Things I'm Thankful For by Terri Weldon

On Thursday, November 28th, Americans will sit down at their tables and have a wonderful meal with family and friends as we celebrate Thanksgiving.

Since Seriously Write will be closed I thought I’d share a few of the writing things I’m thankful for with you today.

1. The Gift of Writing – I’m so thankful God has blessed me with the gift of writing. Penning stories may be overwhelming at times but it is a true joy.

2. My Sister – she also happens to be my number one fan and encourager. At times she is also my harshest critic. I’m thankful for her encouragement and honesty.

3. Writing Friends – it’s a blessing to have friends who understand what it means to be a writer. Friends who don’t blink an eye when you ask for a way to murder someone that starts with a T. Instead they start brainstorming with you!

4. A Mentor – I’ve been blessed to be mentored by an extremely talented author who has helped me improve my writing.

And last, but not least

5. Seriously Write – I’m blessed to be a part of a wonderful blog. The four women, Annette Irby, Mary Felkins, Sandra Ardoin, and Dawn Kinzer, who host on the other days of the week are talented, fun, and such a blessing. Another Seriously Write blessing is my two regular contributors, Sally Shupe and Patti Jo Moore. Life is so much nicer since they’ve joined the Thursday team!

What writing things are you thankful for? I’d love to hear all about them.

Amazon Link

A Match Made In Sheffield (The Matchmakers)

Natalie Benton bounced from one foster home to another until she landed on Ellie Alexander’s doorstep. Natalie’s vagabond childhood caused her to yearn for a secure life, which led to Natalie’s five-year plan: complete her law degree, marry the perfect man, become a partner at Montgomery, Haynes, and Preston, and produce one child. Getting arrested wasn’t in Natalie’s plan. Needing a public defender wasn’t in her plan. Falling for Grady Hunter, her public defender, definitely wasn’t in her plan. Can Grady convince Natalie there is more to life than her five-year plan? Is Ellie the only one who sees a future for Natalie and Grady?

Terri Weldon feels blessed to be a full time writer. She enjoys traveling, reading, and shopping for shoes. 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 the Heartland of the United States. Terri has two adorable Westies – Crosby and Nolly Grace. Terri is a member of ACFW and RWA.

The Gift of a Creative Imagination by Richard Spillman

 
The most dangerous question in the history of mankind is “I wonder what it would be like if . . .” On the other hand, the most uplifting, promising question in the history of mankind is “I wonder what it would be like if . . .” When we ask that question, when we begin to imagine possibilities, things change. But our imagination is a key that fits two doors. One leads to beauty, the other leads to darkness. 

This key was given to mankind at the beginning of time when God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness ... (Genesis 1:26).” Only man was created in His image but what does that mean? It certainly does not mean that we look like God. God is a spirit; He does not have a physical body. Clearly “created in the image of God” has nothing to do with our physical appearance. 

The “image and likeness of God” must be based on who we are not on how we appear. It must be related to how God revealed His image in the first chapter of Genesis. So, what do we know about the “likeness” of God from those verses? What are the most prominent characteristics of God displayed just before He created us? 

I believe the answer is clear. The picture of God in these verses is one of creative power, of using His imagination to make all that we see. If life was His first gift to us, His second had to be the gift of creativity, of imagination, of wonder. After all, man is the only living thing that creates beauty for the sake of beauty.

Not only can we be creative, we are driven to be creative. Our imagination is constantly at work as we look in amazement at the world and wonder what we can contribute to it. It may be working with our hands, teaching, drawing or, as it is for me, writing. We all find fulfillment in our creative efforts. No matter what our skill, we gain immense enjoyment from using it. A life of pure leisure with nothing to do might sound attractive; but the truth is we have to be doing something to feel fulfilled. We are lost if we don’t have a purpose. In some way we have to be creative.

That creative gift always begins with our imagination. When we imagine something, we say to ourselves, “I wonder what it would be like if . . .”, and then we proceed to make it real in some way. When we use our imagination God’s way we create something beautiful just as He did.

This is one reason why Paul cautioned the church at Corinth in 2 Corinthians 10:5, “… we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.” Our imagination is a gift from God.  Yet, in a fallen world we can use that gift to create beauty or to create filth. Unfortunately, mankind does an excellent job at both. If we are to honor God and thank Him for the skills He gave us, we need to take every thought captive and direct all our creative abilities towards what will please Him. For authors that means we need to write stories that glorify Him. And we do that by creating beauty. In short we must use the gift of our imagination to honor the giver.

 This does not require us, as authors, to directly mention God in everything we write. It does require us to give any glory from our writing to Him. It does not require us to write only feel-good stories. It does require us to write what affirms the values Christ taught. It does not require us to write only “religious” material. It does require us to understand that what we write has an impact and we want that impact to be positive.

So, the next time you search for a new project and ask the question “I wonder what it would be like if …” allow the Spirit to capture your thoughts, your imagination, your wonder and direct you down a path that will ultimately glorify God.

How about you? Have you ever asked “I wonder what it would be like if …” and found an answer that clearly was from God, glorified God, and surprised you?

The Awakened 

 

Everyone dies once. But what if a chosen few were raised from the dead?

 

Two thousand years ago Jesus resurrected his friend, Lazarus, who founded a secret organization: SOAR. Since then Jesus has added to the resurrected—The Awakened—to aid Lazarus in SOAR's battle against Satan's slaves, the UnVeilers. The threat is escalating. The UnVeilers have stepped up their attacks on mankind through a charming leader and a devastating series of bombings in Dubai and Tel Aviv.

 

But the invasion doesn't stop with international terrorism. The UnVeilers are searching for a secret that Jesus embedded in Lazarus’ journal that not even Lazarus knows—and it will determine the fate of mankind. After a failed cyber-attack against SOAR's computers, Lazarus and his team of experts must find the secret before the UnVeilers do. What clue is he overlooking that could turn the tide of this ageless conflict?

 

The souls fighting with Lazarus are weary, but the war against evil is far from won. Can Lazarus and his team set aside their longing for heaven and put a stop to these satanic attacks before it's too late?

 

Dr Richard Spillman founded the Kingdom is Near Ministries (KIN). Through KIN he has supported an orphanage in Uganda as well as a church/school for kids from conflict zones in the Philippines. He has small teams on short term missions into slums and jungles around the world. He has also taught in DTS for YWAM in Mali, South Korea, India and the Philippines.

 

Visit his web site: spillmanauthor.com

Join his facebook group: bit.ly/spillmanauthor

 

Title: The Diet of a Writer: What Feeds Us – Part IV by Susan Tuttle

The past several months we’ve been talking about what feeds a writer. From actual snacks to technical growth to the friendships we have. Today I want to talk about the staple of our diet. The part that feeds our very spirit and should breath life into every word we write: God.

We can forgo every other part of the diet we’ve spent time talking about, and our writing may suffer in quality, but it could survive. If we miss out on this piece though? We might as well put away our typewriters and not write down another word on paper.

See, writing is a God-given gift. It is the one thing all of us share in common. It spans genres and publishing varieties. No matter why, what, or how you write, you write because when God created you, he placed this gift inside of you. It was the purpose he created you for. And not acknowledging the gift-giver leaves a hole right in the center of anything you write.

Last month we talked about how friends can fill us up. They can, and they are an important part of our lives. But we also need to spend daily time with God for him to renew our vision, bestow direction, and breath life into us—and the words we write. We don’t simply write for entertainment. We write for Him. For his message to be heard.

Some of us do that overtly. Some do it subtly. But we all should be doing that. I encourage you to protect your daily time with God. Begin each writing session by praying over your keyboard. Seek him for direction and invite him into the process with you. He longs to partner with you in the very gift that he gave you. The stories you write with him will far surpass anything you could ever write on your own.

What fills us as writers? Many things. But the only thing we truly need is God.

Susan L. Tuttle lives in Michigan where she’s happily married to her best friend and is a homeschooling mom of three. She’s firmly convinced that letters were meant for words, not math, and loves stringing them together into stories that inspire, encourage, and grow women into who God created them to be. Romance, laughter, and cookies are three of her favorite things, though not always in that order. You can connect with Susan at her blog, Steps, Facebook, or Twitter.

Susan contributes on the first Thursday of each month.

Staying Motivated by Rachel J. Good

We have only this moment, sparkling like a star in our hand — and melting like a snowflake. Let us use it before it is too late.”    ~Marie Beynon Ray  

As snow falls here in the Northeast, blanketing us with white so deep we have no choice but to stay inside, it’s a good time to ponder our goals. Back in January, when the year was new and shiny, many of us made resolutions. Often by now, we’re off track, and all those promises we made to ourselves seem even farther from reach because we’ve also lost our motivation. The passion that birthed those resolutions has long since died. And that makes it easy to forget our dreams and plans, to let the pressing details of everyday life keep us stuck. 

We have so many commitments, we have little time to squeeze in the things that are dear to our hearts. Perhaps an emotional or physical crisis is draining our time and energy. Once this is over, we tell ourselves we’ll make time for writing. But before that difficulty passes, another takes its place, and soon we’re spending all our time dealing with emergencies. We shelve our dreams, but it’s “only for now,” we promise ourselves. We’ll get back to it someday, but soon a few days stretches into weeks, months, or even years. 

So how do we stay motivated once reality has set in, and we’re not finding time for our writing or other important projects?

One of my favorite pieces of advice is to look back for motivation and forward for inspiration. Planning and dreaming can inspire us to move ahead, but looking back can be valuable to see how far we’ve come. I’ve found it’s often the perfect solution to getting unstuck.

The key to looking back is not to beat yourself up over uncompleted projects, but to remember your past successes. Even if it seems these have been few or nonexistent, reframe your past from a positive perspective.

For many years, my only progress consisted of stacks of rejection letters, half-finished manuscripts, and a brain full of ideas. Although I put in work, I didn’t feel a real sense of accomplishment. Now I wish I could go back and appreciate those achievements, because if it weren’t for those years of drudgery and disappointment, I wouldn’t be published today.

So wherever you are on your journey (whether in writing or other pursuits), honor the hard work you’ve put in — even if it didn’t bring the rewards you hoped. Find a way to keep track of what you’ve done and celebrate the small milestones along the way. Rejection letters indicate you’ve been submitting, partially finished manuscripts prove you’ve been writing, doodles in your sketchbook show you’ve been drawing. Yes, you may not have gotten as far as you’d hoped, but rather than looking at where you expected to be, rejoice in how far you’ve come. You’ve made progress, and that’s the most important thing.

Another way to look back is to ask yourself what you wish you’d accomplished at the end of your life. So many times, we forgo the important things for the petty. How valuable are the activities taking up your time each day? Would you rather spend your time sweeping dust bunnies in the guest bedroom or touching lives with an important message? Thinking in terms of an eternal perspective can also be motivating.

And as the quote (and the Bible) reminds us, we have no guarantee of tomorrow; the only time we have allotted is now. This point was driven home to me this week when a beloved writer I know lost her battle with cancer. Although those of us who knew her mourn her loss, we’re grateful for the books she’s left behind – books that still have the power to change lives for years or even generations to come. What about you? Are you waiting for someday? If God has given you a message to share, do it now. Don’t put it off until it’s too late.

 

Inspirational author Rachel J. Good writes life-changing, heart-tugging novels of faith, hope, and forgiveness. She is the author of several Amish series in print or forthcoming – Sisters & Friends series, Hearts of Amish Country series, and Love & Promises series – as well as the Amish Quilts Coloring Books. She also writes the contemporary inspirational series, Hope Chapel, and the first novella in that series, Angels Unaware, recently released. Her March release, Buried Secrets, is on blog tour with Celebrate Lit. You can connect with Rachel on Facebook and her website.

Links

www.racheljgood.com
https://www.facebook.com/racheljgoodnovels/
https://www.facebook.com/people/Rachel-J-Good/100009699285059
https://twitter.com/RachelJGood1
https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/14661177.Rachel_J_Good
https://www.pinterest.com/racheljgood1/

 

 

When God Gives You a Story Nobody Wants by Robin Patchen

As an author and freelance editor, I’ve had the privilege of knowing and working with a lot of writers, and I’ve discovered most have one at least one thing in common: a sense of urgency to publish.

Since the majority of my writer friends are Christians, I’m not sure if the rush is unique to Christian authors or universal among all, but I do suspect that believers may feel a bit more hurried, what with the need to get the message out there and share the truth with the world.

Would that we were all so eager to witness to our neighbors, but I digress.

Whether you’re published or not, you may feel a sense of urgency about your writing projects. Maybe you worry that somebody else will come along with the same idea and beat you to it. Maybe you worry that by the time your book reaches your audience, the perfect opportunity for your message will have passed. Or maybe the worry is more personal than that. After all, none of us is getting any younger.

With the explosion of indie publishing, impatient writers don’t have to wait any longer. All it takes is a few clicks of the mouse, and you can load that book on retail sites, making it available to your adoring public.

You can indie publish, but should you?

I’m not knocking the process. I’m indie published myself, so I consider this a valid option. The question I want to tackle isn’t whether or not you should take this route. The question is when. Even if the Lord handed you the story, the image for the book cover, and the title, that’s not proof He wants you to rush out and throw it on Amazon. Not sure I’m right? There’s plenty of biblical justification for waiting:

• Abraham was told he’d have a son and then waited 19 years before little Isaac was born.
• Biblical scholars estimate David waited 10-15 years after he was anointed king before he finally ascended to the throne. 
• The apostle Paul didn’t begin preaching until more than a decade after his conversion.

I’m sure there were times when Abraham, David, and Paul felt the waiting was unnecessary and wished God would hurry it along. Abraham and Sarah did hurry their promise along. We know how that turned out. David not only waited but, for much of that interim, had to battle just to stay alive. The time wasn’t wasted, though. Lessons are learned in the waiting. Patience, perseverance, and faith, of course. But I suspect some of those lessons were more basic than that. For instance, David learned how to be a leader others were willing to die for. If he’d been crowned sooner, he may not have become the greatest earthly king in Israel’s history.  After all, he began as a shepherd, lowly and obscure.

Maybe you have a book you believe needs to be published. Maybe it’s a book you think the Lord gave you, and maybe it even came with a promise. If so, be patient. The anxiety fluttering in your stomach when you think about this project—that isn’t from God. When you pray and trust, you’ll be filled with peace, not worry. But if you force your way through doors He hasn’t opened, the anxiety will likely grow. And the book will not have the impact it could have if you’d remained in His will.

I’ve seen too many books brought to the light through indie publishing that weren’t mature enough, weren’t seasoned enough, weren’t ready to be there. Instead of jumping ahead, trust that when God wants you to publish your words, He’ll make it clear. He’ll open the right doors and lead you to exactly the right the people who can help make it happen.

In the meantime, move on to other projects. Build your newsletter list, learn new marketing strategies, make connections with other authors. Mostly, keep learning, keep growing, and keep improving your craft.  It may be that if you come back to that project in a year or two, you’ll realize you can make it shine. 

I speak from experience. The Lord gave me a book almost four years ago. It’s the only time I’ve ever felt one of my stories came from God, and, still, it was the hardest book I ever wrote. I believe that with the help of a great editor, it can be my best book. But that story has been pitched and pitched, and nobody’s interested. I write and publish other books and help other authors do the same while that book languishes silently on my laptop. When I pray about it, I don't have a clear direction. I don’t feel free to indie publish it, and no acquisitions editor has shown any interest. So I wait. The last thing I want to do is treat His gift with haste and carelessness. I trust that God has a purpose in the waiting and a plan for the story He gave me.

The Lord may make you a promise, give you a vision, or impart to you a message, and then ask you to wait. He’s been doing it for thousands of years, and He’ll keep doing it today. You could choose to be like Abraham and Sarah and rush ahead, or you could trust God’s timing, which is always perfect.
 

Twisted Lies: Book 2 in the Hidden Truth Series

She thought they’d never find her.  And then her daughter vanished.

Marisa Vega’s life as an adoptive mom in a tiny Mexican village isn’t what she’d dreamed while growing up in New York, but as the target of a man who’s convinced she stole millions of dollars from his financial firm, Marisa believes hiding is her only way to stay alive. When her daughter is snatched and held for ransom, Marisa must discover who really stole the money in order to rescue her. 

Months after being kidnapped, tortured, and left with PTSD, Nate Boyle is ready to live a quiet life in rural New Hampshire. When the source of his breakout newspaper article—and the woman who haunts his dreams—begs for help, he gets pulled into a riddle that’s proved unsolvable for nearly a decade. 

Can Nate and Marisa unravel the years-old mystery and bring her daughter home?

Amazon: http://amzn.to/2kotGFL
Kobo: https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/twisted-lies-4
iBooks: https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/twisted-lies/id1198420662?ls=1&mt=11

Robin Patchen is an award winning multi-published author, but only because she can't pursue her other dream.

If time and money were no object, Robin would spend her life traveling. Her goal is to visit every place in the entire world--twice. She longs to meet everybody and see everything and spread the good news of Christ. Alas, time is short and money is scarce, and her husband and three teenagers don't want to traipse all around the world with her, so Robin does the next best thing: she writes. In the tales she creates, she can illustrate the unending grace of God through the power and magic of story.

Visit me at robinpatchen.com.

Your Perfect Gift by Susan Tuttle

It’s December 1^st. How many of you are already finished with your Christmas shopping? Not me! I have started, but I’ve a long ways to go. But I LOVE buying and giving gifts, so I tend to string out this season as long as I can. Anyone else?

As I started to write this post, that one word immediately pushed to my mind: gift. What is a gift? It’s something the giver choses to give with no strings attached. It’s meant to suit the person who receives it and impact their life in a positive way. It’s meant to bring joy. To be helpful. To bless. Gifts are an amazing thing. And each one of you here has gift you’ve received, but it’s also one you’re meant to give.

God has given you the gift of writing. It comes in all shapes and sizes because WE come in different shapes and sizes, but make no mistake; God has given you this gift to share. I think of 1 Peter 4:10. God has given each of you a gift from his great variety of spiritual gifts. Use them well to serve others.

Our writing can be a solitary thing at times, but it’s not meant to be kept in solitude. Oh sure, there’s always going to be those pieces that should live eternally in our desk drawer, but as we grow as writers those pieces should become fewer and farther between. We need to trust the gift God gave us and put our work out there, because it’s meant to serve others. This gift he’s given should impact people for him—and you don’t need to be on the New York Times Bestseller list to do that or have a million blog followers.

Whether you write a short story, an article, a Facebook post, or even a Christmas card…whatever God lays on your heart, in any shape or size, share it. Words are your gift, and gifts are meant to be given. So this season I encourage you to hand out as much of your gift as you can and serve (and bless) others with the love of Christ.

Merry Christmas, friends!

Susan L. Tuttle lives in Michigan where she’s happily married to her best friend and is a homeschooling mom of three. She’s firmly convinced that letters were meant for words, not math, and loves stringing them together into stories that inspire, encourage, and grow women into who God created them to be. Romance, laughter, and cookies are three of her favorite things, though not always in that order. You can connect with Susan at her blog, Steps, Facebook, or Twitter.