Weston author opens up on securing book deal as a single mother in lockdown
Teresa Morgan has secured a book deal with Sapere Books. - Credit: Teresa Morgan
A Weston author has opened up on the process of securing a three-book publishing year while juggling life as a single mother working part-time throughout lockdown.
Contemporary romance writer Teresa F Morgan expected another rejection after the coronavirus pandemic forced the cancellation of the London Book Fair.
She said: “I had a book rejected in 2018, so when Covid-19 struck the London Book Fair I thought ‘another year of push backs’ but Sapere Books picked the script and offered me a three-book deal.”
Teresa works part-time in a post office while raising her two sons, aged 13 and 15.
She said: “People think when you say you are an author that you are rolling in money but we aren’t all J K Rowling, unfortunately. A lot of authors do work other jobs to supplement the writing.
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“When a book is rejected it is very disappointing. It can take up to a year to write a book, maybe even longer when you’re working part-time and raising two kids.”
The romance writer has had to devise a schedule that allows both family time and writing, something that she has had to adjust following the Government’s lockdown.
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Teresa added: “I had got myself into a good routine, before lockdown. I work Monday, Friday and Saturday so Tuesday and Thursday have always been my writing days.
“I usually write from when the kids leave the house for school until home time. I try to still have a life outside writing so sometimes real life gets in the way.
“My days have been shorter during the lockdown, the writing has been a great escape.
“I’ve had to adjust to other people being in the house. The first week of lockdown I remember writing and hearing paper rustling and I jumped before realising it was my son working.”
Previously, Teresa has had three books released under publisher One More Chapter.
She said: “I stumbled into writing in 2006. My eldest was 18-months-old and I was pregnant with my youngest and I fell into fan-fiction. It started with just reading then it turned to writing and I got a lot of support and advice.
“I just loved the escapism involved and, like most mothers, tried to find a job you can do around your children.”
Her first title for Sapere, Cocktails at Kittiwake Cove, is released in summer 2021 with a Christmas sequel later in the year.
For more information on Teresa’s previous works, visit her website www.teresamorgan.co.uk/
