How hard would it be to follow your dreams without the love and
support of your friends? It would be near impossible for me. I’m blessed and
lucky to have a handful of wonderful people in my life who, not only stand by me
through everything I do, but also root for me and truly want me to succeed. When
I started this journey, I never expected to be where I am today and I could
never have had the courage or drive to pursue this dream without a little help
from my friends.
It all began with a few girlfriends who decided to start a book club. Since we’re all hopeless
romantics who can’t put down a great love story, we decided to choose books that
were trending in the romance category. First up, the Fifty Shades of Grey
trilogy. Like a lot of woman, we instantly fell in love with Ana and Christian.
From then on, we were hooked on the new adult romance genre. Next on our list
was Beautiful Disaster. We just couldn’t get enough of Travis Mad-dog Maddox.
After running out of books in our favorite genre, I decided I
would write a story for us to read and Blissful Tragedy was born. Growing up in
the 80’s and 90’s, music was a huge influence on my life so I decided to combine
my love of romance and rock music to create a love story between a new college
graduate and a sweltering hot rocker. Ok, so maybe I infused my personal
fairytale into the mix, but the best works of art come from the passion within.
When I presented my novel, printed out on computer paper and
placed in a two inch binder, to our book club I was more than a little nervous.
It’s hard to have something you put your heart and soul into judged, but it’s
always better to hear the truth from your friends. I was ecstatic to hear that
they absolutely loved it.
Now I faced a dilemma. Do I send it out and face the probability
of rejections? How do I even submit to a publisher? These burning questions
needed answers and another friend came to the rescue. Ironically, my friends
sister-in-law happens to write for Harlequin and she suggested I join the
Romance Writers of America. Once I joined, I participated in some chapter
contests and learned the ropes. I even joined my local chapter.
Now I had all the information and the resources to submit my
manuscript, but I was still unsure. If I only I could tell the future, I’d be so
much more relaxed. Since my crystal ball wasn’t working, I had to make a
decision so I chatted with my fellow book club members. They encouraged me to
follow my dreams and stood by me every step of the way. It’s no surprise that
when I got “the email that changed my life” they were right there celebrating
alongside with me.
In Blissful Tragedy, Lexie’s life is highly influenced by the
love and support of her friends. Can you guess where I created such a
concept?
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