Holy corn nuggets! "On the Scent" hit #1!

No, I did not slip crazy powder in your drink to make you delusional (although I've been wondering since Tuesday morning if someone had slipped some to me). No, I am not kidding — about this post's heading. See? That screenshot above is proof. "On the Scent" hit No. 1 on a Kindle Best Seller list. It's kind of a weird list to hit No. 1 on, but still. To borrow a saying from my friend, the fabulous RL Naquin, at one point yesterday, I was afraid Stephen King was going to beat me up for sitting at the cool kids table without asking permission. I mean, holy mackerel, I knocked Stephen King out of the No. 1 spot on a list. How does that happen?!?

"On the Scent" made it into the top 100 in all books in the U.S. Kindle Store March 18. In fact, it hit these rankings before I went to sleep last night:

Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #64 Paid in Kindle Store

• #1 in Kindle Store > Kindle eBooks > Mystery, Thriller & Suspense > Suspense > Paranormal > Psychics
• #3 in Kindle Store > Kindle eBooks > Romance > Mystery & Suspense > Suspense
• #4 in Kindle Store > Kindle eBooks > Romance > Romantic Comedy

Again, I ask, how the heck does this kind of thing happen?!

I'll tell you how it happens. Luck, plain and simple. And maybe even a little karma? Plus, I have to give major props to my publisher, Harper Impulse, for getting my book listed as a Kindle Daily Deal. And for giving me loads of social media support while the deal was live. Seriously, thank you Charlotte, Genevieve, Katie, Kim, and all of the wonderful authors at Harper Impulse. Love you guys! And thank you to my friends over at the Here Be Magic blog, who turned out in full support. And my friends I actually know face-to-face, who (finally) bought my book because it was discounted. Mwah!

I don't mean to go on and on about this, because I know how much it sucks to be an author and see another author who has hit a best seller's list celebrating and feel like, dude, that will never happen for me. I should just give up now and go carve wood for a living or something.

I only gush because this opportunity is going to save lives. Let me tell you how.

I pledged to give half my royalties to my local animal shelter, and so far, I've given ALL of my royalties and then some because, well, I haven't sold as many books as I had hoped I would. Every now and then when I head over to the shelter and see some of the animals who desperately need a favor, I get really sad and my ego as a writer suffers a bit. I mean, I wrote a book lots of people assure me is kind of funny, full of suspense, and just plain fun to read. Why isn't it selling like hotcakes?

Deep down I've been telling myself good deeds never go unrewarded. When I got the news last week that my book had been selected as a Kindle Daily Deal, well, I didn't realize what a rare and powerful thing it was going to be. I really think (shhh...just go with it...) that the universe said hey, let's cut the girl a break and help her save more animals, why don't we? And boom. Kindle Daily Deal.

Know what else surreal happened that makes me think the universe...or God...was smiling on me yesterday? I went to a press screening for the movie Divergent last night. Long story short, I ended up sitting beside a very lovely woman who owns a popular bookstore in town. We chatted, she invited me to email her my books' details, and...hopefully that will lead to something. Maybe?

Yesterday was all about luck. Or Karma. Or someone had cooked up a spell in a cauldron to benefit me. I have no idea. I'm simply grateful it happened and thank the good lord above it did. Maybe I'll actually keep a small percent of the royalties this time. Or maybe not. I'm a total sap when it comes to the animals at the shelter.

Either way, I thank you. If you bought my book, or have read it, I want to thank you with a tackle hug. Hopefully a heartfelt "thank you" will suffice.