Celebrating Indiana Romance Writers: Sydney Scrogham

I have to confess that I’ve never met today’s author, but once I read her bio, I was dying to, so I am really happy for a chance to interview Sydney Scrogham! Here’s her bio in her own words:

I’m Sydney, and I’m a heart healing writer and writing coach. I love helping people write for heart healing who are struggling with insurmountable emotional pain or a lifeless manuscript. My clients love how I understand and guide them when we work together. But at the end of the day, what really matters is that you get a vibrant, fulfilled life, and a story with soul.

I’m more than just a writing coach – I’m a heart healer pursuing wholeness daily. I can’t wait to try what’s next for me, which is launching a course about writing for heart healing. I live in Indianapolis, Indiana with my Selle Francais gelding named Snowdy.

My style working with clients is a mix of nurturing and breakthrough. I use strategic questions to help them process emotions or share about how to write a story projecting your struggles onto your main character.

I draw inspiration from my own heart healing journey and hope to inspire you to be true to yourself and passionate about your writing. I work with writers to help them find truth for the lies they’ve believed so they get a gripping, real story and a healed, fulfilled life with tools to face the future.

NAN: Tell us what you are currently working on or promoting.

SYDNEY: Wrapping up the 5th book in my Guardians of Agalrae series. It’s Narnia meets a horse-themed Tarzan.

NAN: What genre(s) do you write in?

SYDNEY: Fantasy Romance

NAN: Do you have an agent and/or publisher, or are you self-published?

SYDNEY I started off with a traditional publisher and that relationship did not end well. (They pulled my book, and yet still had copies for sale.) I had to do a major rewrite and then went hybrid, the I discovered I liked being in charge of the whole book, so I self-published after that!

NAN: What advice would you give to an aspiring author?

SYDNEY: Write, study your craft, and don’t be afraid to do what no one else is doing if that’s where your heart is leading you.

NAN: What are you currently reading?

SYDNEY: I’m reading Under The Never Sky by Veronica Rossi.

NAN: Is there a theme/message underlying your book(s) that you hope comes across?

SYDNEY: I love writing about good versus evil, people discovering that they can be (and like) their true selves, and that love endures for a lifetime and beyond.

NAN: Has reading a book ever changed your life? If yes, which one and how?

SYDNEY: Absolutely! I was going through a hard time with a day job, and I read Spirit Bridge by James Rubart. It helped me gain spiritual insight into my situation and gave me peace about moving forward into the unknown. It’s one of those books I won’t forget.

NAN: If you could marry a fictional character, who would it be?

SYDNEY: Sean Kendrick from The Scorpio Races. The way he handles those water horses… *swoon*

NAN: What question didn’t I ask that you wish I had?

SYDNEY: What kind of animals do I have? 😊 I have a “rescue” Selle Francais (French Thoroughbred) named Snowdy and a miniature Dachshund named Zoe. Many people love following my story with Snowdy – he broke his elbow two years ago and I document our journey together in my social media. You can find us on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter.

Find Sydney on social media and on her own website:

Mailing list with exclusive reader giveaway (no spam, ever!): https://mailchi.mp/3d5b8fd17293/guardians-of-agalrae-starter-kit

Website: https://www.sswriter.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SydneyScroghamWriter/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sydneyscrogham/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/sydney_writer

Chase: The Promised Guardian

Forced to sell her horse, Lauren takes drastic steps to get money to keep him. She pursues an escaped genetic experiment worth a ten-thousand-dollar reward, but she doesn’t anticipate her search taking her to an unfamiliar land—Agalrae, where she meets a man raised by Alicorns.

Excerpt:

Lauren’s frowning at me.

“I can help you,” I say quietly, and now she jumps when I speak. “If you—can you—come.” I push the door to the bathing room all the way open so maybe she’ll understand what I can’t tell her. I lick my lips a few times and squish my tongue between my teeth. What is wrong with me?

For a horrible moment, she doesn’t move and I don’t move, and there’s no barrier between us anymore. She’s leaning her head away from me again and the left corner of her mouth twists down into a little grimace.

“That’s okay,” she says. “Never mind. Do you have a phone? Mine died, and I need to call someone to come get me.”

Something died. I have no idea what she’s talking about, and she reads my body well because my uncertainty shows up on her face and she cowers back against the white wall of the bathing room.

“Please go away,” she says, and her voice shakes.

My shoulders sag, and her words confuse me because with her body she’s created space for me to come in. If she’s a Guardian, she’s supposed to work with me. I haven’t given her my scent yet. How will she find me if she needs me? My foot slides into the bathing room and she shrieks loud enough that I leap back and cover my ears.

“Get away from me!” Now her body says shoo, because she’s turned her face to the wall and holds up a foot. So, she’d strike at me then, like Sylt. And I, the boss of the boss mares, do something I’ve never done before. I run, and with every step, my body is smaller and colder.

Guardians of Agalrae Series on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B078NNWQFL