Write what you know!

When I set out to write Serenity, I struggled with what exactly to write. I wanted a stand alone book, meaning I didn't want it to be part of a series. I wanted something very different from what I'd written before.

I remembered the first advice anyone gets as a writer. Write what you know. I can't remember when I first heard it. Maybe it was grade school, maybe college, but I distinctly remember hearing over and over again, write what you know.

There are days, many of them, when I'm not sure I know much of anything. There was a long stretch of time when my sons were teenagers that they told me with regularity I didn't know anything. That said, it seemed natural to write about the one thing I've done for nearly a quarter of a century –  teaching English.

At first I struggled with finding the voice of the main character. I wrote at least six chapters in third person before I realized that wasn't working for this book. Then I switched to first. Kate had at least five different names before I figured out her real name, but in the end, I tried to stay true to my initial idea. When all else fails...

...write what you know.

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