Do you have a dream?
That’s what my Flirt Squad is talking about this week. The aspirations we have that may seem unattainable, but we go after them anyway. The things that make us who we are. For some, the dream may be huge and life-changing. For others, it could be quiet and small, but every bit as vital and uplifting.
Alessandra D’Angeli, the heroine in A Tale of Two Centuries, dreamed of the stage. In My Super Sweet Sixteenth Century, her time-traveling cousin gave her a glimpse of that dream by staging an impromptu play. And in A Tale of Two Centuries, our sixteenth-century maiden gets her own time travel experience, this time to the twenty-first century where she experiences the fullness of her aspiration.
Before I get into my dreams, and the way I chased them, I want to share a few quick links with you.
- Yesterday’s post, Share Your Passion, has TONS of links to giveaways and fun, so please be sure to check it out. We have bookmarks and Austin trading cards, as well as the HUGE blog tour giveaway up for grabs.
- Today, The Book Belle’s have a 4 1/2 star review where they declare “Austin is one of my new favorite book guys ever.” (*happy author dance*) Be sure to check it out AND enter to win the blog tour Grand Prize
And now, onto MY dream.
When I was growing up, I never really thought of being an author as a career. Not because I didn’t love writing–I did, and I wrote tons of stories. Some of them were based on real life situations, others were inspired by media, but I love writing stories. Finishing them was a whole other issue, but writing them was fun.
But that wasn’t a real career. Right?
So I dreamed of being a fashion designer. That was followed by thoughts of being an architect. Then I realized I couldn’t draw, so that was scrapped. Meanwhile, I continued writing in my journal, creating stories for my honors language arts class, and working for the school newspaper.
In high school, my writing drifted more towards poetry and plays, but I still was searching for a future career. After a short stint wanting to be career in medicine (followed by the realization that my severe sympathy pains and fear of the sight of blood would make that a tad difficult), I decided I wanted to work in entertainment. I’d always loved watching Entertainment Tonight, and I was obsessed with E! and anything celebrity oriented. When I mentioned this in class one day, a few classmates in particular made a face, saying they couldn’t imagine me in a career like that. I’m not sure what they meant…but I am sure that it drove me to want it that much more.
In college, I majored in Mass Communications where I hosted and produced television shows for my campus channel. My junior year had me going for the gold–I searched out the office for Entertainment Tonight in NYC, contacted them to see if they offered internships, put together a resume, and faxed it in, all on my own. I followed up with a phone conversation and hit it off with the guy who answered. That conversation led to an interview, and then the craziest thing happened. Out of tons of applicants, four interns were chosen…and little old me, the girl no one could imagine in a career like that, was about to live a dream!
Now, the funny thing about dreams is that they don’t always live up to expectations.
I loved the experience of living in NYC for a summer, meeting celebrities, and being behind the scenes for interviews and pieces I’d watched for so long. But I realized that I was a southern girl. I liked living in the south, and I do NOT like stress. I’m so grateful for that summer because I did get to live a dream…and it taught me that I needed to move on to another one.
After graduation, I floundered a bit, trying to find a new passion. I’d always wanted to be a mother so my husband and I decided to start our family early. My oldest was born two years after I graduated college, followed by my second child fourteen months later. Being a mom turned out being exactly what I dreamed and hoped it would be, and the blessing continued when we decided to homeschool our children. Play dates, snuggly reading time, adventures…our days were filled with laughter and fun.
But something was missing.
I began a homeschool blog where I poured out my thoughts and interacted with other adults. This was my sanity for a couple of years. During that time I began writing articles for a homeschool magazine as well. Looking back, I can see the writing thread weaving throughout my life, but I didn’t pick up on it then. I just thought it was something I was doing. It wasn’t until my husband got me the full Twilight set, and I read the entire series over and over and over again, that I got the writing bug for real. Not nonfiction pieces on my life, but creative stories about other worlds and other characters. Stories so much like the ones I wrote when I was a child, the plays I wrote in high school, and even the fan fiction I wrote in college.
In August of 2010, I sat down at my computer and began writing my first novel. I didn’t think much would happen–the thought that my book might be printed one day was still way too big to imagine. But, I didn’t let it stop me. I did it anyway.
Around November of that year, it was finished, and I began querying agents. I still had huge doubts that anything would EVER happen, but it couldn’t hurt to try. If I didn’t put myself out there, I argued, I would never know. I’d always wonder. So, I did. And I had several close calls, but to keep the stress of it all away, I immediately began writing another story while I waited. Two and a half months later, that book was finished, and I began querying while agents were still replying about the first one.
Around July, an agent offered on both of my books. A contract from Entangled followed in September of 2011, and my first published book, My Super Sweet Sixteenth Century, hit stands September of 2012. I’ve done book signings. I’ve met my own literary heroes. I’ve even spoken on panels with them, as I sat there trying not to gawk.
Next week, my second YA, A Tale of Two Centuries, hits shelves, and I’ve recently released an adult romance (Taste the Heat released in July from Entangled Bliss). I have seven more books in the works.
Now I can see the dream of story and writing has been with me since I was a child. The dream I didn’t admit to because I didn’t believe it was possible–that it would require too many connections, or only happened to other people–became a reality.
I’m a blessed wife and mother, and I’m a published author. I’m living my dream, against all odds, because I went for it, even when it seemed impossible. I didn’t let doubt choke my hope. I simply put one foot in front of the other, finishing one step and moving on to the next, believing that it can’t hurt to try.
I put myself out there, and I’m so glad I did.
Panel: Jacqueline Carey, me, Joy Preble, Rachel Caine, Ashley Nemer, Missy Jane
If you’re still with me, kudos! You should be rewarded for listening to my rambling, and so I’m giving away a present. Leave a comment with a childhood dream you remember having–it can be one you kept when you got older, or realized wasn’t quite your thing after all–and I choose one of you to receive a A TALE OF TWO CENTURIES magnet!
