The Monteau Family

Tamara
      ~Twilight Destiny
      ~The Darker Path
      ~Dragon Lord
   Services I Provide

I guess you could call me a dreamer. It seems like I've always had my head half-in and half-out of reality.

I am in love with the written word. I read Little Women by Louisa May Alcott (the unabridged version) and Pilgrim's Progress when I was eight years old.. These are serious books for a young reader, but I would sit on our stairwell and read for hours on end. I devoured one book after another - it was my favorite form of escapism. When books were not an option, usually at bedtime, I invented my own stories, playing make-believe in my mind. It helped me get to sleep on more than one restless night. That habit, learned early on, has never left me.

Perhaps Dark Shadows played an important roll in shaping who I am today. Dan Curtis introduced me to a world where vampires, werewolves, and other horror-film creatures could have a sense of humanity. I actually felt sorry for Barnabus and Quentin Collins. They did not choose the lives they were forced to lead, after all. (And wasn't Quentin just the babe?!) I absolutely loved to hate Angelique! When my sister and I were not watching the show, we invented our own tales and roll-played to our heart's content. I recall one day when my sister and I filled one of grandpa's work gloves with kitty litter and chased each other around with our own "hand of the Count".

I met an interesting woman by the name of Sue in the early 90's, during the time when the Dark Shadows Revival series aired. Again, I was drawn into sympathy for poor Barnabus, and when the series ended and I discovered the series would not return for a second season, I was devastated. I started making up ways in my mind that I could help my own vampire. When my imaginings began to keep me up at night, I started putting them down on paper and sharing my ideas with Sue. She was the one who encouraged me to continue, and Tamara Monteau the Author was born.

Through patience and lots of research, I've developed my own characters, their own stories, and my own writing style, which is still evolving as my work progresses. I still read avidly, and when I need a mental break from my own imagination, I live the lives set forth for me by such artists as Maggie Shayne, Linda Lael Miller, Jude Devereaux, Stephen Donaldson, Piers Anthony and many more.

Writing, to me, is both a joy and a trial. It gives me a sense of fulfillment, while at the same time taxing my internal resources. I obsess. I guess that's what you call it. The need to create becomes an obsessive compulsion, often ruling my entire life. During creative intervals, I end each day emotionally and physically drained, and obsess to the point of sleepless frustration each night. I sincerely hope that my efforts have not gone in vain.

What is my advice to new writers everywhere?

• First - believe in yourself. You must have the confidence and stamina (and sublime patience) required to write and publish your work.
• Second - read - read - read! Research your subject. Read what others have written in your genre. Study the intricacies of the English language. (Hopefully, you are already well-versed in the written word.) Evaluate your own ideas, and be sure in your own mind that you have something new, and are not simply copying works created by other artists. When you have all your facts straight, you can move on.
• Third - pour yourself a cup of coffee (or whatever you prefer to drink), take pen and paper in hand (or your home computer, laptop, whatever), set yourself up in a QUIET environment (so you can follow your muse uninterrupted), take a deep breath, and start writing. You'll find the process of beginning difficult, trust me. There's something about that blank piece of paper that terrifies authors and instills that horrible affliction known as writer's block. Just close your eyes and let your mind show you what it wants you to see. Get that thought bubble formed and start moving your fingers. Before you know it, you'll have several pages written!
• Fourth - share your written words with trusted friends. You will find their input and insight invaluable, and may even receive suggestions that will make your story more plausible and exciting. You will go through many revisions before your story is polished and marketable. Trust me, no one can put pen to paper and write the Great American Novel in one draft.
• Finally - find yourself a means of getting your work to the public. Finding an agent and/or a publisher is a daunting and frustrating task. I engaged the services of AuthorHouse.com to publish my work, and I highly recommend it as a good starting point. You'll need to finance all aspects of publication and marketing - you get out of them what you pay them, but you have the advantage of retaining all your rights, something that might come in handy when you do, at long last, garner the attention of a traditional publishing house. I encourage you to thoroughly research whatever company you choose to work with. Don't be fooled by agencies who expect money up-front for their efforts to market your work to publishing houses. Remember that agents are supposed to make money on the SALE of your work. If you give them money before the book is marketed, what is their incentive to actually sell your work? There are scam artists aplenty, ready to bilk you of your hard-earned savings and supply you with little or no return. Unscrupulous predators love to entice would-be authors into the romantic notion of becoming published. Please be careful.

And so, dear visitor, I hope you will take a look at my published works, which are available now through many on-line retailers.