Ch-Ch-Cha-Changes and Inspiration

I've had trouble describing my book.

Is it Women's Fiction?
Romance?
Suspense?
Tragedy?
Maybe Contemporary?

BETWEEN OCTOBERS is about a lot of things--moving on after love, being honest with yourself,  forgiveness, and learning to over come fears, but mostly it's about the way a handful of people handle the same change in different ways.

CHANGE

Most people will agree that change is scary, but truth be told, I think change--most of the time--is great. It means I'm moving. And that which is not moving is still and when you sit still for a long time, you get stiff. And when you're stiff, you no longer bend easily, which makes moving--changing--seem scary.

My Uncle used to tell me that in life, we need to be like water and keep moving, because just like water, when life sits still for too long, it becomes stagnant.


INSPIRATION

The aforementioned novel, Between Octobers, is my first manuscript, the book of my heart. When I started writing it way back in 2008, I had no intention of showing it to anyone. (My husband didn't even know I was writing it. My mother and brother, with whom I regularly discuss my writing, had no idea I wrote anything outside Science Fiction until I told them it was being published.) It was my own little story that started out small and became this huge monster that took over my brain. I had to write it down to get it out of my system.

The inspiration for the plot came from the Book Of Esther (yes, the one in the Bible). As did GRACE, my protagonist. She was drawn from Queen Esther, herself, though I don't know how similar they ended up being.
EVAN, on the other hand--the love interest--has all the wit and charm of my husband dumped into the shell of a Rob Pattinson-type persona and peppered with bits of Russell Brand, whom I've always found to be fascinating.
     
I tried, as I wrote this book, to keep it as close to what I believed was a viable accounting of a normal woman in abnormal circumstances. I tried to put myself in her shoes and and did lots of research on personality traits, bereavement, and stuck it in there with what I know to be true from personal experiences.

WHAT'S NEXT?

Who knows! But I feel the butterflies in my stomach whenever I think about this book. I love this story so, so much. I have never read anything quite like my book and if anyone else who reads it loves it half as much--no--a quarter as much as I do, then I'll be happy.

And if no one loves it... meh, I'll try really hard not to pay attention to the haters and glean what I can from the criticism.

As my 2014 publication approaches, I come closer to getting an actual date to share with all of the wonderful people that reside in the world of literature and my twitter-verse. And It sends me into a fit delight commingled with trepidation. Because I am in a place I have never been before.
I'm chasing my dreams.
I'm grasping at stars, hoping against hope that I make it.

At the risk of sounding ego-maniacal, I have a feeling I will because I refuse to stay. I will keep trying and take advantage of every opportunity that comes my way.