One yes. That’s all we need. A million rejections won’t matter when that one yes comes through. When you’re knee-deep in a huge pile of no’s, it’s hard to see above it. It’s overwhelming. But it’s temporary. And hard. This is where I’m learning to find grace and patience. Those two things are harder than …
The hardest part of being an author is sucking it up and being you’re own hype man. Sure writing and editing are hard too, but having to sell yourself with confidence when you used it all pouring yourself into your books? That’s like function on two hours of sleep without a drop of coffee. As …
Can we talk about imposter syndrome for a minute? I struggle with this in nearly ever facet of my life. As a mother. As a wife. As a marketer. As a writer. Somewhere along the way I decided that I wanted to be a writer. It didn’t matter that I wrote nearly every day. Now …
This year, I’ve completed four manuscripts. Four. This is a record for me. I also have one that I should be done drafting in a few weeks. So far, I’ve loved every single one of the stories and characters. Okay, I loved them all after a brief cooling off period. People always want to know …
My greatest struggle as a writer is believing that the words I write matter or that they are good enough. I’ve been writing for as long as I can remember, yet I lived in denial that I was a “real writer.” When I talked about my books, I’d always add “but I self-published” as if …
I’m up early this Saturday morning for a writer’s conference where I’ll pitch my latest manuscript, Work Like a Mother, to two literary agents. This book (Lie Baby Lie) taught me a lesson in writing and publishing. I used to succumb to imposter syndrome when it’s came to my writing. I wasn’t good enough to …
As a writer, critique partners and beta readers are a crucial part of the process. Critique partners ask the important, hard questions. They point out inconsistencies or plot holes. They also serve as checks and balances against the writer’s ego. Trust is the most critical aspect of any critique relationship. Trust that the feedback is …
As a writer, I’m constantly questioning my words. What are words? What are sentences? Does Stephen King really never use adverbs in his books or daily conversations? One of the hardest things for me to accept is that sometimes the words I put down on paper (or, Google Drive, because 2019), aren’t the greatest. I …
You won’t find my books in the library or on the shelves at Target or Barnes & Noble (not yet, anyway). They aren’t on any best seller lists or included on popular must read lists (yet). Between self-doubt, my day job, motherhood and life, I never allowed myself to believe that traditional publishing was possible. …
Writing is often a lonely pursuit. Aside from the characters, dialogue, stories and ideas floating around your brain, writers prefer to be left alone while writing. I’ve also found that many writers, like me, are introverted. Human interaction is taxing and, sometimes, uncomfortable. For may writers, the process of writing a novel is torture. This …
