So when I heard a bunch of librarians at PLA buzzing about Still Missing, I chimed in. Of course, they looked at me in confusion, because what they were talking about was thisStill Missing
More and more, I think the publishing world is looking for unknowns and trying to break them out big. Which seems to be what happened to Chevy Stevens (not her real name). An article in Canada's The Globe and Mail says:
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What's news is that one of these earnest amateurs, without so much as a single printed word behind her, not only placed her debut novel with a leading New York publisher – who is bringing out a first edition of 150,000 hardcover copies early this summer and organizing a major publicity tour – she has also sold it to a dozen publishers abroad and secured a deal to write two sequels.
This time last year, Rene Unischewski was selling teddy bears to gift shops and florists on her native Vancouver Island. Today, her name is Chevy Stevens and she is jetting about on what her publishers call a “pre-publication tour” for her upcoming novel, Still Missing. Even before she has sold a single book – or story or article – Chevy Stevens, 36, is a publishing phenomenon.
Read more about "Chevy Stevens" and her success here.