Someday...

You will know my name.

Okay, it may not ever be on a New York Times best seller list, but someday it will be in a bookstore.

I was scrolling through Facebook today, when I noticed an article shared by a friend. Good-to-know stuff about the Christian fiction market. While reading the article, I noticed a link in the sidebar to this one: Five Reasons Why You May Never Get Published.

I stiffened. I clicked. I prepared to be shattered. I wasn't.

I may not as regimented as I want to be, but I am willing to put in the years   yes, years!   that it takes to accomplish this goal.  I don't expect to write a rough draft and have total strangers drool over it. I am not a professional. I WANT to be. Someday. What I know compared to what I need to know is a drop in the bucket. Or ocean. Yes, more like a drop in the ocean. It is sometimes overwhelming, but yet I plug away...

I am willing to take criticism, and LEARN from it. I have sent pieces of my WIPs to friends 'in the business' and listened to their advice. From pasts posts, you know that I am friends with the recently published author, Terri Tiffany. Terri has offered to be my critique partner, and has offered me tremendous encouragement. But she has also pointed out my mistakes and offered well-informed advice to correct those areas. AND I LISTEN! Apparently, that is not the typical reaction from a novice. Many people tell me stories of hurt feelings and 'I never heard from her again' scenarios. Why? If you're serious about writing, as I am, shouldn't you prize that information?

I won't even think about submitting my work to anyone until I am positive   and have other knowledgeable people in agreement   that my novel is the absolute best it can be. I worry enough about Terri seeing my drafts! This book is my baby. I birthed it. I want to be proud of it. It isn't enough to be published. I could self-publish tomorrow. (And I think too many have at this stage.) I want to be an author   by my definition. I want to write a really good book that people will recommend to others. A book that people are willing to pay for   not just willing to read because it was free.

I want my book to be different. I don't want to write a book that is predictable, or just like so-and-so's. I have my own voice, and want to perfect it so that is stands out from the crowd   or rather, the slush pile. I'm not so in love with my current WIP that I would continue down the same path if told the idea is overdone and will not sell. That is true insanity if my goal is to be published.

Lastly, I'm not so big-headed to think my talent surpasses that of other published authors, and therefore I will be 'discovered' by that lucky agent...blah...blah...blah...  Just as my book is my baby, I am a baby in this world of writing. Even though I've been doing it all my life, I've never before attempted to do it correctly. Yes, there is a method. There are rules. There is so much to learn. But I am willing and eager.

I  stumbled across this bit of wisdom today:

 "There is no comparison between that which is lost by not succeeding and that which is lost by not trying."     Francis Bacon 

 I am trying. I am definitely trying!

Peeking at the Process with a Debut Author

I've had a delightful experience I want to share with you...

watching the birth of a book up close and personal.

It started here, with my blog.

I follow some blogs just for entertainment.

I follow some blogs that are authors-agents-editors' blogs, 

hoping to glean valuable tips to help me in my own journey.

I follow a lot of writers that are where I am, hammering out that first manuscript.

And I follow some seeking publication with one or more finished books.

Terri Tiffany was in the last group.

 Terri has been published more times than I can count as a contributing author,

with several stories in the Chicken Soup books, as well as other inspirational collections.

She is a seasoned writer, but had to wait patiently for that first novel to be grabbed up.

Through following and commenting on our respective blogs,
Terri and I became friends.
One day she asked me if I would be interested
 in reading a chapter of a book she had written, 

and giving her some feedback. 

I eagerly said yes!

In June of 2012, I read the first chapter of a manuscript she called The Mulligan.

The story is quite unique.
The MC is a young girl who decides to go to golf school
to keep her family from falling apart.
What? You say you just read a book about the same thing?
I didn't think so.

In April of 2013, she sent me some revised sections.

And on it went...

We've exchanged a lot of emails since that first chapter.
She has shared a lot of her frustrations,
as well as highs, in the process of publication.

(I think I drove her a little crazy when it came to knowing the actual publication date.)

She had the patience of Job.
I didn't.
I don't know how many ways I can ask,
"Soooo...do you have that date yet?"

I would have been sending emails.
I would have been calling.
But she waited.
And trusted.
And waited.

I've learned a lot through Terri,
but the thing that stands out right now is
that getting published takes a lot of patience.
And talent.
And work.
And perseverance.

Our teen pastor recently spoke about what decides where you end up...
"Direction--not determination--decides you destination."
Although, I think determination can help quite a bit,
we can want something will all our heart,
but if we don't take steps in the right direction,
we will not reach our desired destination.

Terri is a perfect example of someone who kept facing the right direction.
She never lost sight of her goal.
Despite rejections, she kept trying.

So now, I want to officially say...

February 6, 2015
(I know...I'm a little late.)

I really owe a lot to Terri Tiffany.
She has lit the proverbial fire under me!
She not only encourages me,
but she challenges me.

I recently had the privilege of meeting her!
Yes! Face-to-face!
 

This photo doesn't do her justice. She is beautiful inside and out.
Hubby and I drove all the way down south to have dinner with her and her husband.
Yes, we drove 1500 miles just for dinner!
(Okay, maybe we were on vacation.)
We ended up spending several hours talking.
It was like we had known each other for years.
I guess we have.

 
Here comes another good part...
Terri gave me an autographed
copy of The Mulligan!

Of course, I already bought
 the eBook when it released.

But there's something
really special about having
an author hand you
their paperback.


Congratulations, Terri.
Published Author
of
The Mulligan