Dillon and Friends' - the Latest

Posted yesterday morning: The publisher just offered me 'one last chance'... I followed my heart and respectfully declined. I'll find a Christian publisher who will allow me to glorify God through Dillon and Friends. It just 'feels right' to decline. Too many compromises, turning my vision into someone else’s ‘project’. I’m not willing to let my lifelong dream be butchered. Been praying without ceasing! :) And I am at peace...

        

The email floored me. "In my 30 years of publishing, no one has every declined a publishing offer..." is what he said. It was a lengthy email. One of my aspirations is to 'stand out' from the crowd, and I often do, but not in a good way, I want to "stand out for God' so people know there is something different about me. These stories are like my children, and educating people about disabilities is a lifelong passion. People can say whatever they want (found that out last weekend that my refusing to settle is viewed negatively), but I am not settling. I am the Daughter of the KING of KINGS! I won't settle. This weekend will be spent in earnest prayer for God's insight.

So I settled it in my mind: Alrighty, then. Time to look for a new publisher!! A couple hours later, I get an email from the ‘top’ guy at the publishing company saying this is the first time in his 30 years of publishing an author has declined to work with them and he is 'taken aback' by my decision. Wrote a lengthy explanation with me to reconsider. He had points in which I am ready to discuss with him, so I explained I believe a phone call would be more effective between us. A couple of people have offered to intervene and ‘talk to him’ for me, and I have someone to do just that: Jesus… I am only His vessel. He’s got this. He has planted in my heart how the book series is suppose to be. Some areas can be changed, other concepts (like Dillon’s ‘boo boo’) are not up for negotiation. Keep me in prayer, but no worries… God’s got this. The publisher agreed to call me Monday morning.

By the way, this was my favorite part of his email:

In our effort to make sure we publish the very best books, we employ, at our expense, experts who advise us. I am not saying that your experience and knowledge does not earn you your opinion ( which for the most part has been excellent and is why we hired you)…

This was said by a prominent publisher to me, a girl who was suppose to  be sent to a State Hospital 43 years ago due to being born 'a vegetable who would never amount to anything."

They don't know my God. I can do anything with His strength!