The spoiler: I have officially signed a contract to publish my Fae novel (currently titled Invasive Species) with a small press named Evernight Teen.
A little history: I have been writing novels with the intent to publish since 2016. I'd written off and on for years before that, writing an entire book, actually, but never in a serious way and never for a continuous period. 2016 was the turning point. 2016 was the year I decided I was going to DO it.
That first book went nowhere. Neither did the next. Or the next. That third book was Ashes, Ashes, by the way. I tried for years to land a literary agent, but writing is an incredibly competitive field, and less than 1% of new authors land agents. I finally decided to self-publish Ashes, Ashes, but that's a different story (which you can read all about in my Book Release post).
While I was trying to get Ashes, Ashes off the ground, I wrote another book. Invasive Species also failed to garner attention from agents, but I wasn't ready to give up yet. I decided to look into small, independent presses that accept manuscript submissions from unagented authors. A Twitter friend of mine, Morgan Shamy, had a blog post listing dozens upon dozens of small presses, so I began slogging through the list.
Current Events: One small press liked my book so much they want to publish it! I signed a contract with Evernight Teen to publish Invasive Species (title may change in editing) later this year, and I couldn't be more thrilled. Invasive Species is the first in a trilogy following a changeling named Eve as she navigates a Fae Realm she has never been to before but is expected to save. I can't wait to see this book in print, and I hope you'll all join me for the ride.