Saturday, May 30, 2009




It is my honor and privilege to welcome a friend of mine, Pamela Thibodeaux, to my blog. Pamela is a fellow TWRP author and has a wonderful reputation for writing amazing stories that capture the heart and imagination of the reader.


I hope all of you will take the time to visit read all about her book; and then check out all her titles and her web site. Pamela has been a big supporter of The Wild Rose Press for quite a while and I'm thrilled to have her here with us. The following is a little blurb about Pamela and I know you'll have more questions for her. Perhaps we could even get her to post a comment and include an excerpt from her latest book - Winter Madness (doesn't the cover take your breath away?)


Thank you for coming by today and I look forward to lots of good comments from my readers/followers today.


Roni


I Have Arrived…….or Have I?

When I began writing more than twenty-five years ago, I had no clue what I was getting myself into. All I knew was I’d been disappointed one-too-many times. Based on what I read I figured it couldn’t be hard. I can do better than this!


With the niavette of the uninformed, I figured all I had to do was write a good story and BAM! I’d be published. So I did. I poured my heart out in page after page of five-subject notebooks. By the time I’d filled several and started researching how to get published, I found out the manuscript had to be typed!


I didn’t own a typewriter nor could I afford to rent one. Then came the blessed day I purchased a used word processor. Just when I thought I’d be able to really embark on the glamorous journey, submissions became electronic!


I’d put off buying a computer for lots of reasons, the main one ~ all I do is write. After getting connected, I figured the voyage to being in print was just an email away. Wrong again.
My first novel was accepted as an Ebook, my first short story in an Ezine. What’s with this E-industry? I wanted to hold a book in my hands – after all, being Epublished isn’t really published. That’s what ‘they’ say (anyone ever figure out who ‘they’ are?).


In my article on Success, I make a statement…as beauty is in the eyes of the beholder, so is success. It is, in and of itself, success.


In addition to numerous articles and essays, poems and devotions, I now have 5 published novels (4 part Tempered series & The Inheritance) available in ebook and print as well as 5 short stories available for readers. As of this year I have signed my un-contracted work with a Literary Agent. Guess this means I’ve finally arrived……or Have I?


We all have our own definition of success, our own idea of what it means to ‘arrive.’ I’ll arrive when I can make a living doing what I love most – bring glory to God through my writing.
When will you know you have ‘arrived’? Leave a comment and one lucky person will win a copy of my latest release, Winter Madness!

Bio: Award-winning author, Pamela S. Thibodeaux is the Co-Founder of Bayou Writers Group and a member of White Roses in Bloom Authors. Multi-published in romantic fiction as well as creative non-fiction, her writing has been tagged as, “Inspirational with an Edge!” and reviewed as “steamier and grittier than the typical Christian novel without decreasing the message.”

Website address: http://www.pamelathibodeaux.com/
Blog: http://pamswildroseblog.blogspot.com/
WRIB Blog: http://whiterosesinbloom.blogspot.com/





36 comments:

Autumn Jordon said...

Good start, Roni. WOOYAH for Brennan. He's a good looking young man. You've everyright to be proud. Thank him for his service for me.

Pam, LOL. I've been there with you. Do you still have your notebooks? I do. Some scary stuff. Good post.

2009 Golden Heart Finalist.
www.autumnjordon.com
http://autumnjordonsnotes.blogspot.com/

Desiree Holt said...

Hi Pam. I lov your blog. Arrived? I think most of us are still struggling to get out of the starting gate. The publishing industry is like a huge grizzly, feasting on authors and spitting them out. But for those of us lucky enough to be published it is teh reward for hard worl and commitment. Epublishing, which seems to severelty threaten atraditional authors, has opened the door to hundreds of talented authors, and through the magic of the Internet, we are able to reach people all over the world. No postage. No shipping. and instant contact. Every day when I open my email box I have emails from readers everywhere, telling me of the pleasure my books have given them. And I say to myselfThe love my books! I have arrived!!!

Margaret Tanner said...

Good start to your blog Roni, I am trying to learn how to use it myself now. You certainly should be proud of your son, he looks like a fine young man.
Thank you for talking with Pam, she is an inspiration with all the stuff she has done.
Regards
Margaret.

Donna B said...

Hey Pam - great article - but 5 NOTEBOOKS? sheesh. My hand would be permanently crippled. Thank God for the advent of computers! I love your stories though! Winter Madness was a wonderful read, as well as The Inheritance - haven't gotten to the series yet...

Wendy Davy said...

Hello Pam,

How will I know when I've arrived? I'm not sure I will know. I will celebrate every success and every contract, but I'll always strive for the next one. So, I suppose I won't actually arrive, until I'm finished with the last one. :)

Wendy
www.wendydavy.com

Dayana said...

Hi, Pamela and Rhonda.

So nice to meet you upclose and personal, Pam. Your craft history is heartwarming. You make me smile. I'd written a romance complete with a penciled picture of a couple walking down a forest path hand in hand in my early teen in a spiral notebook. I've no idea whatever happened to that. I would love to get my hands on it today!

You parallel my own thoughts when you say, 'I have arrived...or have I?' I feel that way often. I have been published on mulitple occasions over the years. Two full books and two shorts, as well poetry as a young girl, craft articles, and even a perspective view in Dog Fancy Mag, LOL

Arrival? That still needs to be determined but I will say I am presently proud and content with my present successes. I never got into this craft to 'get rich' but as I said in a recent interview, I wouldn't shun fame and fortune *grin*

Congratulations on all your successes, Pam, and I've enjoyed this visit with you today. Just a footnote: I too am a proud TWRP author:)

Best of luck with your new release. I love the cover. It is refreshing as Rhonda said.

Best,
Dayana Knight
www.dayanaknight.blogspot.com
www.romawolftales.com

Bill Blodgett said...

Roni, Thanks for posting this blog. It's something I still have to learn too. I am glad I'm not alone.

Pam: Arrived? I think we never arrive. As a race, we always stretch our skills and strive to do better. We struggle to write better, to build fast cars and create smarter computers. A psychology professor once asked our class which one of us believed we had reached the point of self-actualization. I, of course, indicated I had. After all, I was a fairly young 40 year old happily married father of two getting straight A’s in night school and had earned the respect of my employer, fellow workers, State health officials and, most importantly, family and friends. How naïve, and that’s my point. I thought I had arrived only to cringe later in life in the realization that I had not arrived. There were things I could have done better or much differently or with more heart. Currently, I am reworking my first manuscript and am again cringing in the thought that I actually had the nerve to enter it into some contests! Maybe we have arrived when we take that last breath and think, ‘I did my best and had fun doing it.’

Nicola said...

Hey Pam,

Great story.

Congrats! on getting the agent. That's another huge hurdle you've hopped on the journey. You may/may not have arrived, but you are definitely on the train. :)

Allie Standifer said...

Great post, Pam. You nailed it perfectly.

Pamela S Thibodeaux said...

Wow!

Good morning all.

I'm usually the early riser but looks like today I'm lagging behind LOL.

Autumn, I DO still have my notebooks - boxed up with the original typed version of all my books and mailed to myself - the "poor man's copyright." The good thing is all but 2 of those stories are published and those are with the agent :-)

So good to hear from you Desiree - you're right, emails from readers make it all worthwhile.

Thanks for the sweet comment Margaret and YES Roni SHOULD be proud of her son! (as should all Americans)

Donna B, NUMEROUS 5-subject notebooks LOL! But remember this was done over YEARS. Sometimes I miss those notebooks - writing for me was simple and private back then - there's something intimate about it. I know, I'm nuts LOL!

Will we ever really be finished Wendy? Sure we can quit anytime, but will we be happy if we do? I agree though, with striving to do better each time.

Neither would I shun fame and fortune Dayna LOL! I've always said it's not about the money, it's about the message - but to show a PROFIT instead of a LOSS on my Schedule C would be nice for a change LOL!

Wonderful story Jason. I believe there will ALWAYS be times in our lives when we look back and think we could have done a little better. Guess the only thing to do is our best and trust God to do the rest. Good luck with your manuscript!

Hey Nicke, sometimes I wonder if I can just jump OFF this train LOL! Isn't life funny that way?

THANK YOU ALL for stopping by!

Oh, beginning Thursday, June 4th Roni will be guest on my blog all month! http://pamswildroseblog.blogspot.com

Hope to see you there!
PamT

Alicia Dean said...

Great article, Pam. Very inspiring. I am a proud TWRP author and I recently sold, through an agent, to Dorchester. Now, I'm looking for that next sale, LOL. It never ends. I think there are books that are right for wonderful e-publishers like TWRP, but others that fit more with the traditional houses and there is room in this big, fantastic industry for all of them.

Best of luck...thanks for sharing your journey with us.

Cari Quinn said...

Great blog, Roni and Pamela. Pamela, I'll definitely have to check out your work. And I agree...success is most certainly in the eye of the beholder. Best of luck to you!

E.A. West said...

Great post, Pam!

I've arrived in that I'm now a published author, but that's just the first stop on the ride. To me, arrival happens in stages. What are those stages? I have no idea. I'll find out as I reach them and have fun on the journey. :)

Helen Hardt said...

Pam, it was great to learn more about you ;). Big congratulations on snagging an agent!

Nicki Greenwood said...

It's funny how your writing process evolved, Pam. Mine did the same. I still have all my old notebooks of stories I handwrote. I'm afraid to look at them, but I have them! :-D

Laurie J. Edwards said...

Pam, I still love to write longhand and have filled many a notebook, so I know where you were coming from. Finally indulged in a tablet computer. I write longhand, it types it for me--the perfect match.

But how well I remember the first manuscript I typed. It had mistakes and passages I wanted to change, but I couldn't bear the agony of retyping. I still can't believe I sent it off to a Harlequin contest that way. Or that it was one of the finalists. That was years ago, and it's still waiting to be typed in to my computer. LOL

Thanks for sharing!

Laurie J. Edwards
http://lje1.wordpress.com/

Unknown said...

Great Blog Pam! And kudos on your inspirationals. I've read some that,as you said, didn't seem real, the people were too sqeaky clean perfect, and you just couldn't identify with them. Thanks for working to make inspies realistic and still keep the focus in the right place!

Unknown said...

Great Blog Pam! And kudos on your inspirationals. I've read some that,as you said, didn't seem real, the people were too sqeaky clean perfect, and you just couldn't identify with them. Thanks for working to make inspies realistic and still keep the focus in the right place!

Mary Ricksen said...

I think I arrived the day I signed my first contract at TWRP. All my life I have been trying to find my talent for my whole life. I could always do a fair job at whatever I did, making stained glass pieces, painting, singing. What ever I tried I just wasn't quite good enough. For the first time in my life somebody said I was good enough. And that means more to me than all the money in the world.

Good luck with your blog, Roni, and I will try to visit it often. Don't it feel better when someone comments? So I try to comment as often as possible. It can be a lot of fun. For example Helen Hardt's blog when you need to smile

Pamela S Thibodeaux said...

Hello Again!

Glad my post resonated with so many of you and Thank YOU ALL for stopping by.

Are you a writer too Allie?

You're right Alicia, some books fit better with larger houses and I, too am glad there's room in the industry for all kinds!

Cari, please let me know what you think if/when you read my work - I'm always anxious to hear from readers.

Hi EA! Yep, publication is only the beginning of this wonderful journey.

Thanks Helen for stopping by and commenting.

Isn't it funny Nicki, how many start out just like we do? Don't be afraid to look back at those notebooks - doing so will affirm how much you've grown.

Laurie, wow - a tablet computer DOES sound like a perfect match! I just may have to check into that - though it'll probaby type googly-gook and sqiggly lines with MY handwriting LOL!

Mallary - thanks for the compliment - although I'd love to be with a bigger press, I must say God has blessed me for staying true to myself in writing for Him. TWRP/WRP is the BOMB!

Sounds like that first TWRP contract is definitely an arrival for you - enjoy but never stop traveling this journey!

THANK YOU ALL for stopping by!
PamT

Pamela S Thibodeaux said...

PS: This note was for you Mary....Sounds like that first TWRP contract is definitely an arrival for you - enjoy but never stop traveling this journey!

PamT

marye.ulrich said...

Pam, 5 books means you have more than arrived. Congratulations and your book looks great.

There are so many books that take place in spring and summer. Winter (weather, as well as winter-in-our-hearts) often show the most growth in characters.

Keep writing, you have the gift.

JoAnn said...

I'm still on the journey, too.

Along the way I LOVE to read good books. Would you please sign me up for your upcoming release give away? :)

Thanks!
JoAnn

Clover Autrey said...

Pam, only 25 years, kidding. I'm in that long running club as well. Cheers to both of you.

Pamela S Thibodeaux said...

It is so wonderful to visit with you all today!

Marye - thanks for the vote of confidence, it is appreciated since I am now in a quandry of doubting my ability to write anything else LOL!

JoAnn - of course you're entered!

Clover, maybe we should start an 'old timer's' club or something LOL!

Thank you ALL for stopping by!

PamT

KyAnn said...

Pam your story is inspiring to any author just beginning her journey and to those who've been on the path for years and are still looking forward to the world of published author.

L M Gonzalez said...

Pam, great article. Roni, I think inviting authors to your blog is a good idea, good networking on the 'net.

As to a writer "arriving", I'm not sure that ever happens. I, too, have been writing for many years and there's always another story to write.

There are, of course, joyful milestones along the way, like signing your first contract, holding your first print book, signing your first book for a reader, seeing your book shelved at Barnes & Noble!

Your books sound "inspiring", Pam. :)

P.S. I still write the first few chapters in longhand even though I have a computer. Sometimes, if I get stuck on a scene, I go back to pen and paper.

P.P.S. I have a file drawerful of stories I wrote in long hand!

Lupe

Pamela S Thibodeaux said...

Hi KyAnn! Thanks for the sweet words, glad you found my story inspiring. If I only had 3 words to offer advice they would be NEVER GIVE UP!

Lupe, I do believe always having another story to tell (I know, show don't tell LOL) is the wish/hope/desire of every writer. Never get rid of your stories. Who knows, one day they may be published.

What a LOVELY day!

THANK YOU, Roni for having me as your guest and THANK YOU ALL for stopping by!

I'll pick a winner of Winter Madness later and announce it here so check back!

PamT
Thank You, Roni for having me here today

Pamela S Thibodeaux said...

And the winner is.....Cari Quinn!!

Email me at: pthib07@hotmail.com (that's zero 7) to receive your copy of Winter Madness.

Congrats and once again, THANK YOU ALL for visiting with me today.

Pamela S Thibodeaux
"Inspirational with an Edge!"

Laurean Brooks said...

Pam,
I've heard that most "overnight successes" were 20 years in the making. It sounds like you are an example of that.

You have an incredible talent, and I am go glad you use it for God's glory. I am blessed for knowing you.

As for success...if you are happy with what you are doing, I think that would rate as success.

Throw my name in the pot for your latest release.

Hugs!
Laurie

P.S. I still write everything long-hand first. The words flow better through a pen and fingertips for me.

kaisquared said...

I think you arrive when you are happy with what you have written and have managed to share that happiness through your writing with others. Everything else is gravy.

kaisquared said...

I think you arrive when you are happy with what you have written and have managed to share that happiness through your writing with others. Everything else is gravy.

kaisquared said...

I think you arrive when you are happy with what you have written and have managed to share that happiness through your writing with others. Everything else is gravy.

LORETTA CANTON said...

Good post. I think you have arrived when you happy where you are.

Pamela S Thibodeaux said...

Looks like I picked a winner too early LOL!

Thanks Laurie, kaisquared & Loretta for stopping by!

Remember folks, beginning THURSDAY THE 4TH, Roni will be at my blog EVERY WEEK in June.

Drop by! http://pamswildroseblog.blogspot.com

Thanks again!
PamT

Roni said...

Thanks so very much for dropping by everyone! I know Pam and I both enjoyed seeing everyone and reading your comments. All the best to all the writers and authors here - you're all winners in my book.

Roni