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My debut novel, Bedlam Bewitched, is coming out later this year. To reach this milestone, I took a twisty writing journey full of obstacles, starts, and stops.
I conceived of this novel more than a decade and a half ago, and completed my first draft back in 2008. Over the next year, I workshopped and revised the manuscript, running chapters by my critique group partners and writing coaches. Then I queried agents and editors in search of a traditional publishing contract. Although I garnered several requests for the full manuscript and encouraging comments, I did not ultimately get an offer of publication in that round. Discouraged, I pulled my manuscript back in and focused on other writing projects. That was late 2011.
But I still loved this story and believed that it had potential. My astute writer friends suggested that perhaps I had been targeting the wrong market, and that my novel would better suit a young adult audience. So in 2013, I began a major rewrite. I completely restructured the story around my teenage protagonist, and added new characters and plot lines. Then about two-thirds of the way through this revision, my life derailed.
For the next seven years from 2014-2021, my writing remained on hold, while I dealt with major changes that upended every aspect of my personal life. Meanwhile, my finished chapters languished in a drawer and on my computer, the unfinished ones still waiting to be written.
Then in late 2021, I pulled out my manuscript and reread those first 20 chapters. I loved it, and determined to finish this story. I completed my rewrite, penning the final 10 chapters and submitting them to my critique group for their insightful feedback. A few editing passes later, my manuscript was ready.
Over the next few months, I’ll be sharing more details about my novel. I hope you’ll join me. Stay tuned for the cover reveal, release date, and other announcements. I can’t wait to hold my first published novel.
You can’t control what life throws your way. But hold onto your dreams and don’t give up. Journeys, like any worthwhile endeavor, are traveled one step at a time. Purposefully and persistently, take that next step, despite the seemingly long and winding road ahead.