Victoria Roder - How I Became A Writer

This week, I'm very pleased to introduce multi-published author Victoria Roder who shared her journey to becoming a writer.

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Although my mom always told me I was creative and should be a writer, I never planned to be an author. I love children, have always wanted to work with them, and went to college to become a teacher. I enjoy watching children learn, I love their humor, their interpretation of the world around them and their loving nature. I also love animals and their unconditional love for us flawed humans. Those two loves led me on the road to becoming an author.
 

My husband Ron and I heard about a stray Husky that was hit by a car and left for dead. We didn’t want the puppy to suffer, and assuming he would need to be put down, we took the dog to vet.  To our surprise, other than his injuries, the stray was a healthy four-month-old puppy.  The veterinarian amputated his back leg and tail, and the day after his surgery, Rocky walked out of the veterinarian’s office and into our hearts.

I wrote an article for FarmLife magazine on our rescue dog Rocky. When my article, Rocky the Survivor appeared in The Farm Dog Hero section of FarmLife magazine I was hooked on seeing my words in print. I decided my writing goal would be to have something published, in print, which would memorialize each of my pets for all of eternity.  Not an easy goal when you realize I have three dogs, two cats, and a lizard.  It started with my Husky Rocky and then my story of our German Shepherd Dog, Tucker that got lost but we were lucky enough to find him, appeared in FarmLife magazine.

After seeing my words in print I took a writing class and in the course of reading to children everyday, I thought, in addition to magazine articles, I could write for these children I care so much about. Through magazine articles, novels, and children’s books I am well on my way to reach my original goal to have each of my beloved pets star in my writing. My cat Zues made his debut in my middle grade read, The Curse of King Ramesses II. Rocky and Molly lead a team of dogs in my newest middle grade read, Sled Dog Tales and my lizard Slippery is the star of my work in progress, also a middle grade novel.

I ventured into novels with my sister Tammy’s encouragement to write down a recurring nightmare I’ve had since I was a little girl. That dream became my first novel The Dream House Visions and Nightmares. In a publishing sense, my recurring nightmare became my dream come true. I’m also sneaking my beloved pets into my novels, My German Shepherd Dog, Tucker stars as a service dog in my new release, The Haunting of Ingersull Penitentiary. My cat Baby and my sister’s dog Teddy appeared in Bolt Action. So, I guess I’ve run out of my own pets and moved on to the beloved pets of people I know.

I believe animals enrich our lives and love us unconditionally. Think about this, if you locked your husband and your dog in your trunk for five minutes, which one will be happy to see you when you open the trunk? Although my writing goal started small, seeing ‘By Victoria Roder’ for the first time was the encouragement I needed to inspire the confidence to write. That confidence provided the courage necessary to submit my writing to publishers.  I say courage to submit, because any writer knows, if you submit, it is not a question of, if you will face rejection, but when, because it is a part of the process. 

Haunting of Ingersull Penitentiary:

Converting the former federal prison Ingersull Penitentiary, into The Big House Inn swallowed Hailey Price’s inheritance from her murdered mother and deceased father’s estate. But, with any luck, the rumors of the federal complex being haunted will boost interest of the Inn. The abandoned Penitentiary, cursed by a witch, is in a constant battle of good versus evil, an eternal struggle for the souls that enter the complex. The residual haunts are the least of the frightening occurrences at the Inn. An electrical storm traps the visitors with a possessed Ouija board and the spirit of a condemned witch and an ancient curse. It might be Heaven checking into The Big House Inn, but it’s Hell checking out.

Bio:  

Victoria Roder lives in Central Wisconsin with her husband and house full of pets. She is the author of paranormal thriller Haunting of Ingersull Penitentiary, action thriller Bolt Action, paranormal romance The Dream House Visions and Nightmares. Picture book An Important Job to Do: A Noah’s Ark Tale, children’s chapter books, Sled Dog Tales and The Curse of King Ramesses II, an inspirational book It’s Not You, It’s Them: Six Choices to Healing & Thriving After Abuse, and her short stories have appeared in several anthologies. Victoria also creates puzzles for magazines and activity books and coming soon from DWB children’s line, Directions for Life a teen puzzle book and devotion. Please visit Victoria at www.victoriaroder.com

Blogspot: http://victoriaroder.blogspot.com/

Amazon Author: http://www.amazon.com/Victoria-Roder/e/B002P2WZ5O/ref=ntt_athr_dp_pel_1