Romance author, Anna Sugden, is my guest today. She visits the blog on various occasions but I'm thrilled to have her visiting today with her debut novel, A Perfect Distraction. Yay Anna!
Writing is Anna's third career, the first was working as a Marketing executive for a multi-national corporation, then as a primary teacher (we call them elementary teachers here), and now a published author. She started getting serious about writing shortly after 9-11. I'd like to tell you she was an overnight success but...well, I'll let her tell you about that and what it took to get to this point.
Thanks so much, Sia for letting me visit today.
Your blog has always been a great place to hang out, so it’s especially nice to
be able to visit as a published author, to celebrate the release of my first
book, A Perfect Distraction! (Happy squee!)
Like many authors, I took a long time to sell my first book. Nine years, eight full manuscripts and four partial-and-synopsis proposals to be precise. That doesn't include all the revisions I did on most of those. As for rejections, let’s just say I could wallpaper my office quite nicely ;). During that time, I also had a lot of success -- I finalled in or won almost every prestigious writing contest for unpublished authors, including three Golden Heart finals. My manuscripts were passed up and across, but for a variety of reasons always failed at the final hurdle.
Like many authors, I took a long time to sell my first book. Nine years, eight full manuscripts and four partial-and-synopsis proposals to be precise. That doesn't include all the revisions I did on most of those. As for rejections, let’s just say I could wallpaper my office quite nicely ;). During that time, I also had a lot of success -- I finalled in or won almost every prestigious writing contest for unpublished authors, including three Golden Heart finals. My manuscripts were passed up and across, but for a variety of reasons always failed at the final hurdle.
No-one ever said writing was an easy profession,
and they were right!
One of the things you think, as you go round and
round in that holding pattern of ‘nearly there’, is that you must be missing
something -- a magic key that would unlock the door to that first sale. If you
could just find that elusive magic key, you would finally get The Call.
You’re all expecting me to tell you that there is
no such thing. Actually, there is. J In fact, there are several. The trick isn't finding
a magic key, it’s figuring out which one will work for you. That’s part
of the writer’s journey - trying out those keys until you find the right one.
So what are these magic keys?
1. Perseverance. Writing is hard work.
Fact. It’s hard for everyone, from Nora Roberts to the newbie starting their
first manuscript. There are numerous inspirational talks from famous authors
telling you about their journey to success. They will also tell you how they
still have to battle every day for every book. Yes, you need a little bit of
luck to succeed - the right book, landing on the right editor’s desk at the
right time - but, to paraphrase Samuel Goldwyn the harder you work, the luckier
you’ll get. Those who succeed are the ones who don’t give up. Obvious? Perhaps.
But as my lovely husband always says - the only way to guarantee you won’t be
published is to give up.
2. Keep on learning. It’s not enough to
work hard if you keep making the same mistakes. No-one writes a perfect book.
There are many ways to learn - craft books, workshops, critique partners. Yes,
even those of us who think we've seen, heard and read it all can learn
something new from an expert. One of the ways I was able to make the necessary
changes to my work was through expert advice - I bought a critique from a well
known author in a charity auction. I also managed to get a fantastic agent, who
provided me with excellent insight into what I needed to fix.
3. Be prepared to change. Sometimes, as
the saying goes, a change is as good as a rest. It may be that you should try
writing something different - I learned a lot by writing romantic suspense and
still hope to get some of those books published J. It could be that you need to try writing for a
different line/editor/publisher. I started off targeting Special Edition, but
switched to Super Romance because that line was a better fit for my writing. It
may be that your strategy for getting your work to the right people has to
change. I had more success through contests and editor agent pitches than
direct submission or queries.
4. It’s okay to take a break. Sometimes we
just need to stop and rest. That’s not a bad thing, especially if you use that
time to refill your creative well and re-energize your muse. After all, we are
all chasing our dream. What is the point of hating every minute of it? Take
some time off and read, watch movies, go for long walks, whatever it takes to
recharge your writing batteries. Trust me, you’ll be back writing sooner than
you think.
5. Write the book of your heart. We all
have the book we dream of writing. In fact, most of us have several. But, we
also all have an excuse for not writing that book - the market isn't right, you
need more writing experience, everyone is writing that kind of book, no-one is buying
that kind of book etc. The truth is that you don’t need to write the book of
your heart for anyone but yourself. Write it, enjoy it. You never know, things
change all the time in publishing, so maybe one day, the book of your heart
will be the book that sells. Mine was. Everyone told me that I’d never sell a
sports romance, let alone one featuring a hockey player. J
- Have you found a magic key that worked for you, either for writing or something else?
- Or, tell us about something you've worked hard at and succeeded in.
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A PERFECT DISTRACTION
Anna Sugden
A face-off—head vs. heart
For Jake Badoletti, this year is all about his career. He has a rare second chance to make the most of being a pro hockey player, so no parties, no scandals. Too bad he's met a woman who could sideline those plans. Maggie Goodman is not his usual type—right down to being a single mom. Still, the sizzling connection with this gorgeous brunette can't be ignored.
With a little juggling and a lot of focus, Jake manages to have the game and Maggie. Then his performance on the ice suffers and a scandal erupts. Now he can't afford the distraction of Maggie…even if she is perfect for him.
Romance Times – 4 stars!
Anna Sugden, is a three-time Golden Heart finalist who loves reading and writing happy endings as much as hockey! When not reading or watching hockey, she loves football, good food and wine, making simple cross-stitch projects and collecting memorabilia, penguins, and fab shoes.
Anna lives in Cambridge, England, with her husband and two bossy cats.
Anna lives in Cambridge, England, with her husband and two bossy cats.
You can find Anna: Website, Facebook, Goodreads, Twitter, Romance Bandits
