On August 31, 2009 I wrote the first words of The Color of My Heart. On October 19, 2010 it was finished. Only fourteen months to create a novel. So why did it take until November 7, 2012 for me to hold the first published copy?
Let?s start with editing. For several months after the first draft I self-edited, when I thought I?d done everything possible to make it the very best novel I could I turned it over to my editor, Jo Martin. She kept it a couple of months, and then returned it to me and I made revisions. Then I gave it back to her for the final edit. She kept it a couple more months and then I did the final revisions.
What then? Submit, submit, and submit. Over one year ago on October 11, 2011 I started submitting The Color of My Heart to agents and publishing companies. One hundred eight agents and nineteen publishers later The Color of My Heart was picked up by Ambassador International of Greenville, South Carolina. Obviously the publishing world liked my work much more than the literary agencies.
In April of this year when I received an email from Ambassador saying they were interested in my manuscript I was elated. At that point I had been working on Color for almost three years. Its birth was long over due. Now that the baby has arrived what do I do with it?
Sell, sell, and sell! Color arrived about 1 p.m. on Wednesday and by bedtime the next day friends and neighbors who had been patiently waiting had snatched up over sixty copies. Now the real work must begin. Press releases have to be sent. There are bookstores, libraries, radio stations, newspaper offices and trade magazines to contact, and, last, but not least festivals to attend. This is the fun part because I get to interact with people. Being a writer is a very lonely job. We write. And to write we must have solitude, or I do anyway. So it?s fun to get out in the world.
The Color of My Heart is a story of acceptance. Do you see the color of someone?s skin or the color of his or her heart? God does not judge us based on our race, skin, beauty or lack of. He judges us by the condition of our hearts. Not our wealth, color, or position in life. So the color of ones heart matters more than the color of skin. I can only hope that this novel will change lives. That after you read it you?ll look at your fellow man in a different light.
You can order The Color of My Heart via my website at: www.SarahMartinByrd.com and at most online bookstores. If you?re local you can even stop by my house and I?ll be glad to sign a copy for you. I?ll also be at the Clingman Community Center in Clingman, North Carolina this Saturday, November 17th, from 8 – 3 for their Christmas in Clingman Celebration. Then on Saturday, December 8th, from 12:30 – 6:30 I?ll be at The Fairfield Inn on CC Camp Road, Elkin, North Carolina for their Holiday Open House.
Don?t forget, Christmas is just around the corner. The Color of My Heart would make a great gift.
