15 Writing Mistakes to Learn From

Part of a special month-long event featuring writing tips and NaNoWriMo strategies from guest writers and fellow NaNo participants.

15 Writing Mistakes I Learned
by Martha O'Sullivan

Thanks for having me in the blog today! It seems ironic to be blogging about writing tips since I’m such a newbie myself!  My debut novel(s),a trilogy, is being released by Red Sage in Sept/Oct/Nov. I’m not sure what happened that April night five years go, but after many more late nights that became early mornings, here I am, a published author! When I began this crazy journey, I had no idea what I was doing; I learned as I went through trial and error. I still am. I found all kinds of information and got tons of advice on what to do and how to do it. But no one ever told what not to do. Here are some mistakes I made on the way:

1. I thought I needed an agent. 

2. I thought I had to go through traditional publishing and print channels.

3. I didn’t think it would take five years. 

4. I thought Harlequin ruled the world.

5. I didn’t know how generous, supportive and welcoming writers were. I am amazed every day.

6. I should have gone to RWA Nationals the year I started writing. I should have joined TARA from the get-go.

7. I should have kept reading. I started writing at night instead of reading. And I was afraid of indadvertedly plagiarizing another author’s work. That was stupid. The writing is wired into you; reading other books, especially in your genre, can only make you a better writer and keep your creative juices flowing. 

8. I should always write the last chapter first. I should have known this from the beginning since I always find myself reading the last few pages of a book midway through chapter two. It’s deliciously torturous knowing the ending, without knowing how that ending came to be. 

9. I should have brought The Emotion Thesaurus by Angela Ackerman and Becca Puglist before I wrote my first book instead of when I was editing my second. 

10. I should have shouted that I was writing from the rooftops instead of keeping it to myself.  

11. I should have known the last rejection hurts just as much as the first one. 

12. I should have gotten an iPhone two years ago. 

13. I should have joined a critique group.

14. I should have known that writing the book was the easy part. 

15. I knew how bad I wanted it, so I should have known I could do it.

 But the one thing I did right? I never gave up! That’s how a writer becomes an author! 

About the author:
Martha O'Sullivan is a contemporary, erotic romance author whose books always end in Happily Ever After. She is the author of the Chancestrilogy from Red Sage Publishing. Martha has loved reading romance novels for as long as she can remember. So much so that she would continue the story in her head long after the last chapter was read. Writing her own novels is the realization of a lifelong dream for this stay-at-home mom. A native Chicagoan, she lives her own happy ending in Florida with her husband and two daughters.

By Martha O'Sullivan:
Chance Encounter,
2nd installment in the Chances trilogy

In Second Chance, star-crossed lovers Brian Rembrandt and Lindsay Foster get a second chance at love. And their wedding beneath the twinkling stars of Lake Tahoe serves as the perfect backdrop for another match made in heaven. But it's more complicated than that...

The last thing Delaney Richards was looking for at college roommate Lindsay Foster's wedding was love. The long hours at the office were finally paying off--she could all but feel the vice-presidency in her bones. And she was counting on this week in San Francisco to seal the deal. But first she had to get through the wedding--Delaney’s first since her own. Almost wedding, that is. You can't have a wedding without a groom.


Renowned ladies’ man Mike Savoy hadn't counted on seeing devastatingly beautiful Delaney Richards again at his best friends' wedding in Tahoe, let alone find himself falling in love with her. Now he has to convince her the feeling is mutual--and unfailing. But the past can be a killer. And the only way Mike can ensure a future with Delaney is to push her away. But when blackmail turns to ransom, Mike is the only one who can save her. To survive, Delaney must trust the heart that once betrayed her. 

Chance Encounter is available at: marthaosullivan26.wix.com/marthaosullivan 


 http://eredsage.com/store/OSULLIVAN_MARTHA.html 

http://www.amazon.com/Chance-Encounter-Trilogy-ebook/dp/B00FJRE5YQ/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1380642486&sr=8-1&keywords=chance+encounter+red+sage+publishing

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/chance-encounter-by-martha-osullivan?store=allproducts&keyword=chance+encounter+by+martha+osullivan

http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18621648-chance-encounter