THE SAUDA VOICE

Losing Faith is Finished

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I did it family!  I finished my novel!  I can't even begin to describe to you what that feels like.  I'm still in the "surreal" state. 

Last year, I wanted to submit my novel to the Bellwether contest but was unable to complete the manuscript by the October 2nd deadline.  I was really bummed about this, especially because I felt the subject matter of my book was a good fit for the contest. 

Well, flash forward a few months and here comes the Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award contest (ABNA for short).  To be honest, I don't even remember how I learned about it.  It was definitely a fluke because I discovered the contest days before it was scheduled to open for submissions (i.e. 1/25/10).  It was set to close February 7th or when 5,000 entries were received (whichever came sooner). 

Luckily, I made the deadline and successfully submitted my completed manuscript.  It was definitely a hectic, stressful couple of weeks, but I got it done.  Talk about hustle!  I did that and then some.  But, it was worth it.  I now have a finished book to show for it!  

Want to know more about what I've been working on for the past several months?  Check out this Losing Faith sneak peak:

Faith and Darryl Sinclair are what the black community affectionately call the Talented Tenth, African Americans of exceptional intelligence and achievement.  Faith, a policy analyst, is at the forefront of sentencing reform; fighting to repeal the Anti-Drug Abuse Act, a decades-old law that subjects blacks to harsher prison sentences than whites for the exact same crime.  Meanwhile, Darryl, an orthopedic surgeon, successfully builds Mercy Hospital's sports medicine division from scratch, taking it from non-existent to national acclaim in less than three years.

On the surface, the Sinclairs have the perfect marriage and Faith has the life many women only dream of.  She's beautiful, smart, on the career fast track, surrounded by caring friends, and married to a loving and successful man.  The Seattle native turned L.A. transplant could not be happier.  That is, until she discovers that her husband is not the man he pretends to be. 

Seemingly overnight, Darryl becomes cold, distant and deceitful.  Faith soon suspects that he's cheating and sets out to prove it.  A series of events eventually lead her to the truth and in an emotional, heart-wrenching confrontation, she comes face to face with Darryl's secret; a fateful discovery that sends Faith's life into immediate turmoil.

What's next?  I'm currently shopping the manuscript to literary agents.  Of course, I hope to win the ABNA contest.  That would be a major coup!  But winning is not a guarantee so I must proceed as if I haven't up until that point.  Just in case. 

I'll keep you all updated on my progress throughout the contest.

Hopefully, I make it to the end and WIN!!

BOOK UPDATE:  Stephanie M. Watts (aka Sauda Voice) has finally completed her first book, Losing Faith.  She is in the process of shopping the manuscript to literary agents in the hopes of finding a home for it very soon.

Wanna know more about Losing Faith?  Click here for a sneak peek.

I HAVE A CONFESSION

Yes, that's really me pictured above!

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Hello TSV Family!  It's been a while since we've had one-on-one time.  Have you missed me?  Well, I've missed you.  As most of you have likely noticed, there have been less commentary and opinion pieces from me in recent weeks.  Well, there's a reason and a good one at that:  Your favorite blogger has been busy......busy writing a book.  Yes, that's right!!  A BOOK!!! 

My book is a work of fiction (I'll leave the serious, non-fiction stuff for this blog).  In short, it's a story about love, betrayal and redemption.  Packed with contemporary themes, the book revolves around the life of Faith Sinclair, a young newlywed who quickly discovers that her husband is not the man he pretends to be.  He's hiding a secret, something so unspeakable that it threatens to unravel not only Faith's marriage, but life as she once knew it.  

As time goes on, I'll reveal more details about the book.  I'm writing the last several chapters now and hope to begin shopping it to agents (then to publishers) before the end of the year.  As I complete the last stages of this journey (writing final chapters, editing manuscript, sending out query letters, etc.), I'll chronicle my thoughts, feelings and experiences here at The Sauda Voice.  You're my family!!  I want you to share in this whirlwind journey of mine. 

If all goes as planned, I'll post a few sample chapters within the next month or so, a little taste of things to come.  Until then, thanks for your continued support.