I started writing as a kid, but never considered writing for publication until I was around 30 years old. Then it occurred to me that making a living as a writer wouldn't be a bad deal. I wrote four novels, went through numerous workshops and critique groups, and worked hard to improve my writing skills. In 2005, I attended the Viable Paradise workshop in beautiful Martha's Vineyard. It was probably the single most influential, helpful writing-related event I've experienced. I hope to repeat it this year.
That same year, I entered my novel in a contest for which first-place was a hardcover contract. I won! The publisher wanted to work with an agent, though, so I made a list of the ten most relevant agents for the genre and queried them. That's when I found out that getting an agent when you already have a publishing contract is pretty easy. The Kinshield Legacy was my first published novel.
In the late 1990s, I was a contributing author for a tech book on Seagate Crystal Reports 7. I've also been writing professionally for software companies for about eleven years now, with a nine-year break to write software (C++). Writing software is fun, but technical writing is less stressful.
K.C. May is a pseudonym.
November 12, 2010 - I was one of three guest authors on Book Chatter. Check it out! http://www.ustream.tv/recorded/10817143
Just wanted to give a quick shout out for my favorite new piece of writing software, WriteItNow! If you want an editor with a built-in way to keep notes about characters, events, locations, ideas and even submissions, this is it! When you've written your manuscript, you can export it to text, html, pdf or rtf and import it to your favorite word processor or desktop publisher to prepare for publication. It's everything I've wanted in an editor and more! It even helps you keep track of daily word count targets. Try the demo. Seriously. It's that good.