I'm thrilled to have fellow Wild Rose Press author, Andrea Downing, here with me today!
~~~oOo~~~
Nothing ventured, nothing gained. How many times in your life have you heard
that line? But to me, it's the best
advice I could possibly give to a new or aspiring author.
Back
in the Seventies (yes, I really am that old), college and creative writing courses
in which I'd excelled behind me, I wrote a novel, a romance. After completion and some revision, I decided,
without sending it to anyone, that it would never sell and so dropped it in the
circular file. In those days, of course,
it was typed and there was no copy kept.
The reason I decided no one would buy it was because I thought it too
unrealistic, too unbelievable. What was
it about? It was about an heir to the
British throne who falls in love with a commoner…
Time
passed. Next came a film script. I was in correspondence with famed director
Fred Zinnemann over a suggestion he make a film of Thomas Wolfe's, Look
Homeward, Angel—but did I even mention my own film script? Of course, not. I went on to work for publishers
Simon and Schuster for a bit, edit a poetry magazine with quite well known
people submitting (Allen Ginsburg for one), write travel articles for a British
newspaper. And then I wrote another
novel—600 pages to be exact. This time,
shivering in my boots, I sent it off—to six agents. I received six rejections and
then…stopped. The book is in a huge box
somewhere in my closet.
So
more years passed, my friends encouraging me to write fiction once more, guilt gnawing
at my insides as I found excuses not to be writing, procrastinated like an
expert, filled time with 'more important things.' And then what happened? Well, I guess I got so dang old I no longer
cared what people would say, didn't give a hoot about failing, and finally
could no longer put up with the voices in my head telling me their stories. Sooo—I got them down on paper. Had it critiqued, listened to some good
advice and ignored what I saw as either bad or irrelevant. Honed the book, and then rewrote it again. Cut seventy pages and edited it some
more. Then I took a deep breath and sent
it off—and the rest is history.
Nothing
ventured, nothing gained.
It
is difficult to put yourself out there and listen to or read people's criticism
of your work. Some directed at me was,
at times, so biting and sarcastic I had to wonder whether to go on or not. And then suddenly I placed fourth in a major
competition, losing out by one measly point.
So what I took home from that is that not everyone agrees on everything,
and one person's opinion may be hugely different from another's, even if they
are both considered 'experts' in their field.
Think about the long list of rejections many famous writers have
received before finally finding a home for their work. What the author has to
do is believe in her own work, stand behind it, and keep trying. As long as you believe what you've done is
good, no matter how outrageous it may seem, how different, you can—must!—keep
plugging away at getting it published. And don't worry about who thinks you're
a fool because, believe me, out there is someone who is going to think you're a
star.
Nothing
ventured, nothing gained!
Dearest Darling
Author: Andrea
Downing
Genre: western historical romance
Publisher: The Wild Rose Press
Daniel Saunders has carved out a
life for himself in Wyoming—a life missing one thing: a wife. Having scrimped
and saved to bring his mail-order bride from New York, he is outraged to find
in her stead a runaway fraud. Even worse, the impostor is the sister of his old
enemy.
But people are not
always as they seem, and sometimes the heart knows more than the head.
Reviews:
Throughout Dearest Darling I cheered for Emily and Daniel, hoped they’d find resolution. Andrea Downing has outdone herself with this clever tale of crossed stars. Loved it, highly recommend it." Karen Casey Fitzjerrell, award-winning author of The Dividing Season
"The romance was pitched perfectly, lots of "do I, don't I" moments, subtle looks and indecision that had me wanting to lock them in the bedroom until the sorted things out!
I loved the twists that appeared, they weren't obvious or expected. These led to a fantastic ending that left me satisfied with the story. That takes a lot of skill to pull of in just 26,000 words…
Overall I found this novella to be an adorable story and get away from life for a little while. It was an easy read to boot, allowing the reader to get straight to the story. Despite its short length, Dearest Darling had well drawn characters and a plot that felt complete and finished.
I give this a 5 for being a good all rounder." --Laura of Lurking reads
~~~oOo~~~
Excerpt:
But
he hadn’t spoken today. Not since first thing when he’d told her to get ready.
Not through breakfast, or as he helped clear dishes, or gave her a hand up into
the wagon.
“You
haven’t seen her. You didn’t see her picture, did you?” The questions came
sudden, yet without malice.
Emily
straightened, alert. “No. No, I didn’t.” Would I understand better? Is that
what he meant?
“I
keep it with me.” Daniel began to fish in his pocket. “Would you like to see
it?”
“No.
No, you keep it, please. It won’t change anything.” Emily panicked. She would
be beautiful, the other, that would be the answer. So stunningly beautiful that
just her photograph had enthralled him, mesmerized him into loving her. Emily
couldn’t bear to look, didn’t want to know the answer. Didn’t wish to torture
herself further. “And I’m sorry. I’m sorry for reading the letters.” A rush of
words, they flowed out of her. “I should never have done that. It’s not like
me. But you...well, you understand it seems—”
“You’re
probably wondering what I see in her. Or what she sees in me. As for that, what
she sees in me, I have no idea. Maybe, like you, she wishes to get away.”
Emily
studied his profile, the planes and contours of his face, the eyes set straight
ahead, the slouch hat low on his brow. He gave nothing away, was a man in
control of his emotions, thinking, maybe still wondering how he had won that
woman. Or maybe set on keeping the answer to himself.
Overhead,
clouds scudded, scoured the sky, leached the blue, threatened.
“Did
you ever ask her? Why you?”
“I
did. She never answered. I’m thinking what she sees in me is husband material.
I guess. She tells me about her day, the people she knows, what she does. As
you read.”
“She
just seems so...so outgoing, so...so very social to ever want this life. I
found it difficult to believe.” She jutted her chin out, then turned to him,
waiting.
He
gave the reins a sharp shake. “I don’t know. I never asked if she knew what she
was getting into. I described it. I assumed if she wanted to stop the
correspondence there, she would have. I was pretty damn amazed and happy she’d
wanted to come, written back even though I described the cabin to her, the
isolation.” His gaze slid toward her.
“And
you think she’ll make you a perfect wife, do you? Be happy living here? Cook
your meals, mend your clothes, keep your cabin, have your babies?” Exasperated,
she tried to make him think, think of what he was letting himself in for, how
long a marriage like that could go on, how it could end up being even lonelier
than he was now. Emily would seem to him to be trying to win him over rather
than making him see the truth, but push him she must, save him, stop him. She
knew those sorts of women, the debutantes, the socialites. Not a one would last
out here, not for a single day.
His
head snapped around to stare at her. “She’s been writing. She hasn’t stopped.”
~~~oOo~~~
Andrea
Downing likes to say that when she decided to do a Masters Degree, she made the
mistake of turning left out of New York, where she was born, instead of right to the west, and ended up in
the UK. She eventually married there,
raising a beautiful daughter and staying for longer than she cares to
admit. Teaching, editing a poetry
magazine, writing travel articles, and a short stint in Nigeria filled those
years until in 2008 she returned to NYC.
She now divides her time between the city and the shore, and often
trades the canyons of New York for the wide open spaces of Wyoming. Family vacations are often out west and, to
date, she and her daughter have been to some 20 ranches throughout the west. Loveland, her first book, was
a finalist for Best American Historical at the 2013 RONE Awards. Lawless Love, a short story,
part of The Wild Rose Press ‘Lawmen and Outlaws’ series, was a finalist for
Best Historical Novella at the RONE Awards and placed
in the 2014 International Digital Awards Historical Short contest. Dearest Darling, a novella,
is part of The Wild Rose Press Love Letters series, and came out Oct. 8th,
2014, and Dances of the Heart, another full length novel,
comes out in February, 2015.
Twitter: @andidowning
https://twitter.com/AndiDowning
Linkedin:
http://www.linkedin.com/profile/view?id=124888740&trk=nav_responsive_tab_profile_pic
