When I began writing toward publication over ten years ago, I had no idea I would have enough stories to sustain me through over a dozen books, let alone one. But once the switch was turned on there was no stopping that pesky and persistent muse. Initially, I struggled to find my footing in the rapidly changing publishing world, and dabbled with writing contemporary romance, romantic suspense, fantasy, and paranormal stories while I read everything on novel-writing, took online courses, and worked with writing groups and critique partners to hone my craft. Basically, I spent four years working on my 500,000 words of practice. But once I found my voice (that magical quality that makes every writer unique) and decided to focus on young adult literature, I was amazed at how the stories poured out of me. Apparently, my teen-self had a lot to say!
Even though I was in my forties at the time, those early novels reflected some difficult issues I faced myself as a teenager and young adult, including the loss of my mother to cancer when I was sixteen, an eating disorder, a teenage pregnancy, date rape (ON THIN ICE), a brother in the military who committed suicide (HEAVEN IS FOR HEROES), and drug and alcohol addiction (PIECES OF LOVE), to mention a few. Although these traumatic experiences shaped me in ways I never could have imagined, sharing those experiences with teen readers from a place of authenticity and insight allowed for a deep healing in me that changed my life.
Writing can be cathartic for the writer, but it can also be incredibly powerful by touching the hearts and minds of readers as well. The feedback I received from readers of those earlier novels is what has kept me writing despite the many challenges of earning a living at the craft. I’m fortunate enough to have a supportive husband and meaningful work to supplement my writing career/habit, but even if I didn’t, I’m not sure I could shut off the part of me that is compelled to share my inner thoughts and perhaps my Pollyanic vision of hope with the world—a compulsion that has served me well in my struggle to maintain my sanity and peace of mind through difficult times.
I kept journals for years as I grew up, putting to pen and paper my deepest darkest fears, as well as my hopes for a brighter tomorrow. In spite of my dysfunctional family life and the chaos of my youth as the youngest of seven children, I somehow managed to keep my eyes looking to the future and wanting to carve out a purpose and place for myself in the world, a common theme in YA Lit. I am driven by the notion that we all have a choice in life…to be part of the solution rather than part of the problem. Our challenge is to allow the trials of life to make us better rather than making us bitter. To that end, my writing comes from the strong sense of social justice that informs my daily life. When we can turn tragedy into triumph and evolve from being a victim to being victorious, it offers us the opportunity to inspire others to do the same.
My Savage Cinderella Novella series chronicles the survival, recovery, and transformation of a girl who was kidnapped as a child and left for dead in the high country of North Georgia. She not only survives her ordeal and overcomes her captor, but she goes on to thrive in the world and becomes a crime-fighter and purveyor of good.
The original novel, Holt-Medallion winner, SAVAGE CINDERELLA, introduces Brinn in her element, surviving in the mountains, walled off from the world and struggling to overcome her past. But when she is discovered by a young nature photographer who convinces her to come back to the world, Brinn must face her worst fears and take a chance on living the life she always dreamed of. Despite her feral nature, she is a kind, compassionate, and insightful young woman whose moral compass leads her to want to protect the innocent and right the wrongs in the world. Through leaning on friends, family, and her inherent strength of character, Brinn is reintegrated into society and determines her fate lies in helping others. Each subsequent novella tackles a social justice issue plaguing us today (human trafficking in FINDING HOPE and LOST BOYS, the plight of Native Americans in SACRED GROUND, drug trafficking and addiction in BROKEN ANGEL, and stalking behavior, corruption, and immigration in LIBERTY’S PROMISE) and brings to light the need for compassion, resilience, and integrity in a world gone mad.
If I have inspired even one reader to become a force for good, I will have fulfilled my purpose in writing my stories. Here’s to hoping 2020 will bring about change for the better in all of us.
Do you have a favorite book that has inspired you, caused you to change your mind, or helped you heal from something in your own life?
About the Author
In addition to her day job as a Massage Therapist, PJ Sharon is an award-winning author of young adult books, including the contemporary novels PIECES of LOVE, HEAVEN is for HEROES, ON THIN ICE, and Holt Medallion winner SAVAGE CINDERELLA. Follow the Savage Cinderella Novella Series with FINDING HOPE, LOST BOYS, SACRED GROUND, BROKEN ANGEL, and her latest release, LIBERTY’S PROMISE.
WANING MOON, WESTERN DESERT, and HEALING WATERS completes her YA dystopian trilogy, The Chronicles of Lily Carmichael, which RT Book Reviews calls “An action-packed read with a strong female lead.”
In her “real life” job as a Massage Therapist, Personal Trainer, and Yogi, PJ has been called “a powerhouse of positivity and productivity.” Her mantra is “find balance in all things and live every day to the fullest.” A black belt in the art of Shaolin Kempo Karate, avid kayaker, and singer of Italian art songs, PJ has two grown sons and a growing brood of grandchildren, and lives with her brilliant engineer of a husband in the Berkshire Hills of Western MA where she writes YA…because every teen deserves a hopefully ever after.
It was just published as the final book in the Be Careful What You Summon series. The first book, Vampire Vintage, came out a while ago, but the second and third books were long overdue. It was hard to get to my Indies when I had traditional contracts with deadlines, then first, second, and, sometimes, third edits, plus marketing, etc., demanding my time.
Pushing forty, Ronda Calhoun did a summoning spell with her single friends to find immortal mates, figuring they might appreciate women with a little more maturity and experience. For all the others, it worked! So why isn’t her immortal showing up?
Private investigator Nate Smith didn’t know what he had back when he and Ronda dated in High School. Now he knows she’s the one he wants to spend his long life with. Arranging to run into her isn’t a problem, but confessing he’s a werewolf could ruin everything!
But this article is about how readers helped me with all of this…
First of all, book 1, Vampire Vintage, needed a new professional cover. It was previously published by Ellora’s Cave and I had to update it. Amanda Walker did an awesome job, and even made bookmarks to go with it. (Email ash@ashlynchase.com if you want a couple! I’d be happy to send them. 🙂 )
One of my readers loved the first book so much, she became, not only a fan, but a friend. Knowing she was hoping for the other women’s stories to be told spurred me on.
Book 2 needed a cr*pload of editing, beta reading, and proofreading. Half the book took place in India, so certain words and phrases were checked with a West Bengal local. Most importantly I needed encouragement. My beta reader provided that with an enthusiastic, “It’s ready! Publish it!” So I had the cover made by the fabulous Syneca Featherstone of Original Syn and after a professional proofreading, that’s just what I did.
On to book 3. It had been previously published looong ago by another epublisher under a different title. I dusted it off, rewrote it completely and figured the five or ten people who bought the original version probably wouldn’t remember it anyway.
Then I needed a new title. I ran a few past my street team and one of my long-time members came up with a suggestion I hadn’t even thought of! Where the Howl Are You? was the PERFECT title, since our heroine, Ronda, had to wait so long to have her HEA, too.
Part of the fun (at least for me) is getting feedback from readers. A reader taking the time to express their thoughts in a review or word-of-mouth social media post is awesome! I take the good with the bad, and sometimes I’m able to improve a book if it gets a “second time around” publishing opportunity. Like Death by Delilah—a novella from my Ellora’s Cave days. There was a scene that awoke a reader’s “Ick factor.” That sometimes happens with erotica. The novella itself garnered a lot of contest wins and nominations, so when I had the opportunity to rewrite it, I changed that scene. It’s now part of an anthology with two other related novellas called Immortally Yours.
Sometimes, I get that feedback well before reviews. My proofreader Dianne Donovan is fabulous at catching every last pesky typo…and she doesn’t hesitate to give me her honest opinion of the book itself. I’m delighted to tell you she loved this one! However, I just got a “meh” advance review from a reader who didn’t like how the hero never shifted. That was one of the things that tickled me. He was so afraid he’d scare her off, he disappeared rather than let her see him shift. That didn’t mean he didn’t keep an eye on her. Wolves are by nature very protective of their chosen mates. And when she found out what he was, she didn’t get all girly and scared…she was more like; ”Why the hell didn’t you say so?” She had been waiting for her immortal for two years!
So, those are some of the examples right off the top of my head. I can’t tell you how grateful I am for all the support, encouragement, and honesty of my readers. Have you ever wanted to write to an author about their book? What’s stopping you?
Ah, those early years of thrilling sexual exploration and tearful heartaches! All of us have those experiences. Many of us consider spilling the whole story in a memoir.
So it is with this new release by Jessica Hardy. Only she didn’t know how to write a book, so she called on her old friend, Liz Ashworth, to help her put the story together. The result is an up close and personal view of a woman’s journey from adolescence to adulthood and of the times she lived in.
My work on Jessica’s story left me with many questions. Does love last a lifetime? Do we ever forgive ourselves for our mistakes? Is there any absolution in baring your soul to the world?
Jessica will find out as her true life story hits the bookstores and readers decide for themselves.
Once in a Lifetime Opportunity
In the mid-20th century, an entire generation of women found themselves caught up in a revolution. Young women tossed aside society’s rules that had governed women with an iron hand for hundreds of years. Suddenly women had agency, the right to their own identity. And their own sexual adventures.
The story of Jessica Hardy and her seven-year marriage to Parker Grant brings that enormous cultural shift down to the personal level. As she enters college in 1966, Jessica is desperate to break out of her strict upbringing. Parker is her salvation, a graduating senior who becomes the love of her life. Newly married, they immerse in Parker’s duties as an air force officer and a world of their own making—nights in Las Vegas, windy Pacific beaches, and long summer days in the Philippine Islands. Slowly, with Parker’s encouragement, Jessica gains self-confidence and a sense of herself.
But Jessica has a problem. She wants more. More knowledge, more experience, autonomy. Leaving no stone unturned, Jess breaks one rule after another—abortion before Roe v Wade, experimenting with marijuana then LSD, one man then another, even time in jail. It all culminates in an unexpected spiritual awakening that opens the door to the rest of her life.
Once in a Lifetime Opportunity reveals this tumultuous time in a gut-wrenching portrayal of a woman determined to find her own way and the man who loved her.
Hartman became ever more distant. I had been conquered, leaving him to pursue new prey. Exhibiting my need only pushed him further away, but then when I regained my balance and ignored him, he needed me. One night when I had spurned him successfully for over a week and had taken the phone off the hook, he woke me up at one a.m. shouting at my bedroom window.
“Jessica, goddamn it, wake up!”
Groggy, I heard him yell for several minutes before I actually woke up.
“Jessica,” he shouted, slapping the bedroom window screens.
I staggered down the hall and jerked open the carport door. He careened up the steps and stood glaring at me in the dark dining room.
“What the hell, Hartman? I was asleep.”
“Fucking mud all over my boots,” he slurred, obviously drunk. He sat heavily in one of the dining room chairs and tugged at the boots, pulling off one then the other of those precious handmade alligator cowboy boots.
“Wanted to see you,” he said, leering at me.
I huffed and headed down the hallway, climbing into bed as he shucked off his clothes and crawled in on the other side, still complaining about the mud.
“You didn’t have to walk in my yard,” I pointed out, turning off the lamp and trying to get warm. “You knew it was muddy.”
“Hell, I knocked a fucking hour.”
“You did not.”
“Yes, I did.” He snugged up against my body, sucking heat into his cold limbs.
I didn’t have a clue when he was with One Direction. Boy bands aren’t my thing. But then, he started appearing in movies (did you see Dunkirk?!), and showing up on James Corden’s show (which I love! Do you watch Carpool Karaoke?), and then I heard this song on the radio and thought, OMG, it’s like he’s channeled the Beatles, and I fell in love.
But he’s so much more! It’s like the Beatles, Mick Jagger, and David Bowie have all reached out to touch him. I think I’ve watched the following video about fifty times already. It never fails to make me smile. Maybe it will be your new fave. And I love the pearls!!
Isn’t he adorable? And what a voice! My taste in music roams from heavy metal (Disturbed, Five Finger Death Punch) to classic rock (Led Zeppelin, The Rolling Stones, Van Morrison, Heart, CCR). I also like classical—especially love Beethoven, Bach (any dirge-y organ thing), and anything played on the cello! I detest most country and western, unless it’s something like classic George Jones, Hank Williams, or Willie Nelson. Love the Blues (Howlin’ Wolf, BB King).
How about you? What do you like to listen to? Any favorite music videos?
Dreams are visions of what we can become. But dreams are also an invitation to doubt, to wonder if you’re good enough, or if you have what it takes. When I retired from the Navy, I decided to pursue my dream of becoming a published author. After 100 rejections, I quit counting as I figured I knew how to achieve a rejection. Then, after 9 ½ years, I finally sold. The journey taught me many things, which I’d like to share with you.
-Take yourself seriously: If YOU don’t, no one else will.
-Associate with people who inspire you, and encourage you to achieve your dreams. Encourage and inspire others as you move toward your dream.
-Set a clear goal: Once you know exactly what you want, break down steps to achieve it. If you’re unsure how to start, read biographies of people who have achieved a dream similar to yours. What steps did they take? Are there comparable avenues you can pursue?
-Success is a compilation of small steps toward one focused goal.
-Affiliate yourself with professional organizations: Join accredited groups to educate yourself about the industry you’ve chosen. In addition to net-working, you will have opportunities to learn from local or on-line sources.
-Self affirmation: Each morning reaffirm that you are good enough and clarify your goal of the day. Then, move forward with positive, focused steps.
-Permission to fail: Success is not a moment, but a journey. As we grow within our craft, there will be times when we fail at a certain step. Focus not on the failure, but on the lessons learned. What worked, what didn’t? Move forward and make wiser decisions with the knowledge learned.
-The way we act and talk about our goal reflects our commitment to it: What are you telling yourself? “I WILL do this!” Or, are you assuring yourself that one day you’ll really try?
-Give the gift of example: When you make the choice to follow your dream, you are doing more than commitment to self, but teaching your children an important life lesson — dare to dream, and follow through. So, be bold. Believe in yourself.
I hope you’ve found inspiration from my comments. Remember, there is no right path, but the steps right for you. Believe in yourself!
*How do you encourage others to go after their dream?
I sincerely wish everyone health, friendship and happiness for the New Year!
Contest
***ONE winner will be drawn from everyone who posts on my guest blog post about, “A New Year’s Guide To Achieving Your Goal!,” on Delilah’s blog between 3 January 2020 – 12 January 2020. The winner will receive one of Diana’s mugs and a tote.
Christmas 2019 is over, and the New Year is finally here. 2020! A clean slate just ready for my plans and plots. I don’t do New Year’s Resolutions anymore. I used to make them, but I found that by the end of January they were already a distant memory. Now, I just try to make general goals for the year and hope I can stick to them.
My goals this year are fairly simple. I want to keep a consistent release schedule for my books. I have two ongoing series, my Terras Five Cyborgs and my Northern Rockies Werewolves. Although both are romance, one is a sci-fi series and the other is a paranormal. My hope is that by alternating between the two, I will be able to keep both fresh and not start to recycle the same plot with different characters in each successive story. I find my muse gets bored and stale if I just stick to one universe. (I’m sure a psychologist would love to explore that idea!)
Click on picture to pre-order!
On a personal front, I want to continue to spend as much time as I can with my grandkids while they are still willing to be seen in public with me. I have a day planned to see the latest Star Wars movie with the oldest four (ages five through thirteen) this weekend. We’ll go to the afternoon show, get pizza for dinner and then they can have a sleep over. I love going to the movies with a group of kids. They aren’t embarrassed to show their enthusiasm for their favorite characters!
As five of my grandkids live within a fifteen minutes of my home, and one of them goes to high school a mere three blocks from me, I have an revolving door policy that means they are always welcome to drop in, be it for few minutes to grab a glass of water or to stay overnight and make popcorn and watch a movie on Netflix or Disney plus. I cherish these times, and hope they always feel welcome to drop into my home unannounced. Being a grandmother is one of the best things that ever happened to me!
I am also determined to be more active. Since my day job is a desk job, and writing is also very much a sit still kind of activity, I have to find hobbies that make me move (unfortunately reading isn’t active either!) This fall I entered Merlin the Wonder Dog in an advanced agility course, and it turns out he loves it! Santa brought him a set of weave poles for Christmas so now we can practice at home. Come spring, I’m considering letting him compete in the local agility competitions.
Lexi is much younger, really just a pup (maybe a year old?) so I am working on basics with her. So far she has mastered not looking terrified all the time, and sitting on command. I spent a lot of time getting her not to cringe and crawl when anyone looked at her so I hesitate to teach her ‘down’. Right now we are working on leash manners. As in, walking while on leash as opposed to dropping to the ground and playing dead.
So that’s it for my plans for 2020! Here’s hoping it’s a wonderful year for all of us,
Nothing in Margo Simmons’s life comes easy. She can’t claim the inheritance on a condo apartment her uncle has left to her until she is gainfully employed in a job for a year. She meets the man of her dreams but anguishes over a loving relationship because he is still emotionally tied to his deceased wife. With great difficulty, she becomes the guardian to a recently orphaned child she had been tutoring. Margo evolves from an insecure, newbie elementary teacher into a woman determined to fulfill the secret desires locked in her heart. My story speaks to anyone who has suffered a loss and had to start over.
