
The story. I have always loved to write. So, when I became pregnant for the first time, I bought a baby book with lots of blank pages and filled them up from margin to margin. When there was no more room for my thoughts, I bought a Teddy Bear Journal, and started on that. I had Justin write in it too, and we added pictures. When Rachel came along, I explored every store for a baby book with lots of blank pages, but there was none to be found. So, once her few blank pages were full, I bought her a woman's journal about the sea. That way, she could read about her childhood, and read inspiring quotes pertaining to womanhood on the same page! One night, after writing about a particularly frustrating evening, humorously, I called a friend--also a mother of the young--and shared it with her. After listening to her giggle, I decided I should change my audience to not only my children when they're older, but to mothers everywhere! When my husband returned from work, I told him my plan. He readily agreed that there would be a vast audience for such a title. I wrote every night for months. It was easy; every day of living with 2 young kids, from sun-up to sun-down, gave ample material for a mother writing about what it's like to mother them. 37 rejections were received. But, one day a publisher from Florida called to say the mother on their staff thought every woman who is a mother will want to read the material. They contacted 12 independent investors to try to add the title to their list, but none would take it up because I was an unpublished author. The man I talked to strongly encouraged me to self-publish. After seeking the cost of such a project, we knew it was never going to be a possibility. But, miracles do happen, and, within a year or so, the money was there. I wanted to spend the amount on a horse! Mark said we'll get the book published. Financially, his idea was a better one. The horses came much later. In the beginning I had a distributor. Many book signings were held. Talks were done for Girl Scout Troops, library groups, and school classes. And, we sold enough books to recover the costs in one year. Once the distributor stopped, we've had to market it on our own, which isn't easy. "Thoughts on Being a Mommy" is always on the shelf of one local book store, and often in the hospital gift shops. Sales dribble in continuously, which is fine. The best marketing is when one mom wants another mom to read the pages. Once life settles down, I'll again attempt getting a publisher to take it. There are many thoughts to be added if one does. |