I Said I'd Never Write Again
Judy Azar LeBlanc July 18, 2006
When I was in the "career" time of my life, I used to write proposals for the US Government Defense Agency. It was so much pressure that I said when I retire, I am going to throw away my "red" pen and computer, and NEVER WRITE AGAIN! Well, that lasted about 10 years.
My husband and I were living in a small beach town in the middle of Baja Mexico when I got the itch to start writing again. I said to myself, "now I can write what I love and not what I'm told to write." .. That sounded like so much fun. Little did I know that it would be a brand new career in not only writing, but in Marketing!
I have always been fascinated with the esoteric and I kept journals for years on this subject. One day, after reading through my journals, it occurred to me that the information in them was so good it had to be put into a book.
But how can I write about this subject without boring people, I thought. Thus, my animated allegory style, and my first book “Things My Father Never Taught” Me” were born; which was followed by “The Compromise,” the “Unveiling” and then my favorite “Many Faces to Many Places.”
As writers and authors, we all know that writing takes discipline. I wrote every single day without fail for one full year on each book. The days that I had writer’s block, I edited, rearranged, and corrected words. Sometimes just doing that would inspire me. Little did I know that my hard work was only half way done.
After I finished my book, I began to look for a publisher. The thought of getting rejected never even crossed my mind! Haaa-- Haaa. At first I took it personally … then I remembered that Richard Bach got rejected 265 times before some “smart” publisher took a risk, and then it became a huge success! One day, I received a contract from a publisher in Utah. I was thrilled! Had it not been for my husband who read “between the lines” and discovered that there was no mention of marketing in the contract, he suggested that I keep looking. I received two more contracts after that, and discovered that they were all the same … the writer gets between 8-10% depending on how hard he/she markets the book, and the publisher gets the rest. The math on that made me decide to go with a Publishing Press that let me keep all of my rights, did a lot of marketing, and helped me to do the rest.
Since my first publication in 1994, I have learned that marketing the book is probably more important than writing it. If the marketing doesn’t continue … the book dies. I am constantly looking for new promotional websites, opportunities for Radio and TV interviews, advertising, and postcard mailings. I invest in postcards, business cards, and book markers, and I am always giving them away.
So... writer’s write on! Just remember that Richard Bach was rejected 265 times before his book became a success!
About Judy Azar LeBlanc
Judy Azar LeBlanc was born in Raton, New Mexico, and was raised and educated in Albuquerque. She is a graduate of San Jose University, in San Jose, California, where she did graduate work in Industrial Psychology. Before marrying, she made a career in the defense industry, and after extensive travel, she and her husband retired to a small town in Baja, Mexico.
During the 19 years of living in Mexico, Judy Azar LeBlanc wrote an English column for a magazine published by the federal government, as well as an English column in a state published newspaper. She taught English at the University Autonoma of Baja, and at the local high school. Shortly before returning to the United States, she completed her fourth and favorite work titled “Many Faces to Many Places” which is available in electronic format, trade paperback, and as an audio book. Some of her other works include “Things My Father Never Taught Me,” "The Compromise,” and “The Unveiling.” Judy Azar LeBlanc’s writings are purely inspirational.
Judy Azar LeBlanc Profile at OnceWritten.com
