Caron Guillo
WITH LOVE AND INSPIRATION. We embark on a journey with Caron Guillo, a writer and Certified International Tour Manager for Queenslander Tours. We celebrate a woman who did not quit when the hours turned dark on her writing, and later when her plans to teach summer school were derailed.
We welcome Caron, who has reached a special moment in her life. The hours of light and joy with two dreams realized: the publication of her debut novel, AN UNCOMMON CRUSADE, and the bliss of working with Queenslander Tours, a company she loves, doing what she loves--traveling, learning, and discovering new ways to tell her stories.
This month also marks another wish come true for Caron. AN UNCOMMON CRUSADE was recently named the Winner in the Religious Fiction category of the 2011 Next Generation Indie Book Awards.
Caron's dedication and perseverance inspire me. And I think of Steven Pressfield and what he wrote in The War of Art--Winning Your Inner Creative Battle:
The best and only thing that one artist can do for another is to serve as an example and an inspiration.
Thank you, Caron, for being an inspiration and for being here. Thanks so much for sharing with us moments from your journey, for reminding us to follow and trust our dreams. To not give up.
-Mia
We welcome Caron, who has reached a special moment in her life. The hours of light and joy with two dreams realized: the publication of her debut novel, AN UNCOMMON CRUSADE, and the bliss of working with Queenslander Tours, a company she loves, doing what she loves--traveling, learning, and discovering new ways to tell her stories.
This month also marks another wish come true for Caron. AN UNCOMMON CRUSADE was recently named the Winner in the Religious Fiction category of the 2011 Next Generation Indie Book Awards.
Caron's dedication and perseverance inspire me. And I think of Steven Pressfield and what he wrote in The War of Art--Winning Your Inner Creative Battle:
The best and only thing that one artist can do for another is to serve as an example and an inspiration.
Thank you, Caron, for being an inspiration and for being here. Thanks so much for sharing with us moments from your journey, for reminding us to follow and trust our dreams. To not give up.
-Mia
A CHAT WITH CARON
WHAT DID YOU LOVE AND LIKED LEAST ABOUT YOUR SIX-YEAR PUBLICATION JOURNEY? WHAT KEPT YOU GOING DURING THE DIFFICULT TIMES?
It seems strange that I really did love having six years from the time I actually started writing AN UNCOMMON CRUSADE until it was published. It gave me lots of time to grow as a writer, polish the manuscript and double check my research so that I could be proud of the finished product.
On the other hand, of course, was my old friend Impatience. It's easy to get discouraged. It's hard to hear one publisher or another say, "It's an interesting story, but it's just not right for us." At one point, I thought of serializing the novel online. In the end, I just couldn't let my daughter see me quit. I have sons, too, but it is my daughter who will most look to me for guidance on what it means to live courageously.
YOUR DEBUT NOVEL, AN UNCOMMON CRUSADE, WAS PUBLISHED EARLIER THIS YEAR. HOW DID IT FEEL WHEN YOU HELD YOUR BOOK IN ITS PUBLISHED FORM?
It seemed very familiar, for I'd been envisioning it for years.
TELL US ABOUT THE MOMENT WHEN YOU WENT FROM BEING A MATH TEACHER WORKING IN A BASEMENT CLASSROOM TO A TOUR LEADER AND TRAVELER? WHAT INSPIRED YOU TO MAKE THAT LEAP?
Trust me, that middle school basement was inspiration enough! I'd really been thinking of making the transition for a few years, but was always waiting for the right time. One year my plans to teach summer school were derailed by a paperwork glitch. A coworker asked, "What are you going to do with your summer?"
WHAT DID YOU LOVE AND LIKED LEAST ABOUT YOUR SIX-YEAR PUBLICATION JOURNEY? WHAT KEPT YOU GOING DURING THE DIFFICULT TIMES?
It seems strange that I really did love having six years from the time I actually started writing AN UNCOMMON CRUSADE until it was published. It gave me lots of time to grow as a writer, polish the manuscript and double check my research so that I could be proud of the finished product.
On the other hand, of course, was my old friend Impatience. It's easy to get discouraged. It's hard to hear one publisher or another say, "It's an interesting story, but it's just not right for us." At one point, I thought of serializing the novel online. In the end, I just couldn't let my daughter see me quit. I have sons, too, but it is my daughter who will most look to me for guidance on what it means to live courageously.
YOUR DEBUT NOVEL, AN UNCOMMON CRUSADE, WAS PUBLISHED EARLIER THIS YEAR. HOW DID IT FEEL WHEN YOU HELD YOUR BOOK IN ITS PUBLISHED FORM?
It seemed very familiar, for I'd been envisioning it for years.
TELL US ABOUT THE MOMENT WHEN YOU WENT FROM BEING A MATH TEACHER WORKING IN A BASEMENT CLASSROOM TO A TOUR LEADER AND TRAVELER? WHAT INSPIRED YOU TO MAKE THAT LEAP?
Trust me, that middle school basement was inspiration enough! I'd really been thinking of making the transition for a few years, but was always waiting for the right time. One year my plans to teach summer school were derailed by a paperwork glitch. A coworker asked, "What are you going to do with your summer?"
That's all she asked, but for some reason, it seemed to echo down that basement hallway and sounded like, "What are you going to do with your life?"
I had no idea.
Within a couple of days, however, my friend Mark Story, the owner of QueensLander Tours, emailed to ask when would I go through training so that I could lead tours for him. And in that moment, I knew what I would do with my summer. I enrolled in the International Guide Academy (Denver), earned my certification as an International Tour Manager in the hopes that "sometime in the future" I'd be ready to make the career leap, and then swallowed my fear when Mark offered me two tours that season. They conflicted with the school calendar, but I could see it was the right time to align myself with the thriving QueensLander Tours--a company I really believe in and love working for--and so I resigned my contract that summer and haven't looked back.
✶ Don't give up trying to do what you really want to do. Where there is love and inspiration, I don't think you can go wrong. -Ella Fitzgerald
✶ Join us here next week on May 30, 2011 for the second segment of Caron's journey. She shares with us her fears and the ways she combats them. Find out what project she has in the works.
✶ A top story in Anita's Finding Inspiration Daily. May 2011.
I had no idea.
Within a couple of days, however, my friend Mark Story, the owner of QueensLander Tours, emailed to ask when would I go through training so that I could lead tours for him. And in that moment, I knew what I would do with my summer. I enrolled in the International Guide Academy (Denver), earned my certification as an International Tour Manager in the hopes that "sometime in the future" I'd be ready to make the career leap, and then swallowed my fear when Mark offered me two tours that season. They conflicted with the school calendar, but I could see it was the right time to align myself with the thriving QueensLander Tours--a company I really believe in and love working for--and so I resigned my contract that summer and haven't looked back.
✶ Don't give up trying to do what you really want to do. Where there is love and inspiration, I don't think you can go wrong. -Ella Fitzgerald
✶ Join us here next week on May 30, 2011 for the second segment of Caron's journey. She shares with us her fears and the ways she combats them. Find out what project she has in the works.
✶ A top story in Anita's Finding Inspiration Daily. May 2011.
