Media Articles

Author puts her dream in motion

2004-06-08
by Melanie Tucker
of The Daily Times Staff
Photo: Joy Kimbrough

Local author Deborah Grace-Staley credits bookshelves of Harlequin romance novels with sparking her own writing career. Before stumbling upon them at the public library in Kingsport where she grew up, this now avid reader said she had never cracked open a work of fiction.

But it was time to enter King College, and Grace-Staley knew she needed better skills. She walked to the public library, checked out their limit -- in all varying genres -- and settled into romance. By the time the summer was over, this soon-to-be college freshman was reading one Harlequin romance novel per day.

Fast forward to today. Grace-Staley is now wife to Fred Staley and mother to high school freshman Ethan Staley. She is also author of "Only You," her first romance novel, published by Echelon Press. It is the first in her Angel Ridge Series, with the second due out in November. Grace-Staley has also sold a third book coming out next year under a different publisher.

Success hasn't just fallen into her lap. Grace-Staley has been submitting her work for nine years, writing even longer. She said she was brought up to believe in the American dream.

"My parents taught me to believe I could do anything I wanted to do," Grace-Staley said. "If I decided to do something, I worked really hard at it. I bought into it, I guess."

Roaming the halls of her 1867 Victorian farmhouse in Maryville is where things got rolling for the Angel Ridge series. She was intrigued by the history of the old house after doing some research and based the series on some things she discovered.

"Only You" is the story of Josie Allen, a successful woman who has returned to her hometown of Angel Ridge to operate the local library. She runs into an old high school acquaintance, handyman Cole Craig, and the two then set the course for true romance. Roadblocks, however, threaten their unlikely union.

Rejection after rejection over the years didn't convince Grace-Staley to give up on her talent. She said she knew the talent was there; it was just a matter of time. She has won several writing awards over the years.

"I knew I was close," she said. "I just had to keep the faith. I knew in my heart that God wouldn't give me this gift with no outlet for it."

Looking back, Grace-Staley knows there are things she could have done differently that may have sped up this process. Joining writers groups is one thing she recommends for aspiring writers. She has done that, and said the conferences they sponsor and the critique groups can be especially helpful. She is a member of Smoky Mountain Romance Writers, Romance Writers of America and serves as president of The Society of the Purple Prose.

Working with distractions is something this novelist has gotten good at over the years. She said her experience in high school band helped tremendously.

"In band, you have to focus on what you are doing and ignore what everyone else is playing," she said. "I think that helped me a lot. I can just tune out what is going on around me."

With laptop in hand, Grace-Staley can tag along with Fred and Ethan, get some ideas hammered out and make progress on current projects. Writer's block has never been a problem.

"I don't get writer's block," she said. "Sometimes you don't write good stuff and you have to let it go. ... Sometimes you write trash. It just happens. But writing can never be a bad thing, even if you have to throw it out in the end."

Grace-Staley has a couple of friends who read her work before it gets submitted for publication. One reads it simply for pleasure; the other is strictly for proofing. While she is feverishly writing, Grace-Staley said she rarely stops to spell check. She is in her zone.

Once a book is finished, Grace-Staley lets it sit for a few weeks before going back to make revisions. It gives her fresh eyes after being so close to it for so long.

She doesn't read other books while working on her own. She doesn't want any voice but hers transformed onto the pages. And she knows romance writing is where she should be.

Early on, Grace-Staley got an agent who suggested she write something that was popular at the time -- westerns. This author had a different idea.

"You have to write what you are passionate about or it is not going to shine," Grace-Staley said. She said she tried writing for Harlequin, but just never fit their mold.

"Only You," started out as an 80-page novella. She ended up adding 200 pages before Echelon picked it up. It was, indeed, something this longtime writer put her heart and soul into.

Book signings are scheduled, and Grace-Staley is in Chicago this weekend for Printers Row. She said after nine years of submitting, she thought she would be ready when success finally came.

"You think you are ready and then you have no idea how not ready you are," she said, laughing.

Taking classes, networking at conferences and developing technically sound writing are pieces of advice Grace-Staley offers to other writers hoping to break into the market. And she said she is proof that never giving up has its rewards.

"Rejection is hard," she said. "But if you are a writer, it is not something you do, it's who you are."

For more information:
Deborah Grace-Staley's first romance novel, "Only You," is available at her Web site, www.DeborahGrace-Staley.com or at www.echelonpress.com. It is the first in her Angel Ridge Series. Cost is $4 to download or $9.59 for a 5-by-8 paperback. She will also have book signings in the area: June 10, from 6 to 8 p.m. at Blount Discount Books on Highway 411 South; June 12, from 2 to 4 p.m. at Cover to Cover, 104 S. Magnolia Ave., Maryville; June 19, at Curves in Maryville. Grace-Staley will work out at 8:30 a.m. and sign books until 11 a.m. You can also contact her at dgstaley@echelonpress.com.