For me, writing my first book was all about discipline. I've always wanted to write a book, but the idea and the reality of doing it are two different things. I had to really force myself to take time to buckle down and do the work of writing the thing. Because I didn't have a publisher at the beginning I had no deadlines and no one pushing me to keep working, so I had to be very self-disciplined. Schedule writing time. Leave the house if you need to. Write with a pen and paper so you can't get sidetracked online.

Also, write a book proposal. The process of doing this really helped me to narrow the focus of my book and really answer the questions "Why am I writing this book?" This is an important question to answer before starting your book. A great book to walk you through this process is called "How to Write a Book Proposal" http://www.amazon.ca/Write-Book-Proposal-Michael-Larsen/dp/1582972516

Finally, don't be discouraged if you don't have a big publisher interested in you. There are all kinds of different roads to publishing and in today's market e-books, self-publishing and partnership publishing are all really good options too! I doesn't just have to be through a traditional publisher.

all the great people you get to meet & chat with. such fun!! (:

It started with a whisper. "Debbie, you're so awesome." And then I was all, ALRIGHT ALRIGHT. I just believed it Alana. I mean, it's true isn't it?