The Unexpected Blessings of the Writing Life by Robin Patchen

Every time I’ve taken a test to place me on the introvert/extrovert scale, I’ve landed right in the middle. In other words, I need to be alone right up until I’m desperate for companionship.

I haven’t been short on companionship lately. We are so blessed that our grown children moved home for the quarantine, joining our third child, a recent high school graduate. This spring, I had my entire family together for Easter and Mother’s Day for the first time since 2015.

And, though it’s been a challenge to make space for three adults to work from home, I’ve enjoyed every minute of this family time.

What I’ve missed these months is my friends. Even though many of them don’t live nearby, there hasn’t been much time even for phone calls and Zoom meetings. And, while I love my family, there’s nothing quite like friendships with other writers, people who get this strange writing life.

For me, this community of other writers has been the greatest and most unexpected blessing of the writing life.

In recent months, I’ve grown my circle of writing friends to include eight other Christian romantic suspense authors. These women whose names I’ve seen in my “also-boughts,” whose books have decorated my Kindle, have become my friends. Together, we’re putting together a box set (more on that below) that will release in October. Honestly, I thought the Lord called me into this boxset to grow my audience and, perhaps, by His grace, to allow us to see our names on a bestseller list.

Now, months into it, I realize He had more in store for me than just business. (Doesn’t He always?) The Lord has blessed me with new friendships. He’s teaching me about working with others, about yielding to those who know more than I do, and about trusting Him to make it all work out. He’s reminding me that friendships don’t have to be tied to the community where I live. Great friendships can be borne over distances like never before.

That last lesson is particularly important for me right now.

After twenty-four years in Oklahoma, we’re relocating to the Austin area. I’ll be saying good-bye to my church family, my extended family, and my friends, many of whom are fellow writers. It’s going to be a challenge. But already, God is planting new friendships in my life. I know his plans for me—for all of us—are good. Despite the unknown lurking ahead, I will trust in Him.

Amazon Buy Link

DANGEROUS DECEPTIONS

Lives...and hearts...are on the line in eight brand-new Christian Romantic Suspense novels from the genre’s most explosive authors

Glimmer in the Darkness: Robin Patchen

When Cassidy learns another child has been kidnapped from her hometown, she's convinced the man who took the girl she’d been babysitting seven years earlier is behind the recent abductions. She alone holds the key to finding him. Though James blames Cassidy for his sister’s death, he’ll help if there’s a chance to save a child’s life. Can Cassidy and James identify the serial killer in time to rescue his latest victim?

About me:

Robin Patchen is one of the authors of the Dangerous Deceptions boxset, which includes eight brand-new, full-length Christian romantic suspense novels from best-selling and award-winning authors. It’s available on preorder for only 99¢.

Preorder Dangerous Deceptions at Amazon or your other favorite e-book retailers.

Learn more about Robin Patchen at her website and download a free copy of Convenient Lies

Why do I write? Who do I write for? by Taylor Bennett

Why do I write? Who do I write for?

Those are good questions—solid ones—but they’re not ones I ask myself often enough.

I spend so much time, hours and hours a day, writing. Thinking about writing. Reading other people’s writing. But when do I take time to ask myself why?

Why am I writing? Who am I writing for?

Do I write because I want to see my book made into a movie, win a major award, or become a NYT bestseller?

While all of those things would be nice…no.

That’s not why I write.

Do I write just for me? So that I can go on adventures within the pages of my own imagination?

That’s fun and all, but…no.

That’s not who I write for.

Do I write for the world? To make others happy, to churn out book after book that will win over the hearts of thousands?

Well…though I always hope others enjoy my work…no.

Then who DO I write for?

The answer is different for every author. Some do write for others, because they have a heart for a certain readership. Others write for themselves alone, to experience the joy of simply writing. Others write for the sheer thrill of navigating the publishing market, the wheeling and dealing with hotshot agents and editors.

Inside of me, there’s a small piece of all of these writers. Sometimes I write because of the story in my heart, the yearning I have to put it to paper. Sometimes I write for my audience, for others whom I know are just as in love with my characters as I am. Sometimes I strive to write with extra finesse, my hopes set on placing in a competition.

But, above all of that, I want to write for my Creator. The One who formed me in my mother’s womb, the One who gave me a love of writing before I even knew my alphabet. I pray to God each day, ask Him what He should have for me—in my life, my writing, my everything.

God knows best.

Sometimes, God makes it easy for us to know what His will is. He opens doors or closes windows that we just can’t ignore. Other times, His prodding is subtle. I’m learning to listen for that Divine, good will in all areas of my life, but especially in my writing. I’m still a young writer, one who hasn’t yet figured out her path in this literary life. But I know that God has a plan for me, for my writing.

And that’s why I want to write for Him.

What does writing for God mean?

In the Bible, we’re called to do everything unto the Lord, and we definitely shouldn’t leave our writing out of that. But how? How do we write for the Lord?

There are countless ways.

Whatever we do, we can do it for the Lord—whatever we write, we can write for the Lord.

If you write silly rhyming picture books…you can write them for the Lord.

If you write hard-hitting news articles…you can write them for the Lord.

Blog posts and devotionals and novels and short stories—you can write all of them for the Lord.

When we write for the Lord, we are simply laying down our work before Him. Asking Him to guide and direct our minds and hearts as we put words on a page. Sometimes His direction is clear—a push or prodding to tackle a certain topic. Other times, His hand is lighter. Just a vague whisper, a nudge in the right direction.

Writing for the Lord doesn’t necessarily mean we write for the Christian market, or even any market in particular. It simply means that we allow Him to fill us with His truth, to the point where we’re so full of God’s word that we simply can’t keep it from spilling out of us and into our words.

If we strive and aspire to write for the Lord, we have the great hope in our hearts that He will use our writing in ways we’ve never thought possible. A clean romance novel with a message of love and redemption can be just as effective as a pastor’s salvation message. We never know what will touch one person, one life, and what will give that individual a better glimpse of God’s kingdom.

And even if some of our writings never see the light of day—even when we write just for us, with no intention of publication—we can still use the act of writing as a way to worship.

No matter what we do with our writing, no matter who we’re writing for, we can use our writing to praise the One who first put words into our heart.

The One from whom all blessings truly flow.

Porch Swing Girl 


What if friendship cost you everything?
  
Stranded in Hawaii after the death of her mother, sixteen-year-old Olive Galloway is desperate to escape. She has to get back to Boston before her dad loses all common sense and sells the family house. But plane tickets cost money—something Olive gravely lacks.

With the help of Brander, the fussy youth group worship leader, and Jazz, a mysterious girl with a passion for all things Hawaiian, Olive lands a summer job at the Shave Ice Shack and launches a scheme to buy a plane ticket home before the end of the summer.
But when Jazz reveals a painful secret, Olive’s plans are challenged. Jazz needs money. A lot of it. Olive and Brander are determined to help their friend but, when their fundraising efforts are thwarted, Olive is caught in the middle. To help Jazz means giving up her ticket home. And time is running out.

Taylor Bennett Bio: Homeschooled since kindergarten, Taylor Bennett is the seventeen-year-old author of Porch Swing Girl, released by Mountain Brook Ink on May 1^st. When she’s not reading or writing, Taylor can be found playing her violin or taking walks in the beautiful Oregon countryside. She loves to connect with readers via her author website, as well as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram (her favorite!), Pinterest, and Goodreads.

Links:

Website: http://taylor--bennett.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TaylorBennettAuthor/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/writer__taylor
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/taylor.bennett.author/
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/Taylor__Bennett/
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/66039360-taylor-bennett
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCY14wY1VlyfoQlEJ_D6kkxQ
Order on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Porch-Swing-Girl-Tradewinds-Book-ebook/dp/B079QM574Y/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1518563702&sr=8-1&keywords=taylor+bennett+porch+swing+girl 

Seasons of Writing by Terri Weldon

April has been a tricky month this year. Early on I had beautiful tulips in pink, red, and orange blooming in my yard. The slow growing redbud trees put on their prettiest show since they’d been planted. Then the freeze came. The purple blooms on the redbuds shriveled up and the tulip blooms leaned over as if their necks had been broken. Where was spring? 

The weather warmed up again and surprisingly the tulips fared better than expected and their blooms perked back up for the most part. Then it froze again. 

This time I had a little more hope, I knew some of the tulips would wither, but others would make it. Plus I had a crop of late bloomers waiting to burst out. Even through the chill I knew spring was coming. 

So what does this have to do with writing and why am I rambling about my flowers? Because when I started thinking about what to write for this post the seasons of writing popped into my mind and I realized writing, much like the weather, has seasons. 

When I first began writing it felt like spring. Story ideas abounded. Excitement sprang up much like the tulips in my yard. Writing was fresh and new. I wrote fast and furiously. 

Now admittedly I had a long spring season, but finally summer arrived. I sold a book. Nothing seemed impossible. I had a request from an editor at my dream publisher. Like my garden in the summer, everything was in bloom. 

But have you ever designed a flowerbed and it didn’t quite turn out like you expected? Or planted a flower just to have it die? Yeah, well now you know how my book at my dream publisher fared. Fall had arrived. Most blooms were stripped away. Still there were snippets of hope. While the publisher rejected my book they did welcome other submissions from me.  Plus I had a request from a small publisher for a novella I had written. So just like fall, things were changing, but there was still beauty. 

I guess we all know what comes after fall. Winter. You guessed it, the novella…it was rejected. My writing, my creativity had taken some hard hits. And just like winter everything seemed frozen. Should I keep on writing? Was I spinning my wheels or was there hope? That’s a question each author has to answer for themselves. There is no wrong choice as long as you are doing what God wants you to do. 

Thankfully winter isn’t the end. There is always another spring coming. I made the decision to keep writing and while I wish I could say I’m enjoying an endless summer I’d be lying. The seasons have come and gone. I’m still here and thankfully have a novella coming out this July. After that, well I’m looking forward to whatever comes next.  

I think Solomon said it best:

To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven

Ecclesiastes 3:1 (KJV)

I hope you’ll share a little bit about your writing seasons and where you are in your writing journey now.

The Matchmakers Anthology
A Match Made in Sheffield (Book Two by Terri Weldon)

Nalie 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 is a lead analyst by day and an award winning author by night. Her novella The Christmas Bride Wore Boots won the best novella category in the 2016 Lyra Awards. She enjoys traveling, gardening, reading, spending time with her family, 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. She is a member of the Seriously Write Team (www.seriouslywrite.blogspot.com). Readers can connect with Terri at www.terriweldon.com