For the last six years I’ve been suffering from serious writer’s block. I did write three books during that time, but it was a total slog. I made myself write, instead of wanting, yearning to write, which was the way it had been for the previous twenty years. Never before had I struggled to put…
Author: Mary Gillgannon
Mary Gillgannon began writing historical romance soon after she discovered the genre. She loves how these stories allow her to portray the excitement and high stakes of past eras, yet focus on relationships and create a happy ending. She has written seventeen novels, including romances set in the dark age, medieval and Regency time periods, time travel and historical fantasy. Her books have been translated into Russian, Chinese, Dutch and German. She has worked at the Laramie County Library for over twenty-fire years and acquires adult fiction as part of her job.
Word of Mouth Goes Viral
What makes a bestseller? That question has tormented authors and the publishing industry for years. The best explanation I’ve heard came from an editor who used to regularly attend the Colorado Gold conference: “God smiles.” Of course, that isn’t very helpful. Creating a bestseller involves a lot of factors, few of which are under the…
Judging a Cover Not by the Book
When I received my cover art for my latest book, I was reasonably pleased. The colors set a mood that fit my story, the castle signaled that it was set in the medieval era, the models matched the appearance of my hero and heroine and their pose made it clear the book was a romance….
A Colorado Gold Fairy Tale
Once there was a new writer who attended the Colorado Gold conference. She’d been writing for about two years and had a completed manuscript, which she’d entered in the Colorado Gold contest, but it didn’t place. She’d come with fairly low expectations. Although her coworkers at the library where she worked were convinced this was…
Looking Back…Looking Forward
I started to write this post about my first Colorado Gold Conference, and I was struck by how much writing and publishing have changed since the early days of my career. Some things have definitely gotten easier. I printed out the manuscript of my first book on a word processor where you had to feed…