddy kept me sane before publication, and she still does- now a full year after my book came out in hardcover. A long while back, we discussed what we should wear if we did events. She was thinking about all black with red shoes, because the splash of red in the dark is an element in THE FOREST OF HANDS AND TEETH. And somehow, we agreed that we should both wear red shoes.

It was a silly conversation in the middle of a really chaotic time, but it stuck. Every time I do a signing, or a school visit, or an event- I never have to walk in alone. I've got my red shoes on, and my imprint buddy is with me.