We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Sheryl M a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Sheryl, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. We’d love to hear the backstory behind a risk you’ve taken – whether big or small, walk us through what it was like and how it ultimately turned out.
As a young girl, I discovered a love for creative writing at a very young age. The ability to make life go the way I wanted in my mind helped me cope with what was happening in my reality. I would spend hours sitting and playing with stories flowing through until one day, my friend Katie and I wrote a story together. It was about her coming to my house for the weekend and all the things were going to be doing. I was the writer and she, the artist. However our classroom teacher at the time told me I would never be a writer and had no idea about writing good stories. I was heartbroken and from that moment on, I hated English and only just passed the subject throughout the rest of my schooling days. I focussed on discovering other loves in life and ended up doing a beauty course and having my own somewhat successful business. However, after a health scare, I sold my business and studied cosmetic formulation, specializing in organic products.
In my personal life, my life fell apart and my heart was shattered, leaving me devastated and lost with four children, the youngest only a very young baby. I was lost and alone with only a very small select group of friends and my children I began to suffer mild panic attacks and the fear of life never having a happy ending. I lost my cosmetics startup and all the passion for the creativity that came from creating something out of nothing. It was demoralizing and heartbreaking. The pain never seemed to end.
Laying in bed one night I remember asking for a sign that things were going to be better, that if I could just see a glimpse of what I needed to do or what was coming, I would be grateful. I was not disappointed. That night I had a dream about a couple and a child and the male’s voice screaming just one sentence. That sentence lingered in my mind as I ate breakfast and like a lightening bolt from the sky and story began to take hold in my mind.
Taking a notepad, my children happily playing all together, I mapped out the story that began to take hold in my mind. I remember sitting and writing frantically, scared that if I didn’t get it out now I would miss what was happening in my head. By the end of my frantically written words, I had the making of an Australian rural romance and my body felt alive and warm. It was as if I was floating with my feet on the ground.
For the next few weeks, I let this story mill around in my head, however, it felt like I was ahead of myself. That this was not the first part of the story and then one day while my youngest baby slept the first book of what is now known as the River Flats series lept to life in my mind. I quickly mapped it out and sat with tears in my eyes.
I had two romance novels mapped out and could see them in my hands. but I wasn’t a writer. my teacher had stated I was horrible at it. Her voice stopped me for about a month. My self-beliefs were making me upset and I hated how I had these books in my mind but they would never see the light of day. I became saddened and frustrated at what I was doing. Who was I to think I could write a book when I was hopeless at writing.
It wasn’t until I got so mad one day that I forced myself to at least see if I could write the first chapter. Those first 600 words were the hardest words I have ever written. I deleted and started again, many times. it is safe to say it was well over twenty times. It took tears and lots of pacing and drinking lots of green tea and a hell of a lot of chocolate to finally get those first 600 words out. even then I was fighting myself.
That afternoon, whilst at swimming lessons, a friend of mine was there, it was not her normal afternoon, but she was there and for some reason, I told her about my book idea and who I was having trouble with it and her words would forever change the rest the of my life. “You wrote 600 words. So yes you can write a novel” I still remember her frowning at me confused, before she added “So, you can’t spell well or do grammar. Use the apps on the computer to help you and once you get an editor, that’s their job. Your job is to create the story, write it how you want it to be told and the editor fix the shit you’re so-called useless at.”
Her words were like a lightbulb and a weight being lifted off me. That night I began again and completed the first chapter of 4000 words and the next day I easily wrote another 5000 words. within two months, I had the book written. I took the risk and was so excited as I printed out all 300 pages and had them bound. I had a real-life novel in my hand that I had written. that moment was so profound, I celebrated by starting the next book. The one that had come from the dream I had six months before.
No one was going to read these books. they were helping me heal my broken heart from the past and building within me a confidence I had lost along with myself over the past many, many years. I was enthralled with the writing and creative. I could be up all night and sleep for a few hours before tending to my children, waiting all day to just get back into the story at night.
It was on one of those nights, that a friend called and asked what I was doing. I shyly told her about my book and she begged me to send her the first one. To have someone read my work. My horrible story, that came from the depth of my creativiness with no one ever going to read it, I told her no, but she insisted. So I took the risk and sent it to her.
She is not a reader and usually took month’s to read a book, but she got back to me within 24 hours and asked for the next book. She had fallen in love with the book and the rawness of the characters, that she couldn’t put down my words. It was an emotional roller coaster with twists and turns and spicy bits that made her hum for a man but long for the story to never end, but craved a happy ending. I was shocked and so when another friend sent it through to her other friend who hated romance novels, and she came back with such excitement, and quickness at reading and wanting the second book, my confidence grew, as did my writing.
over the next 18 months, I wrote the first 6 books of the series and after much positive feedback with each book, I contacted a self-publishing company and signed the contract to have the first book “When Fate Returns” A River Flats series book 1 published. Signing that contract was the most daunting thing I have ever done and I have had to face many things others thought would break me, but didn’t, but risking it all and signing the contract to have my words read by others potentially all around the world was terrifying, but I took the risk and did it. The publishing stage took over a year but holding the fully edited version, with a cover I love, was a very emotional moment for me. I am so grateful I risked it all and pushed through all the barriers of not only my self-doubts but of what others had told me was true. I have now completed the entire series and as each book goes through the publishing stage and is released, I’m continuing to write and push myself, not just as a writer but as a person self-discovering her true strengths and power but also as a public speaker. I love being able to engage with others and communicate about pushing limits and believing in yourself, because if I hadn’t, then I wouldn’t be as happy as I am today, doing what I truly believe is my calling in this life, writing and creating stories for others to truly enjoy and love.
Sheryl, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?
My name is Sheryl M and I am an Australian rural romance author. I am a true romantic, believing in triumph over tragedy and how true love with a dash of spice, can conquer anything. A true country girl living in rural Queensland, Australia, I turned to writing to heal my broken heart and reconnect with my country roots. I love weaving tales of love, betrayal, mystery and redemption with twists that keep readers riveted until the very last page. I truly love what I do.
Along with my debut novel “When Fate Returns” A River Flats series book 1, I also have jewellery to match the characters or part of the story for readers to purchase and I have stepped back into the scientific part of my creative side and now handcraft organic skincare based around each book. Book one has organic lip balm so that the reader can achieve the female character’s lushish kissable lips. The jewellery is little black cowboy hats to match the male character’s signature black cowboy hats. This enables those who want to have more than the book with them to be part of the book also.
I love what I do and I love sharing and engaging with all those who follow me through my socials and my monthly blog post. Helping to showcase this stunning land I get to call home and bring forth issues of what our farmers are facing and the day in the life of this journey of writing and being a published author. Along with my children, 2 crazy and selective-hearing blue cattle dogs, I love living in rural Queensland and sharing it all through my books and social posts.
The thing I am most proud of though, is the fact I have been through some very nasty things in my life and experianced some very sad traits in other people’s personalities, but I am still standing strong. I have grown into a woman I never thought was possible and stood my ground with those who did all they could to break me down with everything they had. Today, I can say with all my experiances, the fact I never gave in, cried a lot and was scared to death more times than I thought possible, I am still here and loving life to the fullest.
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?
Looking back now, I have always been a creative person. As a young child, I would make up silly songs and stories until I was told I wasn’t any good at that, so I turned away from that side of my personality and focused on things that were structured and set in routine.
As a beauty therapist, you have set procedures to follow and problems to solve with the skin. The treatments were all very much structured even though each skin was different. As a cosmetic chemist, each product development requires a set structure with only the ingredients and measurements differing slightly. My life was structured with a dash of ‘safe’ creativity. Stepping into the world of writing, yes there is a process to the writing but even that is only a guide. letting your imagination run wild and free with the story only you know how you want to end is daunting but exhilarating. Coming from such a structured place into the freedom of creating without too many guidelines was scary and intimidating, however pushing through the barriers of what had become habit and comfort, I found an unexpected freedom and weightlessness that was unexpected. Yes, it was hard and took time for my mind and emotions to be settled with it, but it was freedom and in a way very powerful and inspiring. I had been searching for this my entire life, yet never found it in the constraints of following the rules enforced by the other industries I have ventured into. It forced me to look at those industries and wish that I had been brave and bold enough to create waves, however, that was not my path. writing and creating novels is and I’m truly greatly I have. pushing boundaries is what has gotten us to the moon, to a knowledge of our world like never before and the ability to change what we don’t like. All it takes is one person to see things differently and push through to create something new and inspiring. Being a creative person is in all of our blood, denying it is not only restricting the world of your talents but yourself to achieve something truly beautiful and finding true happiness within.
What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?
I am free. Free to see the world as I want and to create characters that many people can relate to; love to love or love to hate them. I get to create that with joy and happiness and sometimes it helps me to learn and grow about myself and those around me. Everyone has a story, we are all scared from something, causing us to behave and act in certain ways. We have each been told something in childhood, that at the time because of our age, we internatize thus creating how we view the world as adults. How we function in relationships, at work and in the communities we call home. Being an author lets me dive into each person’s life for a short time and gain perspective on the stories and reasons they are the way they are. It is a journey of discovery and creativity that I love.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.sherylm-author.com
- Instagram: sherylmauthor
- Facebook: Sheryl M – Author
- Other: TikTok- @sherylmauthor
Email- [email protected]
