I introduced myself and looked at the thick plastic bookmark in my hands. “Nice,” I said in reference to the giveaway. “One my daughter won’t be able to destroy in three seconds.”

Julie laughed and confessed that the printer had messed up, and she’d been concerned about them. We started talking about the book featured on the mark, her debut novel A Passion Most Pure. As the breakfast-line started moving, she asked to pray for me and the other lady beside me. We told her what we were pitching, and she took our hands and prayed then and there for us and our projects.

Since I’d started the Christian Review of Books a few years before, I was well able to expound on that topic. She further endeared herself by saying, “Don’t take this the wrong way, but you look really young to be so well versed in the industry.” Is there any quicker way to make a woman your friend? LOL. We chatted all the way into breakfast, I gave her a card . . . and then conference went on. I didn’t see Julie again.

Since then, Julie and I have formed a unique kind of friendship born of mutual respect and appreciation. As each of her books have come out, I’ve written reviews and raved to everyone I know (I can’t help it–they’re sooooooo good! My sister always threatens to fight me for them when she sees me with Julie’s latest release). She was kind enough to write a review of Stray Drop for me too. We email now and then for updates on each other’s projects, and she assures me she’s praying that my manuscripts find favor with the publishers.