By: Marcia King-Gamble
www.lovemarcia.com
I still remember the day clearly when I got the call that an Editor (from a big press) wanted to publish me. All that visualization and anguish had paid off. After months of going to Barnes & Noble and the now defunct Borders and Walden Books, and visualizing, I was now being offered a contract.
A dream was coming true, and this was in 1998, when I was younger and a lot more optimistic. The editor from Kensington Publishing didn’t want just one book, she
wanted two. I sat in my office numb but pinching myself. The funny thing is, my
goal was never to be a writer. For years, I freelanced as a reader for Harlequin/Silhouette
(the latter also now defunct,) reading so many promising manuscripts, but me a writer?
Still, I couldn’t turn down an opportunity. Never. And I’m glad I didn’t. Those first two books
led to many, many, more contracts. I had a day job as well – reminder never
give that up.
For a very long time, I had no life. I ate and slept writing. I wrote for Viacom, BET books, St. Martin’s Press and Harlequin. Then a crazy thing happened. I was no longer the flavor of the month, and for a number of reasons, I’ll choose not to go into on a public forum.
Initially, my feelings were hurt, but I quicky rebounded. I had the day job. I was not relying on writing to pay my bills. There’s freedom in that.
Lucky for me, the Indie market was opening up. And although
skeptical, I dipped my toes in it. The
pluses were many, but so were the negatives. The freedom to write what you want
and to publish those books that were rejected, “because they would never sell,’ was invigorating. Incidentally, ‘those books that would never sell,’ became some
of my best sellers. On the flip side, you are on your own when it comes to marketing.
And even years later, there is still that
skepticism about not being good enough to get traditionally published. This
myth continues, despite many top NY Times Bestsellers going this route
and having much success.
Now here I am, twenty-five years later, still standing, still
writing, and very hopeful that I will be doing so for the next twenty-five
years.
Writers write, not for the money, but because they can’t
help but write. They write through thick
and thin. They write even when they don’t get paid. They write because the
thought of not writing is unthinkable.
About Marcia King-Gamble
USA bestselling romance
writer, Marcia King-Gamble originally hails from a sunny Caribbean Island where
the sky and ocean are the same mesmerizing shade of blue. This former travel
industry executive has spent most of life in the United States. A National
Bestselling author, Marcia has penned over 34 books and 8 novellas. She has
contributed to Michael Fiore’s DigitalRomanceInc and served as a moderator on
the now defunct eHarmony advice boards. Having witnessed the bad, the ugly, and the
not so good in relationships, she still prefers to write about happily ever
after. Caring for her animal family keeps her grounded and sane.
Visit Marcia at
www.lovemarcia.com or “friend” her on Facebook: http://bit.ly/1MlnrIS
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her newsletter mailing list.
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