School of Hard Knocks – Writing Lessons Learned

Thanks to Readers Entertainment Magazine and Jocie McKade for featuring me on her blog today.

Have you ever hiked up a mountain?

I live within a day’s drive of the Colorado Rockies where we enjoy hiking on vacations. Have you ever made the kind of hike where the switchbacks and terrain hide the true mountaintop? You see a point far away and begin climbing, but when you arrive at that point, you realize it was just a ridge. The mountaintop is farther away and higher up than you expected.

For me, becoming an author has been a climb up the highest mountain I ever imagined, taking buckets of sweat and tears (and gallons of wine) to accomplish over a period of more than five years. I thought writing the book was the hard part. I mean, I had dreamed of becoming an author my whole life. I made several attempts when my kids were younger and struggled to find the time.

Hitting that publish button was thrilling and satisfying, like reaching the top of a difficult cliff of large boulders. I had done something many people only dream about but never found the time to accomplish. I deserved a good, long pat on the back! But wait, only a month into that euphoric ride into the bastions of literary history, I came face to face with a harsh reality. (See fig. #1) I wasn’t anywhere near the top. I’d barely risen 1,000 feet in elevation!

To continue reading the rest of the post, hop over to Readers Entertainment Magazine!

Kelly Brakenhoff is the author of 15 books and a seasoned ASL interpreter. She splits her writing energy between two series: cozy mysteries set on a college campus and children’s books featuring Duke the Deaf Dog.

Parents, kids, and teachers love the children’s books and activity guides because they introduce ASL and the Deaf community through fun, engaging stories. And if you enjoy a smart female sleuth, want to learn more about Deaf culture, or have ever lived in a place where livestock outnumber people, the Cassandra Sato Mystery series will have you connecting the dots faster than a group project coming together the night before it’s due.

A proud mom to four adults, head of the dog-snuggling department, and grandma to a growing brood of perfectly behaved grandkids, Kelly and her husband call Nebraska home.