How this book came about...

How this book came about….

I wanted to thank you all for coming over to read Tera’s story, and for leaving all those lovely comments here and on my FB page. For you to fully understand just how much your words and support means to me, I have to tell you how this book came about.

I began writing Tera’s story over a decade ago as a project for college. When I finished, I sent it out to a few publishers, and amazingly, they even got back to me. This does not happen a lot to unpublished writers without agent representation, so as I was dancing in the street, I envisioned a fat publishing contract, followed by a straight journey to the top of the bestseller lists. Or just someone who would be willing to print maybe a hundred copies of my book. Seriously, either way I would have been deliriously happy. I just so wanted to see the story in print and hold my very own book in my hands.

Reality brought those dreams to a screeching halt. The editor-in-chief at a major NY publishing house told me it wasn’t exactly what they published, but referred me to other publishers and even let me use her as reference. Another editor at another house told me she wasn’t sure how to sell it to her marketing people, but she loved it too much to reject it. To this day, many years later, I still haven’t received a rejection letter from her. Another editor at a big publisher read the first three chapters, loved them and requested to see the rest. By the time I sent the full novel, she moved on to another job, and the new editor wasn’t interested. I’m guessing you have picked up on a pattern here: lots of love, no contract.

In the meanwhile, I wrote other projects and became successfully published in a whole other genre (romantic suspense). But I couldn’t forget Tera’s story, and neither could some of my friends who read it. From time to time, I would receive emails, people telling me they were still thinking about the characters, asking when the book was going to be published.

Well, with the advent of direct publishing, I finally did get the book out there under the title THE THIRD SCROLL two years ago. Aaaand… crickets. By then, I was firmly established as a romantic suspense author. My readers were romantic suspense readers, hesitant to pick up something different. Fantasy readers didn’t know me from Adam so, needless to say, I was making no inroads into that market whatsoever.

BUT, a few readers did somehow miraculously read the book, and it even received some positive reviews. Can I just say how much I LOVE those readers? They spent the past 2 years writing me, asking for book 2. So, a few months ago, I finally sat down and wrote it, with no hope of success whatsoever, but because this is a story that comes from my heart, and I can’t stand seeing it unwritten.

About to release book 2, I decided to repackage book 1 and change the title to RELUCTANT CONCUBINE. Will this make a difference as far as marketing goes? I don’t know.

So here is book 1, posted to my blog. In a week or so, it should be republished to Kindle/Nook/iTunes/Kobo with the new cover and title. And very shortly after RELUCTANT CONCUBINE is published, book 2, ACCIDENTAL SORCERESS, will be out too.

THANK YOU for being here. THANK YOU for looking at Tera and her story, and seeing what I see in my heart. Words cannot express what that means to me. If you are the type of reader who takes a chance on authors new to you and you interact with authors, recommend them to others, do know that YOU are what makes it possible for books like this to be born. THANK YOU!

Dana

(P.S.S.: Chapter 11 will be up first thing tomorrow morning.)