It’s happened a lot.

I write something and think: This is the story that everyone will want!

Fast-forward past queries, rejections, publication submissions, more rejections, and maybe I get it to an acceptance in a magazine, or sign a contract with a small press. Maybe. No matter how hard you work, creative fields are tough. Your vision isn’t always clear or sometimes it just doesn’t resonate.

It hurts sometimes.

Writers often get down on themselves, but that spark of inspiration doesn’t stop. Every new idea is an idea worth exploring. Sometimes it hits, and sometimes it doesn’t. That’s the industry.

One of my favorite children’s book authors didn’t get her big break until after she retired. She’s a doll, and very successful now, a New York Times bestseller who I had the pleasure of sharing a booth with at a writing event a few years back. Her stories make my children happy and they warm my heart. Sales and success seem more tangible to me when sharing stories that make us smile and laugh.

I recently read a blog post from an author who is struggling to make his work fit the publishing mold. This is a professional with real credentials and an agent. His art is being hampered because it’s not enough like similar best-selling titles.

We’re in the business of selling concepts. It’s getting harder to push a new idea or a fresh take, but something inside me says to keep going. Maybe it’s because I write for both children and adults. Maybe my work will get drowned out, but I can’t stop.

I have always told stories. I will always write. The size and shape of my audience may change, but the connection will remain.