In September, I had the privilege of attending the ACFW (American Christian Fiction Writers) Conference. While I was there, I met several authors I had only previously connected with online–including fellow InspyRomance authors, Toni Shiloh and Emily Conrad! I also got to meet the wonderful woman I’d like to introduce you to today. I invited Dulcie Dameron to guest post over here, because she has several small-town contemporary Christian romance novels out and is definitely going to be someone you’ll want to check out!
Take it away, Dulcie!
–Tara
I’m so excited to get to share a little bit about myself and my writing today. And let me give a huge thanks to Tara Grace Ericson for this opportunity!
If you don’t know me, I’m Dulcie, a Christian wife and mama who’s currently obsessed with writing down the stories that live in my imagination. I was an avid reader for years before I started writing a little over a year ago, and since then, God has allowed me to complete and self-publish four novels and two novellas! Whew! It’s been a wild ride, but one I’m infinitely blessed to be on. I’ve met so many amazing indie authors and friends along the way, and for that, I’m even more grateful!
Today, I just wanted to take a minute to introduce myself and talk about why I decided to venture into writing fiction.
For years I blogged about my personal life, struggles, beauty, and everything in between, but when 2020 hit, I lost inspiration. I felt overwhelmed and bogged down, as I’m sure many of you did during that time. Then enter in my fifth pregnancy, subsequent cesarean section and a severe struggle with Post-Partum Depression or PPD. Every day was a hardship at that point, and despite having so many blessings in my life, it was difficult to see past the mental fog I felt shrouded in.
Fiction was always my way to escape during my rough pregnancy, so I decided to entertain the idea of coming up with my own story. And when I did, I was amazed at how my mind ran away with itself! Before long, I was coming up with multiple characters, plots, and storylines, all within a matter of days! And in just one month, I had my first ever inspirational romance novel written!
My first story follows a curvy female heroine who’s sought healing for the past eight years in her small hometown, only to have her painful past dredged up again when her high school sweetheart shows up on her doorstep unexpectedly. It’s a story of love, loss, healing, and forgiveness. It will always hold a special place in my heart, no matter how many stories I write. You can read that story here.
But even though I wrote an entire full-length novel, I still had no clue what I was doing! The only thing I knew was that the writing process gave me something to look forward to. Something to give me hope and clarity during a really hard time in my life. And I also knew that one day I’d eventually like to publish it, but with so many different routes to take in that department, I didn’t know where to start.
After a lot of research and prayer, I decided to go forward with self-publishing. I found an amazing editor who not only edited my first works, but also gave me advice directly related to my genre and found the most wonderful, supportive community of mommy writers on Facebook. And I can’t forget the super sweet and creative bookstagrammers that have given my stories a chance. Their love and support have meant so much!
Though I’ve had a mostly positive experience so far in my indie author journey, I’ve realized that it’s not for the faint of heart. There are so many new things to learn, road bumps along the way, and plot twists that I didn’t see coming. But I’ve been blessed by this opportunity and hope
to continue bringing my readers stories full of sweet romance, quirky characters and inspirational themes.
Join my newsletter and get my free novella!
If you’d like to follow me along this journey on social media, you can find me on Instagram @dulciedameron or on Facebook at Author Dulcie Dameron. I’m also on Tiktok as @authordulciedameron.
–Dulcie
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Thanks so much for sharing with us! I love that you took the hopelessness and isolation of 2020 and turned it into books that bring hope and inspiration!
I (Tara!) am going to give away a free ebook of choice from Dulcie’s catalog to a random commenter. Check out her books on Amazon and let me know which one you’d like to read most! Or – Dulcie will be hanging out in the comments, too – so if you have any questions for her, ask away!
Tara Grace Ericson lives in Missouri with her husband and two sons. She studied engineering and worked as an engineer for many years before embracing her creative side to become a full-time author. She loves cooking, crocheting, and reading books by the dozen. Her writing partner is usually her black lab - Ruby - and a good cup of coffee or tea. She loves a good “happily ever after” with an engaging love story. That’s why Tara focuses on writing clean contemporary romance, with an emphasis on Christian faith and living.
I’d like to read Next to You.
Hi Dulcie, I haven’t come across your books before but I will definitely join your newsletter and look out for your books. I think you are amazing to write so much in a year with small children and all you’ve been through – I can really relate to the C-section and following PPD, I hope you’re doing better now, as I am.
I would like to start with Next To You, the first book in your series.
Good luck with your continuing journey as a writer, I hope you can come back sometime and let us know how you’re doing.
Arrgh sorry for mixed up, I meant Not Since You!
Would like to read Not Since You! Great post. I enjoyed learning more about Dolcie.
Dulcie. . sorry on typo. :-)
Meeting you two, Dulcie and Tara, at ACFW was such a highlight for me! I just started reading my first Dulcie Dameron book and it’s off to a great start. Can’t wait to read more!
Welcome to Inspy Romance, Dulcie! And thanks for inviting her over, Tara!
Now With You: A Secrets of River Hollow Novella sounds like a fun read. Lately I have been on the look out for older heroines. I am now retired and seem to love these
Welcome and congratulations. Continue to follow Gods wisdom and guidance.
Where do you find a lot of your inspiration?
Hi, Ruthie! Thanks so much for your kind words! Us mama’s gotta stick together ❤️ I hope you enjoy my stories! :)
Dulcie
Oh, Emily, you’re such a sweetheart! 🖤 Thanks for that!
Thank you so much, Valerie!
Drop in forever.
I think you’d enjoy Now with You, Lori! That one was actually the most fun for me to write. I LOVED writing an older heroine 🖤 My inspiration comes from a lot of things, but probably just adding my own spin on stories or movies I enjoy, plus adding in some real life experiences. The subplot in Not Until You was based off a true story! Thanks for the welcome 😀
My personal favorite 😍
Thanks Becky! 🖤
Such a sweet one!
I’d read any of them! I like finding new authors!
It’s nice to meet you, Trudy! :)
interesting character
Thank you so much for sharing. I would be interested in Not Since You. God bless you.
A drop in forever sounds really good. Thanks for sharing!
new author to me
Not Until You novel sounds interesting.
Wishing you the best in your writing journey.
Thanks for sharing your story about how/why you starting writing.
God bless you.
Thank you so much!
A drop in forever looks really good! I’m always on the lookout for Christian authors who venture into fantasy romance or gothic romance.
Not since you looks great!
I would like to read Now with You. Like Lori up above somewhere, I am retired as well, and this resonates more with me. I came across your books last week and had read about them already. They all sound good.