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Title: Pieces of Autumn

Author: Mara Black

Genre: Dark Romance 18 +

Publish Date: July 31, 2014

Publisher: Indie Published Event organized by: Literati Author Services, Inc.

~ Book Synopsis ~

I wish I could tell you that I was stolen.

Kidnapped off the street in some third-world country, sold against my will, while a desperate family back home waited and prayed and talked about me on the news.

I wish I could tell you that, because then you might understand.

What really happened? I walked to my fate with my eyes wide open. But before you say I deserved whatever happened to me, you should know. I was desperate. I was alone. I was afraid for my life. You would have done the same thing.

I thought things couldn’t possibly get any worse.

But then, I woke up in darkness, unable to move. There was only one thing I was sure of: I wasn’t alone anymore.

And then I heard HIS voice...

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Advice for Aspiring Authors

Write.

Okay, that’s facile, but forgive me. I spent many years wanting to be a novelist, but I wrote zero novels. How does that work, exactly?

I know I’m not alone. Writing is hard. But if you’re serious about writing as a career, you have to take it…well…seriously. For me, learning about indie publishing was crucial to ending my years-long writer’s block. The thought of spending months writing a book, only to have it sit in someone’s slush pile for another couple of months…and then probably, statistically, be rejected with a form letter? Ouch. Who can feel inspired under those circumstances?

But knowing I could set out on my own - that was different. It helped me. Not everyone’s going to feel that way, but I think we can all find something to inspire us. Whether or not you believe in a muse, you’ve got to find a way to put that thing on a leash. If it doesn’t sit, stay, and heel on command, you’ll have trouble.

So just write. Turn off the internet, read, watch, or listen to something that inspires you. Write. Turn off the phone. Write. Even if it’s total crap, still write. You can edit later. Make words happen. Until you do, it’s all just a pipe dream.

Research.

Not just your writing (although you should - just don’t get mired in it!) You need to research your options for publication, promotion, and, well…pretty much everything that goes on behind the scenes. Authors have endless possibilities at our fingertips these days. Will you publish independently? Will you solicit traditional publishing? Or maybe some combination of both? What makes sense for you, and why?

Don’t make assumptions, and don’t make decisions based on things you kinda sorta remember someone telling you once. When you look at someone’s advice, ask yourself if they’re the person you should be listening to. What do they stand to gain from telling you what they’re telling you? What do they stand to lose if you make a different choice?

Take your advice from people who don’t stand to benefit from your decisions. If someone is selling something, they’re biased. Accept advice from those who give it for its own sake. Look at people who are doing what you want to do - specifically. Every genre is different, and every author is different.

Compare.

But don’t compete.

I’ve long believed that writing and publishing is not a zero-sum game. There are far more readers than authors - and in most genres, far more readers than authors can possibly keep up with. We could all write a book every single day, and it still wouldn’t be enough to flood the popular markets. People love to read. It’s easy, it’s unobtrusive, and it’s a cheap hobby.

Compare yourself to the people whose careers you want to emulate. But don’t compete with them. If you are not accomplishing what they’re accomplishing, ask yourself why. It’s not because they exist. It’s because they are doing something you are not doing. Make friends with them. Together, you can raise the tide and lift all boats.

Believe.

Recently, I landed a difficult yoga pose for the first time. It’s called crow, and it’s basically a crouching handstand. It requires more upper body and core strength than I thought I had. For months, I’ve been practicing and growing stronger, but I wasn’t making any progress on crow. I kept trying, but my arms felt too weak to hold me. I used a lot of excuses. I was too heavy, I needed more upper body strength. If I tried any harder, I might tip forward and land on my head.

Then, everything changed.

Did I suddenly sprout new muscles I didn’t have before? No, actually, right before I finally got the pose, I hadn’t practiced or worked out in over a week. I weighed the same as I’ve weighed for the past few weeks, when I’d tried and failed. The difference? I’d just come back from a big writer’s conference, where I was pushed out of my comfort zone, made important contacts, and managed to advance my career beyond what I could have dreamed.

The day after I got home, I approached crow with a different attitude. For the first time, I knew I could do it. I didn’t just hope, or think “maybe someday.” I knew I could do it, so I did.

Writing is like that. So is everything else in life. If you want it, you have to believe that you can do it. You have to let go of fear. You might land on your head, but you’ll never know until you try. Push yourself past that point of fear, that point where you’re not sure if you can hold your balance.