Meet Dawn Bennett Hudson

We recently connected with Dawn Bennett Hudson and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Dawn, appreciate you sitting with us today to share your wisdom with our readers. So, let’s start with resilience – where do you get your resilience from?

From the time I was very young, I watched my parents struggle. It was one hard time after another. Yet, they never gave up on life or each other. I watched them get knocked down and kicked. They sucked in their breath, shook it off, and tried again. Over and over again, they struggled to find their place in life and acheive their dreams.

My turn came when I was 9 and was diagnosed with leukemia–on halloween no less. I would have died the night my parents took me into the hospital because I didn’t have enough blood in my body to keep my heart pumping. I was diagnosed at a time when there wasn’t a lot known about the disease and my chances were not great. After the doctor delivered the news, my father got in my face and said, “You will not die.”

The leukemia was the easy part. I got sick from a blood transfusion and almost died from that, shingles tried to kill me (they are deadly for people with cancer), and a few other issues knocked us to the floor. Plus, I’d made friends with other people who didn’t make it.

I ended up on the streets when I was 16 with a drinking problem. I met some unsavory people and had experiences that I still struggle with. On my 18th birthday, (January 2) I was sitting in a vacant lot, with no coat after a particularly nasty experience. I had no coat (sold it for whiskey) and knew that I didn’t matter. I promise I heard God ask me if this was how I wanted to spend the rest of my life. The answer was “no.”

I got myself together and I’ve been pushing forward ever since. I’ve had some set backs, I’ve stumbled, fell, and hit rock bottom. But the determination I learned from my parents and my own sense of pride told me that I had to get back up and try again.

Now, I’m doing what I’ve always dreamed of. I teach and I write books. I’ve had a couple published under my name and I’ve written tons of other books as a ghost writer. I have a couple more books coming out soon, and while there are still struggles, I know I’ve got this.

Great, so let’s take a few minutes and cover your story. What should folks know about you and what you do?

To me, words have always been magic. We moved around a lot when I was a kid and we never had much. Mom always made sure I had books, though. I started reading when I was three. Even then I was mesmerized by the characters and worlds.

I started writing when I was a kid. They were just silly, fanciful stories, that probably made no sense to anyone but myself. But I loved the idea of creating new worlds, creatures, and people. My first story was published in a newspaper when I was ten.

My goal right now is to be a successful writer and put out books under my name and my pen name, Yvonne King. The books under my name are psychological thrillers, while I write cozy mysteries under my pen name. (The first will come out soon.).

I also have a children’s series about Native Americans I’d like to write, a paranormal mystery series for young adults, and some educational material. I have to tell myself to slow down. 🙂 “One thing at a time, Dawn.” There’s just so much I want to do.

There is so much advice out there about all the different skills and qualities folks need to develop in order to succeed in today’s highly competitive environment and often it can feel overwhelming. So, if we had to break it down to just the three that matter most, which three skills or qualities would you focus on?

One of my best qualities that has helped me grow is that I’m willing to accept that there is always room for growth. I have a lot of clients. I am a great writer. I’ve seen how much I’ve grown since I first started writing. Can I get better? You betcha. I always take feedback and apply it to my work. I never take it personally, even though I’ve worked with some pretty snarky editors.

I learned to write because I’m an avid reader and have been since I was very young. Every writer has his/her own unique way of creating images and ideas in the minds of their readers. I study their craft and then create my own way of writing, which, as I mentioned, has continued to evolve.

Determination and resilience is another important trait. It isn’t easy getting your foot in the door. Once you’ve received your invitation into the writing world, the real work starts. You have to cultivate relationships, and work hard to prove that you deserve a place at the table. I’ve had a lot of set backs, failures, and rejections. I just shake it off and jump back in the game. I have the same mindset that I teach my students — nothing is going to beat me.

One of our goals is to help like-minded folks with similar goals connect and so before we go we want to ask if you are looking to partner or collab with others – and if so, what would make the ideal collaborator or partner?

I’m always looking for people to collaborate with for several reasons.

1. I don’t know it all. One of my friends, Kara Zone, who is launching her book series now, had taught me so much about the publishing business. I still have a lot to learn. She is also one of my cheerleaders. We are working together to launch our new publishing group so we can help each other be successful.
2. I’d like to help other people reach their dreams.
3. I’d like to continue growing my brand.

The kind of folks I want to collaborate with are serious minded. It’s a lot of hard work. People think that you can just write a book, put it on Amazon, and bam, it’s going to sell. Not so much. If someone is interested, they can email me at [email protected]

Contact Info:

• Website: https://cactusflowerpublishing.com
• Instagram: cactusflowerpublishing
• Facebook: cactus flower publishing

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