Meet Melisa Quigley

Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Melisa Quigley. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Melisa, looking forward to learning from your journey. You’ve got an amazing story and before we dive into that, let’s start with an important building block. Where do you get your work ethic from?

Working for ten lawyers in a city law firm. I had to be organized and meet tight deadlines.

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 write books in different genres. I love writing, but some days it doesn’t like me. It’s not like a job where you’re given something to type. I have to rely on my inspiration. Sometimes it goes on holiday for several days, sometimes for a week. When that happens, I’ll read a book. Why? Because reading and writing go hand-in-hand. The most exciting part about writing is the inspiration that comes. It’s a bit like meditating. You don’t judge, you witness. When I’ve written it down, I edit it.

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?

That’s a good question. I can say I’m going to write, but ‘life’ gets in the way and I end up writing nothing. I’ve found 3 skills: discipline, brevity, and clarity to help me convey the story I’m writing.

Discipline is the act of showing up with pen and paper to write. We live in a fast-paced world with many distractions, and don’t give ourselves time to do something we want to do. We can feel guilty doing something for pleasure because the washing needs to be done, the children need to be fed, etcetera. My advice is, if you want to write, be kind to yourself. Some days your writing will flow, and other days it won’t, but you still need to work at it every day. I sit on the floor on a mattress in the back room with my two dogs, Oscar and Molly. While I write, they sleep or look out the back window. Writing is a solo journey, so it’s nice to have company.

Brevity means making sure each word carries weight. My Let’s Write a Six-Word Story or a Poem Workbook has helped me do this.

Clarity ensures that there is no ambiguity, and the message/story I’m trying to convey is clear to the reader.

It’s like the old saying: practice makes perfect. The more you practice these techniques, the easier it becomes.

All the wisdom you’ve shared today is sincerely appreciated. Before we go, can you tell us about the main challenge you are currently facing?

Many people say that it’s hard to write a book. The more you write, the easier it becomes, and there’s a wonderful feeling of euphoria when you’ve finished. I guess it’s like a runner being first over the finishing line. You did it. Congratulations! Now comes the hard part: to self-publish or publish traditionally.

If you self-publish, you have to market your book and do everything yourself:

a) finding an editor,
b) formatting the book,
c) working out what sort of book cover you want and finding someone to do it for you
d) the blurb on the back of the book; and
e) watch YouTube’s to find out how to upload it on Ingram Spark or Amazon.

It doesn’t stop there. You still have to market your book on social media.

However, the biggest obstacle I’ve found is querying. I’ve sent my book out to many traditional publishers. Some reply, and other firms are too busy. When they do, they never tell you what they like/dislike about your book. I’ve sent many query letters out and received no replies. Recently, I decided to self-publish my picture book, Cat Court, and did all of the above.

I look at life as a writer as a learning curve. When I send over 70 query letters, and my book is rejected, I have to make a decision: keep querying or self-publish. I also ask my writing group and family, and friends if they think the book has merit. If so, I self-publish.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://melisaquigley.wordpress.com/
• Instagram: @MQuigley1963
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/melisaquigley/
• Twitter: @MQuigley1963