The official announcement was made on September 30th, but I was notified a week earlier. I'm sure Chelsea thought I had blown more than a few brain cells at the other end of the phone, but I never imagined I could actually win, especially considering some of the amazingly talented people I was up against.
Here's the scenerio...
I'm cooking dinner, ramen broccoli soup for my pescetarian/vegetarian daughter, when the phone rings. The caller ID says Los Angeles, CA and I think, Who do I know in L.A.? (The grammarian in me would correct that to whom, but I'm not going to quibble at this moment.) I put the ladle down and answer the phone.
"Hello."
"Is this Mary Ann Scott?"
"Yes, it is."
"This is Chelsea Mooser from SCBWI."
*Gulp*
"Yes?"
"You are the winner of the 2013 Work in Progress Grant."
"WHAT? REALLY? ME? REALLY? ARE YOU SURE? REALLY?"
Just at the moment my husband walks in and wants to know who is on the phone. Of course, I can't talk. I can hardly breath! Meanwhile, I'm hearing warm congratulations in my ear and the name of my humble little work-in-progress, soon-to-become-a-real-book spoken by a stranger who actually knew what it was.
After a few instructions about staying mum on the social networks, etc., she offered further congratulations and said goodbye. I hung up and stared at my hubby, trying to force a bit of air into my lungs so I could speak again. Here's the extra cool part. When I told him what had just happened, he totally got it and cried and celebrated right along with me. He knew exactly what this meant.
A week later, SCBWI announced the official results, and I was finally free to blab all over FaceBook and Twitter and everywhere else. I was already on my yearly holiday with Ghost Son in North Carolina so I wasn't there to pluck that precious envelope from the mailbox, but something awesome would be waiting for me when I got home.
And now...the bulk of those 2000 simoleans is already spent on airfare and the Highlights Foundation More Room to Create Workshop! October is going to be an awesome month!
Now, I just have to finish the book (without screwing it all up) and get that book deal. I don't know...I might actually pass out cold when that happens!
