Award Winning Author Dyanne Davis Advice To New Authors

Recently I had the good fortune to interview author Dyanne Davis. Dyanne’s first novel “The Color Of Trouble” won an Emma for Favorite New Author in 2004. Her much anticipated second novel “The Wedding Gown” was a finalist for the Emma in two categories, Steamiest Romance and Book Of The Year. “Misty Blue”, the third novel, has already launched to critical acclaim.
It wasn’t so long ago that she was an unknown struggling to get her first novel published. Her advice to new authors?
“Generally the advice I give to new authors starting out is to persevere. But I think I’d like to add to that this time. In my local RWA chapter our motto is “do no harm.” We carry that over into our annual contest that we hold for new writers and my attempt here will be the same. I’m beginning to think that new writers need to hear this as much as they need to hear “never give up.” If you truly want to be a career as a writer the very best advice I can give is to develop a tough skin. Writing is such a personal experience. You breathe life into these characters and they become real for you. You are in control of their lives and you know best. Then comes the day you send your brand new baby out into the world and your baby is sent home with a note attached “We don’t want your baby.”
Rejection is such a big part of a writer’s life that I’m surprised none of us ever talk about it. I guess in part because it might look as though we’re trying to keep the field narrow. That is not my intent. I want writers to be able to deal with rejections from editors and agents. If they’re entering contests, I want them to handle the sometimes nasty comments of the judges and to be able to keep writing. I want them to know that even after the sale, the having a tough skin part doesn’t end there. The book goes through an editing process and you have to change things. The book is published and once out there become the property of the world at large. Your work may receive praise but it will undoubtedly receive harsh criticism. That’s the nature of the business.
That is when I want to tell the new writers they need to persevere, to go within and find the inner strength needed to continue. Always begin working on a new book as soon as you’re done with the one you were writing. That is a piece of armor that will help you to develop that tough skin. Know that not every world you put on the paper will be printed in a book the way you envisioned it or that everyone will love what you wrote but keep writing in spite of it. Know that you can’t get better at anything without practice. The more you write the better you will become.”