Obligatory Thanksgiving Post <;

Alright, alright … don’t yell at me for writing an obligatory Thanksgiving post. It’s an important holiday, okay! Mmmm … pie … and other important things. Yeah, can’t forget about those things … pie …

Fine fine – y’all know I’m a writer. Well, at least I hope you do since you’re here on my author website. If you don’t – maybe you should check out my books … hint … hint.

Shameless self-promotion over. Back to the writer thing. It isn’t easy. It’s something that tends to knock you over more often than it picks you up. Crippling self-doubt, infuriating writer’s block, tendencies to want to hide away from the world for hours and hours at a time, and being told you suck again and again by anonymous readers. Sounds fun, huh?

It’s true that most authors experience various levels of everything I’ve mentioned – usually all at once. But here’s another truth: Writing is love. Writing is passion. Writing is need. I’m being suuuuper cheesy so I’ll try to explain in terms that won’t make you cringe. It isn’t a profession people do just to pay the bills. “But Michelle, that’s because it doesn’t pay the bills …” That’s what I imagine you all saying to me right about now. It’s true – for the majority of authors. So, then why do we put up with the crap?

Because we can’t imagine doing anything else.

Many authors are among the lucky minority who have found what they are truly meant to do in life. Their passion.

Now, I have never been given the chance to see if I am one of those people. But I have been given the chance to see that I could be. A perfect storm of circumstances in my life have led me here – to my books, to my writing community, to a road I’d never have imagined.

Here’s where Thanksgiving comes into this. I have a lot of things to be thankful for. Here I’m going to focus on that which has brought my stories to you.

Episodic Ataxia

You aren’t reading that wrong. Yes, I really am thankful for my disability. Would I like to be healthy and living a normal life? Of course, But I also know that I’d never written a page of fiction before spending six horrible bed-ridden months almost four years ago. I’m not longer bed-ridden, but I know that if I could work full-time using my degree that my seven books wouldn’t even be a blip on my radar. I’ve always thought that you have to find the good in every situation and my situation has allowed me to find something that I truly love to do for the first time in my life. I don’t know if I’ll get better, but I do know that an author is something I will always be whether I can walk or not.

My support system

Family. Friends. Anyone who has read my books and been there for me through everything.

The writing community

This is one of the best things I’ve gained in the last few years. I’ve made some very very good friends. When this gets hard, you are the ones who pull me back up and keep me going.

Amazon

Authors – especially big ones – love to rail against amazon. They own a large portion of the book market and their share of the publishing market is growing by the day. You love to control us, we know that. But you also get our stories out there. Without you, we'd have no voice.

Creativia Publishing

You were like a life-line when I felt like I was drowning. Signing with you let me focus on making my stories the best they can be. I’m excited to see what more we can do together.

Anyone in my life whoever encouraged me to read.

Reading has been different things to me at different times. Entertainment. Inspiration. Happiness. And most of all – it was an escape for a teenage girl with an unknown, at times scary, illness.

Along with that – my readers.

All I’ve ever wanted to do is provide that escape for someone else who needs it just as much as I always did.

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My books are published by Creativia Publishing. Check out my profile HERE.

See each of my books HERE.

Don't forget to sign up to my mailing list for your free copy of my newest book, Confessions, HERE.