Encourage One Another by Barbara J. Scott

Encourage One Another
by Barbara Scott

Writers sometimes forget that we need time to daydream and time to rest and seek the Lord’s will. It’s easy to lose our hope when we drive ourselves day and night to succeed. We are told to be active on social media, participate in blog tours, write and send out newsletters to our followers, solicit reviewers and endorsements, put together and manage a street team to promote us—promote ourselves. I confess, marketing and promotion stress me out until I feel like a hamster running on a wheel going nowhere.

Caught up in the business of “writing,” it’s easy to forget why we write and for whom and say yes to opportunities we shouldn’t—opportunities we take because they pay well. But our hearts aren’t in it…and neither is God.

When I allow my mind to rest and shut out all the noise, that’s when I hear God’s still, small voice in His word. There’s a Scripture in 1 Thessalonians 1:3 that centers me: 

We remember before our God and Father your work produced by faith, 

your labor prompted by love, 

and your endurance inspired by hope 

in our Lord Jesus Christ.

The Lord called us to write to glorify Him and through our words offer hope to a dark and dying world. By faith, we follow Him and labor in his vineyard prompted by His love. Our endurance is inspired by our hope in Jesus Christ. So, if we lose hope in our calling, how can we reach out and spark hope in our readers? How can we encourage and uplift their spirits? How can we show them the way to eternal life?

The other day I took a break. The house was quiet. I laid my head back in a lounger and closed my eyes. Soon I saw the earth covered in a pitch-black cloth, but all over the globe, pinpoints of light pierced that darkness.

Since I’m a word person, one of my favorite Scriptures is John 1:1:

In the beginning was the Word, 

and the Word was with God, 

and the Word was God.  

God inhabits our words if we let Him guide us in what to write. Not all our promotional fervor is fruitful. If we listen, the Lord will tell us how to reach our readers. Our words are not about us. They are meant to reach those people God has ordained to read them.

As Christian writers, let’s encourage one another so that we might encourage those in the world who feel hopeless and lost.

How might you encourage another writer and help light their way?

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Dreams of My Heart

Feisty Irish bride Kate O’Brien McKean asks her Texas cattleman husband Buck for an annulment in Dreams of My Heart, book one of The Reluctant Brides series, setting off a chain reaction of events that endangers them both. The historical romance, set in 1875 Montana Territory, releases April 1 from Mountain Brook Ink. The e-book is available for pre-order on Amazon.com.

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After a career spent acquiring and editing books by numerous bestselling Christian authors, Barbara Scott has returned to her true love—writing. Barbara and her husband Mike live in the Nashville area, with their two Chihuahuas, Riley and Sissy, both rescued from puppy mills. Reading, writing, and research are her passions. Want to know more? Connect with Barbara at www.BarbaraJScott.com.

The Writing Marathon...Got What it Takes??

Marianne Evans

My son just ran and completed his first marathon! I’m such a proud mama. Like his father before him, he trained, he became educated on the sport and its processes, and he committed himself to a regimen that leaves me in awe. What a kiddo!

His accomplishment, coupled with the upcoming kick-off of NaNoWriMo, made me think about marathoning in terms of my own writer life.

 

In the past year and a half, I have written a four-book series of novellas, two short contemporary romances, and a women’s fiction novel. Whew. The process was…and has been…daunting at times. It’s a marathon. Unwilling to sacrifice quality, I continually train myself in the craft and strive to become educated so the manuscripts I turn in are the best they can be and as polished as possible. After all, publication is a marathon exercise for editors as well.

Producing multiple books, on a deadline, takes knowledge of the entire publication process. It takes commitment. Backside in the chair, fingers to keyboard, head and heart buried deep within the pages of my WIP. There are days, sure, when the last thing I feel like doing is booting up the computer and crafting the next scene, the next chapter, the next conflict. In marathon terms, that’s called ‘hitting the wall.’

That’s when an amazing transformation occurs—I find if I power through and stick with it, I will find myself engulfed by the story God is giving me to tell. Easy? No. Frustrating? At times, you bet. Rewarding? To the highest power.

Finally, there’s commitment to the regimen. I can't allow myself to just dream of writing. I have to sit down and do it. I can’t let myself be afraid of the learning curves and the hard work; both are on-going processes as I write. That’s when I force myself to remember a wise bit of advice I paraphrase from the one-and-only Nora Roberts: “The only thing you can’t edit is a blank page.”

What’s your battle? What ‘wall’ do you hit as a writer? Let’s compare notes. I’m praying for you, friends, and cheering you on. In the end, I hope you take on the challenges before you and discover the surprising truth that the ‘marathon’ is well worth the effort.

Click to Tweet!!

"The only thing you can't edit is a blank page."

"Don't dream about writing. Sit down and do it."

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Marianne’s new series, Sisters in Spirit, is her latest release from Pelican Book Group and is the prelude to Pure Amore – a new line of subscription-only contemporary romances featuring a powerful message to Christian New Adults regarding chastity and purity. Marianne is honored to be one of the six launch authors for this new and exciting line.

You can find Sisters in Spirit right here: Sisters in Spirit at Pelican Book Group and here’s more information about Pure Amore: http://pure.pelicanbookgroup.com/

Happy reading!

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Marianne Evans is a multi-award-winning author of Christian romance and fiction. Her hope is to spread the faith-affirming message of God’s love through the stories He prompts her to create. Devotion, earned the Bookseller’s Best Award as well as the Heart of Excellence Award. She also earned wins for Best Romance of 2012 from the Christian Small Publisher's Association and the Selah award for best Novella of 2013. Happily married and the mother of two, Marianne is a lifelong resident of Michigan who is active in a number of a number of Romance Writers of America chapters, most notably the Greater Detroit Chapter where she served two terms as President. Connect with her at www.marianneevans.com.

You’re Still a Lily! by Susan Tuttle

The writing world can be tough, can’t it? Especially for those of us in the CBA market. We believe we are called to write. We believe God created us for a purpose and that purpose includes weaving His message into words on a page and then that page being placed into the hands of readers where it will change lives. Inspire. Bring hope. Stimulate growth. Begin healing.

Yet what happens when we do all we can and our message is not received? When we string those words together into stories that sit on our computers? When we cannot find an agent or a publishing house willing to take us on?

Are we still a writer?

Will he still use us?

I’ll admit to asking God these questions. In fact, I’m about to start a new WIP and there was a part of me that wondered if I really should. With nothing new occurring, was God really ever going to use me? To which he responded with this picture and verse:

Lily courtesy of Morguefile

Observe how the lilies of the field grow; they do not toil nor do they spin, yet I say to you that not even Solomon in all his glory clothed himself like one of these. 

~Matthew 6:28-29

Then he spoke quietly to my spirit. He reminded me that I was still a lily, even if I was alone in the middle of a forest. Even if I only ever bloomed for him. I was still a lily and nothing, no nothing, would ever be as glorious to him.

See, we think we are only living in our purpose if there are people who witness it or if there is some sort of external achievement to measure by. But God calls us to bloom even if HE is the only one to ever enjoy our petals. That lone flower in the middle of a forest is as devastatingly beautiful as the one people pay hundreds of dollars to create displays with. It may not be seen by as many people, it may not be seen at all, but he still created it, and it’s still a flower. Whether or not anyone ever admires its color, the shape of its petals, or its sweet fragrance changes nothing. God created it. Values it. Gave it a specific purpose.

And it should never stop blooming or growing because then, and only then, will it miss its calling.

So today if you’re frustrated in your writing career, I challenge you to take a moment out with God. Let him refresh you and remind you that you are as valuable as any writer who is agented or published. Your talent was given to you for a reason. You were created for a reason. And even if your blooms right now aren’t being seen by many, you are still a lily, glorious beyond words and valued beyond measure.

Don’t stop blooming.

****

Susan Tuttle

Susan Tuttle is a homeschooling mom of three who is crazy about coffee, dark chocolate, and words—both reading and writing them. Combine that love of words with her passion for leading women to a life-changing encounter with Christ, and you’ll find her crafting Inspirational Contemporary Romance stories laced with humor, love, and healing transformations. When not cheering on her Ironman hubby, chasing the family dog, or tackling complex math problems to teach her kids (yes, even the third grader), you can catch Susan at her blog, Steps.

The "Write" Heart by Heidi Chiavaroli

Heidi Chiavaroli

Okay, so I’ve been at this writing thing for a long time. Ever since I wrote my first manuscript, I’d Cross the Desert for Milk at the age of nine, I knew I wanted to write. Now, three finished manuscripts and a few good doses of life later, I’m still pursuing publication. No agent, no contract. Only a handful of contest finals to show for my labor.

Recently, I went through a small wrestling match with myself and the Lord. I knew the stories I had a passion for writing weren’t considered “easy sells,” if there is such a thing. I am drawn to write about hard, sometimes unpleasant situations in hopes that God’s grace and beauty will shine even brighter amidst the darkness. Yet after I finished my last manuscript, I stopped and pondered where this writing thing was going. Was I wasting my time? A voice in my head told me I should try something else. Maybe a shorter novel, maybe a sweet romance—after all, who doesn’t like a sweet romance?

As I wrestled with these things and almost gave in to the temptation to force something from my pen that wasn’t on my heart, the Lord encouraged me. No, I didn’t land an agent or a publishing contract but like Jacob, I did walk away from the wrestling match with a great blessing. God gave me peace, and a vision of sorts. A vision of a paperback book with my name on the cover—my baby, finally. Only it wasn’t my baby. It wasn’t an honest story from the depths of my heart. It was a fake.

I wanted no part of it.

And with that vision, I realized that publication can only take me so far. Without a story from my innermost being, I’d rather leave it altogether. Even now as I write this, a part of me is saying, “Are you sure, Heidi? Do you really mean that? You might just get what you ask for.” And my answer is yes, I mean it. God didn’t give me my passions and what little writing talent I have for nothing less than His glorious purpose, His big, all-encompassing gospel. How can I compromise my heart or the mission He’s put into it?

So rest assured, if you ever see a book cover with my name on it, know that it not only came from my pen, it came from my heart. It is an extension of myself that I refused to give away easily. Isn’t that what this whole writing journey is about?

Dora here. What about you? Did this post spark a similar chord in your heart? Have you wrestled with God over some aspect of your writing?

I'm so thrilled that Heidi will be back here on a regular basis. Starting Thursday, July 17, she will be a regular contributor every month. 

Welcome, Heidi! :) 

   

Heidi Chiavaroli writes History Woven in Grace. She is a wife, mother, disciple, and grace-clinger. She is a member of American Christian Fiction Writers and has semi-finaled in the Genesis contest and My Book Therapy’s Frasier contest.

My Unbalanced Life by Mary Connealy

Mary Connealy

I have people ask me how I find time to do all the marketing involved with being an author and still get my books written.

Add in I’ve got a husband who likes some attention, four adult daughters who I love hanging around with, two glorious grandchildren who NEED THEIR GRANDMA!!! A home to maintain and a full time job.

So how do I do it all? Here’s the answer.

I don’t.

When someone asks me how I balance everything I have to admit I am unbalanced. I believe there has been some paperwork filed with the County Attorney to that affect.

Writing isn’t something I find time for. Writing is my default activity. I have to be dragged away from my stories. It’s the rest of my life that I struggle with.

Writers write. That’s what we do. No one can sit alone for hours on end, having imaginary conversations with themselves….if they don’t love it.

When you talk with a writer who is harried and exhausted and under deadline she may worry about getting her book finished but that’s not because she doesn’t love writing, it’s because life intrudes on her book. She has to pull herself away and feed small children. Field emergency phone calls. Pay attention to her husband, very often the man supporting her while she works on her often poorly paying little hobby/job. Walk the whining dog.

And we haven’t even talked about marketing. It’s fun to write blog posts.

I’m having a really good time right now. It’s writing, of course it’s fun. But it takes time. It takes creative energy. And that book is always whispering to you, alive in the back of your head ‘come back. You left your heroine hanging on a cliff by her fingernails. You left your hero heartbroken but too macho to admit he loves the heroine. You left a villain who needs to be arrested and shot and beaten with a big stick.

If the world would just leave a writer alone there would be only peace and harmony (for her at least, heaven help the kids and husband and dog).

I have people say to me A LOT ‘I think I have a book in me.’ Or sometimes, ‘I’ve always wanted to write a book.’

I always say, “You know, write if you have the desire but don’t feel bad if you never get that book written. Sitting alone hour after hour makin’ stuff up isn’t a very normal way to conduct your life and most people just can’t do it. They like human interaction, they like talking to REAL people. They like MOVING.

I tell heartbroken, cruelly rejected authors that if they can’t take the pain then GET OUT. Go do something else. The money is probably better in a career that includes the words, “You want fries with that?”

For the most part, writers can’t stop. The pain and rejection and public humiliation (I’m thinking of One Star Amazon Reviews here) would stop any writer if they could be stopped.

But there is peace in knowing this is how God made me. We just have to accept that. Embrace who we are. Live an unbalanced live with joy—since you can’t stop anyway.

About the Author

About Mary Connealy

Mary Connealy writes romantic comedy with cowboys. She is a Carol Award winner, and a Rita, Christy and Inspirational Reader's Choice finalist. She is the author of Swept Away and Fired Up, Book #1 & #2 in the Trouble in Texas series, Book #3 Stuck Together is coming June 2014. Mary is also in the anthologies A Bride for All Seasons and the newly released, A Match Made in Texas. She is also the author of the bestselling Kincaid Bride series, Lassoed in Texas Trilogy, Montana Marriages Trilogy and Sophie's Daughters Trilogy. Mary is married to a Nebraska rancher and has four grown daughters and two spectacular grandchildren, and one on the way.

A MATCH MADE IN TEXAS

There's a secret matchmaker at work in frontier Texas!

A Match Made in Texas
A Novella Collection

In the small town of Dry Gulch, Texas, a good-hearted busybody just can't keep herself from surreptitiously trying to match up women in dire straits with men of good character she hopes can help them. How is she to know she's also giving each couple a little nudge toward love?

Mary’s book in this collection--Meeting Her Match

When the tables are turned and a tenderhearted meddler becomes the beneficiary of a matchmaking scheme, her world is turned upside down. As her entire life changes, will she finally be able to tell the banker's son how much she cares for him?

Mary's Websites

Seekerville
Petticoats & Pistols
My Blog
My Website
My Newsletter
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/maryconnealy
Twitter: http://twitter.com/maryconnealy

Mrs. Johnston by Arlene James

Arlene James

You may have a teacher who stands out in your memory as someone who made learning fun, made you feel special, or was particularly hard on you. Author Arlene James had such a person in her life, and today she shares how that teacher helped her embrace her calling as a writer and begin her journey to publication. ~ Dawn

Mrs. Johnston

Trust me on this, if you are not called by God to write, then writing is nothing short of cruel and inhumane punishment.

Those of us called to write are compelled to write.

Even as a girl I knew that I would write. Indeed, I wrote as a child and even published as a child. God blessed me with an ogre of a teacher who made it her goal to prove to me that I could write if I chose to do so. Her name was Bernice Johnston, and she was my seventh grade English and Literature teacher.

I didn’t like her much, and frankly, I thought she was picking on me at first. She would assign a theme subject on Mondays. We handed in 500 words on the subject on Wednesdays and were supposed to receive them back, heavily marked up (edited) on Thursday, to be revised and turned in again on Friday. I routinely dashed off mine and turned them in at the end of the period that same day. So, Mrs. Johnston soon began giving me special assignments.

The rest of the class got 500 words on what it meant to respect one’s elders. I was told to write a short story about respecting an elder. And so it went throughout the semester. Oh, was I resentful. Short stories––that is, fiction––is much more difficult to craft than a simple theme. I complained to my father, who listened then refused to intervene. Wise man.

The day came when Mrs. Johnston provided me with a check. For five whole dollars. My first payment for publication, in this case for a short story that she had sent to a children’s magazine. She had been sending my work to every publication she could find, as well as entering my stories in contests, several of which I actually won. By the time I entered high school, I knew what I wanted to do for a living and didn’t doubt that I could do it.

Life, as it always does, intervened. I was 26 and a mom when I sold my first book, but I had lived for a long time under the firm conviction that I was called to write. A Christian from the age of nine, I was blessed with wise grandparents who taught me that God calls all of His children to something (and often to more than one thing). Mrs. Johnston helped me find God’s career calling in my life. Eighty-plus books and more than three decades of steady publication later, I don’t think I missed my calling.

Do you have a Mrs. Johnston in your life? Has God placed someone to nudge you toward a calling? Pay attention, whatever you stage in life, and trust God. Let Him direct you. If you just aren’t sure yet, then pray for your Mrs. Johnston. My prayer for you is that you’ll recognize your Mrs. Johnston when you bump into her.

Tweetables:

God blessed Arlene James with a teacher who set out to prove that Arlene could write. Click to tweet.

A teacher helped author Arlene James find God’s career calling in her life. Click to tweet.

Has God placed someone in your life to nudge you toward a calling? Click to tweet.

 Love in Bloom

Love in Bloom

LOVE IN BLOOM is Book 1 in the Heart of Main Street continuity series from Love Inspired. Set in Kansas, the series involves six businesses that receive matching grants to locate in a small town trying to save their beloved city from economic death after the main employer closes its doors. When Lily Farnsworth opens her floral shop there, she is escaping the expectations of her family and a disappointing love life back in Boston. The last thing she expects is to fall for widower Tate Bronson and his matchmaking 8-year-old daughter, but Tate will have to forgive God for the death of his wife before he can open his heart to Lily. Can planting a rose bush and giving a little girl a birthday wish really help him do that?

ARLENE JAMES is the author of more than 80 novels. Publishing steadily for more than three decades, she has concentrated on Inspirational Romance for the past several years. She loves providing her readers with uplifting stories of true love as God has ordained it. She and her husband, the artist James Rather, have traveled extensively and now live in northwest Arkansas, near the two brightest granddaughters in the world.

To learn more about Arlene and her work, please visit:

www.arlenejames.com

www.chatamhouseseries.com