GINA BUONAGURO and JANICE KIRK live in Toronto and Kingston, respectively. After meeting in a French class in Kingston, they became writing partners and co-authors. They are the authors of three novels, The Sidewalk Artist, Ciao Bella, and The Wolves of St. Peter’s, which was longlisted for the 2014 Arthur Ellis Best Novel Award. Together they also write romances under the pen name Meadow Taylor, their most recent being the romantic suspense, Midnight in Venice.
How We Got Published
We met in 2001 in a French class in Kingston, Ontario soon after Gina moved there. We had to introduce each other and discovered we were both interested in writing. After meeting regularly for a year to exchange and discuss our individual projects, we decided to write a novel together, which ultimately became The Sidewalk Artist.
Eventually Gina moved to Toronto, though we chose to remain writing partners. After receiving many rejections from agents and publishers for The Sidewalk Artist, a very serendipitous event occurred. Gina’s new house had a very large parking lot, and one of her neighbours asked to rent a parking spot there while he renovated his kitchen. When she realized the renovator was the writer David Macfarlane, an idea was born: instead of asking for rent, she and Janice asked David to read their manuscript. He liked it enough to suggest they pass it on to a new agent named John in his agency.
Then another serendipitous event happened. John took the manuscript home and put it on the top of a very large pile. His wife Gail happened to read the first page… and couldn’t stop. She told John he had to read it and kept passing him the pages as she finished them. He called the next day to offer us representation and has been our agent ever since.
The moral of the story? Write a good book to start with, network wherever and whenever you can, and remember that luck comes to the prepared.
Midnight in Venice is written under the pen name Meadow Taylor.
Carol Balawyder 
Congrats on your collaboration ladies! I adore Venice, so added your book Midnight in Venice to my wish list. Thanks and all the best!
LikeLike
Thanks so much – we hope you enjoy it!
LikeLike
That is a wonderful story of good writing meeting the right people! Very cool.
LikeLike
Yes we very much lucked out!
LikeLike
Wow, what a stroke of luck with the parking situation. And even “luckier” the book was great with a fabulous first page!!! I’m intrigued by the idea of a writing team. I am wondering why the team. What are the benefits in writing together (usually we think of writing as a solitary occupation)?
LikeLike
Hi – we posted a link below about why and how we coauthor. For us, it boils down to two heads are better than one – and sometimes you are writing even when you’re not writing!
LikeLiked by 1 person
I think co-authoring is such a great idea. Your article in the Huffington Post really outlines the advantages of co-authoring. Writing alone can be both de-motivating and lonely. Having someone else to bounce off ideas is truly precious.
Whenever I read the acknowledgments of well known writers, the list goes on proving that writing is really a collaborative effort. 🙂
LikeLike
Sharing via twitter and Facebook. Thanks.
LikeLike
These days it seems most hitherto unpublished writers get a contract by some lucky chance-but good luck to the girls!
LikeLike
I love these inspirational stories you share Carol. And, it is interesting to find how many fascinating writers there are living and from my own hometown, Toronto. 🙂
LikeLike
Luck come to those who prepare indeed! 🙂
LikeLike
Great spotlight dear Carol… I nodded in agreement with the author’s statement: “Remember that luck comes to the prepared”… I really enjoyed the feature here.
All the Best to you. Happy sunday and week ahead, Aquileana 😀
LikeLike
You just never know…
LikeLike
Thanks very much for all your comments! We hope you enjoy our books. We’ve written a few articles on why we coauthor, such as this one – http://www.huffingtonpost.com/gina-buonaguro/how-to-co-author-a-novel_b_406306.html Very best wishes to you all – G&J
LikeLike
I think preparing for luck is one of the most critical tasks we writers can undertake. You never know who we might be sitting next to on a flight or making small talk with at a friend’s party. Thanks for sharing this story!
LikeLike
An inspiring story, Carol! Perseverance can pay off. You never know so it’s best to … persevere! 🙂
LikeLike