A Writer’s Love Story

The ladies at YA Highway are doing a special Valentine blogfest today, a bit like the Road Trip Wednesday blogfest, but for today it’s a “lovefest.” The idea is for everyone contributing to write a Valentine blog post that is a love note to… anyone or anything they love (spouse, children, sibling, friend, pet, agent, book…).

Mine is somewhat traditional, in that this is about my wife. But with a bit of a twist. I’m not sure she will appreciate this, but as I was thinking about how my wife and I met, got to know each other, and eventually fell for each other, I couldn’t help but be struck by how similar our story is to finding an agent. Yes, you heard right. Bear with me as I tell you our story from the writer’s perspective…

The Query Letter

We met at a Bible study at the beginning of my second year at University. She was a “study abroad” student from the US, and she, along with some other newcomers to the school, came back to my house for tea, coffee, and socializing. There I discovered that the US east and west coasts are a long way from each other, and she had never been to California. Over the course of the year, she baked the most amazing desserts (her monkey bread was a big hit with many people), and made me laugh a lot. I was intrigued to know more…

The Partial Request

As the academic year drew to a close, we started spending more time together. We talked, we watched Monty Python, we shared our likes and dislikes, our past experiences and future hopes. We got to know each other on a much deeper level. And we liked what we found…

The Full Request

We parted on the day after school finished as “an item.” We began our long-distance dating via telephone and letter. Every time the postman dropped letters through the door, I would run to collect them, looking for “Air Mail” written across the front in her distinctive handwriting. Each new communication brought an even deeper level of knowledge and connection. By the time we had completed our degree courses and she was back in the UK, I was sure she was the one for me.

The Offer

If memory serves me well, it was August 7th, 1991 when I “popped the question.” She said yes. On December 14th that same year, we were married. Twenty years and six kids later, she still makes me laugh, and she still makes the best desserts. 🙂