In 2019, on Christmas Eve, I was home alone because my husband was out of town visiting his son. I sat in the quiet staring at a blank Word document on my laptop. I asked myself if I really wanted to write a book about my father, or was it just a dream best talked about in jest only. As I contemplated the decision, I knew if I started it I wouldn’t stop until I completed it—I’m way too anal not to finish. So I took a deep breath and thought about the very first memory that I could recall with my dad. Ironically, as I wrote in the book, it was on Christmas Eve in 1970.
Something inside of me took over and before I knew it, I had written Chapter One: The Making of a Daddy’s Girl. It poured onto the page out of nowhere. I had not spent any time at that point organizing an arc to the story. Words flowed out of me like never before. It was a crazy writer’s high that ended with two chapters down, three cups of green tea devoured and the feeling of a hangover as I snapped myself back from the 1980’s.
I kept it a secret for a long time because I was scared that something might happen and I wouldn’t get it published, or maybe I would change my mind when it was all done. I promised myself that I would focus on one step at a time and do my best—I could decide later if I’d share my story.
Here it is almost Christmas Eve, 2023. My book is published and for sale on Amazon, BarnesandNoble.com and sitting on a shelf at our local bookstore. To say this is surreal is an understatement.
I hope you will continue to share my book journey with me. I will try not to bore you. For those of you who would like to know more about the story, you can sign-up for my blog at TerrinaTroy.com where I will be sharing unpublished chapters and events.
If you purchased my book already, thank you from the bottom of my heart. Sharing my story, my father and the amazing lessons I’ve learned along the way, has truly been one of the greatest blessings of my life.
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!