by Janet Romain

Grandpère is a story that came flying out of my fingertips onto the computer. It began with the idea of a brush pile cremation, which is a traditional method of body disposal in many parts of the world, including the area where my roots are sunk.

I didn’t do any of the things considered proper when I wrote Grandpère; there was no story outline, no prep work done whatsoever. The story seemed to tell itself, taking its own little twists and turns and delighting me in the process; it took only three months from start to finish of the first rough draft. I was mighty pleased with the story and I gave it to my sister to read, whose judgment I trust, she’s honest even if she’s not really arms length. She pointed out a few of the books flaws, which I quickly tried to correct, but on the whole was very positive with her feedback.

So there I was, story written- with not a clue of how to market it. So I did what any sensible modern woman would do-I googled ‘how to get published’. I opened up realms of new information and spent days reading page after page, letting the net lead me around into all the areas of book production.

General consensus was to get an agent, let the agent do the selling, the agents are like realtors, they know the rules and can protect their clients. To that end I signed a contract with Carolyn Swayze Literary Agency and she sold Grandpère to Caitlin Press.

Then the work really began, the fine tuning of the story, what to leave in, what to take out. The team that Vici, of Caitlin Press, assembled was great to work with and I am so pleased with the result.

Janet

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