Skip to main content

SISTER-AUTHOR-FRIENDS


I am blessed to have an amazing group of sister-author-friends. Warrior women who do what I do and who understand that sometimes we have the best job in the whole wide world and sometimes this literary life can be pure hell. Some of those connections are solely through social media. Others I’ve met in person and I enjoy those times when we can commiserate face to face. And one or two have become regular drinking buddies.

We keep abreast of each other’s activities. We follow up on each other’s children and families. We cheer each other on. We shake pom-poms on book release dates. We exchange tips and writing advice. We genuinely want to see each other excel and we regularly lift each other up in prayer.

It was not always this way. I’ve been published since December 2003 and finding like-minded individuals proved a challenge. I wasn’t about the bickering and cattiness reminiscent of today’s ratchet reality shows. I didn’t last long in those groups that only wanted to make Oprah’s book club list and didn’t care who they dragged down, stepped on, or stabbed in the back trying to get there. Women who couldn’t fathom that we could accomplish more together than we could ever accomplish tearing each other down. I am grateful that those days are behind me.

Writing is a solitary occupation. Authors spend much time in worlds of their own making. Workplace relationships are far and few when you’re the only one in the office. So, this is a shout out to those phenomenal women who’ve been my battle buddies along this magnificent journey. They know who they are and they know I have much love for them all.

Being able to connect to women I can call friends, who do what I do, has been a blessing and I am grateful.

Comments

Iris B said…
Deborah, I don't comment often, but could not pass this one up. I have to say AMEN to your blog. It is refreshing to see author sisters as friends. Sharing happy moments and sad moments with people who care about you...the person, is not an every day occurrence in the literary life. As wonderful as it is, there are times when it can be a bit overwhelming. Thank you for sharing such wonderful thoughts with us today. Beautiful sentiments, from a beautiful person.
7:36 AM
Deborah Mello said…
Thank you, Iris! And I hope you know how much I value and treasure your friendship!
8:31 AM
Cheris Hodges said…
From the first day I met you, you have been the same sweet Deborah! You are my friend and I love you to life!

You too, Iris!
4:19 PM
Deborah Mello said…
You know I love you back, Cheris!
4:27 PM
Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

DAMMIT, DO BETTER!

I love reading. I get excited when I discover a new author or find an outstanding story. I’m eager to leave reviews and share with others my new finds. When a book or story is lackluster, leaving me less than thrilled, I usually remain silent. I know the effort that an author has put into a story. I know how hurtful a bad review can be. It is not for me to dash anyone else’s dream because what I might not have liked, someone else may have loved. Recently I read books that left me disappointed, and angry. One was an award-winning title, the author gleefully claiming a coveted statue for her efforts. Clearly what I hated, others found award-worthy. And that actually scares me. The story was as well-written as any other in the genre. Its formulaic plot hit all the buttons that her publisher required. But as a woman of color, I found it as insulting and as distasteful as any story I have ever read. The story featured a Native American heroine. She had self-esteem issues, co...
40 comments
Read more

TREYVON MARTIN

Seventeen-year old Treyvon Martin was walking back from a convenience store to his father's home, when he was allegedly accosted and shot dead by a community watch captain.   Heading home put him in a “gated” community where he clearly wasn’t welcomed.   Treyvon was black and his presence in that “gated” community was a source of consternation for the man who shot him dead as evidenced by the 911 telephone call that was made just minutes prior to the deadly shooting. The media reports that George Zimmerman, a white man, called for police assistance, reporting that Treyvon was “a suspicious person".   Despite being advised by the 911 dispatcher to not follow the young man and to wait for police, Zimmerman felt that he had the authority to approach and confront Treyvon instead.   That confrontation has now left a family to bury a child who once had a bright and promising future. The central Florida police have yet to levy any charges against Z...
16 comments
Read more

NAUGHTY OR NICE TOUR - DAY 6 - DEBORAH FLETCHER MELLO

I'm so excited to be a part of the NAUGHTY OR NICE BOOK BLOG TOUR. And it gives me great pleasure to give you the first peek at my next release, PLAYING WITH FIRE . Available from Dafina books on February 24, 2015, wherever books are sold, PLAYING WITH FIRE is the first in my two-book Sultry Southern Nights series. ENJOY this excerpt and please, PRE-ORDER your copy today! Romeo Marshall is over six feet of cool, smooth, hot, southern seductiveness--just like the music at his popular Raleigh club, The Playground Jazz and Blues Bar. With his beloved mother gone and no father he's ever known, the business is Romeo's everything. It's a place where anything can happen--and the evening one gorgeous young woman and one intriguing old musician walk into the bar--and into Romeo's life--it does. There's something about high-powered, down-to-the earth Taryn Williams that captures Romeo's attention like no other woman has. Yet unanswered questions from his past s...
30 comments
Read more