Taking That Step

Taking That Step

By Allie Jean

When I was little, I had a hobby. I created elaborate stories. I even had my sisters act them out for friends and neighbors in small plays in our front yard. They’d all call me bossy (still do sometimes) but when it came to my characters, everything had to be as I saw it in my mind.

Later in life, my story telling took on a little different avenue. Instead of writing my own tales, my mind would continue the stories of some of my favorite books. Let’s face it; no one likes it when a cherished series comes to an end.

My family and I lost a son in 2009. In the aftermath, I felt myself falling into a depression. The what-ifs and self-doubt dug a huge hole that I didn’t know if I could climb out of. Writing became my saving grace.

Instead of internalizing all of the emotions circling through my heart, I focused them into my characters, starting the first chapters of my Dreamer series. It had been an idea I’d been sitting on for a while, and the tragedy of loss propelled me into it.

Through my hobby of writing, I’d met a group of girlfriends who became my support. They challenged me and were my biggest fans. One of them heard of a writing contest offered through The Writer’s Coffee Shop called the Original Romance Contest. The winner would be offered a publishing contract through the house, and my friends encouraged me to enter.

The moments leading up to the announcement were some of the most excruciating I could remember. First of all, my family had no clue that I wrote at all, let alone that I had entered a contest. I seem to recall my husband thinking I’d finally jumped off the deep end when I told him about it. Yet I’d taken that step, that leap, and finally put myself out there for the judgment of others. Nail biting my way through two manicures, I awaited the results.

Now, part of me knew that there was probably a very slim chance that I’d done anything but reveal myself as a secret writer to my family, having failed at obtaining that coveted contract. But when the email came in that they wanted my manuscript I was elated. Over the moon!

My road to publication may be a bit unconventional, but I think there is a moral to my story. To all of those writers out there, secret and screaming in the streets: Don’t Stop Writing!!!! Keep your characters alive, even if it’s just for a small audience. Don’t give up and put yourself out there. I love to write and getting the opportunity to put my stories out there has been a blessing.

Plus, my kids think it’s really cool.