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Erika Mailman Wows at Elk Grove Writers & Editors Soiree

The power of a writer's persistence.
On June 11, Elk Grove Writers & Editors presented an evening soiree featuring author Erika Mailman. After enjoying sublime appetizers, we all gathered on the patio to hear Erika speak about her writing path, her many bumps along the way, and her final triumph as a published author. Thank you, Erika, and to the many wonderful authors, artists, and friends who attended to support not only Erika, but also the work we do as a writing community.  

Lynn Carthage.... Erika Mailman....take your pick!

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Erika and Amanda Williams discuss the author's journey.
Erika Mailman and Amanda Williams discuss the finer points of writing and publishing.  

An Accomplished Author

Erika Mailman is the author of Woman of Ill Fame, which Diana Gabaldon called, "One of the best books I've read in a long time," and The Witch’s Trinity, which was a Bram Stoker finalist and a San Francisco Chronicle Notable Book. Under the pen name Lynn Carthage, she writes young adult fiction, with Haunted: The Arnaud Legacy as the first book in a trilogy. She was a Yaddo fellow, has an MFA in poetry and through mediabistro teaches novel writing online. www.erikamailman.com and www.lynncarthage.com

Erika talked to us about her path to publication.

MY WRITING JOURNEY: I consider myself the “poster child” for persistence (and in fact, I’m included in Jordan Rosenfeld’s new Writer’s Digest craft guide Persistence) because I believed in my writing and wouldn’t give up, long past the point others would have. Each of my books has its own long story of struggle, whether it was finding an agent, or going through so many rejections even once agented that it made my head spin. It only takes one editor to say yes. It may surprise you that out of the three books above, two were sold directly to editors after being agented. We work too hard on these things to give up, right?

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Authors and Friends
Top Row: Gini Grossenbacher, Erika Mailman, Andi and William MacDonald, Kathy Boyd Fellure and Pam S. Dunn, Cheryl Stapp and Shannon Post, Second Row (left to right) Anara Guard, Margaret Duarte, Kris Schoeller, Kathleen Taylor, Bottom row, Ian Wilson, Kathleen Taylor, Judy Vaughan, Christine Templeton, Mark Wiederanders, Ed Moore, Erika Mailman, and Amanda Williams