We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Gina Marie Agderian. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Gina Marie below.
Gina, we’re thrilled to have you on our platform and we think there is so much folks can learn from you and your story. Something that matters deeply to us is living a life and leading a career filled with purpose and so let’s start by chatting about how you found your purpose.
I knew from a very young age that I loved books, stories, and words. I was reading before I turned three years old. My parents would read to me every night, which fostered my love of reading. I started writing short stories in elementary school about my favorite Disney characters (I was writing fan fiction before it was a thing!), and I started journaling when I was nine years old. It was clear to me that I would one day write a book, maybe multiple books. I had stories to tell and I wanted to share them with the world.
Let’s take a small detour – maybe you can share a bit about yourself before we dive back into some of the other questions we had for you?
I am a self-published author and a nano-creator on social media. My first novel The Letters in the Old House, which takes place down the Jersey Shore, was published in 2018, and I am currently revising my second novel The Faceless Woman (also taking place down the Jersey Shore), which will be published in 2024. I don’t write for a specific audience; I just write stories that I would enjoy reading. You have to be your art’s biggest fan, which I think is difficult for a lot of creators and artists, myself included. Readers will say to me, “I loved your book!”, and my immediate thought is sometimes, “Really? Why?” Imposter syndrome is very real for me at times, which makes it difficult for me to promote my work. It is so easy to be hard on yourself, but I try to remind myself that I am my own worst critic. The most challenging part of creating something is putting it out there and sharing it with the world.
I am super excited about publishing The Faceless Woman in 2024, and I already have the basic plot for my third novel. I just held my first book signing in October 2023, and I have another book signing scheduled in Hawley, PA on May 19th, 2024. I am also working on the audiobook for The Letters in the Old House, with much convincing from my husband. I will be recording the audiobook myself, so you’ll hear it read in a *true* Jersey accent!
Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?
I’ve been able to accomplish what I have so far because I’ve been passionate, resilient, and resourceful.
I love books: I love reading them, I love the feel of them, I love the places they transport us to, and I love how reading is good for our brains. You cannot create if you are not passionate.
Resilience is important because the creative process can be quite frustrating and lonely. You have to be able to push through that and put one foot in front of the other: one word at a time, one page at a time, one chapter at a time. You must trust that it will all come together in the end.
I had to be resourceful when it came time to create a cover and upload my novel to KDP (Kindle Direct Publishing). I Googled EVERYTHING…I had no idea what I was doing other than that I wanted to write a novel! Google and YouTube are such great tools – you can learn anything from them. I recommend leaning heavily on those tools when you are unsure of how to do something.
What is the number one obstacle or challenge you are currently facing and what are you doing to try to resolve or overcome this challenge?
My biggest challenge right now is time. In addition to my writing and content creation, I also have a full-time job. It is a huge challenge to balance everything, and sometimes I feel that I have bit off more than I can chew. It is tough enough to find time to write, but then I have to find time to create and upload videos to Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube. Excluding my full-time job, I look at everything through the lens of “What is the most important thing to do right now?” Have I not made any progress with my novel lately? Am I overdue for a social media post? It comes down to prioritizing my tasks and figuring out what is going to be the next step to push me forward. It’s not a perfect system, but it is what works best for me right now.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.gsellsseashells.com/
- Instagram: @gsellsseashells
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/GinaMarieAgderian/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@gsellsseashells
