I have admired author Liz Curtis Higgs and her work for
years. I’m so honored that she’s with us today, sharing part of her personal
journey to publication, as well as helpful advice. I think it’s humorous and interesting that
like so many of us, even Liz was influenced by Nancy Drew! Enjoy this precious
lady’s words. ~ Dawn
The
Journey to Publication
by Liz
Curtis Higgs
All I ever wanted to be was a writer. In grade school I
wrote little stories about dinosaurs for my nephews. In middle school I filled
endless notebooks with angst-ridden poetry and Nancy Drew-style mysteries. In
my teens I edited the school newspaper and wrote YA romance novels with
captivating titles like Him. (Trust
me, those will never see the light of
day!)
Unfortunately, in college I majored in partying and English—in
that order. Only when the Lord captured my heart at age 27 did I begin to
consider my love for writing as a true calling. Even so, eight more years went
by before I saw my name in print. During that time, I married a wonderful man,
brought my decade in radio to a happy close, gave birth to two adorable
children, ramped up my speaking career, and finished that BA in English.
Degree in hand, I worked up the courage to begin sending out
articles to Christian publications. I can still remember the day I received my
first check from a church magazine for $90. Was I excited! Actually, I still
get excited when publishers send me checks. But it’s the writing itself—the
process, not the publication, and not the payment—that thrills me most. Anne
Lamott assures us, “Publication is not all that it is cracked up to be. But
writing is.” Yes, yes, yes.
Publishers love when a writer has an established platform,
but what they care about most is great writing. I’m nowhere near the writer I
hope to be someday, so working on craft is an ongoing effort for me and for
every published writer I know.
My advice? Buy the best self-editing books you can find. My
favorites are the latest editions of Self-Editing
for Fiction Writers: How to Edit Yourself Into Print by Renni Browne and
Dave King and Revision And Self-Editing
by James Scott Bell.
Some people hate rewriting, but it’s my favorite part. As
John Updike phrased it, “Writing and rewriting are a constant search for what
it is one is saying.” Somewhere between the second and third draft—fiction or nonfiction—I finally go, “Oh! That’s what this book is about!” Then
it’s back to page one with that theme printed out in front of me in 30-point
type. Every word, every sentence, every paragraph needs to support that theme.
It’s much easier to see what stays and what goes when you know where you’re
headed.
Why not start with a solid theme, you ask? Oh, I do. But
only after the words have poured out of me can I stand back and see what God
has been trying to teach me all along.
Learn to love the process, get all that passion on the page,
look at your words with a cool eye, then separate the wheat from the chaff.
Finally, trust God to make a way for your manuscript when the message you have
and the reader you have in mind are ready to meet.
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| Click to reach Amazon. |
Liz Curtis Higgs
is the author of thirty books, with more than three million copies in print.
Her award-winning fiction includes two contemporary novels, six historical
novels, and her new Victorian Christmas novella, A
Wreath of Snow.
To find out more about Liz and her work, please visit:
Fiction website / blog: http://www.MyScottishHeart.com
Fiction Facebook page: http://www.Facebook.com/MyScottishHeart
Fiction Twitter account: http://twitter.com/myscottish
Pinterest board for A Wreath of Snow: http://pinterest.com/lizcurtishiggs/a-victorian-visit-to-stirling-scotland/
Regular website / blog: http://www.LizCurtisHiggs.com
Regular Facebook page: http://www.Facebook.com/LizCurtisHiggs
Regular Twitter account: http://www.Twitter.com/LizCurtisHiggs
