Yay! Sigh of relief. Life goal achieved. Right?

Well, yes… and not exactly. I’m being a little tongue-in-cheek with the slightly deceptive title of this post because, while it’s true that I’ve written a book, it’s not actually my first. To date, I have twelve complete novels under my belt, published under my pen name of Veronica Bale. More than twelve, actually, if you count all the ones I’ve ghostwritten in the years before I started writing for myself. That’s a lot of books. A lot of characters, a lot of storylines… a heck of a lot of words!

But this book is special. This new book that I’ve just completed is one that I’m going to attempt to have traditionally published. Admittedly, I am not a newbie to the submission process. I am well aware that from here on out it’s a long road ahead to hopefully win the interest of an agent. To get it in front of a publisher, and to make it available for readers. Nevertheless, I’m excited for the journey.

Why? Well friends, it’s because I want this book to be published under my own, real name.

How did I wind up writing under a nom de plume, you might ask? Here’s the story. Originally, I had built up a tidy side hustle by ghostwriting stories, as a way to earn a bit of extra income. As I got going, and as I cultivated a client list and a portfolio, I began to wonder where all this anonymous writing was going. Lo and behold, I stumbled upon a relatively new self-publishing world, made available to authors by companies like Smashwords, Kindle Direct, Barnes and Noble, and Kobo. In a bid to find out how much my clients were making off my fervent scribbling, I decided to put my own book out there, to test the waters, as it were. I decided that I would use a pen name, and if the project made at least $30 (the cost of my cover art), I would consider the endeavour a success.

To my astonishment, it made a little more than thirty bucks.

Ten years on, I am thrilled to have built a career around my Veronica Bale novels. But I had always, ever since I was a little girl sneaking my mother’s V.C. Andrews paperbacks into my knapsack so my friends and I could read all the gothic intrigue at recess, wanted to be an author. I wanted to have my name out there in the world, to share the stories that lived in my head and provided me with endless entertainment and unfailing companionship. And I would one day. I was sure of it.

Now, as my son so lovingly reminds me on occasion… I ain’t getting any younger. It’s about time I sat down and put in a real effort to make that happen.

Which brings me to the here and now. My novel is written. I’ve put my heart and soul into the plot, the characters, the writing quality and the atmosphere. For anyone that’s read my most popular Veronica Bale novels – The Ghosts of Tullybrae House, Shadow, Legend of the Mist, The Other Side of Dawn (etc.) – I think you’ll like this one, too. Blending elements of the past and present together, this new story is full of lovable ghosts, Scottish scenery and, of course, a squeal-worthy love story.

Will my fledgling manuscript make its way out into the world under a traditional publishing model? We shall see, friends. To be continued…

THE GATEKEEPERS

Nicola Price has always been aware of the ghosts which inhabit the Aldergate Tavern and Inn. The historic landmark which she owns and operates on Edinburgh’s Royal Mile has seen more than its fair share of bloody conflict over the centuries, so a resident spirit or two is only natural. But with the arrival of best-selling author Mike Daggerty at the Aldergate, suddenly it’s not just the spirits of her popular pub Nicola sees, other ghosts begin to make themselves known. They want something from her, something to do with the handsome, troubled writer who has come into her life. But what?

Mike “Daggs” Daggerty has made a career of travelling the British Isles in search of stories from beyond the grave. But despite his thriving career, he is beginning to feel lost, and is losing his lust for the one thing he has always loved: storytelling. When Daggs meets Nicola, however, things begin to happen, and stories begin to surface. It’s almost as if something, or someone, is guiding Nicola to help him. What tales do the ghosts of the Aldergate have to share, and how can Nicola help Daggs find the story he’s been searching for all his life? What will they each learn about themselves along the way?