Welcome, thank you for joining me behind-the-scenes of my writing life! It’s been some time since I introduced myself and explained how I became an author of romance, and the Newsletter page feels like the perfect place to share that with you.
I’ve always been a reader; some of my best memories from childhood are books which still feel like old friends and ones I can’t part with. Maybe you have some books like that too? Mostly these were Enid Blyton tales, and stories of adventurous girls and their ponies, something I was grateful to experience with the horses that were part of our lives then. Writing always made sense to me and I was drawn to it from an early age, making up stories and characters of my own which continued through my teens and beyond.
Eventually I knew I wanted to write about characters who fell in love, and years and much editing later, I had completed my first manuscript. I passed it to beta readers, who were very kind and encouraging, and then put it away, uncertain how to proceed. I knew a little of the publishing world and it seemed far too big for me, a dream too far off to attain. But I wasn’t done with writing and I wrote a second manuscript and again was grateful for the encouragement of beta readers.
The best move I made in my publishing journey was to join the Romantic Novelists’ Association’s New Writers Scheme in 2018. The Scheme works by offering a limited number of unpublished writers the opportunity to join and have a manuscript read and reported on by a published author. I received a lovely report for my first manuscript and I began to submit to agents, feeling hopeful. Most writers can tell you what happens next and my experience was no different. The rejections followed and I persevered, knowing that I already had a second completed manuscript ready for the NWS the following year, which also received a very positive report.
One of the great joys of the RNA is the annual summer conference and the opportunities to have 1-2-1 meetings with agents, publishers or editors, as well as network and make friends. I was offered representation by an agent following a 1-2-1 in 2019 and by the following spring I was beyond thrilled to have two offers from publishers. I chose Canelo, and that first 3-book deal has now become 7 books; a reality that still makes me pinch myself sometimes.
I’m very grateful to have so many wonderful readers and I write with you in mind, creating characters and crafting stories for them that I hope you will find enjoyable and uplifting. I still catch sight of The Cottage of New Beginnings and The Garden of Little Rose sitting on my own bookshelf, and remember the days when they languished in a drawer and I wondered if they’d ever make their way out into the world!
My family, friends and the community of writers, readers and bloggers I have met through the RNA and online have also been a great encouragement and I’m thankful for the support, laughter and advice I’ve received.
So today, what would I tell my eight-year-old self with her handwritten stories and dreams? Keep going, because one day you just might be a published author with readers who find hope and happiness in what you have written.
There will be more posts for you on this page, as well as a ‘Talking with Tom Bellingham’ feature coming up.
Thanks for reading, see you next time!
Suzanne xx
