For many people, landing a television job in Hollywood is a dream, but for Stephanie Storey, it was her Plan B.

For 15 years, Storey has served as a producer on shows including The Writers Room on Sundance, The Arsenio Hall Show on CBS and the new Alec Baldwin Show on ABC. But what she really wanted to be? A novelist.

Her dream finally came to fruition with the publication of Oil and Marble: A Novel of Leonardo and Michelangelo. The New York Times called it “tremendously entertaining,” “adroit” and “informative.” I met Storey a year ago, read her novel and I have to say, New York Times, you nailed it! This novel is all of those adjectives and a whole lot more.

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This summer, Oil and Marble was released in paperback and I was able to catch up with Storey in the midst of a very intense book tour to find out what it took to make her childhood dream a reality. (Spoiler alert: a ton of hard work, sacrifice and a healthy tolerance for risk.)

Storey was kind enough to share her advice for anyone looking to make a big change in their career — whether it is to become a writer or an apparel designer or food entrepreneur. If there is something in the back of your head begging you to give it a shot, listen in as Storey describes the possibilities of what can happen when you finally say yes.