Driftwood & Amethyst to be published!

After an exhausting trawl of publishers and agents, many of whom wrote positively about the manuscript yet were unwilling to take on a new author - a measly 3% of new authors earn publication this way - I am working with Xlibris who will be publishing my children's novel, 'Driftwood & Amethyst',  over the next 3-4 months.
I cannot believe the wheels are finally in motion - it's taken three long years alongside chronic illness, hospital visits and operations not to mention raising a young family with a self-employed husband (need I say more?!) and the first steps are finally under way.

Quite a few pieces to work on over the next couple of weeks:

• Biography
• Brief synopsis
• Front cover

and in the mean time, my manuscript is going through the copyediting process (this process is harrowing - much worse than sending a child to school for the first time) and I'm wrestling with the 'Shall I Shan't I' of returning to Facebook. Maybe I'm addicted. I'll give it a few more days. Rather than being fascinated by what the rest of the world is doing, I miss writing my little status updates and hearing from my friends across the various waters.

I entered Writers Bureau Short story Competition with 'Conflict' a semi-autobiographical piece earlier this week and feel that life as a writer is certainly becoming more real now. Although it can be a lonely business, the blogs and forums I'm connecting with are introducing me to writers who are experiencing similar difficulties and excitements!