91制片厂 student Kate Guerrero recently won the 2023 Soon to Be Famous Illinois Author Manuscript Project Contest. Her winning manuscript involves the early era of motherhood.
When Kate Guerrero鈥檚 children were little, she rotated among side hustles. Like other stay-at-home moms that she knew, Guerrero tried her hand at small businesses, starting an Etsy shop and selling craft kits.
Little did she know that her experience in the 鈥渕omfluencer鈥� world of essential oils and online crafts would inspire her first novel 鈥� and help her become an award-winning author.
That鈥檚 what happened when the 91制片厂 student recently won the for Burn and Balm. Her manuscript involves the early era of motherhood, along with the specific experiences that come with this period of parenting, tenuous friendships and plenty of stress.
鈥淚t鈥檚 a fragile time where a lot of women can be taken advantage of,鈥� said Guerrero, 39, of Schaumburg. 鈥淎 lot of what the book is about is looking for self-fulfillment and there are nefarious people who seek to prey on that.鈥�
Before starting Burn and Balm, Guerrero had a background in writing. She鈥檇 taught middle and high school English, worked as a tutor and dabbled in fiction. But in the middle of getting her elementary school-age children through the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, she sought a creative outlet in the form of 91制片厂鈥檚 NaNoWriMo Challenge course. Formally known as the Write a Novel in 30 Days Workshop, the class is offered through every fall.
According to course instructor Laura Ehrke, the goal of the National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo) Challenge isn鈥檛 to finish with a perfectly completed novel, but to get authors鈥� ideas out of their heads and onto the page. Guerrero said that the rigorous word count benchmarks, along with the support of Ehrke and her classmates, served as crucial, external motivation.
鈥淭his was a lot harder than I expected and Laura is so overwhelmingly encouraging to everyone,鈥� she said. 鈥淎t first, it鈥檚 like when your mom says that kind of stuff. But then you realize she鈥檚 right 鈥� you can keep going.鈥�
Guerrero (left) has enrolled in multiple courses taught by 91制片厂 instructor Laura Ehrke. Guerrero said that Ehrke's encouragement and the support of a cohort formed in the classes are crucial to her writing success.
Although Guerrero hit her NaNoWriMo word count goals, Burn and Balm wasn鈥檛 finished in a month and she wasn鈥檛 done with 91制片厂 either. She continued to enroll in Ehrke鈥檚 other classes in 2021-23, including recently introduced courses designed to assist authors like Guerrero as they develop and refine their works (such as and ). Over a couple of years, she worked on multitudes of revisions and even began a second novel when Ehrke introduced her to the statewide manuscript contest earlier this year.
With her instructor鈥檚 encouragement, Guerrero submitted to the manuscript contest, which involves all of the libraries in Illinois. Ehrke was confident Burn and Balm would do well; Guerrero wasn鈥檛 as sure. But she got a shot in the arm when she was named one of the contest鈥檚 three semifinalists this summer.
鈥淏efore that point, I was discouraged, because I thought, 鈥楳aybe I need to move on from this鈥�,鈥欌�� Guerrero said. 鈥淚t was a nice boost and a reminder that I do want to do this!鈥�
That validation of Guerrero鈥檚 talent and perspective was only solidified when she won the contest for unpublished Illinois authors in September. Prizes include a professional line edit and a professionally designed book cover.
Guerrero expressed gratitude for 91制片厂鈥檚 courses and Ehrke鈥檚 counsel, as well as the enthusiasm and dedication of the cohort that formed among a handful of 91制片厂 writing students. She said that she would have never finished the manuscript without check-ins during classes (held online) and the feedback from her fellow authors. Ehrke agreed that something 鈥渕agical鈥� happens among her students and she is proud of their success.
鈥淵ou feel this incredible creative energy generated during class. Ideas are sparked for both the student鈥檚 own manuscript and for their cohort鈥檚 works,鈥� she said. 鈥淲riting is such a solitary road and it鈥檚 easy to veer off course, so this engagement keeps you committed to your projects.鈥�
Guerrero now has multiple projects of her own. A freelance copywriter by day, she estimates that she鈥檚 more than 70% done with writing her second novel, about a married mother whose high school crush reappears in her life in a way that threatens her future and livelihood. After winning the Soon to Be Famous contest, she plans to explore her options to become published 鈥� something that seemed unattainable before took her first 91制片厂 course three years ago.
鈥淚t鈥檚 been a great experience. I never considered doing anything like this before the pandemic, but I鈥檓 so glad I did,鈥� Guerrero said. 鈥淭hese courses are just a really great way to get a boost and have support.鈥�