Author Q&A with Sara Morgan

I'm very excited to speak with Sara Morgan (just love the name!), author and former member of the corporate rat race who gave it all up four years ago in order to pursue her own dreams. Although she says that the road was difficult, she wouldn't trade it for the world. She says that her latest book, No Limits: How I Escaped the Clutches of Corporate America To Live the Self-Employed Life of My Dreams is not a "how to get rich quick story" It is a "how do I maximize my potential and feel satisfied and happy with what I am doing in life" story that is sure to kickstart anyone who isn't quite "there" yet. Sara was nice enough to answer a few questions about writing and living one's passion.

AITWL: Sara, you’ve done what so many of us hope to do one day—leave the corporate world behind and become your own boss! What made you take the leap?

SM: Well, my jump was not exactly planned. In fact, I ended up quitting my high-paying corporate job as a web developer without having another job or a significant savings lined up. While that did make things a tad difficult at first, I still do not regret doing it and think it was the best thing I ever did for myself. I am now living an authentic and purposeful life and I leap out of bed every day to get to it.

AITWL: Why don’t more of us take the risk and follow our passions?

SM: Fear of the unknown, plain and simple. While some fears are good (like a fear of snakes), most of our fears are wrapped up in other emotions, like insecurity, and they are just holding us back. The funny thing is that the person that will hurt you most in life is you. I am trying to encourage people to get out of their own way and start living the life they deserve.

AITWL: Switching gears a bit, how did your book No Limits come about? What was your writing process like?

SM: Well, this was not my first book. I had written and published six other technical books with traditional publishers. While I liked doing that, I preferred writing this book, since I think it will appeal to more people and can potentially help them live better lives. Writing this book was very easy and I was able to do it in less than 3 months. Of course, it was easy because I was writing about something I knew a lot about - my life and the life of someone that is self-employed.

AITWL: Since this blog is geared toward writing and writers, what advice can you offer to those of us who may be thinking about pursuing writing full-time?

SM: Write about what you know and write as often as possible. Like everything you do in life, the more you do it, the faster and better you will become. You also need to get a thick skin and accept criticism as a good thing and something that will make you grow as a writer. I have seen too many writers get defensive about editors comments and I don’t think they are doing themselves any favors. Just accept the criticism as potentially useful feedback and don’t take it personally.

AITWL: What other project(s) do you have in the works?

SM: Unfortunately, getting the word out about this book has been harder than I thought. Even though every reviewer that has read the book loves it (I mean, they really, really love it), no one is buying the book yet. I know this stuff just takes time and so I am being patient. In the mean time, I have to start paying the bills since for the past 6 months I have been doing this (writing and promoting the book full time). This means that money has been going out, but not coming in. I cannot do that forever.

So, I am now starting a new business as an independent garden consultant for The Happy Gardener. I found out about the company when I interviewed the owner for the No Limits book. I was so impressed with what the company is doing for the environment that I no longer want to be a web developer. I now want to do my part to make the planet a better place and I think The Happy Gardener is one company that can do that. It feels good doing the right thing. Oh, and if anyone wants a catalog, email me at http://us.mc508.mail.yahoo.com/mc/compose?to=sara@custsolutions.net. Their stuff is all organically-based and chemical free.

Thanks, Sara!