Blog Tour, Guest Post & Giveaway: Love Beyond Opposites by Molly E. Lee

Crushed on by kelly, on May 10, 2018, in Blog Tour, Giveaways / 2 Comments

Blog Tour, Guest Post & Giveaway: Love Beyond Opposites by Molly E. Lee

Love Beyond Opposites by Molly E. Lee was just released this week! I am happy to be a part of this blog tour to help spread the word! Today I have a guest post from Molly E. Lee about her writing experience! So please check out all the book information below and don’t forget to enter the tour wide giveaway!

Love Beyond Opposites (Grad Night #3) by Molly E. Lee

Category: Young Adult, Contemporary Romance
Publication: May 7th, 2018; Entangled Crush
Purchase: Amazon, Amazon Australia, Amazon UK, Amazon Canada, B&N, iBooks, Kobo

If high school has taught mathlete Jade Aaron anything, it’s that nerds never get the guy.

So when rock star Lennon Pryor starts pursuing her, It’s not rocket science. This doesn’t add up.

I mean, sure, he’s hot.

And charming.

And a god on the guitar…

But he’s also the world’s biggest player. Being with him would be a bigger mistake than 2+2=5.

Until graduation night, when a reckless moment leads to a reckless kiss. And now Jade’s falling for the one guy destined to break her heart.

Guest Post:

If I Knew Then What I Know Now About Writing

Thank you so much for having me!

This question is always kind of a “following the white-rabbit down the hole” kind of thing for me. I have a tendency to look back and think if only I knew that then! This is especially true for all things writing related. I believe this is because this business is incredibly experienced based.

Don’t get me wrong, I took all the classes in high school and college, graduated with a Bachelor’s in English with an emphasis on creative writing. Those classes and the subjects taught are invaluable…but what I’ve learned since I chose to become an author? It’s ten times the amount I learned in school.

Having them both helped me shape the dream career I’ve always wanted, but if I knew then what I know today, the journey from newbie to published author would’ve been a much smoother ride.

For instance, as a young writer with zero experience, I didn’t have a clue about how many revisions one can go through before the book is publisher ready.

Sure, I knew about editing. I knew it had to be sharp and polished to get an agent. And then the sell to a publishing house. But I had no idea that you would edit the dream manuscript you spent months on countless times, then the agent would edit it a couple of times, then the editor who bought it would also want to revise it two or three times, plus a few rounds of copy edits and proofreads before it can be published.

Whew, even saying it is exhausting.

I don’t mind the work at all—I’m actually one of those twisted authors who loves edits because I feel like I learn the most from those comments or changes. Plus, I firmly believe in collaboration and how the work of several can only help you find the perfect vision for the work you started with. If I knew all that going into it, I would’ve focused more on time-management and patience. The publishing world is so exciting and sometimes it can be so, so hard to wait for the end result. Honing those patience skills would’ve really come in handy my first year in J

I also would’ve loved to know more about the business side of the industry.

As a newbie-writer, I believed all I would have to do was write the best book possible. And while that is very much true, there is an entirely other level to the industry. Marketing, promoting, sales and figures and ad budgets. All the things with numbers and charts and graphs and impressions and pixels and it goes on and on and on. I’m constantly learning about the selling side of the writing process—even with my traditionally published books, there is always something new to learn about actually getting your book into readers hands. I often find myself wishing I had a marketing degree, or a graphic design degree, simply because there are so many important facets that go into this amazing literary world. Luckily, there are so many talented people out there who know their stuff and are willing to teach.

I think this mindset is why I mentored new writers for six years in the Pitch Wars competition. Why I never turn away a new author who messages me asking for advice. I don’t know everything, and I know I never will. Not in this business. You’re constantly improving your craft or learning something new. But I will always tell you what I know. And it was the seasoned authors who I sought out when I was new who helped me. That kind of advice was priceless and I strive to provide that whenever possible.

So, yes, knowing then what I know now would save me a great deal of trouble today. But the experience is where I learn the most—the trial and error, the countless revisions until you’ve found your perfect story. I wouldn’t trade those for anything. Because, honestly, I’d still be here. Still be writing. That is one thing that will always be constant—then, now, or in the future—the key to being a writer is never giving up, no matter what level you’re at.

So, never give up, and never stop learning 🙂

Author Bio: Molly E. Lee

Molly E. Lee is an author best known for her debut novel EDGE OF CHAOS, and as a mentor at Pitch Wars – a program which connects promising writers to established authors in the community. Molly writes New Adult and Young Adult contemporary featuring strong female heroines who are unafraid to challenge their male counterparts, yet still vulnerable enough to have love sneak up on them. In addition to being a military spouse and mother of two + one stubborn English Bulldog, Molly loves watching storms from her back porch at her Midwest home, and digging for treasures in antique stores.