Back when I was in college, I attended an event where the faculty and students mingled. I remember wanting to meet a certain professor's wife, who was an editor at one of the big traditional publishing companies. Even though I majored in business, I still loved writing. I was also simply curious how that side of the publishing business worked, since I knew nothing about it.
At some point, I introduced myself. She seemed nice enough. I started asking her about the publishing industry. She asked if I wanted to be a novelist. I told her I'd like to be, one day.
She told me, "Don't bother. You're not good enough to be competitive. You'll never be published."
It really stung. Even though she knew nothing about me or what kind of things I wanted to write, she told me to give up.
And she wasn't the only person to do so when I was young. I wrote short stories for a fantasy magazine and once got a letter back saying "No, one wants to read fantasy stories about teenagers." (This was before the first Harry Potter book became popular.) Another English teacher told me that "No one wants to read that fantasy garbage."
The point is, many people discouraged me from writing what I loved, but in the end, I ignored them. I discovered self-publishing as a way to get my books out there without these naysayers. I've kept grinding away at publishing these last 4 years: writing, experiementing, learning new things, and repeating the process.
And now, I've reached a proud milestone. Last week, Mom of the Chosen reached 500 reviews on Amazon. 500 people read the book and let other knows, for better or worse, what they felt about it. And thankfully the reviews are good because my current average is 4.5 stars.
I want to thank all of you who've read any of my books, even the free ones you get just for signing up for this newsletter. It means something to me. And thank you for making a milestone like this possible.
Oh, and if you didn't already know, the second book in my Magical Midlife Librarian series comes out June 20th! Preorder or read a free preview of Secret of the Fae Library:
I'm always interested in hearing from readers. If you want to talk about any of my stories, send me a line at [email protected].
More Books, Hot off the Presses
Worlds Don't Collide (available in KU) is the final book in Kim McDougall's fantastic Valkyrie Beastiary series. It's Kyra's last fantastic adventure. She's wiping every filthy, blood-sucking vampire off the face of Terra’s earth. If you haven't tried this series, you're missing out.
To Trick a Raja is another great final installment in a Paranormal Women's Fiction series. Once, the raja pictured Kiya as his queen. Now, she leads the resistance against him. As betrayal snakes towards her, she makes ever darker choices in pursuit of the crown.
Eat, Pray, Hex (available in KU) is a wonderful cozy paranormal mystery. Armed with nothing but a cat named Freddie Purrcury and a posse of supernaturally-gifted locals, Amelia taps into the spirit world to unravel clues about a decades-old crime.
Until next time, happy adventuring!
-DM Fike
Magic of Nasci Nature Wizard Series
A secret society of wizards live in our national forests, protecting nature against supernatural threats. Ina may command the four elements at her fingertips, but she can’t stop the savage creature leaving corpses along the Oregon coast. Will summoning forbidden lightning defeat her enemy, or will the storm destroy Ina first?
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