Me, Myself and Mermaids...and a Free E-Copy of Happenstance!

Today's post will totally break promises I made not to blog (yet again) about Happenstance and...myself. After some consideration, I decided eh...I only get one shot at a first release! I'm going for it, especially since this website started out "my journey to becoming published." So here's what goals I had for this blog when I started, how those goals changed, and what it's become with news of my first release.

I wanted my blog to be helpful to other writers, to provide feedback on things I tried, tidbits I learned, decisions I faced. I aspired to be a better writer along with a sea of others and wanted to record the things I retained so others might benefit from my achievements and successes as well as my failures and mistakes.

I attended writer's conferences, book signings, pitch sessions and joined my first writer's league. I learned about promoting and advertising, crafting query letters, selecting and maintaining POV, deets on the agent business, and a mountain of other industry-related topics. And everything was logged here. My journey to becoming published.

That journey ended on December 13th when Happenstance was published. That sentence still makes me smile. BIG. Dream huge, folks.

I'm not saying we're guaranteed to achieve our every goal. Hey, I wanted to be a mermaid when I grew up. Happenstance might go nowhere but that's okay by me because it's an accomplishment I'll be proud of for the rest of my life. Not because I might make a couple bucks or because I followed through. For me, it's because I influenced so many lives. I can't tell you how many people look at me with astonishment. You wrote a book? Quiet, keeps to herself YOU...wrote a book? (No, sadly, I don't make a habit of tackling my day job peeps. lol)

That's when I beam, nod and hand them a pen and a card with my name on it! If I can do it, you can do it! If you're a new writer, I challenge you to keep at it. Read blogs, follow agents, get on Twitter and use those hashtags! #AskAgent, #AmReading #AmWriting to name a few. Stay the course! Follow your dreams. Yes, it's hard. Yes, you'll want to give up. No, you don't stand a good chance of earning iridescent fins and a beautiful set of seashells. But it's the most satisfying thing in the world to hold your own book in your hands. If you need encouragement, it's out there waiting in the form of a crit partner, a librarian, a fellow writer. Grab it! Hold on tight and keep writing.

I vow to keep passing on the things I learn. My journey to becoming published ended, but my writing career just started. And I've got loads to share. First up...a free copy of Happenstance to one commenter on this post. So how about it? Let's hear your aspirations of becoming published and what you're doing to achieve your goals. What blogs most aided you in your journey? Who most inspires you in the writing world?

Share YOUR literary highlights and insights for a chance to win a free copy of Happenstance! And you can stop worrying...you'll be the first to know when I get my fins ;)