The reason I do this job stems all the way back to a writing conference in Glorieta NM where I was trying to get a handle on what the Lord might want me to do in regards to my writing. I went through a process designed to identify my spiritual gifts and one of them turned out to be the gift of encouragement. When Joyce gave me a chance to be an agent I began to do it as an avenue to utilize that gift. My focus is on helping and encouraging writers and for that reason I have a lot of new authors and have helped place a number of debut books. I probably work with too many new authors to be considered a successful agent by normal definitions but that's where my heart is. I'm extraordinarily pleased every time I help a new author break into print no matter what level of publishing we have to go to in order to make that happen.
I was pleased at the event to get to go up and accept the Genesis award for my client Stephanie Morris for her young adult title. Stephanie has been a finalist before, but this time was the key. In the comments she sent me to deliver she said "How fun, I get to force my agent, Terry Burns, to thank himself for believing in me." That was an interesting line to have to deliver but the audience loved it. I'm very proud of Stephanie as I am of all my clients.
Lynda Schab was a Genesis finalist as well but in spite of how hard our entire Hartline client group was pulling for her (and there were around 40 of us) she didn't make the cut this time. But making it to be a finalist is a major recognition in itself and I am proud of her as well.
I also continue to be proud of Jill Williamson who was a finalist in her category for the Carol Award. She is no longer a client but I was her agent when she published "By Darkness Hid," which also won her a Christy Award. I congratulate her on her continued success as well.
I enjoyed meeting with a lot of long time as well as new friends at the conference and aided by my assistant Normandie Fischer had an opportunity to hear a lot of very good pitches. We'll be following up on those. The food was tremendous, the logistics very well handled, and those putting on the conference are to be commended for doing a terrific job.
6 comments:
Thanks to the whole Hartline group for rooting for me. Hopefully next year I'll be ineligible for the Genesis (wink) and I can stop with the "always-a-finalist-never-a-winner" status. Seriously, it was a huge honor to be a finalist.
Congrats to Stefanie! Woo-hoo!
And Terry, enough of the humbleness already. You deserve Agent of the Year as much as anybody. Happy for Sandra, of course, but you are the winner in my book!
Amen Lynda! He's Agent of the Year in my book too!
Congrats to the ladies and in the case of the Carol's, being one of the finalists is just as much fun, 'cause you get one of those pins!
Congrats to Stephanie! I recorded Terry's acceptance speech and will upload it to Facebook sometime today.
Thanks for the kind words, Terry. And thanks for being my suitcase hero on both planes. I was actually looking for you on the way home and didn't spot your hat, so I figured you were on a different plane. It was so funny when you swooped up and got my bag down. Thank you very much. :-)
My pleasure, Jill, let me know when you put that up.
It was great meeting you at conference. I must say you are every bit the gentleman everyone said you are! :-) God bless you and congrats on the nominations and wins!
I've read everyone's comments on the conference and appreciate all the sharing. Reading about all the fun you had and the information you gleaned makes me want to go next year. Thanks, everyone, and you especially, Terry, for being such a hard worker and gentleman.
Blessings,
Deb
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