Taking a closer look

I recently signed up for yet another marketing course. I'm hopeless when it comes to the business end of things, and I don't know if this course will be any different from the others. (Yawn.) It might be. Their first lesson wasn't actually meant to be a lesson, but it was for me. They asked us to fill out a very short questionnaire. It took less than 5 minutes, so I managed to complete at least one homework assignment. I was genuinely surprised by my own answers. Here they are:
Why did you start writing?

	I'm a creative person and I was in a non-creative job. As an RN my job was to carry out doctor's orders. Period. It stifled my creativity and left me tired at the end of the day. Writing helped me express myself creatively, find my bliss, and eventually change my life. I now write full time.
How does your writing make people's lives better?	I've received 'thank you' emails, telling me my sense of humor and imagination helped provide readers hours of happy distraction from difficult real life situations. I get that. I began reading romance novels to do the same thing. Now I'm grateful to be paying it forward.
How does it change your feelings about marketing to think of it as "creating long lasting connections with people?"	I love meeting like-minded people. A lot of writers are painfully shy, but not this one! I enjoy interacting with readers and fellow authors alike. Inspiration often follows these conversations and you never know when some interaction will wind up in one of my books!

And you never know when a marketing course might add some much needed encouragement.
Will this help me sell books? Who knows, but it helps my attitude about it. I'm not begging people to read my books. I'm offering a service--one that no one but me can deliver. Sure, there are lots of authors who write light paranormal romance, but there's only one Ashlyn Chase. No one can tell my stories but me. I write from my heart, my experience, and my beliefs. I write for myself, to improve my own life. The fact that it improves other people's lives and loves thrills and completes me.

Any other authors know what I'm talking about?

My latest GORGEOUS cover! This book is up for preorders now, and will be released this August.