Dreams, Changes, and #FUN stuff!
Dragonfly
was the first book I ever wrote and tried to sell to agents back in 2009.
Back then, it wasn't perfect, my novel-writing skills were poor. I'd only been a journalist, an editor, and a former English major and teacher.
But I got a lot of full requests, and polite rejections. I think 15 was the final number before I put it away in 2010. Some pretty big names, too (Paige Wheeler, Kevan Lyons, Kelly Sonnack, etc.)
I loved the story, the characters, the journey. I loved writing it, and I couldn't wait for everyone to read it. In the year I'd spent waiting to hear back from those guys, I'd written Undertow (#2), Watercolor (#3), and started Mosaic (#4)...
...and then I read Nathan Bransford's advice: If you can't sell the first book in a series, why are you still writing it? (Basically, stop and write something new.)
He was right. And it hurt so bad.
But I put my dream books in the virtual drawer, dusted myself off, and wrote The Truth About Faking . Then, while I was shopping it, I wrote Rouge . And I got a literary agent. And in 2011, I got an offer for a book deal with a Big 6 publisher.
In the meantime, several of the lovely critique partners, advice sharers, and friends I'd made through this blog had started self-publishing. It was still early in the indie game, and it was still considered a huge risk.
We were told that if you self-published, you could kiss any traditional dreams goodbye. We were told, the traditional guys wouldn't touch an idie book with a 10-foot pole. We were told you instantly became a pariah.
But my friends were risk-takers. One-- Susan Kaye Quinn --had gone the small press route with her first book, a YA romance, and after that experience, she took the reins and went independent with her very successful science fiction book Open Minds .
And after my agent couldn't sell The Truth About Faking , I decided to self-publish it. In Sept. 2011 it came out, and it's still selling very well today.
Why am I tell you all this?
Because it broke my heart when I put Dragonfly in the drawer. I believed that book was dead, and I'd never have the joy of sharing it with readers... and I was wrong.
Granted, in February when I decided to pull it out again, it still had all those first novel problems. I had to take a sledgehammer to it, break it apart, put it back together, remove all the boring parts, beef up the tension, polish out the dialogue...
But my dream came true last week. And every time someone emails me that they love the story or they can't wait for July 18, I get a little misty. So much is changing in publishing, and it's a wonderful time to be a writer.
Follow the path that's right for you, traditional or indie, but no matter what, hold onto your dream. Be persistent. Don't listen to what "they" say. And for goodness sake, just keep swimming!
Full Tour List
The Dragonfly tour continues!Burning questions for main character Anna? WHY did she go back? WILL she choose Julian? WHAT will she do with the secret? Roxy Cade (link) has your answers. Still on the fence? Fern Curry with Whirlwindbooks calls Dragonfly , "The ideal book" for "the beach or pool, to enjoy with an iced drink." Yay! See her full review here (link) .Finally, looking for #FUN? Romance Reviews is doing a Sizzling Summer Reads ginormous book giveaway and Dragonfly is a part!
Check it out!
Visit The Romance Reviews site (link) for all the fun, but watch out! That game's addicting ... (The Dragonfly Q&A is #19.)
Have a super week, reader- and writer-friends! I'm in final edits for Undertow , but I'll be back with more tour stops tomorrow~
Back then, it wasn't perfect, my novel-writing skills were poor. I'd only been a journalist, an editor, and a former English major and teacher.
But I got a lot of full requests, and polite rejections. I think 15 was the final number before I put it away in 2010. Some pretty big names, too (Paige Wheeler, Kevan Lyons, Kelly Sonnack, etc.)
I loved the story, the characters, the journey. I loved writing it, and I couldn't wait for everyone to read it. In the year I'd spent waiting to hear back from those guys, I'd written Undertow (#2), Watercolor (#3), and started Mosaic (#4)...
...and then I read Nathan Bransford's advice: If you can't sell the first book in a series, why are you still writing it? (Basically, stop and write something new.)
He was right. And it hurt so bad.
But I put my dream books in the virtual drawer, dusted myself off, and wrote The Truth About Faking . Then, while I was shopping it, I wrote Rouge . And I got a literary agent. And in 2011, I got an offer for a book deal with a Big 6 publisher.
In the meantime, several of the lovely critique partners, advice sharers, and friends I'd made through this blog had started self-publishing. It was still early in the indie game, and it was still considered a huge risk.
We were told that if you self-published, you could kiss any traditional dreams goodbye. We were told, the traditional guys wouldn't touch an idie book with a 10-foot pole. We were told you instantly became a pariah.
But my friends were risk-takers. One-- Susan Kaye Quinn --had gone the small press route with her first book, a YA romance, and after that experience, she took the reins and went independent with her very successful science fiction book Open Minds .
And after my agent couldn't sell The Truth About Faking , I decided to self-publish it. In Sept. 2011 it came out, and it's still selling very well today.
Why am I tell you all this?
Because it broke my heart when I put Dragonfly in the drawer. I believed that book was dead, and I'd never have the joy of sharing it with readers... and I was wrong.
Granted, in February when I decided to pull it out again, it still had all those first novel problems. I had to take a sledgehammer to it, break it apart, put it back together, remove all the boring parts, beef up the tension, polish out the dialogue...
But my dream came true last week. And every time someone emails me that they love the story or they can't wait for July 18, I get a little misty. So much is changing in publishing, and it's a wonderful time to be a writer.
Follow the path that's right for you, traditional or indie, but no matter what, hold onto your dream. Be persistent. Don't listen to what "they" say. And for goodness sake, just keep swimming!
Full Tour List
The Dragonfly tour continues!Burning questions for main character Anna? WHY did she go back? WILL she choose Julian? WHAT will she do with the secret? Roxy Cade (link) has your answers. Still on the fence? Fern Curry with Whirlwindbooks calls Dragonfly , "The ideal book" for "the beach or pool, to enjoy with an iced drink." Yay! See her full review here (link) .Finally, looking for #FUN? Romance Reviews is doing a Sizzling Summer Reads ginormous book giveaway and Dragonfly is a part!
Check it out!
Visit The Romance Reviews site (link) for all the fun, but watch out! That game's addicting ... (The Dragonfly Q&A is #19.)
Have a super week, reader- and writer-friends! I'm in final edits for Undertow , but I'll be back with more tour stops tomorrow~
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