We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Diane Bator. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Diane below.

Diane, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Have you signed with an agent or manager? Why or why not?

I currently do not have an agent, but did work with one for a few years. I actually had a round about way to getting an agent. While I was submitting my first novel to various publishers and agents with no luck, I joined a little critique group. There were 4 of us who would send each other chapters every month and give feedback. One of the women gave really solid advice and was a wonderful source of information. One day, I swallowed my pride and asked her if she would read my entire book and give me some advice since I was getting frustrated. She not only gave me advice, she also told me to send it to a friend of hers when I was done with the edits.
Not sure why she’d say that, I Googled the woman she directed me to.
Turns out my critique partner was a reader for an agent who was starting out.
I did the edits, submitted it and told the agent who had refered me. Dawn Dowdle with BRLA, signed me immediately and helped me get my first and second publishers!
We ended our working relationship a few years (and a few books) later. Being a US agent, it was difficult working between a Canadian author and Canadian publisher. Also, my US publisher dropped my book series after 3 books, so we ended our contract amicably.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

I’m one of those writers who has always wanted to be a writer. For me, writing is like breathing. I just can’t stop. It keeps me sane! At first, I had no idea what to write, then settled into mystery after winning a contest called Murder in Ink that was sponsored by a small Ontario, Canada publisher called Wynterblue. Currently, I’m also dabbling in fantasy and a romance series. Never a dull moment! I’m grateful for my former agent, Dawn Dowdle, who helped me get traditionally published. I’ve been fortunate to be with a small Canadian publisher for the past 10 years and have 15 books published. I’ve learned so much about myself and my craft over that time!
One of the best parts about being a writer for me is encouraging others and helping to give any guidance I can. In 2018, I switched up my blog to use as a tool to promote others. I call it Escape With a Writer, which is becoming my new imprint name as I launch some future books. I’ve helped budding new authors to find their voices, and their stories, as they work through rough drafts. It’s so exciting to see them go on to publish first books and beyond.
In 2020, while everything was in lockdown, I took training with Jennie Nash to become a Book Coach. The training has helped not only me, but a few others that I work closely with. Including a good friend I’m writing a fantasy novel with. Hence the need for a self-publishing imprint!
I’m most proud of the fact I’ve written my books while raising three kids, through a lot of crazy life circumstances, and–as I say in interviews–in 15 minute increments. It’s true! I’ve written while waiting for doctor appointments, for kids in after school activities, on coffee/lunch breaks, you name it. You truly don’t need hours at a time to write! Setting aside fifteen minutes here and there can really add up. In my case, into 15 novels.
Why do I call my blog and business Escape With a Writer? Because reading should offer us all an escape from reality. I started off using it to share writers I know. Now I share authors from all over the world. Some days, I think we all need a little escape!

Do you think there is something that non-creatives might struggle to understand about your journey as a creative? Maybe you can shed some light?

I truly think we are all creative in our own ways. Life is all about perspective and not all of us have the urge to write books or paint pictures. Some people find creativity in cooking or baking. Others in numbers and puzzles. Still others in machinery and making things work in unexpected ways. Even building a sandcastle is a creative pursuit. Creativity stems more from what makes you happy and how you find ways to play and amuse yourself. How many times have you heard someone look at an abstract sculpture and announce that it wasn’t art? Art and Creativity are in the eye of the beholder. What we all need to do is lower our expectations and try new things – whether we see them as creative or not. We might surprise ourselves.

Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?

In early 2018, I had two traditional publishers I worked with. One of those, based in California, decided one Tuesday to let me know via my agent that my Gilda Wright Mystery series no longer suited the direction they wanted to go in. I took a whole 10 minutes to be upset, especially after my agent told me no other publisher would take previously published books. Back then, I lived a fifteen minute walk away from my day job.
By the time I got home, I’d decided to reach out to my Canadian publisher and see if they could help. They told me to let them know as soon as I had my rights back from the US publisher and they would be happy to take them!
I had all of my rights back by that Friday and started doing a re-edit on each of the three books. They were all republished by January of 2019, along with a new book in the series. Today, Gilda Wright Mysteries has 5 books in the series, with a 6th on the way in June 2024.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://dianebator.ca/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dianebatorauthor/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Diane-Bator-Author/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/diane-bator-35b63418/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/DianeBator
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCDHSfj6DI7X5eL2zIn6_2Uw

Image Credits
Author image in show courtesy of Amanda Marie Portraits.