We recently connected with Stephanie Brick and have shared our conversation below.
Stephanie, we’re so excited for our community to get to know you and learn from your journey and the wisdom you’ve acquired over time. Let’s kick things off with a discussion on self-confidence and self-esteem. How did you develop yours?
It’s all rooted in my passion. Like anyone else, I try to present myself well, look my best, speak as eloquently as I write, etc.–but at the end of the day, I’m human, and that is a reality that can quickly diminish confidence and self-esteem if it’s only surface-deep! But when I’m talking about THE SECRET DOORS OF CANNONDALE, and the story of how it came to be, I am so passionate about this accomplishment that the confidence just flows naturally. So that’s what I focus on: talking about something I love and engaging with others who are ready to love it, too. That’s what engenders my long-term, deeply rooted confidence and self-esteem.
Appreciate the insights and wisdom. Before we dig deeper and ask you about the skills that matter and more, maybe you can tell our readers about yourself?
I am a licensed architect, world traveller, diehard foodie, and the author of THE SECRET DOORS OF CANNONDALE, nationally awarded Best Children’s Book (Readers’ Choice Book Awards). Inspired by my own childhood experiences discovering secret doors and passageways, I wrote this book to give my 12-year-old self the adventure I always wanted: it’s a thrilling upper-middle grade fantasy (ages 10+) about an outcast girl looking to belong who discovers a secret doorway to other worlds. Though I’ve been writing professionally on the side for many years, this is my debut novel and the first book of a trilogy–with Book Two is coming out soon!
If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?
The internet sometimes feels like an endless void of advice for aspiring authors. My three qualities/skills would be researching, self-auditing, and (of course!) writing.
‘Researching’ is not for book content so much as industry insight: no matter how you’re approaching it, this is not an easy industry to navigate (see earlier note about an endless void)! But I researched enough to be able to recognize good sources from scammy sources, and that was hugely helpful so I could actually trust in the resources I was trying to learn from.
Next, to any person diving into a new world, industry, project, etc., I highly recommend performing an ‘audit’ on yourself. The first step is to define what successful looks like to you; then (following the aforementioned industry research), make a list of everything you’ll need to do in order to reach that definition of success. Now comes the audit: what components on your list are things you can do yourself vs. should or must seek/hire/enlist help on? It’s critical to understand your own shortcomings (we all have them!) to effectively focus your energy.
Finally, a fundamental skill throughout my journey has been writing! I’ve been writing professionally on the side for many years: what started as ghost writing blog posts for a local company quickly evolved into writing external articles of interest then regular and multiple syndications via THE WASHINGTON POST (my top article reaching over 7 million readers). Excellent writing skills will propel you forward in nearly any career–especially if you want to become an author!
What was the most impactful thing your parents did for you?
My mother is an editor and my father has over 100 academic publications, including multiple books. Though there isn’t any crossover in our sectors (middle grade fantasy is quite different from their sectors), the work ethic they instilled in me as a child affected me in profound ways. Also, as an editor, my mother would redline every single school paper draft I wrote… Admittedly, I was not grateful for this in school, but I am so grateful for this now, because it absolutely molded me into the strong writer I am today!
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.stephaniebrick.com/secretdoors
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/stephanie.brick.author/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/people/The-Cannondale-Chronicles/61555149530845/
so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.
