After leaving an over twenty-year career as a public school educator I turned to writing. I thought perhaps I’d create a children’s book or maybe even a memoir about teaching in the inner-city classroom, but that’s not what happened at all. I began to attend a weekly drop-in writing group, Tuesday Brown Bag with Judy Reeves that offered prompts with timed-sessions. Writing in community helped my pen stay on the page and continue going even when I wanted to stop. A few months later, characters and settings started to appear on the page as if from nowhere. And then began showing up week after week, time and again luring me to tell their stories. I felt them with me everywhere including in my dreams. Soon I got hooked and at home began to use Judy’s A Writer’s Book of Days, to inspire me more often than once a week and developed my daily writing practice. I signed up for workshops, classes and writing marathons and then just kept on going.
A couple of years later I had a stack of journals and joined a read and critique group led by an expert novelist, Amy Wallen, of Moon Pies and Movie Stars. It wasn’t until then that I even started to type up the pages. Using the weekly deadlines for motivation, I kept sharing chapters with the group for feedback. That first typed draft I didn’t know what I was doing. My writing mechanic skills were zilch. The chapters were a mess and all out of sequence. But Amy and the other members were very patient and encouraged me to continue and helped me hone my craft. After that full draft I was able to put it in some kind of order and indeed I did have a full story. In fact two that correlated into one book. I joined another group, did another draft, then more rewrites, editors, more rewrites, submissions, working with a publisher and now after over ten years The Black Velvet Coat is coming out into the world!
I really can’t wait to come to your reading and signing of my very own copy!
So awesome Jill….I remember the early days of The Black Velvet Coat very well, and your belief in and commitment to it. So proud of you for persevering and giving it life as a published book. I know how hard you worked and you deserve every success. Xo
Linda,
Thanks for all your support and encouragement! You really helped me hone my craft in the first typed draft of the novel when I was first getting started. I’m so grateful to you and all the others in Amy’s group.
I loved taking this years-long journey with you, Sylvia and Anne. What an adventure and now they’ve reached their destination: A published book. Oh, but wait, that’s not their final destination. That one is when the book is in readers’ hands and they get to take the journey, too. Congratulations, Jill, on all your hard work and persistence and keeping the dream alive.
I’m not just being dramatic or exaggerating when I say I couldn’t have done it without you. I also wouldn’t have done it without you either! All of us San Diego writers are so blessed to have you in our lives.
As a near-future reader, I’m looking forward to having a couple of the many hands in which your book will continue its journey!
I love that it all started with a writing prompt and your imagination. That is just the coolest. It’s amazing where our creative minds can take us when we allow them. I too am a writing child of Judy and love her dearly. I’m so excited for your book. I can’t wait to read it. Best of luck to you always!
I’m so thrilled for you! I’m fortunate to have been part of your Northern Arizona experience!