Waiting by Dawn Crandall

Hi, Terri here. I’m thrilled to welcome my friend, Dawn Crandall, to Seriously Write today. Dawn is a 2015 Carol Finalist for her debut novel The Hesitant Heiress. If you haven’t read Dawn’s books I encourage you to give one a try. They are fantastic.

Dawn Crandall

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People who don’t know me might not realize that I signed my three book contract with Whitaker House) when I was (finally) six months pregnant with my first child. What they also wouldn’t know is that I’d waited twice as long to have a baby than to get published, and that they both, unfortunately, happened to come about at the same time.

Yes, unfortunately.

Or at least, that’s what I thought most of the last year as I was busier than I’d ever been in my life, launching my three eBook series from Whitaker House—all within my son’s first year of life. But now, as the first year of my author career comes to a close and the three books of my Everstone Chronicles series release as paperbacks this Fall, I’ve come to realize that maybe I should have been more trusting with my God-scheduled life.

One proposal. One chance. That’s all I had because I’d written my three book series out completely.

Even as I did so, I knew it seemed unlikely that my one proposal would make it through the “barrier” every yet-to-be-published author wants to break through. Especially when publishing house after publishing house—some which were quite interested in my manuscript—either closed their fiction line or merged with another publishing company. I waited two long years from the day I signed the contract with my agent until she informed me of the book contract offer. I had come to the point of wanting nothing more than to see my name in print, to the point that I’d completely given up on having children because I thought I knew what God wanted to do with me. It certainly wasn’t that He wanted me to be a mom. So what else was there? But then it kept not happening. Month after month. Year after year. And yeah, there were times I wanted to give up and never write another word.

Are you in this place of waiting? Are you waiting for the call from an agent—for representation or news of a book contract from a dream publisher? Hoping that the next stage in your writing career will be IT?

Well, let me urge you to enjoy whatever time you have at each stage… because there is no IT this side of heaven. No matter where you are in your writing journey, there will always be something more your heart yearns for. And yeah, you might feel down and discouraged because you don’t have some higher-up’s stamp of approval for everyone to see, and you might even feel that God must not be paying attention or doesn’t want to see your manuscripts published, but that doesn’t change the fact that He’s doing exactly what He sees as best for your life right now.

I can see this now that it’s all been laid out behind me in His will for my life. Can you see the ways He’s worked in the waiting periods of your own life?

Trust Him. Continue to trust Him. Are you writing for Him or for fame, recognition and attention? I know it’s a struggle, but when it’s all said and done, whatever we do, it should be for the Lord. No matter what stage of the journey we’re waiting in.

This was originally posted August 27, 2015 on the www.acfw.com blog.

Amazon

Dawn Crandall is the author of the award winning series, The Everstone Chronicles: The Hesitant Heiress, The Bound Heart and The Captive Imposter which will all three release in paperback from Whitaker House this fall. She is a graduate of Taylor University with a degree in Christian Education, and is represented by Joyce Hart of Hartline Literary. She is a member of Romance Writers of America, American Christian Fiction Writers, secretary for the Indiana ACFW Chapter (Hoosier Ink), and associate member of the Great Lakes ACFW Chapter. can be found online at www.dawncrandall.blogspot.com and www.facebook.com/dawncrandallwritesfirst.

10 Ways to Nurture a Mama-Writing Life By Preslaysa Williams

I remember those years of catching a little writing in between the daughter's naps. It wish I'd had some of these tips from Preslaysa Williams. -- Sandy

Preslaysa: Life with small children comes with many challenges. There have been many times I walked the grocery store aisle with my two energetic children with a dazed, deer-in-headlights mama look on my face. Well-meaning people would come up to me and say: “Oh these are the best years of your life. Enjoy those little ones.” I’d think to myself: Umm, it’s kind of tough to enjoy anything right now when my son is wielding a breakable bottle of Kikkoman Soy Sauce and my daughter has maneuvered her way out of the child straps in the shopping cart.

But who am I to complain?

Aside from these (very frequent) moments, I enjoy being around my children. They are cute and funny and shockingly wise at times. I also enjoy writing. For me, these two activities have shaped the grown up version of me (Preslaysa: version 2.0). However, it’s a daily challenge to squeeze in the mothering and the writing in one day. When I awaken each morning an internal clock starts its countdown. This internal clock reminds me I have only so many hours to do the following:

· Quiet Time

· Fill my daily writing quota

· Fill my daily editing quota

· Do any social media/blog promotion tasks

· Do homeschool lessons with the children

· Read some good storybooks to the children

· Oversee and assist my son’s violin practice

· Oversee and train my children to do a simple chore or two

· Manage the inevitable child tantrum(s) or sibling squabble(s).

· Do my daily chores

· Do my weekly chores

· Update the budget, pay bills, etc.

· Workout

· Read a novel

· Eat

· And oh yeah, take a shower, brush my teeth and get dressed or something…

I’m pretty sure you, Mama Writer, have a pretty full plate too. Here are 5 ways to ensure you thrive both as a mom and as a writer.

1) Have a dedicated writing space. As moms, we spend a lot of time in giving mode and very little time nurturing our creative spirit. Set aside a space in your home that is off limits to children. A “room of your own” to quote Virginia Woolf. It doesn’t have to be a full room, but a small desk or table away from the main activity of the family will do. You don’t always have to write in that space, of course, but knowing it’s waiting for you provides a psychological boost. You are telling yourself that the work you do as a writer matters, regardless of whether you are published or pre-published.

2) Steal time. This is one of my favorite techniques for writing. When my children are playing or eating or napping, I pull out my handy dandy notebook and start writing, or I’ll pull out a page from a rough draft and start editing. These little moments add up quickly.

3) Carry a notebook or index cards around with you. Collect ideas for stories or blog posts, lines of dialogue, character snippets, and rough scene outlines for later use. This will help guard against that mythical idea called “writer’s block.” When you sit down to write, you’ll have a bunch of ideas ready to flesh out. If you use index cards, make sure they are attached to a ring binder for ease of use.

4) Use a Timer. I *heart* timers. It keeps me on track during the day. I have two timers: one for upstairs and one for downstairs. I also have a timer on my wristwatch. (I’m a little obsessive about timers!) For 2015, I recently found a great Google Extension called Stay Focused which will block me out of social media sites after I filled my daily time limit quota on sites like Facebook, Pinterest, Twitter, etc. I tell you, Stay Focused made me quickly prioritize how I spend my time on social media! These tools alone have kept me more focused and less idle. They’ve empowered me to actually do the work that shapes my greater calling as a wife, mom and writer.

5) Use checklists. I am also a checklist person. It’s not because I am particularly organized; I am quite the opposite. Checklists are my taskmaster. I’ve created a checklist that maps out my normal morning, afternoon and evening routines. I don’t follow my checklists to a T, and that’s okay. I can go to bed with and unfinished checklist and not have any guilt. I have another day to accomplish those tasks. However, if I didn’t have the checklist there to remind me, I’d be all scrambled up! Checklists simply tell me to do what matters whenever I am prone to get lost in the World Wide Web. Checklists are a girl’s best friend.

There you have it: five easy ways to manage a writing life and motherhood. What have you done to manage this Great Balancing Act?

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Preslaysa Williams (pronounced press-lay-suh) is a novelist and expert multi-tasker. She writes and edits fiction while her children nap and reads novels during her (almost) daily walks. A 2013 ACFW Genesis finalist and a 2014 ACFW Genesis semi-finalist, she writes inspirational romance and middle grade fiction of the happily ever after sort. Visit her online at www.preslaysa.com