JT opened his father-in-law’s file and saw Curtis’s lengthy and very impressive bio, a few articles outlining some of his major accomplishments, and then the speaker’s agreement he’d signed and returned to them months before his date of appearance. Next, JT flipped past the first two pages, but when he came to the last of them, he leaned all the way back in his chair and grinned. At first, he’d had second thoughts about doing this, but now that Curtis’s signature was staring him straight in the face, he realized that this was going to be much easier than he’d planned on. He’d wondered if maybe a big-time pastor like Curtis might scribble his signature the same as some physician, but based on what JT saw before him now, this definitely wasn’t the case. His handwriting looked pretty straightforward, and JT couldn’t wait to start practicing it. He would learn every curve of every letter. He would pay close attention to the way Curtis dotted the i in his first name and the way he looped the l in his last. JT would practice multiple times a day until he was able to replicate it perfectly. He would master it so well, not one person would ever consider the idea of forgery. Not Janet and not any of the pastors each letter of recommendation would be going out to.
On the other hand, however, there was a chance a few of them might call Curtis, not necessarily to confirm the authenticity of the letter, but possibly just to make small talk and to mention that they’d received it. This, of course, did worry JT slightly, but in the end, he was sure the majority of these ministers wouldn’t bother wasting their time. They would either decide to invite him to their churches or not, and that would be the end of it. Still, if word did get back to Curtis and Curtis confronted him about it, he would simply play the role of a very desperate and very apologetic son-in-law, the kind who’d only been trying to create a better life for Alicia-Curtis’s beloved daughter. He would beg Curtis’s forgiveness and promise to never do anything so deceitful again-he would do and say whatever he had to, squashing any thoughts Curtis might have about pressing charges against him. JT would overcome any obstacles Satan placed in front of him. He would rise above any stumbling blocks, the same as always.
As soon as Alicia looked at the Caller ID screen and saw that her father’s agent was calling, she hurried her mother off the phone and answered the other line.
“Hello?”
“Alicia?” she said.
“Yes, this is she.”
“How are you? This is Joan Epstein.”
“I’m great, how are you?”
“Well, actually, I’m feeling fabulous now that I’ve had a chance to read your novel again. Alicia, it’s absolutely wonderful.”
“Really? You think so?”
“Yes. I just love it, and I have no doubt that your future readers are going to feel the same way. As a matter of fact, I haven’t felt this motivated and sure about the future of a brand-new author since quite a few years ago when I first agreed to represent your father.”
Alicia closed her eyes, wanting to scream with joy, and said, “Oh my God. I can’t believe you’re so happy with it.”
“I really am, and I think it’s because you’ve incorporated so much honesty and so much feeling into it without being preachy. You’ve written a story that so many young couples will be able to relate to, and you’ve also shown just why so many of their marriages end in divorce.”
“Well, unfortunately, it’s like I told you during our first conversation: I was basically writing what I know. There are so many plot points that have nothing to do with my own life, but there are plenty of scenes in the book that resemble or, in some cases, are almost identical to what happened between my first husband and me. We went through premarital counseling, but for the most part, I think the only reason we did it was because my father insisted on it. At least that was my reason anyway.”
“It’s probably why even though many young couples do participate in counseling, they never really get to know each other as well as they should before taking their vows. Most people fall in love with the idea of being in love, and they truly believe this is all they’ll ever need to be okay. Thirty years ago, even I was naïve enough to believe that love was all my first husband and I would ever need. But as your character so clearly states in the book, love just isn’t enough. A successful marriage requires so much more than that, and my hope is that when couples, married or engaged, read When the Honeymoon Is Over, they’ll be encouraged to communicate all of their likes, dislikes, and expectations. There is no doubt that we want your novel to entertain readers, which it certainly will, but if people can relate or learn something in the process, this will be all the better.”
“So, does this mean you’re taking me on? I mean, I assume you are, but…”
“Yes, absolutely, and I guess I should have said that as soon as I called, right?”
They both laughed and Alicia said, “I’m just glad you feel so good about it.”
“You’ve got a winner here, and I’m going to get started on the submission process right away.”
“Do you have an editor or two in mind?”
“More like six.”
“And you think they’ll all be interested?”
“I do, and I also think we’ll end up having to do what we did with your dad. I’ll set up meetings with each editor and her publishing group and have you fly in to meet with each house individually.”
Alicia couldn’t believe this was really happening. She was actually going to be a published writer with a real book in real bookstores being read by real readers. This was so implausibly outrageous.
“What we want,” Joan continued, “is to connect you with a very talented editor who honestly loves your work and who will be committed to helping you make your novel the best that it can be. What we want is to find someone who will allow you to create your characters and story line completely and then offer editing suggestions based on what a general audience will want to see and will be satisfied with. The goal is less about personal preference on the part of the author or the editor and more about selling as many books as possible to as many people as we can. Meaning, we have to give your readers what they want and what they’ll be able to relate to. We have to give them something that they’ll enjoy so much, they’ll rush to tell all their friends and family members about it.”
“I agree.”
“The other thing is that while I’m not sure how you’ll feel about this, I’d really like to include something about your father in my cover letters. I can imagine that you probably want to stand on your own merit and not enter the industry as Reverend Curtis Black’s daughter, but because your father is so successful and is loved by so many millions of people, using his name will definitely make a difference for you.”
Alicia was disappointed. “I was hoping I wouldn’t have to do that.”
“I totally understand. However, on the other hand, since you write fiction and your dad writes nonfiction, your work will still sell based on the story line, but if your publisher is allowed to include your father’s name with the initial publicity and promotion, it will almost guarantee you a ton of sales right out of the gate.”
“My husband was saying the same thing a couple of weeks ago, so if you think this is what we should do, then I’m fine with it. You’ve always done right by my dad, so I trust your judgment.”
“I’m glad. Also, on a side note, I want you to know how discreet I am and how confidential I keep all of my clients’ information. I represent your father and will now be representing you, but I won’t ever discuss your business with your father unless you authorize me to. I would have even asked your permission first before calling to ask him if I could use his name when I contact potential editors, but as it turns out, he began suggesting I do that before you’d even finished writing your novel. He really loves you, Alicia, and one of the last things he said to me was that his hope is that you’ll sell ten times more books than he has.”