The Summer Olympics are just around the corner and I started watching the selection process for the women's gymnastics team this weekend. A sign in the Karolyi gym caught my eye.
The same holds true for any kind of artistic endeavor. Maybe, as authors, we don't have the rock hard bodies of those tiny jumping machines, but if you could peer inside our minds...
Like most everyone else, I have dreams and goals, updated with each milestone I hit. With books 14 and 15 coming out this year, my new goal is to reach the 25-book mark at RWA, for which I'll get a pin. The pin doesn't matter, it's the goal that counts.
When I take a moment to look back, I can't believe how far I've come in such a short time. Admittedly, it hasn't been an overnight success, since every dime I make goes back into advancing my career, but someday soon, I hope to give myself a paycheck. But where would I be if I'd let my dreams of becoming a published author scare me? Since 2012, when my first book came out, my career has been a snowball, starting off slowly and getting a little bigger each year, with each book. I've made some really good friends, I've figured out that there's no such thing as being a complete author, since there's always more to learn, but you do your best and make each new book better than the last. And I've finally found an outlet for all those voices that have been rolling around in my head for years.
Yes, my dreams back when I began this journey scared me, but I decided to face the fear and forge ahead. I'm so glad I did, since my life since has been filled with the highest of highs as well as some not so fun lows. A lot of people say they want to write a book, but few actually finish one and send it out for people to critique, or offer a contract. At least I can say I did it.
