Three … two … one … we were back on the air. Message points, I thought to myself. Remember my message points. We discussed romance and the Sandra Bullock look-alike said she’d never read one before The Bachelor, but she loved it. There it was, the prime opportunity to let the audience know, Romance authors write substantial, important books! As an author, I provide happy endings and escape from daily reality. And this woman, who’d never picked up a romance novel before, gave me the chance to say, if a reader enjoyed The Bachelor, they just might like other romance novels too. I hope I’ve broadened our audience and done my fellow romance writers proud.
“And we’re … off.”
THE MAGIC CONTINUES
It was over. I took a deep breath and realized I survived LIVE television. They quickly shuffled us back into the green room, asked us to pick up our things and leave. All within ten seconds. No down time allowed. I shook wondering, How’d I do? In the end I decided I was proud of myself. After all, I’m Karen, wife and mother of two, the same Karen who couldn’t handle moot court in law school, and hated speaking in public. I dealt with Regis on television and met my soap opera idol, Kelly Ripa. And now, I’m a New York Times Bestselling author with her first hardcover novels coming out. I’m not just Karen Drogin aka Carly Phillips, I am Carly Phillips. And proud of it.
Not bad for one short summer and I owe it all to my fairy godmother, Kelly Ripa.
THINGS MY FAIRY GODMOTHER TAUGHT ME—or words of wisdom I’d like to share:
Take chances. Trust your judgment and follow your gut instinct. Don’t worry what other people think, but reach for your dreams in ways only your heart can dictate.
You can’t afford not to have friends. Value them. It’s easy to be a friend when times are bad, but it’s the good times when you learn who your best friends are.
You can’t afford not to have a publicist. It’s something every author should consider when they feel they’re on the cusp of something big in their career. Thank goodness I’d already been with Blue Moon when the idea for sending a book to Kelly came to me.
Always carry a mirror in your purse. You never know when you’ll need it.
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