CREATING GODDESS OF LEGEND

    I wrote my first novel Goddess of Legend from February 2012 until December 2012. My inspiration for this novel came from the Greek myth of Hades and Persephone, as well as the amazing Goddess Test series by the fantastic Aimee Carter. I have always been a fan of Greek mythology. (I also am a fan of Rick Riordan’s Percy Jackson and The Heroes of Olympus series.) I always thought that Hades has gotten a bad rap so I decided to spin Greek mythology on its head and make a modern day sequel to the story.
   
    I had already started writing quite a few other novels when the idea for Goddess of Legend came to me but I was so excited about this idea, I set my other work to the side. The heroine of the novel, Cameryn Kane, is a Spiritist, which is someone who can located dead bodies and free wandering spirits. Cameryn is a biracial private investigator who has been adopted into a wealthy family. Though she loves her older sister very much, Cameryn suffers with feeling inferior to her sister. Meanwhile, despite being betrayed by Persephone, Hades is ready to open his heart to love again and he waits patiently for the chance to woo Cameryn.
  
     Goddess of Legend is my pride and joy. I love this book so much because I poured so much of myself into it. I am Cameryn Kane, the woman who always felt like I was different from everyone else and that I would never fit in. Like her I too am longing for that one person who will love me unconditionally regardless of all my eccentricities. Hades is my dream guy. Tall, dark, handsome, mysterious with a heart of gold. Hades represents the man out there who I hope someday will find me and be instantly smitten.
   
    When I finished Goddess of Legend I was proud of myself for writing a 73,304 word novel, but I was also a bit sad. This was happily ever after for Cameryn and Hades. There was no story nesting in my mind to bring them back in a future novel. It was time to dive into one of the many other works in progress that I’d started and put to the side. It was also time to start working on the dreaded synopsis and preparing for submissions.
   
    Writing a synopsis is the absolute worst thing in the world! It seems almost impossible at times to make an interesting summation about what your novel is about. After going through more drafts than I dare to admit and preparing my query letter, I pulled out my handy 2013 Writer’s Market and started looking up agents. Why agents instead of publishers you ask? Well I’ve spoken to a few well known published authors by Twitter and email and they have all said try agents first because many times they open doors that you would not otherwise be able to. So I took their advice and sent off about 6 submissions.
  
   I received 2 rejections in about 2 days from the day I submitted. I was absolutely crushed. I’d been certain that with some of the authors these agents represented were somewhat similar to my work. Both agents told me the same thing, “Your work does not fit with what we currently represent.” I couldn’t understand. I looked back again and again at the submissions criteria and then it hit me, no one really knew how to classify Goddess of Legend.
   
     I have always envisioned my novel as an urban fantasy romance. A few trusted readers have told me that they see it as either an urban fantasy erotic romance or a paranormal romance. I have never thought about my novel being paranormal. When I think of paranormal, I think of werewolves, vampires, ect. I’ve been leaning towards Goddess of Legend being an urban fantasy romance because you have a kick ass heroine living in a modern day world, but the main point of the story is the romance, not the adventure around the heroine. I’m not quite sure I would say my novel is erotic either. I just think it’s good sex, but others could see it differently.

 I have received a total of 3 agent rejections and 2 rejections from publishers for Goddess of Legend. On August 9, 2013 Evernight Publishing sent me the email I had been waiting for. They wanted to publish Goddess of Legend. I could hardly believe what I was reading. Finally, someone believed I my story just as much as I did. They offered me a contract less than a week later. Now my book is scheduled to be published sometime in September 2013. I can only hope that the world will love this book as much as I do.

THE WRITER'S LIFE

 

THE WRITER'S LIFE

      When I tell people that I am a writer, sometimes they ask, “What’s it like?” I admit that sometimes the question has left me a bit baffled myself. What is it like to be a writer? Is it any different from the other things that people do? After pondering things over, I came to realize that being a writer is a unique experience that only other writers can appreciate.
  
        A writer’s mind is constantly spinning with character ideas, plots, and fantastic endings. A writer’s mind never really rests.Even if you are not chained to your desk working on your novel, you are always thinking about it and how it could be better.
 
      At the same time, every writer is different. Many will not write a single word until every detail has been meticulously plotted. While others are “pantsers.” They sit down to write and allow the characters to dictate how the story goes. They never know what their story is going to shape up to be from one day until the next.
 
       Every writer is different, but many of us share the same experiences along the way. The excitement of diving into a new novel because you know the idea is stellar. The frustration of having writer’s block and having no idea what to write next. The joy of finishing your first novel. The realization that the work is not done and your masterpiece needs to be revised. The fear of waiting for responses from agents and publishers you’ve queried. The quiet sadness of having your idea  rejected, and ultimately the realization that you have a gift that needs to be shared with the world.
 
       So when someone asks me what it’s like to be a writer I can tell them, “It’s exciting. Terrifying. Frustrating. Rewarding. Enlightening. Most of all I wouldn’t trade it for anything in the world.”

WHY DO I WRITE?

                                                              
                        WHY DO I WRITE?

          I guess this is a question that authors ask themselves a lot. As I mature I have found myself wondering the same thing. Growing up I always loved to read. Nancy Drew and Sweet Valley High were my series of choice as a youngster. I always did well in English in school and even received top honors in my 8th grade English class. I don’t think it was until about tenth grade when I got a perfect score on the writing part of the FCAT that I started to consider that I might have a gift. It was around that time that the voices started.

          No, I don’t mean I was having a mental breakdown. I mean that I started to hear stories in my head as if the character was speaking to me. I ignored the voices. After all I had to finish high school, do the college thing and continue on my way to my ultimate goal…law school. So for years I ignored the voices, shushing them with noise of the world of responsibility.

           It was only when I entered law school that the voices decided they’d had enough. I was soon waking up in the middle of the night with ideas for a novel that I would have to frantically scribble down so I wouldn’t forget. This seemed to never stop. It got to the point that I would be in class and an idea for a scene would come to me and I would start to write. By this time I didn’t have to rush. The words were in my head and I knew what to write as soon as my pen touched the paper.

           Years later I have realized that I have no desire to be a lawyer. I want to write. I want to write for a living. I want to write because it makes me happy. I want to write because the voices are telling me I must. I have recently completed my first novel, a modern day Greek mythology romance Goddess of Legend. There are journals lying around my home for the next 27 novels that the voices have told me to write.

          Some might say that I am wasting my time. The world of publication is hard to get into. I know that but I believe I have a gift. The voices continue to speak for a reason and I have no choice but to listen to them. So when people ask why do you write, I can honestly say it’s because the voices will not let me do anything else.