Welcome to the Cindy Lee Cup Finals, everyone! I’m Dawn Cherie, your hostess.
Today, we have some very exciting news to announce. Cindy’s alter ego, known on Muse Interrupted as “Penny,” has sold her first erotic romance single title, A LITTLE WILD, to Samhain Publishing! Cindy and Penny are both excited and happy and proud. Cindy more than Penny, even though it’s technically Penny’s sale. However, Penny has sold everything she’s written. Cindy, in a word, hasn’t. So, Cindy, alas, is well-versed is coming in second. Let’s see how she’s faring, shall we?
Dawn Cherie: Cindy, it’s nice to see your bright, smiling face. How do you stay so upbeat when Penny just sold her first single title whereas yours is gathering cyber-dust on your hard drive?
Cindy: Um, thank you, Dawn. I think. First, I am totally thrilled for Penny. She wrote her single title before I wrote mine, that is if you’re referring to the romantic comedy/mystery I’m currently marketing. She submitted it before I began marketing mine. So it makes sense that Penny’s book would SELL first, don’t you think?
Dawn Cherie: Semantics, Cindy! Tell us how you really feel.
Cindy: I know deep inside my heart that I play a part in Penny’s success. So, honestly, I am thrilled for her. However, if you want to get picky (or nosey), technically, my first single title is releasing in December of this year, from Five Star/Cengage/Gale. My 2007 Golden Heart finalist manuscript, WHERE SHE BELONGS. It’s on the shorter side for a single title—65,000 words. However, it still qualifies.
Dawn Cherie: How long is Penny’s A LITTLE WILD?
Cindy: Why don’t you ask her?
Dawn Cherie: :::shaking head::: I tried, but she’s not taking interviews at the moment. I fear her success might have bloated her ego.
Cindy: Makes sense. Okay, I happen to know that Penny’s erotic romance, A LITTLE WILD, is 85,000 words.
Dawn Cherie: So, technically, TWENTY THOUSAND words longer than yours!
Cindy: Technically. However, the single title I’m currently marketing is more like 95,000 words.
Dawn Cherie: Ten thousand words longer than Penny’s! Except…(consulting notes)…Oh, ahem, it says here that YOUR single title, which you are currently, um, “marketing,” is actually only 94,000 words. Cindy, I caught you in a fib!
Cindy: I was approximating! Look, Dawn, if you want to get crabby about it, let’s add ’em up. I have published and/or sold two short romantic comedies and a long contemporary romance. Together, they add up to 165,000 words. Penny has sold three erotic romance novellas and now a single title. Together, they add up to 160,000 words. So, you see, I’ve sold 5000 more words than Penny has. So there!
Dawn Cherie: Wow, Cindy, you really dug through your files and added up the words of all your sold works? (You didn’t slip in the unsold works, did you?)
Cindy: Yes, I really added them up. (And, no, I didn’t count the unsold works. That would be too scary). You’re the one trying to make this into a competition! Making me all…all Capricorny!
Dawn Cherie: You need to take a chill pill.
Cindy: I do!! Dawn, I must be off.
Dawn Cherie: I believe you are already (off her rocker, that is!)
Cindy: That’s it! Dawn, you’re taking the Cindy Lee Cup Finals far too seriously. I have writing to do.
Dawn Cherie: But, but—you haven’t provided a blurb of Penny’s A LITTLE WILD yet.
Cindy: NEXT TIME!!!
Cindy stomps off.
Dawn leaves in a snit, adjusting her starchy blouse collar.
Cindy peeks back in and whispers, “Congratulations, Penny.”
Penny creeps out of the cobwebbed corner of Cindy’s brain. “Thank you. I couldn’t have done it without you.”
Cindy bows (humble, as always).