Guest Post from Patricia Hudson

From time to time we welcome other horse authors to the blog - to share their experiences and talk about their books. Today - please welcome Patricia Hudson, author of a new book called Stolen Hearts.

When Sara learns that her beloved thoroughbred has been stolen, she relies on fellow horse trainer, Ryan, to help her locate the missing horse. As she struggles to trust Ryan's true intention, she finds out that while Ryan is helping her find her stolen horse, he has managed to steal her heart as well.

Please enjoy this post where Patricia talks about her journey toward publication:

My journey with horses started years ago; too many if I’m worried about my age. As a teenager, I watched the red and black coats flying through the valley on horseback, jumping coops, following dogs in the chase for a nonexistent fox.  In late fall, the entire town turned out to watch the cavalry games on the lawn of the quintessential mansion. Ahh, the nostalgic memories of my youth!

Fast forward to a husband and three children in the Chicago suburb of LaGrange Park. Despite a busy life and a demanding career, horses were still there, lingering in the background. My six year old caught the bug. From where is a mystery, but she had it bad. We signed her up for riding lessons at a stable we found in our suburb. Horses were back in full force, Saturday morning riding lessons and the occasional schooling show. She thrived.

Another move. This time we moved to our forever home on the outskirts of Springfield, Illinois. Was our dream finally coming true? We bought land, a farm house, and a barn; a barn to house our very own horses. It was not the home of my youth, with the green valleys and rolling hills, but it had its own charm and purpose.  Wherever I looked golden fields of wheat, rows of corn and the yellow flowers of soy beans captured my eye. I loved the land.

 Weekends were spent traveling to horse shows. Funny, when a horse is shared, the angst between mother and daughter disappears. In time, my youngest went off to college, but I had the horses to soothe me. She graduated, got married, blessed us with wonderful children and my life went on. Horses still lived in my barn. Where did I get the idea to breed my mare? Was I going through my mid-life crisis? Yes! I made arrangements to send her to a local breeding farm, the home of a World Champion.

 

 

Three hundred forty-two days later, we saw the miracle of life. We had a filly. The following year, we had our second.  As life happens, I lost my beloved broodmare, but to this day I treasure her foals. The girls are stabled in Nashville, Tennessee with my trainer. I go there often to visit. My barn may be empty, but horses will always be in my heart.

I was never a writer, there just wasn’t enough time. When I retired, I panicked. What am I going to do with my time? My children are gone, my horses are gone, and my husband leaves me every day to go to work. I was alone. It didn’t take long for me to think, I’ll write. I’ll write about strong women, horses, and the love they share. It will give me purpose, even if no one else reads it. My writing became my companion. I couldn’t wait to get up in the morning and hit the keys. As the story unfolded, I thought, maybe others will want to read my book? The day I sent it off to a publisher, excuse me for the cliché, I was as excited as a kid in a candy shop. My first fifty rejections broke my heart but taught me a lesson. Before you send your manuscript off, you need to polish it and polish it again.

My first book sits proudly displayed on my coffee table. Since then, I’ve written four others, all to be published in 2014. Three of them include my hero, my love, my passion, and my addiction - the horse.

 

Thanks so much for stopping by, Patricia, and Good Luck on your writing and publishing career!
To find Stolen Hearts on Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Stolen-Hearts-ebook/dp/B00E3LMF7I