The Path to Publication and 25 Roses

Finding new authors and books is one of the wonderful things about the internet so I’m delighted to welcome author Stephanie Faris here today to talk about her new book, 25 ROSES, and the path to publication.

First, here’s a brief synopsis of her entertaining book:

Mia moves from the shadows to the spotlight when her matchmaking plans go awry in this contemporary M!X novel from the author of 30 Days of No Gossip.
        Mia is used to feeling overlooked: her perfect older sister gets all the attention at home, and the popular clique at school are basically experts at ignoring her. So when it’s time for the annual Student Council chocolate rose sale, Mia is prepared to feel even worse. Because even though anyone can buy and send roses to their crushes and friends, the same (popular) people always end up with roses while everyone else gets left out.
        Except a twist of fate puts Mia in charge of selling the roses this year—and that means things are going to change. With a little creativity, Mia makes sure the kids who usually leave empty-handed suddenly find themselves the object of someone’s affection. But her scheme starts to unravel when she realizes that being a secret matchmaker isn’t easy—and neither is being in the spotlight. 

Now please join me in giving a warm welcome to Stephanie as she talks about ‘The Path to Publication is Paved in Rejection Letters.’ Welcome, Stephanie.

I can’t remember the exact year I started writing. I believe it was 1995. Like many people, I knew I loved to read and I wanted to write, but I wasn’t sure if I had the talent to pull it off. So, bolstered by the naïve innocence of youth, I started writing and didn’t stop.

That youthful ignorance also led me to put a manuscript in the mail to an actual editor before I really knew what I was doing. I also sent out a press release to local publications announcing I was interested in starting a writers’ group. That was just before the internet made all of this quite a bit easier. The group that gathered as a result of that press release eventually became Nashville’s first-ever Romance Writers of America chapter.

Naïveté is a fairly powerful thing. When you don’t really know what you’re facing, you don’t realize you should be intimidated or afraid. The more I learned, the more I began to doubt myself. I’d see others getting published and assumed they knew something I didn’t know. They had a “magic” I didn’t.

I did learn something as a part of my 20-year journey to publication. One of many things, actually. I learned that while writers’ groups are great, each person’s journey is unique. It’s a combination of talent, persistence, timing, and luck. It’s connecting with the right agent, editor, and publishing house (usually in that order) at exactly the right time. By the time your work connects with that person, you’ve likely heard, “This is great, but not what we’re looking for at this time” numerous times.

If only we could hold onto that innocence we had early on, we could accomplish anything. They always say knowledge is power, but it seems there’s a power in not knowing, as well. We have to somehow hold onto that courage as we continue on our separate journeys, believing somehow it will all work out.

Stephanie, thanks again for joining us today and sharing your journey to publication. I’m glad that you held onto to your courage and continued in your quest to write and publish.

Now for those who aren’t familiar with Stephanie, here’s a bit of background on her.

Stephanie Faris knew she wanted to be an author from a very young age. In fact, her mother often told her to stop reading so much and go outside and play with the other kids. After graduating from Middle Tennessee State University with a Bachelor of Science in broadcast journalism, she somehow found herself working in information technology. But she never stopped writing.

Stephanie is the author of 30 DAYS OF NO GOSSIP and 25 ROSES, both with Aladdin M!x. When she isn’t crafting fiction, she writes for a variety of online websites on the topics of business, technology, and her favorite subject of all—fashion. She lives in Nashville with her husband, a sales executive. 

For more on Stephanie and her writing, visit her website and blog and connect with her on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. 25 ROSES can be purchased HERE or as an autographed copy HERE.

Thanks so much for stopping by today. Have you ever play secret matchmaker or been the target of a secret matchmaker?