This is kind of a coincidence that Relationship is the theme for this month’s blog posts. While I’ve been married for 44 years and feel like I have a pretty good relationship with my kids, I thought about the relationships I have in regard to my writing.
I love the fact I have found so many friends, really good
friends, through my writing. From the authors who friended me when I was starting
out, to the new writers I’ve helped along the way, and even to my readers. And
then there are the bookstores who have me back. I’ve built some fun relationships with many
people over the years.
Back when I started writing, I was a backward thinker. I
know it sounds weird, but I’d put the reaction before the action when writing a
sentence. I entered many contests hosted by the Romance Writers of America. They
had ones where you could send in the love scene, the meet-up scene, or the
first chapter. I would usually do fairly well in the contests, but I was getting
frustrated with getting my pages back with lots of lines through sentences and
nothing that told me what I was doing wrong.
Then one contest the judge explained to me what I was doing wrong
and said she liked my writing and gave me her email address. I contacted her
and we began to private message each other once a week. She helped me start my
career as an author and I will always be thankful to her for her kindness in
pointing out what I was doing wrong. Through the years I have also made some long-lasting
friendships with other writers whom I met through our RWA chapter or at RWA
conferences. Even now, I meet other authors at conferences and book events and find
those I connect with, and we stay in contact.
There have been about a dozen writers whom I’ve helped with
either their writing, their promotion, or just moral support over the years who
have become good friends. I enjoy giving back as my friend, in the beginning,
gave to me. I have been a leader of a 4-H writing group. There were a couple of
very talented young ladies whom I hope to see a book on a shelf with their names
on one day. And I have belonged to many writer’s groups and critique groups
over the years. Again, when you meet often and learn not only about people’s
writing but their lives you become invested in their lives and become friends.
And my readers! I would not be still writing if not for the
wonderful emails and comments from readers. I love it when someone writes and
said I helped them forget their pain while they read my book. And the people
who listen to my books while they sew or jog or walk their dogs. At in-person
events, I get to talk to the people who purchase my books. It’s so fun to put
names to faces and to visit about their life since we’d last seen one another.
My friendship with bookstore owners is growing. I love going
back to stores I’ve been to before and seeing how they are doing and meet some
of the same people. I have a presentation at the NIWA monthly Zoom meeting this
month on planning book events. I’ll be speaking about the ways I build a
relationship with bookstore owners.
Helping me to grow my relationships is my newest release: Bear
Stalker-book 10 in the Gabriel Hawke series.
Bear Stalker
Book 10 in the Gabriel Hawke Series
Greed, Misdirection, and Murder
Oregon State Trooper Gabriel Hawke’s sister, Marion,
is on a corporate retreat in Montana when she becomes a murder suspect. Running
for her life from the real killer, she contacts Hawke for help.
Hawke heads to Montana to find his sister and prove
she isn’t a murderer. He hasn’t seen Marion in over twenty years but he knows
she wouldn’t kill the man she was about to marry.
As they dig into possible embezzlement, two more
murders, and find themselves trying to outsmart a wilderness-wise kidnapper,
Hawke realizes his sister needs to return home and immerse herself in their
heritage. Grief is a journey that must be traveled and knowing her fiancé had
wanted Marion to dance again, Hawke believes their culture would help her heal.
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