Friday, January 20, 2012

Wolves and Bears and Contracts, oh my!

Thought it's time to share the story of when I got my offer from Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.

And when you live in the middle of a wildlife preserve, most everything is a story...

dramatic recreation.

There were two publishers interested in making an offer for my YA novel, ICE DOGS. So we knew the date it was to happen. As you can imagine, I was a bit of a basket case that day.

Hubby was hanging around, not helping with the nerves, so before it all went down, I suggested he take the dog out for a walk.

At the exact moment the offer came in, I glanced out the window to see my dog running for her life down the driveway with a freaking Timber Wolf on her tail. The wolf got right to the bottom of the stairs of the deck before it wheeled around and ran off.

And my man was missing.

So forget about the fact I just had the offer of a lifetime, and all my dreams come true. Instead of celebrating, I had images of my man surrounded by a wolf pack somewhere.

I think my exact words were, "Gotta go... the wolves!"

Turns out, while on their relaxing walk, the dog spotted a bear with two cubs, began a chase that didn't really work out for her, and came running back to my Hubby. All Hubby saw was teeth coming at him.

He scrambled up the closest tree and stayed there to wait it out. The dog continued running home, and somehow picked up a wolf along the way. (I swear, I'm not making this up!)

So the dog got chased by a bear AND a wolf on the same walk!

Leave it to MY DOG to steal my thunder!




26 comments:

Alex J. Cavanaugh said...

And safe to say you have the most original and unique story ever!
And forgive me if I never come for a visit. I have a thing about being eaten by bears and wolves.

Caroline Starr Rose said...

Love this! Further evidence your experiences are meant to be shared through your writing!

Lisa Desrochers said...

So...wow! Glad everyone made it out unscathed! =)

Sharon K. Mayhew said...

OMGoodness, I'm glad your dog and your hubby were okay. What a great (thankfully) story!

Sophia Chang said...

I swear your ice mountain rugged life is freakishly interesting to this city slicker.

Irene Latham said...

WHAT AN AWESOME STORY. I am totally coming to visit you. Although my lil Aussie would probably be cowering, at least for a while. The biggest wildlife she sees are squirrels. :) Congrats on your deal of a lifetime!!!

Natalie Aguirre said...

Thanks for sharing. What a unique story. But not surprised since it's you. I'm like Alex, afraid of bears.

Jaye Robin Brown said...

I loved this story on the BB's, I love it again. I hope you're next contract signing involves something more sedate!

Janet Smart said...

Sounds like another normal day for you Terry. I haven't seen a bear or wolf around my parts lately, just plenty of deer.

L. Diane Wolfe said...

Oh my God! I can only imagine the look on your agent's face when you said that.

Sue Sedgwick said...

Great story - truth really is stranger, isn't it? - and good news about the book. Good luck with it.

Paul Greci said...

Love that story. Wolves and bears!!

Jemi Fraser said...

Yikes! What a day - glad everyone was okay & I hope you celebrated once they were all home safe! :)

MarcyKate said...

WOW. This has to be the craziest "how-I-got-my-book-deal" story ever! LOL I'm glad everyone turned out OK, but YIKES!

Susan Kaye Quinn said...

OMG That is the best story EVER!! And only fitting that the dog takes the day. :) (Still squeeing that I'll get to buy your book!!)

Marcia said...

This is such a wonderful, awful story that I think I'll stop worrying that maybe the agents I'm querying chose the two days during which my website went absolutely haywire to Google me...

Elana Johnson said...

This is awesome! Well, awesome in the good way. Also, how cool is it that your husband can climb trees? I can't do that...

Rae Carson said...

This is the most hilarious "The Call" story ever! I mean, in retrospect, of course. :) Also, your dog is such a beautiful animal.

SKWeathers said...

My favorite part - "gotta go - the wolves!" So much better than if everything had gone according to script.

effervescent laughter said...

fabulous and terrifying ... makes my trip to the grocery store seem a little less exciting ;)

hey - whatever happened w/ the negotiations?

Lo Hughes said...

haha totally fitting, given the subject matter of the book!! I'm sure it made the editors want it even more :-)

Cynthia Chapman Willis said...

I know this story and it still makes me shudder. However, I would have loved to see the faces of your agent and editor (probably far from wolves and bears) as they heard this.

Heather Kelly said...

Wow. Amazing! Love the story, and can't wait to see it in one of your books some day. And I'm so thankful that your man has a level head and tree-climbing feet!

Congrats, Terry!

Susan Fields said...

What a great story! I'm so glad your man and your dog were both okay, and your dream came true to boot!

Deniz Bevan said...

That;s a great story! Happy to hear no one got hurt :-)

Annemarie O'Brien said...

What an amazing story! Yuo need to find a way to waeve that into one of your own stories. Annemarie