Many of you probably already know that October is my very favorite month of the year. There’s nothing I don’t love about fall. The cooler weather, the changing colors, the crunchy leaves, the cozy sweaters and hot drinks…I could go on. I’ve always said if I ever get married, it will be in October. Or, I will just marry October.

Last year, I was blessed with yet another reason to love October. On October 22, 2014, I officially signed with my incomparable agent, Sharon Pelletier.

That’s a very specially made “feather pen.”

I don’t know if I ever actually posted this picture. I was at school conferences that day, and had to wear a very unflattering khaki/polo combo, which my niece thought made it look like I went pantsless (which wouldn’t be entirely out of character for me). Nevertheless, it was an extraordinary day, as I got to celebrate with the school staff, my plastic snake, and later that night, my writing group. You can read my full agent story here. (Note: The blog post is from October 23, because I couldn’t actually announce until the next day.)

The past year has been incredible. A whirlwind. The couple months after signing with Sharon were filled with rounds of revisions and rethinking my story, molding it and going deeper, shining it up into the best possible book it could be before sending it out into the world.

Plotting wall

A little over three months after signing, I had a book deal. You can read about that here.

Another never-before-seen photo, signing my contract (with another special “feather” pen)!

Since then, it’s been a blur of more revisions, lots of decisions, brainstorming new ideas, sharing exciting news…and Sharon has been by my side the entire time, helping me understand this crazy world we call publishing. I can’t imagine a better partner or cheerleader for this adventure. I know I say it a lot, but I don’t think I can ever overstate how absolutely sensational she is.

So Happy Agentversary, Sharon! Words will never be enough to fully thank you for all you’ve done 🙂 Here’s to many more!