Admit it, you all have one – the dream. That thing/career/job you would do if you weren’t doing what you were doing; even if you love what you’re doing. I have a friend. Snoqualmie is her home. Her passion is writing. Her dream is called “Riversong.” It is her first published novel.
Tess Hardwick’s college major was drama, but writing was what she wanted to do. Then life developed and she ended up in corporate America, working in Human Resources. She quit work for a while to have her daughters. Then the time came. Time to go back to work. Time to head back to 
the corporate world that helped pay for the life she and her husband shared. But then a “what if” thought crept in. What if I could do what I really love? What if I could be home with my daughters and write? How could we make that work?
You make it work by downsizing your life Tess told me. Summer 2010, she and her husband sold their big Issaquah home, a car and moved to a smaller, more affordable town home on Snoqualmie Ridge. The downsizing released Tess from corporate America’s grasp. It afforded her the opportunity to stay home with her young daughters, cozy up to a desk facing the Cascade Mountains and continue writing her dream novel.
Riversong, Tess’s first novel, was the end result of many life-changing moves. The book hit Barnes and Noble online and Amazon last April. It was published by Booktrope, a start-up publishing company which captures the power of online reading, social media, book sharing and the ever-popular eBook. Booktrope was founded in 2009. It isn’t the traditional paper publishing company. It focuses on the potential and popularity of the eBook. There are still traditional printed copies of the book, but with more focus on the online side of publishing, more writers like Tess Hardwick and her book, Riversong, get a chance.
Here’s a bit of Riversong: “When Lee Tucker’s husband commits suicide, he leaves her pregnant and one million dollars in debt to a loan shark. Out of options, she escapes to her deceased mother’s dilapidated house located in a small Oregon town that, like her, is financially ruined, heartbroken and in desperate need of a fresh start. Lee’s resilience leads to a plan for a destination restaurant named Riversong, to new chances for passion and love, and to danger from her dead husband’s debt as her business blooms.”
Riversong was released April 2011. It hit #1 spot on Nook Book the first week of October and stayed there for about ten days. It stayed in the top 10-20 range for about a month. Most recently, Riversong was commissioned into the King County Library System last week. My signed copy sits on my bedside table. It is a great read.
Tess is still in her office, working on the follow up to Riversong. Congratulations Tess, for turning your passion into a career reality, realizing the dream and inspiring others.
I am ready for the new book!
