Welcome back. This week’s author question is… How did you get to where you are today? Share the story of your professional journey, the roadblocks you encountered along the way, and your strategy for overcoming those obstacles.

I used to make up stories in my head and act them out as games when I was a child. As I got older, I joined the theater club and played out other peoples’ stories. One day, when I was in my mid-twenties, I read a book and thought, I could write this better. That was it. That was my moment. I started writing but didn’t really have a clue about how to write a book. I went to the community college and took some classes. Over the next few years, I joined writing organizations and learned from people in the business. I wrote books and submitted them to publishers and agents. I GOT TONS OF REJECTIONS.

I lost hope. I pushed through. I wanted to write books and have people actually read them. When my first novella was contracted through a publisher, I thought, this is it. I’ve made it. The thing is, lots of writer’s get published, but making money is another thing. It takes time, cleverness, and some luck, to really hit. The right book at the right time. A marketing plan, which I know almost nothing about, and I knew less back then. It’s hard. That’s why so many people give up after a book or ten.

Have I made it? Not in my opinion.

Am I doing better than I was ten years ago? Absolutely.

Is there a long way to go? There is, but I know more now, and I have a plan.

I write under two pen names and hit two markets. I self-publish, though I’d love to find the right traditional publisher again. Marketing is still a bit hazy, but it’s better. I know I’m a good storyteller and knowing that, makes it all worth it. I have hundreds of tales to tell in the years to com. The future is bright.

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Hop back if you missed Brenda Margriet

Keep hopping for Leslie Hachtel

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Get your copy of Leslie Hachtel’s Stay With Me!

She was Evelyn Smith. It had taken more than a year. Well, more precisely, four hundred and fifty-two days and eleven hours once the decision was finalized. Her heart had been hammering so hard since she got into her car and drove away, she feared she might just have a heart attack and it would all be over before it began. Instead, she remembered all those yoga classes and controlled her breathing so the pounding slowed. Now, butterflies fluttered along her hairline and under her skin, rallying in her abdomen. She inhaled deeply, stilling them. You can do this, you have to do this. You cannot go back.

Reaching across the years, two women are linked by common experience. Each must find strength and fight to keep true love.

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Vengeance is out today. The final book in The Demon Hunter series.