And the process of bringing my book to print has helped me to (re)learn that I am surrounded by amazingly talented, kind and imaginative people. As an introverted writer, my primary tendency is to retreat into a nook with my trusty battered laptop and ignore the world in favor of my own mental kingdoms.
But that is not how stories grow well, at least not mine. Idea seeds are nourished by more than the ink in my veins; by nights of watching silly movies with friends, sharing links to crazy awesome music videos, walks and talks and mundane smiley faces. Sharing my half-baked stories with my friends helps transform them into something newer and better, sometimes even into a story I could never have imagined on my own.
I will always be grateful for all those who fell in love with Prim's story and made it their own: My sisters, who argued over my weak plot points and laughed uproariously at my bad dialogue until I fixed it (mostly). My splendiferous agent/editor Natalie, who tirelessly helped me to polish the narrative to a proper shine. So many marvelous people, including the girl who gave me a unicorn. When I sent my friend (and artist/animator/musician extraordinaire) Audrey Bagley an error-riddled earlier draft of the manuscript, she envisioned a book trailer far grander than my feeble imaginings. I almost cried when she sent me this little animated snippet of her work-in-progress:
Nobody had ever given me a unicorn before! Nobody had seen the jewel-in-the-rough quite the same way she did. It was like watching my story born all over again! Thank you, Audrey, for giving me a unicorn (and a gorgeous book trailer, cover, and story art!).
So my wish for the holidays and 2017 is that we never forget or neglect the amazing people in our lives in the pursuit of our dreams. Dreaming alone only gets you so far, after all.
Here's to a new year, new ink, and new friends! May you all find your unicorns.
P.S. Need a stocking stuffer? The Iffy Magic ebook is now 99 cents and the print book is $9.99!
