Writing and storytelling has always been a part of who I am.
Every since I can remember, I've been spinning campfire tales (on demand for the
family) and putting pen to page to create poems. It took until the ripe old age
of 40 before I decided that it was impossible to contain what was in my head. I
had stories, events, characters and plots that wanted to be shared…created…told.
A year ago, I put my fingers to the keyboard and did just
that. I wrote the story that had been screaming at me for 12 long years…and it
was speculative fiction! Imagine my surprise. I submitted it to dozens of
agents and waited. "That's it," I told myself. My writing…my story…means
nothing. I'm not talented enough or good enough that people will read or care
what I've written. I was wrong. It did mean something. It meant that a story
that had never been told…was told. It meant that I had accomplished something.
I had created characters and an environment from my imagination. I had created
a place that was separate from reality. I created a place that the readers
could escape to.
Like many others before me, I did the research. Finally, although reluctantly, I ePublished my
first trilogy.
More stories and characters started shouting at me. More
voices wanted to be heard and so I started writing…and writing…and writing. The
more I write, the more the stories come. So I write them.
The most difficult thing is when people ask me, "Where
can I buy your printed copies?"
Well…you can't, at least not yet. I'm ok with that because
my story is out there and people are receiving it with open arms.
Did I let the agent rejections stop me? No. What I have done
is allow the rejections, the reviews and the kind words from the readers make
me stronger so I can grow.
I'm still a baby when it comes to the world of ePublishing,
but I have learned that there are people who want to hear the stories that only
YOU can create. Find your voice and share it. Learn from your mistakes. Most
importantly…learn from the mistakes and advice of the ones who went before us.
Indie authors rock! Our synopses and blurbs might suck…but
if we could tell a story in just two sentences, we wouldn't need to write a
novel, so write on!
Live. Create. Write. No one can tell your story better than
you!
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