Ghost hunters stumble upon a murdered teen in a haunted house. Deputy Tempe Crabtree's investigation pulls her into a whirlwind of restless spirits, good and evil, intertwined with the past and the present, and demons and angels at war.
What I’ve Gone Through on My Writing Journey by Marilyn Meredith
Let me sum it up like this: many, many rejections, crooked publishers, agents who did nothing for me or my books, bookstores that never paid me for books I sold, publishers who died—and I’m sure I’ve missed a lot.
Rejections, unless you’re really lucky, are part of the game. You haven’t paid your dues until you’ve got a drawer full. Even after you get one book published that doesn’t mean the next book won’t get rejected. That’s what happened to me. The editor who accepted my first book, left the publishing house and her replacement didn’t care of the way I wrote.
Believe me though, I’ve learned a lot along the way and most of it because of my critique group. Yes, I read many, many writing books and attended writing conferences, but where I really learned the fine points of writing came from my critique group.
Crooked publishers and agents flourished for a while and I got tangled up with both. One publisher actually gambled away all the money that should have gone to his authors as royalties, and he did go to jail. Another published 50 copies of one of my books, which I sold at a book signing, then he disappeared. I could never get any more books.
A publisher asked me to get a book camera ready (this was in the days before print on demand) and I slaved away on a friend’s updated computer until I was done. When I called the publisher his wife told me her husband died.
Over the years I’ve had several agents. None of them ever landed a publisher for me.
The first publisher of my Deputy Tempe Crabtree series produced four books, then she had a stroke and died. So sad. She was much younger than I was and a good friend. The next publisher of the series had some serious family emergencies and decided not to continue her business. Fortunately, I found Mundania Press who is publishing this series now.
I’ve brought my own books to bookstores for signings, both big chains and independent bookstores, and never been paid for the books that I sold. Oh, I’ve sent letters and email, but nothing worked.
Wouldn’t you think after all that, I would’ve given up? Sure I’ve been disappointed, at times angry, but I guess I have the tenacity of a pit bull. It’s called perseverance. If you want something bad enough, you just keep on going.
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Marilyn Meredith is the author of over thirty published novels, including the award winning Deputy Tempe Crabtree mystery series. She borrows a lot from where she lives in the Southern Sierra for the town of Bear Creek and the surrounding area, including the nearby Tule River Indian Reservation. She does like to remind everyone that she is writing fiction. Marilyn is a member of EPIC, three chapters of Sisters in Crime, Mystery Writers of America, and on the board of the Public Safety Writers of America. Visit her at http://fictionforyou.com and follow her blog at http://marilymeredith.blogspot.com/
Contest:
The person who comments on the most blogs on this blog tour will have the opportunity to have a character named after him or her in the next Deputy Tempe Crabtree mystery.
Tomorrow I’ll be visiting here: http://patwritersforum.blogspot.com/
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