No one understands a writer better than another writer. We know the time required to plot a story, create the perfect scene, schedule its release and then promote it. Creative writing can’t be done an hour here or an hour there. It requires long blocks of quiet, focused time. Promotion isn’t simply clicking the “Send” button. It’s choosing the right cover, advertising, posting on Facebook and book signings. We keep each other focused.

I share a bond with Maryann Jordan. She has been writing just over five years and released her 43^rd book yesterday. SEAL Together is the story about newly retired US Navy SEAL Commander Eric Lopez who is called in to rescue Dr. Lydia Hughes when she is mistaken as a lead scientist for a National Bio and Agro-Defense Facility. Eric races to find Lydia before the kidnappers discover they have the wrong person and dispose of her. “Saving her life is his mission. Falling for the beautiful doctor becomes the unexpected reward.”

Maryann and I network with three other authors two Tuesday evenings each month. I often tell her that every time we meet, I learn something new. She is a wealth of knowledge and shares it unconditionally.

That’s what authors do for each other. We share friendships, offer encouragement, critique and fine-tune our writing and keep each other enthusiastic about our passion.

Authors will NOT tolerate plagiarism. In recent weeks, it has been revealed that popular writers – Nora Roberts, Courtney Milan, Diana Gabaldon, Julia Quin… the list grows – have had their works copied. I don’t profess to be an expert, but I write because I enjoy it, and would be highly upset if I knew someone used my words to their advantage. Many authors write to support themselves and to have their name compromised because of someone else’s greed is incomprehensible. As in Courtney’s and another writer friend’s case, writing is therapeutic and to have their thoughts and emotions lifted is offensive. True writers do not steal from other writers and I applaud the readers that picked up on this crime and reported it.

So, whether we are with fellow authors or meet new ones, we all share an instant spark of friendship and comradery.