Once Upon a Dream
Diana’s note: This is a repost. Since GoDaddy discontinued my old blog, I am reposting a few blog posts I want readers to be able to access. Thank you.
For as long as I can remember, I’ve always had fictional friends. Growing up as an only child AND an only grandchild on both sides, I spent a lot of time by myself. Although even when my mom went to work and put me in daycare, I still spent a lot of time with my make-believe friends, or else I roped my real-life friends into acting out the stories I’d created.
Speaking of acting, my very first foray into fictional writing was a Christmas play I wrote, directed, acted in and produced back in the third grade for my elementary school.
Many short stories and plays followed, and I started my first attempt at a novel when I was fifteen. But even though I’d written most of my life, I never considered that I could write for a living. As an avid reader, I thought writers belonged to some magical group in which ordinary people could not join. Marrying a few days before I turned 18 and four children following over the next decade, I figured I was one of those ordinary people who would never belong with those magical writers.
Until I discovered Romantic Times. When I read in one issue about Romance Writers of America®, which had been started in Houston, I was thrilled at the thought of a national romance writers group. And yet while I lived in Texas, Houston was too far away, and I was busy raising small children. Still learning about RWA® was enough for me to dare to dream. Maybe being an author wasn’t exclusively for those more magical than me.
Fast forward a few more years of reading Romantic Times and I learned there was a Dallas chapter of RWA®, and through a strange set of circumstances we were in the process of moving to Dallas. I was able to join the Dallas Area Romance Authors, had started my first “real” novel and continued to dream I was on my way to join the ranks of published authors. While other authors were welcoming and helpful, and I began to learn and hone my craft, my life took a few sharp turns which interrupted my dream. A divorce, custody battle, traumatized characters deserting me, a remarriage, a new family with more babies, until at last I managed to get back on the path to to my dream.
After entering the RWA® chapter contest circuit and winning and placing in many contests (see my awards page; once I even made first-runner up in Romantic Times Follow The New writer contest), and after numerous rejections–I have spreadsheets full of listed rejections–at last I finaled in RWA’s® Golden Heart®. I was on my way!
Um…not so fast.
The thing I quickly learned about being a Golden Heart® finalist is that it got me rejected much faster! I seem to write outside the box and therefore most of my books are unsalable according to the agents and editors. (Although I did sell my 1700’s pirate book, Pirate’s Proposal, part of the Scrimshaw Doll series to The Wild Rose Press-a wonderful small press publisher)
But I’m not complaining about my suspense-book rejections; because of that Golden Heart® final I became a part of the fabulous Ruby-Slippered Sisterhood, the group of ’09 finalists, and I learned about indie-pubbing from Ruby sister Cate Rowan who led the way. It took me awhile to screw up the nerves to take the leap myself–I’ll be honest, 100s of rejections tend to get you down and make you question yourself–but I am so glad I finally took that jump to indie-pubbing.
Because then I was able to submit my book to Romantic Times, that magazine I’d been reading for decades, for a review! (Now known as RT BookReviews since they’ve moved into reviewing all genres.) And surprise of all surprises THE GOOD DAUGHTER got a TOP PICK 4 1/2 Stars, one of their highest review ratings! Who would have believed it after all those rejections? I screamed and jumped and waved my magazine around right there at the mailbox–the neighbors are sure I’m nuts now. And actually, I need to buy a new magazine, I kind of destroyed mine (notice the crinkled picture I posted). But now, I’m one of those in the magical realm–except, it’s not really so much magic. I learned you make your own magic from being driven with determination and a dream.
And I am so grateful for the friends I made along the way as well as READERS, real people who pay money for my books and read and review them! Thank you so much! And thank you RT Book Reviews for giving an indie-author a chance!
Now my question for you, how did you make or are working to make, your dream come true?
UPDATE: RT Book Reviews included THE GOOD DAUGHTER in a fun quiz on their May 23, 2012 Daily Online blog. Check it out! Which self-published story is right for you?
THE GOOD DAUGHTER is available at:
Amazon Kindle
Barnes & Noble
