Why a blog?

All my life I have dreamed of being a writer. When I was a kid, I wrote and illustrated stories all the time. When I lived in Norway and didn't have access to many books in English, I made story books for my 2 yr old. In my head, I always figured I would one day write a novel. I was finally inspired to do so when my friend Mackie, told me about National Novel Writing Month (aka NaNoWriMo) where the goal is to write a 50,000 word novel in a month. I was hooked!

When November 2009 rolled around, I had a story in mind. It would a book for kids and contain all the elements I loved when I was young - ghosts, missing treasure, time travel, danger! It was all there. When it was done, I had people read it to see what they thought. Should I pursue publication or stick it in a drawer someplace and deny it ever happened? Everyone said try to get it published! So, I decided to take the next step and submitted it to an agent.

Dawn and I had actually been pen pals for many years and so she was the first person that came to mind. I mean, how many literary agents do I know off hand? Um...one! Dawn agreed to take it on so now we're in the editing stage and I grimly await the return of my beloved "perfect" manuscript with all the things she thinks should be changed!

As I have stumbled along this pathway of seeking publication, one thing I have heard time and time again is: Yeah, a publisher might decide to publish your book but it's up to YOU to promote it and get it sold! I find this a daunting task. Self-promotion is an alien concept to me and makes me very uncomfortable. Yet...it must be done and one thing everyone said you should do is...BLOG!

So, here I am trying to figure out how to write a blog and make a nifty looking page and impress potential readers. *sigh* It's harder than it looks! At this point, all I want to do is get it figured out and hopefully make it look decent and not sound like a total dweeb!

And so today, on my 54th birthday, I shall push the Publish Post button and join the ranks of other hopeful authors and their blogs and together we shall change the universe for dreamers everywhere!!!!...or not...