During the Christmas season it is so easy to become consumed with cooking, shopping, and decorating that we forget to anticipate the birth of our Savior. I know His birth took place over 2000 years ago and we all know the Christmas story. Maybe we know it too well and maybe we need to be reminded it isn’t just a story. The birth of Jesus is a miracle and Christmas is a time for us to experience that miracle anew. To celebrate the fact God loves us so much He sent His Son into the world. A tiny miracle that became that world’s greatest blessing.
In a different manner I believe we should feel a sense of anticipation about our writing. I don’t know about you, but when that first gem of a story idea niggles at my brain I’m full of anticipation. Midway through my first draft I may wonder what ever made me think I could write. By the time I’ve finished revising the book for the last time I may never want to think of those characters again.
Do you know what happens then? I send that story out and I begin to anticipate what will happen. I hope and I pray an editor will love it. And in the case of Mistletoe Magic, when I finally saw my first book accepted I felt a whole new wave of anticipation. For once I looked forward to editing and I felt a strong sense of anticipation hoping my editor would like the changes.
Then I anticipated the cover. Next the release date. And then, I’ll admit, I anticipated and feared friends, family, and strangers reading my book. But the entire process was one of joy. God allowed my dream of being published to come true.
Since then I’ve published two other books. I’m still filled with anticipation each time I begin writing another book and I hope I never become complacent about it. But more importantly, I never want to become complacent about the miracle of Jesus’s birth.
What about you? What has you filled with anticipation this Christmas season? What lies ahead in your writing journey?
Misty Winslow is determined to find her prince, and she meets the man of her dreams through an Internet dating service. Or is he, because the new dentist in town also sets her heart aflutter. It's love at first sight for Tyler Davenport, but before he can finish his first root canal, Misty is involved in an exclusive online romance with Wes99—Tyler's online persona. How can he tell her he's the man she's been waiting to meet, and how rational is it for him to be jealous of Wes99! Soon Tyler's pulling out all the stops to woo Misty. As Christmas approaches, Wes99 and Tyler both ask her to meet them under the mistletoe. Which man will she choose?
Terri Weldon is a lead
analyst by day and an author by night. She enjoys gardening, reading, and
shopping for shoes – a habit she
really needs to break. Problem is they make new, cute ones every season. One of her
favorite pastimes is volunteering as the librarian at her church. It allows her
to shop for books and spend someone else’s money! Plus, she has the great joy
of introducing people to Christian fiction. She lives with her family in
Oklahoma. Terri has two adorable Westies
– or they have her, she’s never sure which. Terri is a member of Romance Writers
of America and American Christian Fiction Writers. Her dream of becoming a
published author came true when her novella
Mistletoe Magic was published.
