Leah Hart
asked
Gena Showalter:
Hello! I really loved The Stone Prince. Did you know that you had something incredible when you were writing it, or were you afraid that you might get a bad reaction? Also, was it hard to get it published, or did it get picked right up? I've been writing for a long time but only got the courage to try and publish this year and I'd love to hear an inspirational story. Thanks for all the amazing books!
Gena Showalter
Thank you!
When I wrote The Stone Prince, paranormal romances were not selling. But I loved paranormal romances and didn't want to write straight contemporary (at the time) I downplayed the alien aspects--to the point my agent had to ask me if the hero was from another world or not. She said she hoped he was, and at that point I realized I had to write the story my way and not the way I thought publishers/readers would want it to be.
Publishing was an incredibly difficult journey for me. I wrote 6 books before landing an agent. We came close to selling 2 of them right away, but the deal fell through and I was devastated. 2 years passed before anyone else showed any interest in my work. And I admit, I almost gave up. I was disheartened, dejected and still devastated. But I couldn't see myself doing anything else, so I forced myself to keep writing, keep trying. I'm so glad I did! HQN opened up a new line and wanted The Stone Prince and The Pleasure Slave. The rest is history :) The only way to fail is to give up. Keep going, and anything is possible!
When I wrote The Stone Prince, paranormal romances were not selling. But I loved paranormal romances and didn't want to write straight contemporary (at the time) I downplayed the alien aspects--to the point my agent had to ask me if the hero was from another world or not. She said she hoped he was, and at that point I realized I had to write the story my way and not the way I thought publishers/readers would want it to be.
Publishing was an incredibly difficult journey for me. I wrote 6 books before landing an agent. We came close to selling 2 of them right away, but the deal fell through and I was devastated. 2 years passed before anyone else showed any interest in my work. And I admit, I almost gave up. I was disheartened, dejected and still devastated. But I couldn't see myself doing anything else, so I forced myself to keep writing, keep trying. I'm so glad I did! HQN opened up a new line and wanted The Stone Prince and The Pleasure Slave. The rest is history :) The only way to fail is to give up. Keep going, and anything is possible!
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