What an exciting
day! And a contest too!
Another release day. Today is the day my medical / police thriller, WITHOUT
CONSENT, comes out. So thrilled, I’m doing the happy dance. Glad you could come
and join me.
What type of dance would you do? Jive,
polka, rumba, or would you be refined and do a graceful waltz?
I’m doing a rock and roll. This is the fifth book in just over a year to be
published which leads me to the today’s topic.
What to do while you are waiting for the
train to stop at your corner?
The first thing you need to do is decide where you are going?
Do you have a specific genre you love to
write and read? Or are you like me and like to genre hop?
I guess it’s my ADD but I like to multitask and I also like to flit from one
writing project to the next. Not the most effective way to get the job done but
it does keep things interesting.
Usually, I have several projects in varying stages of completion. Right now, in
the romance genre I have a contemporary, a medical, and a suspense manuscript
nearing completion. Another medical thriller with the same characters in
WITHOUT CONSENT is partially written. I have three young adult novels in
progress, one of them a sequel to my paranormal young adult, GHOSTLY JUSTICE
with Daria and ghost, Amanda.
Now to just get them finished. But I have been so busy with edits and promotion
for the books that came out this year that my writing time has been limited.
I’m not complaining. It has been an amazing time. I’m so glad I’m ADD and had
so many projects to pitch once the train stopped and let me get on.
So how did my
journey begin?
It started with a pitch session with Savvy Authors in the summer of 2011. I
pitched my medical romance, WHEN HEARTS COLLIDE to Debby at Soulmate Publishing
and that book came out in December of the same year. At the same session, I
pitched two books to Lauri at Black Opal Books and she contracted me for both
of them! The first, my paranormal YA, GHOSTLY JUSTICE, was released in April,
the second, a suspense with romantic elements, MISSING CLAYTON, came out in
July.
Then, in October, Black Opal Books published IN HIS FATHER’S FOOTSTEPS, a
middle grade/ YA, adventure. This book is about a boy’s survival in Northern
Ontario while he searches for his missing father.
And, now today, (I’m doing a drum roll) my medical / police thriller, WITHOUT
CONSENT, is being released. Wow! What a ride it’s been.
Now to get back to writing and finishing all those other projects and pray that
they also find homes.
But I’m digressing. The point I’m getting at is that while you are waiting for
that first amazing contract, you need to be writing, revising, writing,
revising... It’s always good when you get a contract to be able to say, “Well,
if you like that one...I do have...”
And there you go, possibly not only published but multi-published.
You write, you write some more. Keep that pen moving. You take courses, learn
your craft, join on-line groups, go to conferences, meet other authors,
network.
Go to conferences in the genres you like to write in. There are a ton of them
out there and at different prices and lengths. You can find some that are an
afternoon, a day, or even a week. Remember they can be a tax right-off when you
do get published.
For myself I really enjoy a good mystery or thriller so I tend to go to
conferences like Bouchercon (for writers and readers), Sleuthfest, Book
Passages.
Network at the conferences. You never know what will happen. For me one of the
most thrilling thing was chatting with Lee Child and him offering to read my
manuscript and giving me the book endorsement: “A fine medical thriller.” Now
how cool is that?
I’ve met so many wonderful writers at these conferences.
You don’t harass them, you chat about life and interests. Respect them and
their privacy, but don’t be afraid to approach them and say how much you like
their books or their characters.
Do all the prep work so that when the train stops you are ready to leap on
board with your bags packed with a variety of the best you can write
manuscripts.
And keep dancing. I know I hope to.
You can check out
my other books and an excerpt of each one on my website:
Bev Irwin Website
Black Opal Books
Soul Mate Publishing
Without Consent Links
Enter the Giveaway Below for a chance to win an eBook of your choice of one of my novels.
a Rafflecopter giveaway
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