Life after PA

[NancyMehl]

I know I haven't been around much lately, but I do check into AW when I can. I like to keep up on what's happening to everyone. I have moved past PA. To be honest, I don't think about them much anymore. (Yes, it does pass after awhile. Kind of like a kidney stone! LOL!)

It occurred to me, however, that maybe letting other ex-PA authors (and current ones, too) know that there is hope, might be beneficial. I remember the days of wondering if I would ever be able to move past the stigma of PA.

In January, my first book with Barbour Books is coming out in their new mystery book club. An early count of book club members is at 11,000, but I expect it to climb much higher because Barbour is spending gobs of promotion money to get the word out. After all three of my books in this first series go through the club, they will be shipped out individually to stores across the country. Not like PA. I mean real brick and mortar stores. This includes Walmart, Barnes and Noble, Books-a-million, Christian bookstores... You know, the kind of distribution publishers are supposed to do? After that, they plan to send all three out as a three-in-one series to stores.

Barbour has accepted a second series, and even penciled me in for a third series for 2010. They expressed interest in publishing three books a year with me.

Advances from Barbour have come to much more than I ever made throughout the entire rest of my career, and the first book isn't even out yet.

I'm not saying there aren't bigger success stories out there. I'm sure there are. I just thought that other writers who wonder if life goes on after PA might like to hear that it does. Absolutely. It all depends on you. You just have to be willing to move on. And as far as how my relationship with PA has affected me?

No one has ever even mentioned it.

Nancy

[jamiehall]

Another author who moved beyond the PA stigma is J.H. Sweet, author of "The Fairy Chronicles" series, which has now been republished by Jabberwocky.

[Curiouser]

Thank you Nancy for posting this good news and congratulations to you. It gives me hope that one day I might actually get published by a real publisher having wasted my first book with PA.

[NancyMehl]

No problem, Curiouser. I think it's important for writers to know that bad choices can be overcome.

One of the worst things about PA is the heartache caused by writers who think they've been "accepted" by a large publisher. They expect that their books are going to end up in stores and that their career has been launched. Realization is a sad, sad thing. Getting your dreams crushed can either be the end of the road - or the beginning. It depends on the writer. I've never known any author who found success by giving up. <S> It doesn't usually come looking for you. It's the writer who hangs on with determination AND humility. Learning is key. Knowing it all is deadly.

Another author who found success after PA is John Robinson. I'm sure there are more out there like J.H. Sweet and John.

Nancy

[priceless1]

Nancy, I couldn't be happier for you if I were twins. You've always been a class act, and I expect to see you up in lights for a very long time.

[NancyMehl]

Originally Posted by priceless1

Nancy, I couldn't be happier for you if I were twins. You've always been a class act, and I expect to see you up in lights for a very long time.

Thanks, Lynn. Right back at you. <S>

Nancy