Stepping in New Snow

So, I have this lovely little blog sitting here, and I find myself wondering what it is I should put on it. I'm just a mom and grandmom from Virginia, nothing too particularly interesting about me to share. I guess, though, if you're visiting, than you might want to know a little bit more about me, or at least - what makes me tick.

So, a bit about me. As I said I have four children, one granddaughter. I live in Virginia Beach, Virginia with my family, including our very obnoxious cat. 

I've loved books for as long as I can remember. Where ever I go, I usually have a book with me. I'm not overly picky about genres or authors, I just love to read. My love of reading spilled over into a desire to write. Through high school, I frequently wrote poems, (a notebook that I still own, though after almost 30 years its a bit battered). After high school, I freelanced with a small weekly newspaper, covering the explosive band scene in Southern New Jersey and Philadelphia. It was the 80s, and the men wore more make-up and hairspray than the women in the audience, but even still, I wouldn't trade my hair band addiction for anything.

Over time, though, real life got in the way, and I decided grown-ups needed real careers, not dreams of grandeur. So. I put my "childish" ideals away and tried to be a grown-up. Operative word, TRY. I never really gave up the hair band thing, as my children can attest to. they all have a healthy appreciation for Bon Jovi, Motley Crue, and Cinderella. I've trained them well!

I've since discovered being a grown-up isn't nearly what its cracked up to be, and decided to pick back up some of my childish dreams. Inspired by a series of books, I began writing fanfiction about 18 months ago. Truly, I only posted my first chapter of my first story in an effort to get a friend to stop bugging me about it. I figured, I'd post it, everyone would hate it, and I could pull it down and call it a great day. The best laid plans of mice and men...

Surprisingly, people really wanted to read what I write. And they told their friends, too. I was told my story ideas were original, entertaining, and wasted on fanfiction. Not gonna lie, I almost considered that a double edged sword. What I came to realize, though, was that they felt I should be writing real books. That idea scared me more than the fanfiction ever could have. 

Then, I met a few lovely friends, Lisa Bilbrey and Michele Richard, who believed in me enough to push me to write something that was based purely on characters I created. Then they pushed me some more... and some more. I'm glad they did. Through their efforts, I've become a published author.

Maybe tomorrow I'll be able to explain how surreal it is to see my name on a book cover, on a website, for others to purchase. For now, I'm still too overwhelmed.

“Writing a book is an adventure. To begin with, it is a toy and an amusement; then it becomes a mistress, and then it becomes a master, and then a tyrant. The last phase is that just as you are about to be reconciled to your servitude, you kill the monster, and fling him out to the public.” --- Sir Winston Churchill