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| Kelli Stuart |
Sometimes
it takes years for a story to find its way to print, but the end result can be worth
the wait. Author Kelli Stuart shares her journey to publication and
encourages us to remember what’s important as we pen our own creations. ~ Dawn
Remembering
the Power of Words
“Do you write every day?” he asked. We all nodded our heads
up and down fiercely. “Well, then you’re writers, every one of you.”
I was a fresh-faced college student with stars in my eyes
when a professor confirmed what I already knew in my heart: I was born to be a writer. His diagnosis
of my future was a commonly heard phrase, of course.
“A
writer is one who writes every day.”
So simple, and clearly encouraging, but it didn’t take long
after I entered the real world to find out that there's a difference between a
writer who simply loves the craft and does it for fun, and a writer who loves
the craft and wants to make a career out of it.
Writing is a process. Of course, writing every day is a
start to building a career as a writer, but let’s face it—we want to be published.
The world of blogging opened up new opportunities for many
people who loved the process of writing, and the instant gratification of
hitting publish and knowing that their words were being read by someone...even
if it was just by mom...created a whole world of accidental writers. Blogging,
it turns out, changed everything.
The craft of writing has been diluted in the last decade.
Short, pithy quotes are the norm, and the more laid back, blogging style of
writing has become the go-to method of sharing words. These days, the world is
full of writers, so standing out among the pack is paramount if you’re
interested in taking your writing to the next level.
We need to go back to studying the art of writing. We need to remember the beauty and power of a
well-crafted sentence, a story that transports us to another time, and a book
that makes us sigh in satisfaction when we put it down.
Writing is more than just tapping out a few words every day.
Writing takes the emotion of a single moment and pulls the reader directly in,
making them feel as though somehow they had a part in that moment.
Writing
is powerful, and we need to respect it as
such.
I left college with stars in my eyes and a story scratching
at my heart. Certain I was destined for the New York Times Bestseller list, I
set to work writing this little novel of mine. But I quickly realized that a story isn’t to be forced.
I had too much respect for the craft of writing, and for the
story itself, to rush the process. So I took my time, and as I waited for the
story to reveal itself fully to me, I paid my dues.
I worked as an
editor, a blogger, and a ghostwriter. I helped other people craft their
stories, then watched their name go on the cover of a book I’d mostly written.
The paycheck at the end of the process took the sting out of it a bit.
In the background, I continued to slowly tap my way toward a
story that felt right—one that I could be proud of. I had no idea it would take
me a decade to get to The End. I had no idea that I’d end up with a stack of
rejection letters an inch thick. I had no idea how much tenacity and
perseverance I possessed.
My first novel, Like a River From Its Course, is
now available for purchase. A historical fiction novel set in World War II
Soviet Ukraine, the book is based on the true stories of Ukrainian World War II
survivors, many of whom I interviewed myself.
Hailed as “gritty and touching” by Publisher's Weekly, Like a River From Its Course has
received rave reviews from readers. And
here, at the tail end of this project, I find myself once again thinking of
that starry-eyed girl of long ago. She's a little wiser now, and little less
idealistic, but she still really loves words.
The city
of Kiev was bombed in Hitler’s blitzkrieg across the Soviet Union, but the
constant siege was only the beginning for her citizens. In this sweeping
historical saga, Kelli Stuart takes the reader on a captivating journey into
the little—known history of Ukraine’s tragedies through the eyes of four
compelling characters who experience the same story from different
perspectives.
Kelli Stuart is a
wife and mother, a writer, and the driver of a smokin’ hot minivan. Kelli is
the author of Like a River From Its Course, a
sweeping historical saga set in World War II Soviet Ukraine. Kelli's second
book, Life Creative: Inspiration for
Today’s Renaissance Mom, releases in September with Kregel Publications.
You can connect with Kelli on her website, KelliStuart.com. You’ll
also find her on Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest.
