Baen Books & BackTracker

So it's been about a year and a half since I first submitted my novel BackTracker to Baen Books. At the six-month mark, I received an email from one of their editors telling me that my manuscript had been plucked from the slush pile for further consideration. At the one-year mark, I received an email that there were still 20 manuscripts ahead of mine, and Baen appreciated my patience. A couple weeks ago, at the 18-month mark, I received the following:

"Your novel was strongly recommended by two of us and has made it to the Publisher's desk. Due to the volume of manuscripts ahead of yours, and the press of other business, this process may take some time. We will contact you with our decision as soon as possible. Thank you for your continued patience."

Ain't that cool? What if, by some awesome act of divine intervention, Baen decides they want to publish my novel? I might do a 48-hour happy dance. Or try jumping over the moon.

For now, I'm going to focus on those phrases "strongly recommended" and "Publisher's desk." They'll keep me smiling until my next six-month Baen update.