Welcome to Fortifying Friday! Last week on our Writer’s Journey Wednesday, author Amy Clipston gave us “Eleven Steps to Fighting Writer’s Block.” Today she returns to share her journey to publication. Enjoy!How Writing Found Me
I often mention that my writing career began when I wrote and shared silly stories with a close friend in elementary school. While writing was second nature to me, I never considered being a writer. Instead, I spent time dreaming of becoming a teacher, veterinarian, or nurse.
In junior high and high school, my books turned into “fan fiction,” which were stories based on my favorite television shows and movies. However, I still didn’t call myself a writer or plan to pen books people would want to buy.
My fan fiction hobby continued as my way to escape stress while I was in college and into my adult life. I shared my stories with a close friend but hid my pastime from my husband. I didn’t dare tell him I was writing because I was afraid he would be disappointed in me, which was ludicrous. My husband has always supported me, but I was uncomfortable with my writing passion.
While searching for a professional technical writer/editor organization to join for work, I happened upon Chesapeake Romance Writers, a local chapter of Romance Writers of America. After attending a meeting, I realized I had a suppressed desire to become a writer. The realization was life changing, and my silly stories soon transformed into novels.
My new friends at Chesapeake Romance Writers taught me how to plot and write marketable books. After I completed my first novel, my friends advised me on the process of finding a literary agent. In 2005, I signed with my agent, Mary Sue Seymour, and she and I began our journey of pedaling my creations. At that time, I was writing romance novels.
When I made the switch to inspirational books, I found my niche. As a lifelong Christian, the transition was comfortable and it felt like my calling. I had always felt a connection to the Amish. My father, who immigrated to the United States with his parents and siblings in 1929, told me the Amish speak my family’s dialect of German. Since I grew up in New Jersey, I had visited Lancaster County as a child and my fascination with the Amish way of life grew.
After researching the culture, I was inspired to create my own book series. I formed a close friendship with an Amish woman during my research, and she critiques my stories. My dream of the Kauffman Amish Bakery Series came true when Zondervan offered me a contract in late 2007.
Holding my first book, A Gift of Grace, in my hands was a dream come true; however, seeing A Gift of Grace and then my second book, A Promise of Hope, hit all three Christian Best Seller lists was surreal. I’m thankful to my agent, Zondervan, and my readers for choosing my books.
The Kauffman Amish Bakery Series will include six full-length novels along with Christmas novellas. A Plain & Simple Christmas will debut in August, followed by A Place of Peace, book three in the series, in December.
Bestselling author Amy Clipston has been writing for as long as she can remember. Her fiction writing "career" began in elementary school in New Jersey when she and a close friend wrote and shared silly stories. Amy’s book, A Gift of Grace, the first in her Kauffman Amish Bakery Series debuted with Zondervan in May 2009. A Promise of Hope, the second book in The Kauffman Amish Bakery Series, hit bookshelves in April 2010 and will be followed by two more Kauffman books in 2010, A Plain & Simple Christmas in July and A Place of Peace in December.Amy is a member of American Christian Fiction Writers and Romance Writers of America. She holds a degree in communications from Virginia Wesleyan College and works for the City of Charlotte. Amy lives with her husband, Joe; two sons, Zac and Matt; mother, Lola; and three spoiled rotten cats, Molly, Rico, and Jet.
To learn more about Amy and her books, please visit these links:
http://www.amyclipston.com/
http://www.amyclipston.blogspot.com/
http://www.amishhearts.com/
www.facebook.com/amy.clipston
