Grab Your Checkered Flag

Hey friends! Happy New Year! I know, twenty days into the new year makes that old news, but I hope 2022 is being good to you and continues to be an amazing year for you! I am trying to take each day as it comes. It brings me peace not worrying about tomorrow.

No release date yet for Banderidge, the first book of the series, but I do have some exciting news! I finished reviewing the edits on January 1st and sent the manuscript to my publisher, Zoe Grace Publishing, the same day! It was a relief to get that into their hands. That is not even my favorite part. There is more. . .

On January 18th, I finished the rough draft of book 2! Okay, this may not seem worthy of excitement, but for me, it is a major victory. Like, if I were a race car driver, I would be taking that victory lap around the track with the checkered flag-waving kind of victory. Let me tell you why.

I have been at this writing thing since September 2018. I will be honest, you probably know more about the writing world than I did when I started out. The door opened, and I walked through. It has been an amazing learning experience. Can I tell you how many times I had to do things the long way or the wrong way to learn? Too many to count. I am okay with it because it still happens and will continue to happen.

Book 2 was started in November 2019 when I wrote 50,226 words and “won” NaNoWriMo for the first time. Because I was still revising and learning what to do with book 1, I set book 2 aside. In December of 2020, I found a publisher who liked series books. One of the things the publisher asked for was a synopsis of the other books in the series. While looking for my story to refresh my memory, I realized book 2 was gone. I searched everywhere and enlisted the help of someone knowledgeable in computers. It was gone. I thought for sure I had it in two places, at least, but no. Nowhere to be found. 

I was in shock but tried to believe there was a reason. I may have shed a tear but was remarkably calm until. . .I had to start writing it again. I remembered bits and pieces and had some notes jotted down from the first time, but I mourned for my first story. That is when the tears came. It was painful. I would write then stop. Go back to it and try to write again. It was a struggle. 

Sharing about this part of my journey in a post for the prompt “spark” through a Hope*Writers event today, I wrote, “Reintroducing myself to my characters, creating their personalities, building their world–then it happened! One day creativity rubbed against hope and became the spark that pushed me through.” And that is when my story became alive to me again. 

Sometimes when I blog I get to a point I think I am talking about myself too much. Then I keep talking about myself anyway. Haha. I blog to share my wins and losses with you. To encourage you to keep walking. What happens if the win is three steps away? Never give up, especially if you know there is purpose in your goal!