THE VOTING BEGINS!

A big part of my creative endeavors is my writing. Every November I take part in a writing challenge called NanoWrimo -aka National Novel Writing Month. The challenge: to write a 50,000 word novel in 30 days! Trust me, it can be done. The challenge is not about perfection but to just get the story on paper. In the immortal words of Nora Roberts - 'You can't fix what isn't written.'  I wrote the rough draft of Somewhere Down the Line in 18 days... 55,000 words. The novel was based on a song title originally done by T.G. Shepherd in the early 80's but my inspiration came from a version done by another 80's country group, James & Michael Younger. I covered many of their shows back in the day and last year reconnected with James. As I sat in my truck in his driveway, the 'what if' questions that plaque every writer began to swirl in my head. By the time I'd made the six hour drive home from his home in Hendersonville, TN I had the beginnings of a novel.

Last month I found out that an editor I've always admired and hoped to work with someday is part of a new digital publishing company called Boroughs Publishing Group. They had a competition open for a novella based on a song title. Whoo Hooo! Mine fits perfectly. I spent six grueling weeks tightening the prose, defining my characters and cutting 15,000 words to fit the guidelines. Whew! I'm glad I did. The story is so much better than anything I could have hoped.

And now... SOMEWHERE DOWN THE LINE is one of only 14 entries vying for a publishing contract. That's where you come in!

I feel like a contestant on TheVoice of American Idol.

SOMEWHERE DOWN THE LINE is now in the hands of you - the voters. Without your love and support, my novella will not land in the top 25% and move on to the next round.

There are only fourteen entries and I have to say, I am up against some very good competition. Round Two (which begins on June 24th) will tighten the race when the first 300 words of each manuscript is revealed.

For now, you get what is essentially the blurb found on the back cover. For you to read the first page of SOMEWHERE DOWN THE LINE, I need your help. Please go to:
http://boroughspublishinggroup.com/content/whats-name-voting and vote for my novella. You can vote 1 time per day - every day through June 23rd!

Don't let the name T.G. Shepherd throw you. Remember, these entries had to share the name of a song title. Authors names are kept confidential in the early stages so they have listed the recording artist with the book title.

Next, please share the link with all your friends. Tweet it! Share it on FB and even on Pinterest and anything else you can think of. I PROMISE... when you need me to reciprocate in some form, I'll be there for you. Supporting each other is what we do!

And in the words of Bartles and James....

Thank you for your support!