When you dream, dream big.

Pamela Tracy here.

Roughly twenty-three years ago I decided to really try my hand at writing.  I set up my computer on a card table in my bedroom and I started writing a Star Trek novel.

I typed merrily for quite a few month before admitting to myself that there had to be some kind of guidelines for actually knowing what to do.

I've always loved school.  I've taken sign language and even a math class just for fun.

Signing up at my neighborhood community college was a no-brainer.  I was so excited my first night of creative writing class.  I felt like I'd arrived.

Clearly, a few of the other students had arrived earlier than me.  Some were taking the class for a third or fourth time.  I, quite frankly, was jealous.  Why hadn't I thought of taking this class sooner!!! I was behind!!!!

There were a few other newbies.  Sitting across from me, much younger and prettier was a woman named Stacey Connelly.  We exchanged pleasantries and soon friendships in the class formed.

A year later, Stacey and I were in the class for the third time because we WERE going to become writers.  

From that class, a core group of six formed a critique group, including the creative writing teacher.  We stopped taking the college class and once a week, we met at a restaurant and exchanged chapters.  The group ebbed, flowed, grew, shrank, but stayed cohesive with five - yup, count em - five of the original core members.

Stacey and I were the romance writers.  We went to conferences, joined RWA, and strove to perfect our prose.  We dreamed, and we dreamed big.

Last week something bearing Stacey's name arrived in my mailbox (ordered from Amazon!)

Nope, not a book.  She sold her first many years ago.

It's a movie.  A Hallmark movie.  Taken from one of Stacey's books!!!

Look, her name is right there!
Under the photos of the actors and actresses.  

I want to cry when I think of that long ago day.  It was before I married, had children, had wrinkles!  There I was in the hard, wooden classroom chair with my spiral notebook ready.  I was in a room with other people who had stories to tell.

Stacey was across from me, as she would be for many years and up until today.  We still room together at Nationals and such.

See, when you dream, you need to dream big.

Stacey's cover

Stacey did.

Tonight there are five of us meeting for a Christmas party.  Three are from the original six. The dream hasn't ended.  I wonder what will happen next?

Pamela Tracy, who sat across from Stacey Connelly, is still waiting for her Hallmark movie.
In the meantime, her most recent release is from Harlequin Heartwarming.