Tuesday, June 18, 2013

Guest Blogger Sarah Castille - Finding Your Sparkle

“Your name is Twilight Sparkle.”

Three years ago when I was working as a senior associate at one of the biggest law firms in the world, I would never have imagined having the time to play fairies with my littlest daughter “Princess Christabel Sunshine”. Nor would I have ever imagined I would be living a lifelong dream of becoming an author.

I have always been a writer. From the day I won my first contest at the age of five with a terribly misspelled story about an evil witch who kidnapped children and made them eat vegetables, I was hooked. And what better way to pursue that dream than...becoming an attorney. Yes, I traded in imaginary worlds for the black letter of the law.

Curiously, my imagination did not thrive under the stress of billable hours, endless days and nights, and the pressure of climbing the law firm equivalent of the corporate ladder. I put away the writing journals, never saw my Christabel Sunshines (I have three!), and raced to court. Not to say I didn’t love it, because I did. But it was never my dream.

And then one day, something changed. A near fatal illness gave me the opportunity to revaluate my goals. During the year it took me to recover, I rediscovered my writing journals and I rediscovered my sparkle.

I took a few writing courses, read a few writing books, and let all the information settle over me like blanket. Then I pulled out the laptop and began to write LEGAL HEAT knowing only that it had to have three things.

First, it had to be about attorneys. Sometimes the old adage holds true. Write what you know. And after spending so many years in the courtroom, law was all I knew.

Second, it had to be a romance. As an attorney for many years, I have seen legal romances of all shapes and sizes, from the forbidden to the hidden and everything in between. I have seen relationships develop into marriages and marriages disintegrate through affairs. I have seen careers destroyed and families built. I have seen scandal and I have seen true love. Law may be black and white but it is tinged with red.

Third, it had to have intrigue and suspense. This I blame on my mother and her love of true crime novels. How could I not write suspense when she was never without a crime book in her hand?

With the assistance of a patient family and my not so patient Christabel Sunshines, it all came together. I received offers to write more books. I decided to put the briefcase on the shelf just a little bit longer.

When I am not writing, I am Twilight Sparkle. Sometimes I am Rainbow Moonlight. On bad days I am Black Midnight, the evil witch who makes her children eat vegetables. My girls used play dress up with my suits and heels. Now they want to be writers. We lie in the sunshine together, make up stories and illustrate them with crayons.

One day, I might go back to the legal profession. But right now, I’m living the dream. Although at night when the kids are in bed, and I’m sitting at the computer, Twilight Sparkle has a very naughty side.

Recovering lawyer, karate practitioner, and caffeine addict, Sarah Castille worked and traveled abroad before trading her briefcase and stilettos for a handful of magic beans and a home near the Canadian Rockies. Her steamy, contemporary romantic tales feature blazingly hot alpha heroes and the women who tame them.

Website: http://www.sarahcastille.com

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/sarahcastilleauthor

Twitter: @sarah_castille

Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6920675.Sarah_Castille

Trailer: http://youtu.be/GNAzJcbb3fg



Amazon Author Page: http://www.amazon.com/author/sarahcastille

8 comments:

PG Forte said...

Great post, Sarah...or, should I say, Twilight? I love stories about living the dream.

Unknown said...

Thanks PG!

Ironically, someone gave my DD a Twilight Sparkle for her birthday and now I have a little pink pony on my desk for inspiration!

Sarah

Meg Benjamin said...

Welcome to the Naughty Nine, Sarah. And welcome to the trenches!

Unknown said...

Thanks Meg and thanks very much for hosting me!

kelly said...

Welcome Sarah! I love your story! So happy for you living the dream, both the writing and laying in the sunshine with your children making up storied. Beautiful!

Unknown said...

Thanks Kelly! It's been great to be able to share that story with you all!
Sarah

Unknown said...

Lovely post! My favorite thing is playing pretend with my Kiddo, her imagination blows me away. Here's to Twilight Sparkles of all ages!

Unknown said...

Thanks Jennifer!

I think kids can teach us a lot about getting in touch with our imaginations! Thanks for stopping by!

Sarah