Keep Going

When Sandra and I first discussed my being a guest blogger today, I was going to tell you about my humorous paranormal romance More Than She Wished For. However, Triskelion Publishing filed for bankruptcy and closed its doors. That’s pretty much the end for More Than She Wished For. It’s possible it might see the light of day with another publisher. First though, those of us who were with Triskelion have to wait to see what the Bankruptcy Court decides.

So, what have I done since my publisher tanked? The same thing so many of my writer friends have done. Yes, eaten gobs of chocolate and quarts of ice cream.

Seriously, I’ve kept writing and making plans to submit to other publishers. By their choices and actions, my writing friends have been my inspiration to keep going on the path I’m now treading.

Mary Fechter is a friend whose actions I admire. Mary’s been writing and submitting for twelve years. She’s been a Golden Heart^tm Finalist four times. Mary’s neither won the Golden Heart nor sold.

Yet.

Writing is a valued part of her life. Go to her daily blog and watch as she tracks pages written for one book and edits done for a second. There’s also a time line to when the next Golden Heart competition begins. Mary keeps writing.

Then there’s Cheryl Wilson who submitted her first manuscript twenty years ago. In between college, career, marriage, children, she kept writing. After her third child was born, she began writing with the goal of getting published. In four years, she finished two books while writing from 3:00AM and 7:00AM and on weekends because that was the only time she had to write.

One of those books, Tairen Soul, sold this past year. Her publisher, Leisure Books, decided to split her majestic fantasy into two books. Cheryl found a place to separate the book, then smoothed both out so they can be read independently. For me, that’s going to be like the Lord of the Rings trilogy. Sure, they can be read separately, but they’re so much better when read in order. Look for C. L. Wilson’s first books: Tairen Soul: Lord of the Fading Lands on October 2, and Tairen Soul: Lady of Light and Shadows on October 30. You’ll love them.

One of the big excitements for a author is winning writing contests. As joyous as it is, it’s no guarantee disappointment isn’t lurking around the next corner.

Elle James won the 2004 Golden Heart for Best Paranormal Romance. To Kiss a Frog was published the next year. But, for a year after it sold, Elle didn’t sell another book.

She didn’t quit.

Elle switched her writing style, sold to Harlequin Intrigue, and hasn’t looked back. Her fifth Harlequin Intrigue, Blown Away, comes out in September and she’s signed for three more Intrigues to be released in 2008. Under a different persona, she has written for three other publishers. She now writes full time.

Another major prize winner is Janice Lynn. (Her website is currently undergoing a redesign.) A Golden Heart Finalist in 2003, in 2005 her Jane Millionaire won the very first American Title contest sponsored by Romantic Times magazine and Dorchester Publishing. After years of writing and receiving rejections, it thrilled Janice to see her name on a book for sale in bookstores.

Then came a two year drought of not selling a single manuscript.

Like Elle James, Janice switched her writing style. A nurse practitioner in the day job, Janice used her knowledge to write and sell two medical romances to Boons and Mills and recently signed a three-book contract with them.

Tawny Weber is another who has never taken her eyes from her goal, despite disappointments and rejection. When I first met Tawny, her goal was to write for the Harlequin Temptation line. She was a Finalist in Golden Heart three times and won numerous RWA^tm Chapters’ contests to become a Contest Diva in the years before she finally reached publication. Tawny kept herself and her books visible by focusing on contests in which one of the final judges was the editor she wanted to work with at Harlequin. Through these contests, she and the editor built a working relationship.

Then Temptation was closed.

Tawny took the editor’s advice to heart and revamped her writing style to fit the Harlequin Blaze line. Her 2006 Golden Heart Finalist book, Double Dare was released in the Blaze line in May, 2007. She has two books coming in 2008 and proposals on her editor’s desk.

If you can stand the agony of rejections and disappointments, celebrate the happiness of the moment, and know what you want, you can do it. What you get out of life depends on what you’ve put into it.

It’s never too late in your life to set new goals to reach your life’s joy, including getting your stories published.

Sister Triskelion author Judith Rochelle was fully vested with her employer’s retirement program and a grandmother when she decided to focus on her life-long dream of writing romances. Her career spanned from being one of the first women sports reporters, to managing a rock band, to being executive secretary for the president of a Catholic university.

Now she’s published by several publishers using three different names. “Judith Rochelle” writes contemporary romances, another name writes erotic romance, the third writes inspirational romance. One way Judith has built her fan base is to participate almost daily in various listserves owned by her publishing houses, review sites, and her friends. To watch the various names chat to each other in email in a reader’s listserve is hilarious. All writers are a bit schizophrenic, but Judith takes it further than anyone I know. She has boundless energy, talks with everyone at conferences, and never misses a chance to promote her current work or a future premise. Her goals are set and she doesn’t lose sight of them. And all three of her personas’ books are pulling in rave reviews.

With these women and countless other authors encouraging me and setting examples to follow, I’ll continue to write and submit, despite Triskelion Publishing's closing. The anger and bitterness have passed (chocolate chip cookies helped with that). I had seven electronic books with Triskelion and have seen my name on four of those books in bookstores, which is a whole lot more than most people who think about writing a book. I’ve received lovely letters from readers, terrific reviews, and a couple of awards.

With friends and family cheering me on, I keep writing and submitting.

In November, I’ll have a humorous paranormal romance in an anthology, Love, from Christmas Town with The Wild Rose Press and then a short erotic romance “Naked Bluff” in the Destination: Pleasure line with them in January. In addition to goals of completing submissions for Red Sage, Ellora’s Cave, and Harlequin Spice, I’m expanding my writing horizon by having a weekly humorous writing column in an electronic magazine, LiQuid Magazine starting in September. Once a month, LiQuid will also be issued in print as a “freebie” magazine. In addition to a change of pace from writing novels, it’s a great way to keep my name in public view while I restart my writing career.

A lot of my attitude to continuing and changing comes from being mentored almost from the beginning of my writing career by two sisters—Elle James and Delilah Devlin.

On New Year's Eve 2000, Delilah challenged Elle to have a book published. I met them the following year. It’s been a pleasure watching Elle’s career blossom and seeing Delilah go from unpublished to writing for Ellora’s Cave, Kensington, Triskelion (which she did as a favor for me—the things my friends do to help me are never ending), and Avon Red.

Delilah and Elle started a writer’s help group several years ago and invited me, among several others, to work with them. The motto of Rose’s Colored Glasses is Write, Revise, and Submit.

Keep the motto in mind.

When you’ve created a book you adore, getting it published makes the most bizarre roller coaster ride tame. The ups in this industry raise your emotions to dizzying heights. The lows can break your heart, if you let them.

Aristotle said, “We cannot learn without pain.” To be an author, you have to learn to deal with the pain of rejections, no sales, editors leaving, a publisher closing.

You have the ability to make your dreams come true, but only if you keep your goals in focus and have the strength to adapt to changes and cope with disappointments.

Write, Revise, and Submit.

It works.

Betty Hanawa
www.BettyHanawa.com
Destination Pleasure, Jan '08, The Wild Rose Press
LiQuid Magazine