Ember || B.E

40|| glistening

Two-Week Time Skip

Nerves ran through every bone of my body as I walked through the glass doors of  Angel City Press. Today I'm meeting with the person who's been emailing me, Nora. I don't think I've ever felt this many emotions. I'm terrified yet hopeful, this is all I've ever wanted; to be a writer. I have no idea what she's going to tell me. Maybe they hated my book and she's going to tell me to leave the building or she's going to tell me it's great. I honestly have no idea what I'm going to be told. 

"Welcome to Angel City Press, how can I help you?" The receptionist behind a matte black desk greeted me. 

"I'm here for a meeting with Nora," I told her, clearing my throat in an attempt to sound as confident as possible. 

"One moment," she held up her index finger telling me to wait as she picked up the phone "Nora, your 4 o'clock is here... Great," she spoke into the phone before hanging up and looking back up at me. "Go ahead, second door on the right," she explained, pointing down one of the hallways. 

"Thank you," I smiled before walking down the hall. Once I reached the second door on the right I took a deep breath, grounding myself before stepping into the office. 

"Ember," she smiled excitedly, standing up and holding out her hand. "It's so great to finally meet you."

"You as well," I shook her hand. 

"Please have a seat," she gestured to the two chairs in front of her desk. As I sat down she asked, "would you like water or coffee?"

"No, thank you," I politely declined. 

"Alright well let's get right down to business then," she nodded, sitting in the chair behind her desk. "I have to say, your book is breathtakingly beautiful. I would love to go ahead and send it out to one of our high-tier editors if that's something you're interested in?"

"Um, yeah, of course," my brows raised and suddenly I couldn't wipe away the smile on my face. "What's the whole process like?"

"Well, today you'll have to sign a contract allowing us to be the only publisher to publish your book. Once you've signed it, I'll send it straight to our editors and we can start brainstorming book covers. We have a team of graphic designers I will get to contact you and you can speak with them about your vision for the book cover. You will have to approve everything the editors have done and when you're happy with everything we'll send everything off to the manufacturers to get a few mockups. Once you've approved those then we are ready to reach out to stores, and from there we decide how many copies we will need to manufacture before your publishing date," she explained it all. 

"Wow," I responded. That was a lot of information but it all seemed pretty basic. 

"So, are you ready to sign that contract?" She smiled, seemingly almost as excited as me. 

"Could I have some time to read over it all?"

"Of course, let me print it out and I'll let you go over every word," she began clicking her mouse before the paper was printed out and she left the room for me to go over. Once I was sure this is what I wanted, I signed the contract, shook her hand and practically skipped out of the building towards Billie's car. 

"You look happy? How'd it go?" Billie questioned once I had gotten into the passenger seat. 

"Billie," I turned in the seat to fully face her, I could feel my eyes start to fill with tears. Tears of relief, excitement, and disbelief. "They're going to publish my book. I signed a contract," I breathed out, feeling the tears trickle down my cheeks.