Journey

Don't stop believing

Hold on to that feeling...

The words fade. (As does the first season of Glee that brought this fabulous Journey song back into the limelight. Wasn't that a different world.) However, my journey has been on my mind a lot lately. Especially the long boring years where nothing happened. Work. Home. Sleep. Repeat. Words percolated in my mind, blossoming into themes, stories, fairytales. Even when I was doing something else, like sleeping, they'd wake me up with their insistence. Write me down, they seem to demand. My bedside table has been and always will be the receptacle of forgotten images and once grand ideas. 

Don't stop believing...

In my thirties, my best friend forced me to joining a Writing Group. (Really, I think there was arm-twisting involved, maybe the pulling of teeth.) But sitting down with those women, I knew I would be a part of something good.

Short stories, theme writing, and whatever-caught-my-fancy writing filled the months. Until, “Well, what about Beauty and the Beast?” The idea had been at the back of my mind for years, so long that I'd forgotten it somewhere along the way.

Hold on to that feeling...

A beastly Beauty, so wretched only I could love her. I poured the lonely days of my girlhood, my hopes for tomorrow, my humor, and my frustration with my purposeful but romance-free reality into Bella and her story. The process was cathartic. But when I held a copy of Becoming Beauty in my hands, I had no idea how it would change my self-perception. 

Not only was I a writer, I was an author. And other people knew it. (Not the whole universe, but at least some people were aware of it. And they were happy for me.) It took a while for reality to sink in, but when it did, I saw myself differently. I wasn't just The Best Kindergarten Teacher Ever (really, I do have my days!), I was something more. After having one set of dreams for so long, it was nice that the heavens saw fit to gift me with another.

Just like Bella. 

You never know where a journey will lead until you set your feet on the path. Be brave, try something new and scary (like writing and publishing a book) and see what new avenues open up for you.

For more about my journey, try out: Expect the Unexpected, Ready or Not, My First..., Author Envy, or Meet Your Adoring Public. Happy reading! And as always, thanks for dropping in!

For more about Bella's journey, find her and Becoming Beauty on: 

Amazon

Barnes and Noble

books & things

iTunes

Goodreads

Meet Your Adoring Public

On Blog tours, book clubs, author events, & holding down a day job!

Being an author and an educator isn't the easiest combination. I'll go out on a limb and say authoring and ANYTHING isn't an easy combination. If I thought I could pay my mortgage on writing alone, I'd jump on that train so fast the school would wonder what had happened. But, I'm a realist. Half of selling books--selling anything, really--is making a name for yourself. And that takes time. One of the stats I've heard was that a writer needs to publish at least 5 books before they start making money. Sound about right. And on the consumer side of things, people need to hear about something 7 times before purchasing. That's tricky. Hitting the sweet spot between keeping the public informed about your product (a book for instance) and annoying the hell out of everyone is really difficult.

That's why I want to take today to thank everyone who's been instrumental in doing just that. Since my book came out on November 11, life has been upside down. Not only did I have a three-week Blog Tour going on, but I also had Release Day (online promos), Launch Day (meet the public, sign and sell, feel like a Rock Star), another Author Event (making connections, sign and sell), two on-site giveaways, an online giveaway, and the first of what I hope will be many Book Clubs.

And guess what? They all went amazingly well! I am overwhelmed by the love and support I've been shown this month. Friends, family, and acquaintances rallied around me to ensure success for Becoming Beauty. How does make you feel like a Rock Star? 

So, my dears, from this little author and her little book, thank you, Thank You, THANK YOU. You are amazing! And any goodness that has come my way is due to you. Thanks, and please, keep spreading the word!

Thanks for dropping in, my lovelies! And if you haven't had a chance to check out Becoming Beauty, it's a sweet, clean, slightly snarky fairytale retelling that would make a wonderful holiday gift! It's available on:

Amazon

Barnes & Noble
books&things

Goodreads
And as a special holiday promotion, the Kindle version of Becoming Beauty will be on sale for 99 cents for a limited time (December 5-12). So, go nab your copy and keep making me look awesome!