Accommodating the Writing Life by Annette M. Irby

 

blue-purple pansies growing in a container*

Spring may finally be arriving here in the Pacific Northwest. Here's hoping. Right now, the outdoor temp is about 50 degrees, with winds and gloomy skies. That works for me today because I’m working in my office. But we could use some warmer weather and clear skies soon. We’ve set some records in my region for rainfall and gloomy days so far this year. Yay! 😉

I love flowers. I’m may be allergic to most of them, but I love how they brighten up a view and reinforce life. With my back limitations, I must be careful about digging in the ground and lifting, so I’ve found a way to work around those limitations. I container garden. This way, my “hopefuls” are off the ground (away from pests) and up where I can tend them with ease. So, I get to enjoy them, rearrange the pots at will, and I don’t risk my back while I do.

The writing life is the same way, and we make accommodations, don’t we? Rising before the sun so you have some time to write. Ergo-dynamic keyboards. Wrist braces for carpal tunnel syndrome. A notepad beside the bed for middle-of-the-night inspiration. Standing desks. Work glasses with anti-glare. Enlarged/zoomed-in font sizes. Caffeine. Scheduling writing time around a day job or other obligations. Sacrificing. Refueling for inspiration. We make time for conferences, workshops, writing retreats, critique group meetings, marketing, book signings. So many accommodations.

Why?

Because we can’t not write. We’re called. Story ideas burn inside us. We’re on a deadline! Makes one glad for our writing community. Other “abnormals” who “get us.” And God, who freely grants us grace.

I’ve just launched a reader circle group on Facebook where I can share details about my next book (which will release this summer, yippee! I'll share more news here on SW when we get closer). Marketing takes me outside my comfort zone. Yesterday I had a photo shoot for my book’s back cover headshot. Traipsing through a public place with a photographer, drawing attention. Oh, the concessions we introverted writers must make. (Extroverted writers do too, of course.) Some accommodations are more comfortable than others. But all are part of the writerly life. And we make those concessions so we can succeed and walk out our callings in faithfulness, no matter what stage we’re in.

How about you? What types of concessions have you had to make for your writing life? How do you face the less comfortable ones? 

Write on, friends! 

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Husband Material by Annette M. Irby

Wyatt Hansen has no fears about commitment, but only three years have passed since his beloved wife died, and he can't bring himself to break their annual dinner date—that is until he meets restaurant owner, Lara Farr. Lara doesn't have time for romance; she has a business to run. At least that's what she tells herself so she doesn't have to admit that commitment scares her. But Lara's business is failing, and it just may take a miracle—or marketing analyst, Wyatt Hansen—to save it. Can Wyatt rescue Lara’s restaurant, help her overcome her fears, and prove he is good husband material?

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Annette M. Irby

Annette M. Irby is a freelance editor and Christian fiction author who dabbles in gardening and photography. She has completely fallen in love with her grandson. She enjoys spending time with her family and husband of over twenty-five years. You can learn more about Annette by visiting her website or her page here on Seriously Write. 

Connect with me at:

Facebook Reader Circle: https://www.facebook.com/groups/252272708574760

Twitter: @AnnetteMIrby

Book Review Website: www.annetteirby.com

Blog: www.AnnetteIrbyReviews.blogspot.com

Photo credit: copyright 2017 Annette M. Irby  

 

It's Worth the Sacrifice by Mary Manners

It’s Worth the Sacrifice

By Mary Manners

“Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith.”

~Hebrews 12:1~

What do the three M’s…Marathons, Manuscripts and Motherhood have in common? Well, as a former marathon runner, I’m convinced beyond a shadow of a doubt that the countless hours of running and training during my marathon days prepared me for the other two.

Marathon running is an endeavor that requires dedication, commitment, follow-through and sacrifice. Runners have to train when they don’t feel like it…when their legs ache and they haven’t slept well. When the weather is hot, humid, cold, rainy, or the ground is blanketed in snow. Runners train before the sun rises, after dark, and as a strong north wind tries to blow them right off the path. Distance runners maintain focus and stay true to the goal. There’s no turning back, only looking forward and always striving for the next great challenge.

The same can be said of writing. It’s a path that requires dedication, commitment, follow-through and sacrifice. After all, what reader would enjoy a book that lacks a satisfying ending…devoid of plot, direction, or character arc? What publisher would pay for such a book? So writers plot even when they don’t feel like it…when their friends are going to the movies or out to dinner, when they’d rather read than revise, when warm rays of sunshine beckon from an office window and their heart longs to run and play. Writers pound the keyboard early in the morning when the rest of the world has yet to rise and late at night when the rest of the world has gone to bed. They write when the refrigerator lures with just one more soda or a piece of chocolate pie. When writer’s block strikes they take a sledgehammer to it instead of pushing away from the desk, no matter how painful the sacrifice.

Being a mother is an endeavor that requires dedication, commitment, follow-through and sacrifice. Saying no to a child has never made any mother popular. Moms overlook their own needs to care for a child. They mother early in the morning, late at night, and every moment in between. They remain strong as a century-old oak when the storms of terrible two’s and the teenage years rage, while teaching their teen to drive or when their toddler throws a tantrum in the grocery store check-out line.

My life’s journey has been a blend of the three M’s. My daughter will graduate from college in May. The child I once shuttled to basketball practice and choir rehearsal now chauffeurs me. I have learned, depending on the day (sometimes even the hour), that I know nothing…and everything. Recently, a college friend of mine sent a photo that was snapped our sophomore year (1982). Looking at the photo, I thought I saw my daughter staring back at me. Was I ever that young, thin and…unwrinkled? My daughter took one glance at the picture and gasped, “Mama, is that really you?” as if I could have never—possibly—been that vivacious young woman in the snapshot. After a good laugh, I thought about the fleeting passage of time and how happy and truly blessed I am to have experienced the three M’s…Marathons, Manuscripts and, most especially, Motherhood.

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Showered by Love (Honeysuckle Cove #4)

Jessica Marlin comes to Honeysuckle Cove carrying a secret–she’s pregnant. Shamed by her indiscretion and the circumstances of a former way of life, she’s determined to make a home for her child in the quaint community—even if it means going it alone forever. But when her secret becomes too big to keep, she fears she’ll be forced to abandon her new role as kitchen manager at Honeysuckle Cove Inn. Will friendship—and God’s grace—prevail, or will Jessica be forced to uproot and move on once again?

Rogan Brooks has convinced both himself and his hometown of Honeysuckle Cove that he’ll never settle down long enough to embrace marriage, let alone fatherhood…until he sees the glow of pregnancy, along with the promise of a future, radiate from Jessica Marlin’s eyes. Can Rogan assure Jessica that his heart is true and he’s committed to being a daddy—complete with a happily ever after—for keeps?

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Mary Manners is a country girl at heart who has spent a lifetime exploring her joy of writing. She has two sons, a daughter, and three beautiful grandchildren. She currently lives along the sunny shores of Jacksonville Beach with her husband Tim.

A former teacher as well an intermediate school principal, Mary spent three decades sharing her love of learning with students from kindergarten through middle grades. While growing up in Chicago, Mary worked her way through a variety of jobs including paper girl, hot dog vendor, grocery store cashier, lifeguard, swim instructor, pizza chef, and nanny. Many of these experiences led to adventures that bring humor and insight to her stories. Mary loves long sunrise runs, ocean sunsets, and flavored coffee.

Connect with Mary at her website: www.MaryMannersRomance.com. “Like” her author page on Facebook and follow her on Twitter.





The Blessing of Sacrifice ~Part 2 of The Price of Success by Christine Lindsay

Christine Lindsay

The winter has passed since I wrote Part 1 of my article on being a workaholic and that I was going to change. That blog post sounded like I was giving up my long-awaited writing career for love.  Sounds romantic. But I will affirm that six months later I am sticking to my commitment to put my relationships above that of my writing. Not an easy thing when you consider that since I wrote Part 1 my career seems to have taken some large leaps forward.

When I wrote that I planned on spending more alone time with my husband I didn’t realize that a few months later I would be accepting the position as Vice President of Christian Authors’ Network. An honor, a privilege, and lots, lots more work helping other authors network to promote their work. This new position is increasing my visibility as a writer.

Yet it came after a time of deep prayer because I am still committed to that alone time with my husband...that coffee-shopping time with my mother...some fun time with my grandkids...that time in prayer.

At the moment I am under the gun to meet the deadline for my next book, Veiled at Midnight to end my historical series Twilight of the British Raj. End of April is approaching for that deadline. But the plan is, after I meet that date to slow down, pack up the trailer, and head to the hills. Write only a few hours, and devote the rest of the day to my husband in walks, playing together with the dog, cooking the fish he catches, playing board games in the evening.

It puzzles me that after I made this commitment to put others first, that the very thing I was willing to sacrifice is the thing that God blessed.

Is it a formula?

No. For the moment you try to make it one, your defeat yourself.

Only when I decided to truly put the thing I loved on the altar, was willing to set the match to the kindling did the Lord step in and douse the flames before they flickered.

So, my career is still on. But His whisper on my soul as I pray each day is, Keep true to your promise child. I am watching, and I will bless as I see fit.

Dora here. Christine packs the camper and heads to the hills with hubby to renew her commitment to him and their marriage. What's your favorite way to unwind with your spouse? How do you balance writing and family?

Purchase Christine's Books

ABOUT CHRISTINE LINDSAY:

Christine Lindsay was born in Ireland, and is proud of the fact that she was once patted on the head by Prince Philip when she was a baby. Her great grandfather, and her grandfather—yes father and son—were both riveters on the building of the Titanic. Tongue in cheek, Christine states that as a family they accept no responsibility for the sinking of that great ship.

It was stories of her ancestors who served in the British Cavalry in Colonial India that inspired her Multi-award-winning, historical series Twilight of the British Raj. Book 1 Shadowed in Silk, Book 2 Captured by Moonlight, and Christine is currently writing the final installment of that series called Veiled at Midnight to be released August 2014.

Londonderry Dreaming, Christine’s romance novella set in N. Ireland released Feb. 21, 2014.

Aside from being a busy writer and speaker, Christine is also VP of Christian Authors’ Network. She makes her home in British Columbia, on the west coast of Canada with her husband and their grown up family. Her cat Scottie is chief editor on all Christine’s books.

CONNECT WITH CHRISTINE:

Please drop by Christine’s website http://www.christinelindsay.com/ or follow her on Twitter and be her friend on Pinterest , Facebook  and  Goodreads.