I just received the February issue of Writers Digest, and there's a profile on me in the Breaking In column titled "Debut Author Spotlight." It basically tells the tale of how I started writing and found my agent. I'm flattered to be included, and editor Chuck Sambuchino did a great job compacting a thousand words into a hundred plus.
When I was a young aspiring writer, working at Maine Writers & Publishers Alliance, I pored over these sorts of how-to articles in the hope that I would discover a cantrip that would—poof!—magically make me a best-selling author. I have subsequently learned that success is mostly a matter of hard work, persistence, and luck. Then again, I have also come to believe that in life one tends to make one's own luck (by taking risks and being open to new people), so maybe we really are the masters of our fate and the captains of our souls.
The Writer's Digest feature isn't online yet, but if they upload it at some point, I'll post a link.