It’s Not All About Winning
You know, in everything you do, you are going to win some and lose some. That said, if you even just try for anything, you also win. I know it sounds like some inspirational crap, but I’ve seen it so often in my own life and in my career. I hadn’t sold a book in over ten years, and I was writing humorous romantic suspense. An editor told my agent, if Christie would write paranormal, I would buy her books. So my agent asked me to write paranormal. I didn’t want to do it, because I’d never written paranormal. But I started writing a book about witches. I needed to write three chapters and send it in to the editor to see if she actually would buy it. So, I finished the three chapters, and right before I sent them to my agent to send to the editor, my agent called. The editor had phoned her and told her she was excited to see my proposal, but to make sure it wasn’t about witches. WHAT?
So, I had to start over and write about faes. I spent another two months writing three chapters about faes. My agent sent it out and the editors loved it, they almost bought it—but then they didn’t. Ugh! I felt like a loser. I had spent four months trying to do something and failed. I wasted all that time. I was so upset. Right after that, my humorous romantic suspense books sold. And I remember even thinking that I could have been writing another humorous romantic suspense instead of working those paranormal ideas that gotten me nowhere!!! Ahh, but flash forward four years. An editor at St. Martin’s Press was looking for some new young adult authors. And she remembered an author she’d read that she really liked who wrote a funny book about faes. She hadn’t been able to buy the book on Faes, but she really liked my work. And that, my friends, is how I was asked to write Shadow Falls. And it all came about from something that at the time, I saw as a complete, devastating failure.
When you try something, put your heart and soul into it, when you learn something, you may not walk away with the blue ribbon, but you walk away with an experience and who knows what that experience will lead to. So remember, It isn’t just about just winning and losing, there is also trying. Can you think of how you tried and didn’t win the blue ribbon, but still walked away feeling like a winner? I’ll give away one of my ebook to one person who leaves a comment. (Sorry, this giveaway is only for US residents. If you;re reading this on Goodreads, you must leave your comment on my website blog to be entered in my giveaway.)
Winner!
The winner of last week’s giveaway of a Born to Read t-shirt is Diane Garland. Please email me at cc@cchunterbooks.com with your mailing address AND your t-shirt size. Congratulations!
