I wondered what I should
do next? Should I put my manuscript away and start on something new, something
those companies would accept? Or should I try and find a secular company that
wouldn’t mind my fantasy with a Christian worldview?
Then one day I read an
interview over on Randy Ingermanson’s blog about some guy named Jeff Gerke who
was starting a publishing company that would focus solely on Christian speculative fiction. The name? Marcher Lord Press.
I followed Marcher Lord Press and was impressed
with the books put out. They were really good. I knew that when my manuscript
was ready, I wanted to submit to Marcher Lord Press.
I met Jeff Gerke at the Mt. Hermon Writing Conference in 2010. I told him about my book and he said to go ahead and send it to him. But he also warned me it would take 12-18 months for him to get to it (his slush pile was huge). I was fine with that. I would wait.
I met Jeff Gerke at the Mt. Hermon Writing Conference in 2010. I told him about my book and he said to go ahead and send it to him. But he also warned me it would take 12-18 months for him to get to it (his slush pile was huge). I was fine with that. I would wait.
A few months later life came crashing down on my
family. My husband lost his job. It soon became apparent that to help keep my
family afloat financially, I would need to go back to work fulltime. And in
order for me to work fulltime and take care of my family (which included four
young children), I would have to give up writing.
That night I prayed and cried. I gave my writing
over to God. I would walk away. I would not send out any more inquiries to
publishers or agents. I would put my writing aside until the time came that my
family no longer needed me to work. But there was just one catch: I had not
heard back from Jeff. I told God that it was in His hands what He did with my
book and Marcher Lord Press. The next day I started my new job.
Two weeks later, I
received an email from Jeff Gerke asking if I wanted to be a Marcher Lord. I
couldn’t believe it. After I had completely given up on writing, God gave me my
dream back.
My first book, Daughter of Light, released this past
month, with two more books to follow.
How about you? Could you walk away from your writing?
Morgan L. Busse is
passionate about authentic Christianity and shares from her own life her fears
and triumphs as a follower of Jesus Christ. The wife of a pastor and mother to
four children, she has plenty of adventures to draw from. Along with blogging,
Morgan also writes speculative fiction and released her debut book, Daughter
of Light, with Marcher Lord Press. You can visit Morgan at www.morganlbusse.com
Daughter of Light
As the Shadonae rise in the west and war threatens the north, a young woman discovers she is not human . . .
As the Shadonae rise in the west and war threatens the north, a young woman discovers she is not human . . .
Rowen Mar finds a strange
mark on her hand, and she is banished from her village as a witch. She covers
the mark with a leather glove and seeks sanctuary in the White City. She lives
in fear that if she touches another person, the power inside her will trigger
again, a terrifying power that allows her to see the darkness inside the human
heart . . .
But the mark is a summons,
and those called cannot hide forever. For the salvation of her people lies
within her hand.
