New Roses of Prose Member: Margo Hoornstra

Margo Hoornstra

Hello everyone and thank you for inviting me to become a member of The Roses of Prose. First of all, I have to tell you how much I thoroughly enjoyed your A Holiday to Remember free read. Reading the next chapter was the first thing I would do every morning and, though I loved the HEA, I was very disappointed when the story came to an end. It’s going to be fun to be a part of whatever this group thinks to do next.

My personal history in a nutshell is pretty simple. I’m a wife to one; mother to four—seven if you count in-law children which I do—and grandmother to four so far. My work experience includes public relations specialist, magazine editor, television producer, and script and speech writer. I’m also a founding member of Mid-Michigan Romance Writers of America. A group I left for a number of years, but more about that later.

I was born and initially raised in a big city in the Midwest. During my lifetime I have moved to progressively smaller towns and, with the kids and grandkids near, now reside in a rural area with my husband, a dog he rescued a while back and any number of critters who call our yard home.

Like many of us who create and market our stories, I figured someday I would write a book. But only when the time was right, which meant after I earned a formal education, launched and sustained a successful and rewarding career, married then raised a family and became financially independent.

The basics of writing for publication were no mystery to me. It’s how my father earned his/our living when I was growing up. While he concentrated on script writing—Manhunt a radio show in Detroit that was the forerunner of a popular police show on television—some of his friends wrote books that were published, one or two even made into movies. I learned the drill of submission, rejection and eventual success at an early age. I guess I just didn’t see myself taking a true run at it, though I did have some short stories and articles published nationally.

But to paraphrase the song lyric, life happened while I was making plans. Proof of the education is in a frame on the wall, the career came and went, the husband is still with me, but the children are grown, and our accumulation of wealth turned out to be—well, you know—not exactly what we had hoped for or expected.

A few years back I came to my senses, rejoined my local RWA chapter and started to seriously pursue publication of contemporary romance. The result is a number of short stories, novellas and a full length novel, so far, published by The Wild Rose Press.

That first story sold was Forgotten Alliance. The novel is Honorable Intentions. Here’s a peek at their covers.

 

My goal now is for many more to come.

When I was first asked to write this introduction, I brainstormed with my husband for the best way to present myself. His suggestions give some insight into his perspective of what I do. First and foremost, he mentioned pursuing my dream, followed by planting positive memories in people’s minds and providing enjoyment to others through my writing.

Pretty significant stuff, don’t you think? And something all of us as writers, specifically romance authors, strive to do over and over again.

As I said at the beginning, thanks for having me here as a member, working member I understand, of The Roses of Prose. Oh, one more thing. I’m extremely challenged when it comes to the technical aspects of posting and commenting. Please be patient while I learn. And I apologize in advance if, through error or omission, I offend anyone or hurt their feelings.

However, there is hope. Given those limitations, I use the services of My Girl Friday - Virtual Assistant to help me and my web presence look good.

If you’d like to learn more about who I am and what I do, visit

my Website or my Blog.