Two of the Best Friends a Writer Could Have

I've often reflected on how nice it would be if I had an extremely successful writing career, one where I didn't have to work a "real" job forty hours a week, one where I didn't have to look for places to sell my book (my agent would take care of that, but it would be a simple matter of picking which of the dozens of clamoring booksellers I should arrange to visit), one where there would be bidding wars among a half-dozen movie and TV producers who were clamoring for the rights to put my stories on the screen.

My chances of winning the $100 million PowerBall are only slightly better. And I don't play regularly.

Still, the odds have been very kind to me. So many writers have spent years searching for a traditional publisher, one that pays royalties. Many have skipped the heartaches and headaches and gone straight to self-publishing, only to discover that there are still plenty of heartaches and headaches in trying to get their work out to their audience. But I have been blessed; not just one, but two publishers have expressed their belief in my work.

First, thanks to the encouragement of "Pot Thief" author, Mike Orenduff, I discovered Oak Tree Press and Billie Johnson, the publisher who accepted my first Black Horse Campground mystery and subsequently published the next three books in the series. Nothing has ever quite matched the thrill of being able to use words like "my publisher" and "book contract" without using imaginary quotation marks!

Secondly, due to unforeseen health issues, my fifth Black Horse Campground mystery ended up being published by a different publishing house. With Billie's blessing, I submitted "A Summer to Remember" to Aakenbaaken & Kent, the publishing house that belongs to... Mike Orenduff!

One thing that hasn't changed is the unrelenting belief and incredible support both of my publishers have shown me. It is matched only by the support and encouragement from my readers. And in return, I try to show my gratitude by working just as hard as they do at getting my books out to those faithful readers. First and foremost is, I keep writing. It's hard, sometimes, with working a full-time and a part-time job, besides caring for my family, but I owe it to myself, my readers, and my publishers. They count on me to produce and I won't let them down.

I also take every opportunity that comes along to promote and sell my books. I don't wait for my publisher to find me venues to speak and places to sell my books. Library and author events, bookstores of all kinds, church festivals, local art events, any place that comes to my attention that has the remotest possibility of gaining me one more reader is always pursued. Sometimes it's a lot of work for little or no reward, but the reward comes in knowing that I'm paying my dues as a published author.

Yes, it's true: writing the book is just the beginning. Rarely does a popular author hit the jackpot on the first time out and very few authors make a cushy living solely from their writing. Whether that is what is in my future or not matters little to me. I am living the dream of writing my stories and having them published.

And I owe a lot of that to Billie Johnson and Mike Orenduff. You both have been a blessing to me and I only hope I've done my best for you! I am eternally grateful!