A Tapestry of Stories: My Journey as a Writer
Every writer has a moment when the world tilts, and the stories inside them demand to be told. For me, that moment came on a quiet evening, surrounded by the soft hum of Louisiana’s bayou country, where the air carries whispers of Acadian ancestors and the past feels alive. As S.M. Ulbrich, I’ve always been drawn to history—not just the dates and events, but the heartbeat of people who lived it, their struggles woven with threads of magic and mystery. This is the story of how I became a writer, a path carved by heritage, imagination, and a stubborn love for storytelling.
Growing up, I was captivated by tales of my Acadian roots, stories of resilience like those of Joseph Broussard, my direct ancestor on my paternal grandmother’s side, whose courage against all odds felt like a call to action. I’d pore over genealogy records, like the Drouin Collection, tracing names and imagining the lives behind them. Those names weren’t just ink on a page—they were people who faced exile, built new homes, and carried their culture across oceans. Their strength inspired me, and I wanted to honor them in my writing. But it wasn’t enough to retell history; I wanted to infuse it with the mystical, to let runes glow on the page and hint at deeper truths.
My first leap into authorship came with Discovering Misty: The Mermaid of the Emerald Coast, a children’s series born from a real-life character actor in Florida who enchanted kids with her tales. Writing for young readers felt like sharing a secret: that stories can spark joy, teach empathy, and build bridges between generations. I’d sit at my desk, petting my cat for calm, music humming in the background, and let Misty’s world unfold. Those books, now on Amazon, are my love letter to the kids who dream big and the families who read together. But they’re also a piece of me—a reminder of the girl who saw magic in the everyday.
Writing isn’t always smooth. There were manuscripts like George and the Brave Eagle and Washington’s Fantastical Crossing, still waiting for illustrations and funding, that tested my patience. There were moments of doubt, like when I rushed to meet deadlines before my husband returned home, or very late at night, as I was doing nurse duty for my foster kids, scribbling words for The Fading Light in a race against time. Yet, every struggle taught me something. The chaos of Hurricane Sandy’s aftermath in my Zion Series reminded me that stories, like life, thrive in the tension between hope and hardship.
What keeps me going is the connection—to my heritage, to readers, to the spark of a new idea. When I got an email from a reader community eager to discuss Misty on Goodreads, I felt the weight of my words landing in someone else’s heart. When I designed a vibrant Canva image for my Amazon author page or crafted a post for my blog, Family Circle 14, or this one, I saw my voice reaching further. Even now, as I weave runes into my historical fiction or dream up blog posts about creativity, I’m reminded that writing is my way of making sense of the world.
This memoir isn’t just about me—it’s about the stories we all carry. Whether it’s a tale of Acadian resilience, a mermaid’s adventure, or a rune glowing in the dark, I write to uncover the magic in the past and share it with you. So, here I am, still typing, still dreaming, still weaving my tapestry of stories.
What’s the story you’re carrying today?
Shirley
P.S. I’m excited to share that today I found 3 more manuscripts I’d written years ago, that I thought I’d never see again — 2 are part of the Misty series!
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