Today I’m pleased to introduce Ginger Simpson, a versatile and prolific author who has written novels in a number of genres from contemporary and historical romance to stories of life challenges, including a bit of unexpected time travel. Ginger even gave erotica a shot, as you’ll read below. And to demonstrate her versatility, she has now moved into YA novels. I love that Ginger follows her heart in her writing.
You may want to visit Ginger’s book pages to see the outstanding cover art and trailers for her novels. Check out My Books, More Books, and More Newbies. Seeing all those covers and reading the mini-synopses made me wonder how many hours a day she writes.
And now, Ginger’s story . . .
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My Writing Life by Ginger Simpson
Oh the Joy!
Being an author can mean joy one minute and agony the next. It’s not an easy job most of the time. Oh, there’s nothing like the feeling of successfully publishing a book and holding that first copy in your hands . . . looking down at your name and feeling such a sense of accomplishment . . . nothing quite compares, unless you’re holding a newborn baby.
On the other hand, when you write your heart out, complete a manuscript you think is going to be “it”–the one that makes your mark in the literary world, and you get rejected, it’s a horrible, defeating feeling. You write in the same style you’ve always written, but the house to whom you’ve submitted doesn’t like gerunds or adverbs. There isn’t enough sexual tension, your characters aren’t deep enough, but, oh you’ve done a great job of avoiding head hopping and your sentence structure is clean. One person can make or break your chance, and that’s pretty disheartening.
What happened to panels? Shouldn’t more than one person get to choose what’s accepted and what’s not? We all have such vast opinions. Who is that one person to tell me that my ending wasn’t what she expected. Actually, that’s what I was shooting for . . . an ending that no one saw coming. Oh well, it doesn’t matter; now I have to decide what to do next.
First I have to dust off my feelings and remind myself that everyone gets rejections. Even the big dogs have binders of them. I don’t. I’ve had the good fortune to have very few of my manuscripts turned down, so my second was a bitter pill. The only other rejection I’d received was on my debut/swan song Erotica. The reason given: my heroine had an affair and some readers might find that offensive. This from a publisher who offers sex with werewolves, aliens, shifters and mummies, and most likely in any bodily orifice available, but something that happens every day in real life is offensive. Really? I’m pretty turned off by intimacy with a hairy beast with drippings fangs. Give me a choice of cheating or boffing an alien, and I’ll have an affair any day. *smile*
Luckily, my second query resulted in a contract, but as I said, Searchers was my one and only Erotica. They’re just too hard to write. How many ways can you describe intercourse?
So, as I searched through submission guidelines for a new place to submit my manuscript, I tried to remain positive, knowing my story would please someone, somewhere. It’s just tedious weeding through the jungle to find that one person who’ll be in the right frame of mind when he/she reads my synopsis. Sometimes, being an author is like having a mosquito bite you can’t quite reach. It’s annoying until you find the right way to contort yourself just enough to quell the itch.
I sometimes have a hard time justifying why I continue to try to establish myself as an author, and answers aren’t always forthcoming, especially if I’m stressed and tired. I usually fall back on the real reason I keep typing away . . . because I love what I do, and I can’t wait to see where I’ll travel with the characters in my next novel or story.
If you’d like to see where I’ve been with my heroes and heroines please feel free to check my new website and peruse my videos and blurbs. I’ve traveled to places I’ve never been before and dipped my toes into genres I never expected to write. Take Shortcomings, my soon-to-be-released young adult. Writing from the perspective of a defeated teenager wasn’t as easy as I expected, but my heroine and I connected, and she drew from experiences of my own that I’d pushed into the recesses of my mind. Muse It Up Publishing accepted my story and will present it in both download and print.
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Thank you so much for being my guest today, Ginger. I’m working my way through your entertaining book trailers and want to offer a bit of applause to those who put yours together. They’re very well done.
Ginger’s blog is at Ginger Simpson’s “Dishin’ It Out.” You can also find her on Twitter.
Thanks, Pat, for this guest post. Ginger’s story is both interesting and inspiring. I really want to read Shortcomings.
Thanks for welcoming me back to blogger land. I’m especially excited since my debut book is now featured on the publishers titles page! And now that my book is all but finished (just have to write a two or three page epilogue) I can read the books I have lined up to read: Desert Hedge Murders included!!
Have a great weekend.
Ann
Rejections are hard to take. I always have a back-up plan for mine. Most find a home eventually. But I’m with you Ginger. Guys with fangs or other unusual attributes, no matter how impressive are a complete turn-off for me.
Thanks to everyone who came and commented today. I’m going to be part of the Muse On-Line Conference next week, and I’m excited about the topic. Publishing Pitfalls. Should be interesting.
But while I get ready for my debut there, I always appreciate the friends who follow me around and support me wherever I go. You’re the greatest.
My friend, we’ve been down the road of rejection enough times to feel unwanted. But we love what we do, and that makes up for more than half of our journey to publication.
Wonderful post, sweetie.
Great post Ginger. I love your spunk!
Take care my friend and no more rejections 🙂
You are a great writer, just keep dishin’ it out.
If you write it they will come 😉
Great interview! It’s hard to get rejection and it’s always good to hear how other people deal with it – thank you!
Thank you Patricia for hosting Ginger,
I enjoyed the read, most pleasurable.
Yvonne.
Good morning! I wanted to thank Ginger again for being here. Thanks, Ginger! Like you, I enjoy writing in different genres, so I was very interested in your thoughts.
Those rejects aren’t nice. Like Ginger, I’ve received very few, but that’s partly because I don’t send out a lot of manuscripts to a lot of publishers. Still, when someone doesn’t like your baby, you take it personally.
Thanks for sharing your prospective, Ginger
Patricia,
Thank you so much for hosting me on your blog today. And Margot…thanks for being my first visitor. I always hope that my posts are helpful in some way…whether it be to bring a chuckle, a tear, or that vital connection that we all long for.
This post couldn’t have come at a better time. This week was one of real highs and real lows for my writing life and it taught me a lesson about perspective. Congratulations on persevering and best wishes to you!
Patricia – Thanks for hosting Ginger.
Ginger – Thanks for sharing what you do to deal with the ups and downs of the writing life. It is important to remember to write because we love it, and not to let the inevitable defeats keep us down. A very helpful reminder :-).