Will iconic images recorded in the grooves of an ancient vase unite the Holy Land or rip it further apart?

THE VASE

A novel by Mark M. DeRobertis

Muhsin Muhabi is a Palestinian potter, descended from a long line of potters. His business is run from the same shop owned by his ancestors since the day his forebears moved to Nazareth. The region's conflict saw the death of his oldest son, and rogue terrorists are in the process of recruiting his youngest in their plot to assassinate the Pope and Israeli prime minister.

Professor Hiram Weiss is an art historian at Nazareth’s Bethel University. He is also a Shin Bet operative on special assignment. With the help of fellow agent, Captain Benny Mathias, he plans to destroy the gang responsible for the death of his wife and only child. He puts a bomb in the ancient vase he takes on loan from Muhsin’s Pottery Shop.

Mary Levin, the charming assistant to the director of Shin Bet, has lost a husband and most of her extended family to recurring wars and never-ending terrorism. She dedicates her life to the preservation of Israel, but to whom will she dedicate her heart? The brilliant professor from Bethel University? Or the gallant captain who now leads Kidon?

Harvey Holmes, the Sherlock of Haunted Houses, is a Hollywood TV host whose reality show just flopped. When a Lebanese restaurant owner requests his ghost-hunting services, he believes the opportunity will resurrect his career. All he has to do is exorcise the ghosts that are haunting the restaurant. It happens to be located right across the street from Muhsin’s Pottery Shop.




Thursday, June 2, 2011

THE VASE FINDS A HOME! (again)

Wouldn't you know the day I'm lamenting exclusive submissions (yesterday) is the day my novel, THE VASE, is accepted for publication based on that exclusive submission. And it was a truly glorious day. It's been a long road, and still not completed, but a momentous day, indeed.

So here are the specifics. About two weeks after I had signed the contract with Virtual Tales for publication of THE VASE, I received an email from a Canadian publisher I had queried with a partial during the same period of querying that landed VT. This publisher was COGITO MEDIA GROUP, and its subsidiary is Transit Publishing. Despite being a relatively new independent publisher, they have aleady successfully established themselves with bestsellers. I'm talking about REAL bestsellers. Anyway, the email requested a 90 day exclusive submission, but of course I had already signed with VT, and I let them know that.

But a couple months later, Virtual Tales folded, and the rights reverted back to me. I didn't waste time. I emailed Cogito's acquisitions manager and asked if her offer to review my manuscript was still open. She emailed me back the next day and said yes, and to please send her the full manuscript. I asked about the exclusive part, and that's when she said to just make it a one month exclusive submission. So that was certainly reasonable, and I agreed.

And as I've chronicled here on this blog, it's been an awefully slow month, but it passed and the contract came yesterday.

So I am flying high right now. (A natural high, to be sure,) and it was a great, great day for me. I've signed that contract, and you can bet, I will send it today in NEXT DAY MAIL!
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