Yesterday, I received news that my agent, Karen Solem, has passed away. She was (I can’t even believe I’m saying “was”) my one and only agent for a reason. She was a damn good agent, but even more importantly to me, she was honest and straight forward. By the time I’d published after 8 years of rejections, I had a pretty solid feel for agents, and I chose carefully.

So right after my first book, DATING CAN BE MURDERED, was published with Kensington books, I flew to NY for a conference. While there, I had a meeting with Karen. One of the first things she said to me was, “You can write.” I was caught by surprise, because I’d assumed she was interested in me because I’d already published one book in a two book contract and was ready to negotiate the next two book contract. It was then that I understood she’d have passed on me if she didn’t think I had the chops, despite the upcoming contract that would earn her money. Karen had been NY Publisher editor for years before becoming an agent and had been in this business for a long time. She’d seen it all by then. And once I grasped that she really believed in me, I have always valued those words to this day, and I tried to remember them when I doubted myself. It was the start of a good professional relationship with a side of personal friendship.

Years later, when I needed a new publisher, I sent Karen the outline for my paranormal BLOOD MAGIC. She loved it. But it took time to sell, and she never gave up. She found the right editor and a series was born. That said, it was a troublesome birth, with a few more snags along the way as there often is on the path of NY publishing. Karen stood by me the entire time, and her steadiness helped me navigate the rough ride.

And then I decided to try category, she sold THE BABY BARGAIN to Entangled and we hit the bestseller list. That was a surprise!

Over a couple decades, I’ve had endless emails with her, tons of phone calls, and a smattering of lunches, cocktail parties and coffees with her. Once I was self-publishing, we were still connected by the residual business of my NY published books, and we’d chat now and again. I always knew if anything that needed an agent came up, I’d call her. It feels odd that she’s no longer “there”.  That we won’t talk about books, or our love of animals, or the state of publishing. Nor will I hear her stories (and she had some!).

Honestly, this feels like an era has passed. But I am grateful that I had a strong, kind and professional agent who doubled as a friend guiding me as I waded the minefield of being an author with NY publishers.

By the time this blog goes up on Wednesday, I’ll feel grounded again and I’ll be smiling at the memories. Today I’m just a bit sad.

Happy Wednesday