Wednesday, October 31, 2018

It’s a Scary Writing World Out There! by Sandra Ardoin


When I was growing up, Halloween was a day when little kids ran from house to house, dressed in silly, sometimes too-large, costumes, and collected more candy than their tummies would comfortably allow them to consume in one evening. It was innocent fun—mostly, not a holiday recognized for pagan origins or costumes Freddy Krueger can appreciate. It wasn’t for teens and adults but for children.

What does Halloween have to do with writing? Nothing but my strained imagination. It occurred to me that the more serious we become about publishing, the spookier the writing life gets.

When we first dream up an epic story of love, inspiration, or adventure—when we’re writer-tots—we have such innocent attitudes toward the business. We put on our writer costume and naïvely set out to gather treats while traipsing the publishing path. As time passes and our hard work racks up refusals, when our hopes for publication begin to dim, we suddenly realize we’ve entered…

The Eerie Woods of the Rejected

Photo Courtesy of Jordan Stimpson / Pixabay

It’s dark in there, and we have no idea when, or if, we’ll ever find our way out. Ooh, there’s that voice that hisses in an unnerving tone, “You’re wasting your time. You’re a failure. Your work will never see publication. Turn back before it’s too late.”

But stubbornness kicks in, and we trudge forward.

Then, through the skeletal trees, we spot a beam of encouragement—a contest win or a request for a full manuscript. We creep forward, ignoring the moaning and groaning around us. Eventually, we break out into the glorious meadow of our first publishing sale.

But wait!

As we bask in the full moon that shines on our achievement, fog billows behind us and clouds roll in to cover the moon with doubts that we can achieve the same or greater success. The trolls of marketing chase us into the path of the ogre of procrastination and we dodge the sharp claws of the writer’s block beast.

Okay. Enough of that nonsense. The point is this. The more we grow in our abilities and experience—the more we study craft—the scarier the writing life can become, because we know more about it. These days, we hear that the Christian fiction market is fading, traditional publishing slots are shrinking, Amazon and other retailers are glutted with books. There seems no end to the bad news.

But you know what? You don’t have to cower in front of your computer. If God is behind your writing endeavor, He’ll prepare the way, even if your words are only meant to encourage or inspire one other person in their walk. Are you knocking on His door to receive His encouraging treat?


Today, share one thing about the writing life that scares you, and then share why you continue to follow that path.


Speaking of spooky (or not), in February 2019, my historical romance novella A Love Most Worthy releases. Do you want to see the cover? I'm dying to reveal it... 

**sigh** I can't until after my newsletter community sees it in a couple of weeks. 

(Oh, yes. Consider that my idea of a Halloween trick. :) )

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Sandra Ardoin engages readers with page-turning stories of love and faith. She’s the author of the heartwarming novella, The Yuletide Angel and the award-winning novel, A Reluctant Melody. Look for the mail-order bride novella A Love Most Worthy coming in February 2019. 

Rarely out of reach of a book, she's also an armchair sports enthusiast, country music listener, and seldom says no to eating out. Visit her at www.sandraardoin.com. Subscribe to receive updates and specials. Connect with her on Facebook, Twitter, Goodreads, Pinterest, and BookBub.