IWSG: Writing that Shapeshifting Project . . . and New Release - RISE BY MOONLIGHT!

It’s always a pleasure to give back to a group that gives so much, so here’s me, stepping up to co-host this month’s Insecure Writers Support Group!! Welcome my IWSG cohorts:

Susan Baury Rouchard, Jennifer Hawes, Chemist Ken, Jennifer Lane, Chrys Fey.

Together, we’re helping fearless leader, Alex J. Cavanaugh rock your neurotic writing world with this month’s August 5th question - Quote: "Although I have written a short story collection, the form found me and not the other way around. Don't write short stories, novels or poems. Just write your truth and your stories will mold into the shapes they need to be."

Have you ever written a piece that became a form, or even a genre, you hadn't planned on writing in? Or do you choose a form/genre in advance?

Back in 2008, my series contemporary romance editor was thrilled when I suggested submitting to their new paranormal line. My first attempt wasn’t quite “romancy” enough, so I started playing “what if” with characters and plotlines. I didn’t expect to fall in love. I sent the editor my synopsis and three chapters for a supposed “long” book and started writing. And couldn’t stop. By the time I heard back from her, I’d written the first two completes and was half way through the third in a series about a shapeshifter hero in servitude to a father figure mob boss and the female detective he’s protected from his boss without her knowledge since she was a teen. When the editor and I met at a conference in New York, she gushed about the first book and the writing and offered an amazingly good advance . . . for just the first book with no guarantee that the others would be picked up and with the codicil that I shorten it by about 20K and . . . change the hero so he never really does anything bad. An enforcer for the Mob who made his bones as a teenager? Jaw drop. I needed that money. I needed a sale. But I couldn’t gut those unexpected books of my heart.

So, I said no. And she didn’t blame me. Then, at that same conference mixer, I bumped into another former editor who asked what I was working on. I pitched, she said send and she bought – BIG – For all three!

Long story sorta short, that attempted contemporary romance became a decade-long project with the first six books at Pocket/Simon & Schuster and the next nine, self-pubbed. The fifteenth and final book of that “By Moonlight” series debuted Monday. Talk about an unexpected journey! Through it all, I learned how much I love being in control of my own writing and promotional ship (even though Pocket let me have a lot of input when I was with them learning from the best). That, I never expected after already enjoying a lengthy career working contented behind the scenes.

So, join me in celebrating the result of that learning curve. I love big books and I cannot lie!

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Kobo Books | iBooks

Add to Goodreads TBR→

Hope to see many of you in my guise as hall blog monitor this month. Looking forward to reading your inspiring posts!

Write on, fellow IWSG warriors! And stay safe out there!

The Insecure Writer’s Support Group

Purpose: To share and encourage. Writers can express doubts and concerns without fear of appearing foolish or weak. Those who have been through the fire can offer assistance and guidance. It’s a safe haven for insecure writers of all kinds!
Posting: The first Wednesday of every month is officially Insecure Writer’s Support Group day. Post your thoughts on your own blog. Talk about your doubts and the fears you have conquered. Discuss your struggles and triumphs. Offer a word of encouragement for others who are struggling. Visit others in the group and connect with your fellow writer - aim for a dozen new people each time.The awesome co-hosts for the August 5th posting of the IWSG will be Susan Baury Rouchard, Nancy Gideon, Jennifer Lane, Jennifer Hawes, Chemist Ken, and Chrys Fey!

Let’s rock the neurotic writing world!

Twitter hashtag is #IWSG