Writer in limbo. #amwriting

Every so often, writers may find themselves in limbo. Well, I am right now so I choose to believe other writers experience it too. Misery loves company, right?

What kind of limbo, you ask?

Manuscript limbo, possibly the worst kind of all. (Again, perhaps I exaggerate but it suits the purposes of this blog. My blog, my rules.)

Why am I stuck in this place? Well, some of it is, no doubt, my own fault and a result of my own mistakes. Some of it is because I am waiting on others. Some of it is just the nature of the business. We wait. Very often, we “hurry up and wait,” as a wise writer once said (not me).

One of my manuscripts has been stuck “out there” for over a year.  I’m waiting for one last person to get back to me and then it’s decision time. Do I self-publish? I’ve never been more tempted in my life, believe me. After seeing this book get bandied about numerous publishers and agents, I’m frankly sick inside. I think it’s one of the best things I’ve ever written and I just want to see it in the hands of my readers.

Another two books are currently safe in the hands of publishers and it’s only a matter of time before they hit the shelves. I’m happy about those … but my experiences with the book above have made me impatient. I want everything published yesterday. It’s not too much to ask, is it? 😉

During all this waiting, I’ve focused my attentions on my latest work-in-progress, A Patient Man. That’s what we’re supposed to do, right? It’s important to keep writing the next book. I’m about 40K words in right now – in fact, I hope to cross that threshold this morning. Sounds good. Unfortunately, it’s taken me weeks to get to that point. Part of the problem has been sloppy plotting. Don’t get me wrong, I set it all down on paper the way I normally do, but I guess I just wasn’t buying what I was selling. The motivations didn’t ring true. The conflicts seemed flimsy. I started over about five times. Now I’m on track but because it deals with the subject of bullying, I’m treading carefully. I have experience with this subject and I want to do it justice.

So, limbo. Lately, I’ve been living in limbo. I’ve been forced to get comfortable there. I’ve even set up a table and made snacks. Limbo is my temporary home. Call me a squatter.

It isn’t always a pretty place. The occupants (sorry, one occupant – me) are grizzled and sometimes forget about personal grooming. By the way, I have brushed my teeth today … at least, I’m about to. Soon, I promise. We do have bunnies in limbo, by the way. For real. They hang out in my backyard so I see them when I write. Plot bunnies? They’re a little more evasive.

I guessed I’ve embraced my own personal writing purgatory.

But I’ll tell you one thing. As soon as I can break out of this place, I’m gone.

My first romance convention, or “Rosanna geeks out.”

It’s under my belt now. I have attended my first romance convention…and somehow didn’t fall flat on my face…much.

This past weekend, I attended Romancing the Falls 2017 as a signing author. I’d like to offer a huge thank you to author and organizer Freya Barker, who made everyone feel welcome and who had each detail planned so well.

I haven’t been to this sort of thing before and had no idea what to expect. Luckily, I got to share a table with the lovely Crystal St. Clair, who is a pro at these things. She and her pal Christine helped me feel right at home.

Let me start with the readers. Oh, my God, the readers. They were fantastic! As a relative newbie to the con scene, I was able to just take a step back when the event started and witness the insanity. I could see reader wheels turning as they ran toward their favorite authors’ tables. They raced around the large banquet room, collecting their preorders, getting us all to sign books and swag.

Can I just say how pleased I was when a reader arrived at my table, with a page in her scrapbook dedicated to me? I almost died. I’m not kidding. I almost fell out of my chair in gratitude. There were a lot of hugs given out that day.

Did everyone know me and my work? Nah. However, being in that position forced me to thrust myself out of my comfort zone. I smiled and introduced myself to everyone I could. Sold some books, too.

My banner got a lot of attention. That made me happy. Of course, it has a huge picture of Edan the selkie on it, so  no wonder.  Isn’t he pretty? I think he got more attention than I did and rightly so.  😉 Thanks, Edan!

Come dinner time, I approached a table full of smiling ladies. They welcomed me into their group and I made some new friends. I will forever remember their kindness and interest in my work. They said they were happy to have an author at their dinner table but I was so honoured to sit with them.

My verdict? It was a wonderful event and I know I’ve made new friendships that will last.

As an author, did I feel it advanced my career? I believe so. We can’t afford to dismiss the importance of face-to-face connections. Nowadays, we don’t get them very much. Sure, we can connect with a million people online but there is something special that happens when you have the chance to shake someone’s hands and look into their eyes. Simply put, it’s magical, especially when we’re talking about books with fellow book lovers.

And as I’ve always said, romance fans are special. They are warm and enthusiastic and open-minded. They embrace new authors and celebrate the ones they’ve loved for years. I’m so pleased I had the chance to experience Romancing the Falls 2017. I was able to play fangirl and it was an utter delight to speak to so many other fangirls as well.

I look forward to being part of this event in coming years and do hope I’ll be invited back.

Sale alert!

I’m off to my first romance convention this weekend, Romancing the Falls 2017 in Niagara Falls. As a result, my publisher Liquid Silver Publishing has set up an awesome discount code on several of my books. You can take advantage of it too!

The sale runs from now until May 31.

You can get 50% off the following titles:
For the Love of a God
Up in Flames
Sweet Hell
Sunburn
The Selkie
Predator’s Kiss
The Stand-In

How to get this discount?

Simply purchase any of the selected titles at www.liquidsilverpublishing.com and use coupon code rleomar017greatreads

Please note: the discount cannot be used at any other vendor site.

It’s a great way to stock up on books you may have missed. Don’t let the month go by!

Happy reading.