Overcoming Fear by Karen McCarthy

LUCY BURDETTE: I met today's guest Karen McCarthy years ago at a writing weekend, and was delighted when she contacted me to say she'd finally finished her novel and decided to self-publish. She wondered if you all might be interested in hearing about the biggest obstacle she faced: fear. I said of course, as we all face this in some way, whether we're writers or not. Lead on, Karen!

KAREN MCCARTHY: Become someone no one thought you could be.  Even you.

I just did this.  I became a published author.  Even though people said I was too old, the writing had dragged on too long, and I knew nothing about the publishing business. The committee in my head chimed in to say you are a lawyer not a writer, you have no talent, you aren't good enough, you can't do it.

This may sound all too familiar to those who witness the writing success of others and, though they may have achieved in other fields, think publishing a book is an unreachable goal.  The thing standing in the way of me doing it was fear. The thing that beat the fear was tenacity and never giving up.

The hard part was already over.  Since my murder revolved around Elvis Week in Memphis, I had already visited all the Elvis sites, attended the candlelight vigil at Graceland where the murder occurs and written elaborate backgrounds for all the characters who come together for their own reunion at this event.  I had put all this together in a first draft and that's where the fear began.

Sending this fledgling attempt for anyone to actually see, I imagined a terse reply to throw it all in the trash.  Yet the editor I hired found much to like, while making copious use of the red pencil. Numerous rewrites, revision, tweaks and edits ensued.  This took a number of years, not months.  Life kept getting in the way. My friends quit asking when the novel would be finished.

Yet I persevered, through death of a spouse, divorce from a second, a year long illness and just big, messy life in general.  And when it was done and I began the long and sometimes bewildering process of self publishing (without which this book would never have seen the light of day) the fear returned.

Putting it out there, saying this is what I've got.  Here it is.  The sense of vulnerability, of people thinking surely she could do better than this, this is mediocre, fear of not measuring up.

But I was not getting any younger. I had passed the social security and Medicare age. I didn't want to lie on my deathbed and regret I never did this.  So I pushed the Publish button on Amazon and pushed the exit button on fear.  And my book is doing well.  I have received praise from many quarters. This is lovely of course, but it is really the coming to grips with my own fear that has given me the most satisfaction of all.

Is fear standing in your way?

About the book:  It's August in Memphis, and August means Elvis.  For decades the fans have come from all over the world to pay tribute to the life of the King of Rock and Roll. Elvis Week will be capped by the famous candlelight vigil at Graceland, his mansion south of the city.  Among those attending are “The Magnificent Seven,” baby boomers who were Elvis fans and classmates in college thirty-five years ago.  

One of these women will not leave Memphis alive.  One of them is her murderer.

Mac McCalla, the Memphis lawyer who finds them all on her doorstep,is uneasy with the murky undercurrents between her old classmates as they tour the Elvis sites. Her fears are borne out when a clash of past and present leaves one of them dead. Which of these seemingly ordinary women has crossed the line and become a killer?  

As the zany, carnival atmosphere of Elvismania unfolds around her, Mac discovers that the answer lies in who these women were so long ago. The secrets that have followed them through the years are revealed one by one until finally Mac finds herself in a near-fatal confrontation with a friend is unmasked as a murderer.

About Karen: 

Cross an attorney who practiced law in Memphis, TN for twenty-five years with a lifelong Elvis fan and you find Karen McCarthy, an author who knew it would be fun to set a mystery novel with a legal twist amid the bizarre and captivating atmosphere that pervades Memphis every year during Elvis Week. Her pro bono work with the Abused Women's Shelter and Legal Services gave her the idea for the plot and helped create the courtroom scenes. Having visited all of the hallowed spots favored by the King, Karen piloted her characters through the swirling fans that mob the city every August. The ghost of Elvis provided the crucial clue. 

Karen divides her time between Memphis and her home in Key West, Florida where she can be found out on her boat, the Dragon Lady, or kayaking and scuba diving. She makes flying visits to Dallas to see her son and his family who live with a dog named Presley. Presley is featured in the book under an alias.