As Inspiration Dawns...

Anyone who writes creatively will tell you that both the source of their inspirations and the moment when the inspiration dawns in their minds are often a mystery to the writer.

I generally know when my creative juices will flow most freely, but I usually cannot anticipate when I will get a burst of inspiration or a new idea ... They come to me sometimes in the middle of the night, sometimes while enjoying a bubble bath or washing dishes at the kitchen sink, and sometimes during a walk outdoors or while I'm reading a good book.

And sometimes I happen upon them at the most obscure times and places ... like while watching a television show. That's when I discovered my most recent inspiration.

This evening I was watching an episode of a very entertaining quiz show which I have recently discovered, and one of the answers given by a contestant caught my attention. It was stated as a possible book title, and I immediately liked it. I did an Internet search to see if there were any books by that title, and there aren't! So my next thought was ... "I could write a book by that title."

The two words of inspiration were "Velvet Sunrise."

And the very fascinating thing about this is that almost immediately I began thinking of similar titles and I now have a new book series percolating in my mind. This took me completely by surprise, because I am currently in the process of preparing two novels for self-publication and have begun work on their sequels, so I already have "a few irons in the fire," so to speak.

However, one rule I have regarding my writing ventures is that I must seriously consider the inspirations that come to mind. I have learned that if I try to ignore it, it will most likely persist in my subconscious mind until I do something with it.

Have I piqued your curiosity?

Unfortunately you will have to wait a little while longer for more details because I want to have a little better idea in my mind of what I will be writing about before I share it with you. So please, stay tuned ... this is going to be exciting!!

How It All Began...

I have ALWAYS loved books!

This love was fostered by my parents as they read to us from the Bible and other books. Bedtime was greatly looked forward to because Mom would often sit in the hallway and read to us as we fell asleep - I especially remember the Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis and the classic series of children's stories by Thornton Burgess.

I was reading books before I went to kindergarten...it was - and STILL IS - one of my favourite activities! I don't quite recall when I first decided that I wanted to be a writer, but I had been greatly influenced by the many books I read and knew that I wanted to share my love of stories in a way that would also impact others.

From a young age I had numerous short stories in my desk drawer as "works in progress." They were mostly unfinished, as I had not yet developed the discipline of sticking with one task until it was completed. I read many different books, including biographies of influential people, romance stories, adventure stories, children's books...basically anything I could. I discovered that I loved language and words and expressing myself in a unique way.

During my teenage years, I began writing poetry as a way to express my emotions and process my experiences. And then, in my senior year of high school at the age of 17, I decided I was going to start a novel. I don't remember what specifically precipitated that decision; I only know that from that moment on I was determined to be an author.

I had read somewhere that the best authors write from their own experiences and what they know, and so I decided to do exactly that. The book was about half-completed in 2002 when I began my studies at Bible college. Throughout the next 2 years, I had little time to write, so no progress was made. Finally, in 2006, I completed my first novel. I was elated! Now there was a new challenge...I wanted to try and get it published. I dreamed about seeing the book with my name emblazoned on the cover, and signing copies of it as they sold by the dozens! I didn't know then just how long and arduous this process would be, however, and after awhile it seemed like my dream might never be realized.

I began working on the sequel to my first book, and then a separate novel, which I completed in the winter of 2008. Now I had even more impetus to get published! But how would this be possible? I was still searching for what I was supposed to do with my life. In 2010 I began pursuing a missionary calling, which God had clearly laid on my heart, and the book publishing was set aside, since I knew that it would not likely be my life's work. I definitely still had a passion for writing and a desire to see my stories be an encouragement and inspiration to others, but when this would happen was an unknown.

Then, in 2012, a missionary friend showed me a small book she had self-published through a company in Ukraine several years ago. I began looking into it and discovered that not only was there an abundance of options for self-publishing, but it was relatively inexpensive and time-efficient.

So that brings me to where I am today...

One book just beginning the copy-editing process, which will be completed by spring/summer 2014. I plan to publish it next summer, and hopefully my second novel will be ready for publishing then as well. In addition to the print copies I will be selling, it will also be available in e-book format online.

Stay tuned for previews...and please share with anyone you know who may be interested.

I hope you enjoy coming along with me on this exciting journey!!