Today’s guest blogger is Vicky Lorencen. She takes us on a journey winding back and forth through the years and paths that led to fulfilling her dream of traditional publication. Although there is a ton of good experience and wisdom throughout Vicky’s story, there were a couple messages that stood out to me.

1) Sometimes, like in the stories we write, as writers our darkest moments lead us to new perspectives, which moves us into action. I love how Vicky’s publication story begins with a dark moment. 2) We must write for the right reasons. Even though this blog series is about being traditionally published, that is not what the journey is about. If you can’t find the value in your writing journey, even if you were never to be published, you are missing what it is all about. Of course it is about a creative spirit that won’t let you stop writing. But, as Vicky says, it is also about the experiences, the personal growth, the adventure, and most of all the people you meet along the way. 

Vicky is offering an opportunity to win a copy of her fabulous THE BIG BOOK OF BARF: A SPEWNAMI OF SICK SCIENCE, HURLED HISTORY, AND BODY ODDITIES — you can find guidelines for entering the drawing at the end of this post. Now for Vicky’s post. . . .

The Looong and Winding Road

By Vicky Lorencen

January 2022, Mary Oliver pushed me over the edge. I stumbled on her quote in the Sunday issue of Parade and it gutted me: “The most regretful people on earth are those who felt the call to creative work, who felt their own creative power restive and uprising, and gave it neither power nor time.” I sobbed over the scalding truth of Mary’s quote.

After nearly two decades of pursuing publication, I still wasn’t there. And at that moment, I was convinced I never would be. I’d given it everything, but time after time I’d let myself be overrun by distractions—external and internal—and I could see no end in sight. No more fooling myself.

I was never going to be published. N-E-V-E-R.

[“Never” is such a relative word!]

August 2022, I got “The Call” from my agent. An editor loves my proposal! What once felt impossible, and yet somehow inevitable, was finally happening. I always imagined crying when/if that call came, but nope. I laughed, not in incredulity, just happiness. Okay, some incredulity.

Let’s back up a bit.

To the left is a photo of a collection of card, poems, and stories that Vicky created as a child. Her Granny Fanny saved them and gave them to Vicky as a gift for her 16^th birthday.

Circa 1968-ish My original plan, at age 5, was to become a children’s book author and illustrator. I’d start out at Hallmark, creating the art and writing the message for greeting cards, and work my way up from there. Yes, I’m a creative writer, but I am not making this up.

That dream kept stride with me all the way through grade school, middle school and high school. And when I left for college to pursue a B.A. in English—the degree with which one can do anything or nothing at all—I kept my aim on becoming a children’s author.

When people asked what I was studying and I’d say English, they’d typically say, “So, you’ll become a journalist or a teacher then.” I didn’t correct them. Evading the truth meant avoiding any looks of incredulity over my far-fetched dream. Sure, it was impractical, but I didn’t need their confirmation. 

[Hiding my dream is a mistake I regret to this day. Who knows who was ready to help me had I been open. Instead, I floundered.]

Mid 1980s After earning my degree, I was still no closer to reaching my dream. Mind you, this was P.I. (Pre Internet), so up to date resources were scarce. As before, I kept my dream to myself and I didn’t know a single soul who could guide me. Maybe I should have enrolled in the EZ Wheels Truck Driving School in Union City, New Jersey.

Around that time, The Institute of Children’s Literature (ICL) ran an ad campaign in magazines with the tag line: “We’re looking for people to write children’s books.” I sent for and completed the ICL aptitude test, but never submitted it. The whole thing seemed suspect like the “Can you draw Tippy?” ads on matchbook covers from the Art Instruction Schools. (Tippy was a turtle, by the way.)

My dream was morphing into a burden. A heartache even. I was overcome by the thought of coming to the end of my days and having to admit to myself that I never even tried. I didn’t even know how.

August 4, 2000: I took myself on my first and only PMS retreat. (PMS stood for Preserving My Sanity.) I reserved a hotel room where I drew a line in the [metaphorical] sand and prayed. I believed God placed this dream in my heart since childhood, but it was going nowhere. I asked him to confirm if I should continue, and if not, to take the dream away.

Three days later, a letter arrived from the Institute of Children’s Literature (ICL) asking if I still had the dream I’d had when I first contacted them years before. Was this my sign from God? Only one way to find out. I enrolled in ICL’s course on writing for children’s magazines. Turns out it was legit!

Shortly after enrolling, I was invited to talk with a group of women at my church. For the first time, I shared my dream. Afterward, a woman approached me to ask if I’d like to meet a published children’s author who lived in our town. YES! That generous author spent four hours pouring out every bit of advice she had to give. I collected it all, and over time, I applied all of it.

I finished that first ICL course and took another. At the end of that course, I learned about something I could only say slowly if I was going to get the acronym right – S—C—B—W—I. There, at my first conference, I found my people! My dream went from the color of congealed oatmeal to radiant neon.

2008-ish It was at an SCBWI-MI workshop in Grand Rapids, MI, that I met with my dream agent. (Yes, in one of those 15-minute face to face meetups.) We corresponded afterward, working on my first middle grade novel. I felt certain an offer of representation would come. But after a year, the agent commended the progress I’d made, but still didn’t feel I was ready. She said, “I need to close the door, but not quite all the way.”

CRUSHING! (But looking back, she made a wise decision.)

January 2015, I posted this on Facebook: “Tonight I sent queries to four carefully selected agents.” One of my SCBWI-MI friends commented, “Your agent is looking for you, too, Vicky. It’s just a matter of time before you connect.” Little did I know . . .

March 2015, I attended my second Vermont College of Fine Arts workshop and paid for a face-to-face meet-up, this time, with an editor. She wanted to connect me with her favorite agent. Can you guess who that was? Not long after the conference, I got an email, followed by a phone call from, yes, my dream agent, and this time, she did offer to represent me. I’m so glad she’d left the door open a little!

And the very next day, my first book sold at auction for a 6-figure advance!!! Uh. No. Remember The Call from my agent in August 2022? That was my first book sale!

January 28, 2025, After years of writing picture books and middle grade novels, my first book was a work of non-fiction: THE BIG BOOK OF BARF A Spewnami of Sick Science, Hurled History, and Body Oddities, published by Bright Matter Books/Random House Children’s Books. The entire process of working with the Bright Matter team was a joy and I am so grateful. Now, I can come to the end of my life knowing I not only tried but succeeded! (Honestly, even if I never got published, this journey would still be worth it for the experiences, the personal growth, the adventure, and most of all—yes, yes, yes, the people. I think Mary Oliver would respect that.) 

I sure hope that 5-year-old me is happy now. I wish I could read my book to her. Above photo is five-year-old Vicky with one of her Grandma Dorothy’s many dachshund puppies.

Things I’ve learned along the way

• Writing is a solo sport. Pursuing publication is a team sport. Take good care of your “write or die” friends.
• When you get a rejection, give yourself 24 hours to be grieve. This post from my blog, Frog on a Dime, may be helpful to you (and the people who love you and don’t have a clue what to do when you’re blue).
• Do not confuse publishing houses with a “make a wish foundation.” If you work hard, devote yourself to improving your craft, and keep submitting your work, eventually you will get published. I don’t believe that. Publishing is a business, and it wants to stay in business. We want it to stay in business too. Not everyone is going to get what they want.
• You have to pick your misery. You can feel miserable over not being published and quit OR you can feel miserable over not being published and keep going. The first option comes with the added misery of wondering what could have happened if you’d opted to keep going. I picked Door Number 2, and I’m glad I did.
• Luck is part of the equation. If all it takes to sell a book is talent, work hard, and perseverance, more of us would be published. Like it or not, luck is a piece of the process. But can you makeyour own luck? I think so. You cannot predict the when/where/who, but you can prepare for it.

Encouragement for the discouraged

• Welcome to a source of encouragement. In 2013, loooong before I was published, I started my blog Frog on a Dime to encourage my fellow children’s book creators. You’re welcome to hop on by whenever you could use a boost. You can leave me a note, if you want, and I’ll write back. We’re in this together.
• Remember to celebrate even small achievements. You are attempting something rare and original that may have a lifelong impact on the heart and mind of a child. WOW. We’re so lucky. Having a dream can feel like a holy calling and a burdensome pain in the keister but imagine slogging through life without one.
• Open an “Heck, YES, I’m an Author” bank account that’s just for you. When you sell an article, get paid for a critique or anything writing-related, stick it in your account and reinvest it in yourself. It’s practical and makes your dream feel more real.

ABOUT VICKY

Vicky Lorencen has been in healthcare communications for 16 years, writing about everything from allergies to Zika virus. Her previous writing-related roles include college writing instructor, freelance journalist, and associate editor for Kids in Common, a family resource magazine. Vicky’s work for young readers has appeared in Highlights for Children, Ladybug and Girls’ Life. Vicky and her husband live in Michigan with their feline proprietor Finn.

Visit her blog/website—Frog on a Dime—at VickyLorencen.com.

HOW TO GET IN THE DRAWING TO WIN a COPY OF THE BIG BOOK OF BARF: A SPEWNAMI OF SICK SCIENCE, HURLED HISTORY, AND BODY ODDITIES  

Share the link to this post on social media and leave a comment on this post telling us where you shared. Deadline May 3, 2025.