Margaret Koerber

I went out to have a drink with a couple of girlfriends tonight, and we talked about my book. I told them the premise of the book, and we started talking about the perpetual fear we have as women. I saw something in them as we talked about the Blues and their reflex, and they both said how nice it would be to have that reassurance that a Blue has. They both instantly stepped into that fantasy world I created, and it felt good to them.

It’s my hope that this book brings a little bit of light to people. I think it’s one thing to acknowledge people’s pain and fear, but it’s another thing to imagine a world without it. Just as those social media posts ask the question, what would you do if there were no men in the world, and they get responses about wearing certain clothes or going for a jog without a worry. My book is asking a reader to imagine a different kind of world.

I hope that readers enjoy using their imaginations and engaging in conversations around the topic of power and freedom that my book explores. While it is all fantasy, I think fantasy can bring people together to talk about their experiences and hopes for the future.

It’s so exciting to finally be starting this journey to my first published book. I’m not your typical writer. I do not have the creative writing degrees. I’m a former kindergarten teacher and I always thought I would write. So, here I am. It’s a gift of middle age to tell yourself, if not now, when? And receive the answer that now is the perfect time to write my first novel.

The book is ready for queries. It’s hard to believe that all of my hard work has led up to this. I have a few unfinished books on my hard drive, but this is the first book that I have taken this far. I guess I just really believed in it and believed in myself. It just must have been the right time because everything has fallen into place. I just hope my dream agent thinks I’m the dream client, then I’d really be set. I could keep tweaking my query letter, but I don’t want it to be overcooked. I tend to jump before everything is ready, but I decided to take my best shot and calm my instinct to jump ahead. There’s a lot of waiting in the days ahead as I wait to hear from potential agents, so I need to prepare myself for that. I imagine it’s somewhat like waiting to get a grade back after an exam. I’m not very good at waiting, so I know it will be tough.

I have taken several cracks at my query letter to agents. I tried to be conversational, to explain the book in ways that is too wordy, or too formal. It was good practice, though, because it allowed me to look at the book from the outside and try to think about what someone who was new to the book would think. More on that later.

This whole process is like climbing a ladder out of a hole. You can see the light up top, but it’s so bright it’s hard to figure out how far you need to go and what awaits you on the other side. You know you are moving up but moving up into an unknown. I’m excited to see what lies ahead for me and THE BIRDS IN BLUE SKYE.