Lessons Learned, Part 2, The Story of Lady

I posted a little last week about what I learned on the path to publishing my first novel and I wanted to expand on one of the lessons that I really struggled with and how I wasn’t able to achieve my goal until I learned it. For a long time I burned myself out trying to do things “the right way.”

I spun my tires for a very very very long time trying to force my books down a traditional path. I would see authors around me get agents, have their books published with big presses, go on book tours and accomplish all these things I so desperately wanted in what seemed like a short amount of time. Some of them continued that momentum and it seemed like that was HOW IT WAS SUPPOSED TO HAPPEN.

Meanwhile, I have gone through the querying trenches with more than five books over the course of 12 years. And I still do not have an agent. I got all the way up to the final boss level two years ago when I was offered representation for my novel, LADY. The agent said she would be in touch with a contract after what seemed like a lovely meeting.

I felt like all my years of hard work and focus and dedication and commitment to THIS PATH had finally paid off.

The day the contract was supposed to arrive, the agent instead pulled her offer, citing that she didn’t represent the other genres I write in.

I felt like I was being punished for having a wide scope of interests, for not fitting in a box. It felt like I was being punished for being me.

I lost my faith in the prescribed path.

Thank Goodness.

I decided I needed to let go of this idea that I would find an agent who would find a publisher who would find the right market for my book who would make my book successful.

I finally realized HOW IT WAS SUPPOSED TO HAPPEN wasn’t actually how it worked for most writers. The ones who got an agent who got them a publisher often remained obscure and under-promoted with their titles, or only taken on for one book. Sometimes they were dropped before the agent could even place their books. Sometimes their books never found a home. Sometimes they did everything right and their books had ever advantage and they still didn’t sell much.

The things I thought would make a career mean very little. A bestseller doesn’t equate to a paid out advance or a second book offer. A mid-list indie book from an unknown author can take off and become an international hit.

Sure there are some books that big publishers put all their resources into to make sure they will be huge hits, but those are the exceptions.

Most authors who have a career build it slowly and don’t get noticed until they’ve got a lot of work under their belts. Agents and big publishers are great assets in building a career, but they are not the only way and they are often not the starting point.

I held onto my work, refusing to put it out there without a red carpet, and so it languished, unpublished, and my name had no credits attached to it.

When I finally lost faith in the prescribed path, I decided I needed a new path. I knew LADY was a great book. I knew my betas had all really loved it. I knew I needed it out in the world, so I set about finding the right home for it. Instead of trying to force it, or myself, to belong in traditional publishing, I started putting it out to indie presses. I even looked into self publishing.

I decided LADY would have a home in 2024, and in September 2023, I received two offers to publish and chose the one I felt was the best fit at the time.

I am not at the pinnacle of my career. I have been climbing the mountain a long time, caught in the scrub and the foot hills, but the publication of my first novel is a huge leap in progress and its a good place to stop, look around and admire how far I have come.

I really hope you enjoy Lady, which in some ways mirrors the lessons I have learned. Truth in your strengths, look outside the prescribed paths, don’t give up, be true to yourself.

And the best of luck with your own quests to reach your goals.

Pre-Order Discount: Use code PREORDERLADY25 for 25% off in the Mirror World store! until the End of September!

or Buy it on Amazon!