Dreams Fulfilled
Reading romance novels with sexy heroes and beautiful heroines has always been my number one form of relaxation, ever since I was a young teenager and began picking my way through my mother’s romance collection. I have spent years building up my own library, snapping up full series by my favorite authors, and re-reading them, again and again. Then I had a life-changing thought in February 2009–why not write my own story? Surely it could be done?!
That’s when I picked up pen and paper and jotted down my cast of characters, expanding to include their family, friends, and hey, why not more than one world. Enter the mystical planet of Magio, one central land mass consisting of two countries, the rulers in a massive tug of war. Then add the conflict–the fierce, blood thirsty warriors of Dralion, and pit them against the loyal protectors of Peacio, both fighting forces equal in power and amazing magical strength skills. Although, now to spice it up and mix in one very hot prince, a ton of edgy villains with their own scourge of issues, and brew until boiling with spicy tension. A story to be proud of, a story which before I could write, needed the perfect strawberry on the top, and that delicacy came in the form of one innocent and young Earth woman, an eighteen-year-old teen who came with her own immense and unexpected secret.
This is the platform I began working with, hitting my laptop and writing four manuscripts in an ongoing saga with these characters within the young adult, fantasy, romance genre. Then taking some time away from them in my second year, being 2010, I took what I’d diligently learnt in the first and began researching the adult romance line. Another couple of books later, and having entered a writing contest or two, I was finally starting to produce something I was becoming quietly proud of.
This meant that 2011 was the year I felt confident I could go back to my first young adult novel–the fantasy story I mentioned above–and completely rewrite it. And I say a complete rewrite, because my first attempt, in retrospect, was quite frankly awful. So, taking all my developing skills, I set about producing a piece of work using the cast and characters I had come to love, to write a full length manuscript I titled, Protector. This novel was the first that I felt I could finally submit–somewhere.
Yeah, that place “somewhere” is a tough location. If only you could choose your own agent, instead of them choosing you! Thus, after a number of negative responses, which can all be rather disheartening as any unpublished writer will tell you, I began continuing on with my next piece of work, while waiting with bated breath for that first “yes” for Protector to arrive in my “inbox.”
And it happened, my readers. On the 15th of February 2012 I signed my first contract with Lyrical Press, Inc in New York. Thank you so much Renee Rocco and your fabulous team at Lyrical Press for saying “yes” to Protector.
And now, because immersing myself in the world of writing and story-telling is my dream, I shall continue to breathe life into my gorgeous heroes and feisty heroines, knowing that I can now share every future story I dream, with you.