Seasons of the Heart by Tanya Agler

Happy New Year! Is it too late to say that? January is the first month of the year and many people make resolutions, some of which are kept and some of which fall by the wayside. It’s also winter, although in Georgia, the days are alternating between warm and cool with little evidence of the nip in the air which heralds fires in the fireplace and blankets on cozy chairs. Thanks to social media, I’m seeing friends who are enjoying snow and other friends who are heading to the beach. The sights of the season are varied according to region, the day, and the temperature. Just as there are wonderfully different photographs and celebrations of the calendar season, I started thinking about writing and how writers have different seasons of the heart, all of which are personal and varied but are also blessings when we take time to examine the impact they have on us.

The calendar plays a definite role in the seasons as there is a start and end date to each season. In a similar fashion, sometimes the seasons of our writing journey revolve around publication. For some writers who are pursuing traditional publishing routes, it’s waiting for a call from an agent or editor with a contract for their book. For some, it’s the release of their debut novel. Other authors have released more than five novels and are still going strong.

Weather often plays a role in the way we think of each season. If I say winter, some people immediately think of a landscape covered in snow. Fall often brings images of colorful leaves. As far as writing, there are factors which play a role in scheduling writing time, such as work, family, time for Bible study or devotionals. Sometimes there’s a thunderstorm in our own lives and we have to examine whether God is calling us to write or to hold back until we handle the effects of the storm. Sometimes it’s sunny and warm and, on those days, I try to remember to say a prayer of thanksgiving before I start writing. Those seasons of our heart impact our thoughts and writing, and appreciation for each season can enrich our stories and the emotion hidden therein.

As we navigate the calendar seasons with the help of meteorologists, family, and different implements (umbrellas, snow shovels, etc.), so too do we have a support system for helping us navigate the seasons of our writing journeys and the seasons of our hearts. Prayer and time with God is a great start. Our writing support system can guide us through the downpours. Calendars, lists, computers, paper, and other tools can help writers plan out their time and aid us in transforming our stories from only being entrenched in our minds to novels. Sometimes, accepting the weather going on around us and allowing ourselves to cope with the impact of that weather is the best gift we can give ourselves.

What helps you in your current writing season?

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The Sheriff’s Second Chance by Tanya Agler

Broken things can’t be fixed…
Or can they?
Officer and single dad Mike Harrison doesn’t believe in second chances. Ever. That is, until he learns that his former best friend—gorgeous green-eyed car mechanic Georgie Bennett—is back in town. Unfortunately, she’s also a suspect in a recent break-in! But it’ll take an old classic car to show Mike and Georgie that almost anything can be restored with a little patience…and a whole lot of love.

An award-winning author, Tanya makes her home in Georgia with her wonderful husband, their four children, and a lovable Basset, who really rules the roost. When she’s not writing, Tanya loves classic movies and a good cup of tea.

Visit her at  www.tanyaagler.com or follow her on Facebook at
www.facebook.com/tanyaaglerauthor and on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/tanyaaglerauthor.

Three Obstacles of In-Between Places by Shana Schutte

Shana Schutte

Waiting seasons are familiar to writers, aren't they? We wait for different reasons—contest entries, submissions to agents and editors. Maybe we're waiting to hear back from a critique partner, sort of holding our breath to hear what she'll say. Then there are other waiting times—seasons of change or transition. Please welcome Shana Schutte back to Seriously Write today as she shares some strategies for getting you through those transitional moments. Enjoy! ~ Annette

Three Obstacles of In-Between Places

by Shana Schutte

Life is filled with beginnings, endings, and in-between places. Whether you are a teacher, doctor, or writer, you experience an in-between place at some time in life.

In-between places are when you have let go of the old, and you are deconstructing some aspect of your old life or calling, but you haven’t yet received the new thing God has for you.

In-between places are transitional in nature and they can be confusing. If you find yourself in an in-between place in your life or how you are serving God, here are three common obstacles.

1) Unbelief About God’s Work

Sometimes we think God isn't at work because He isn't working the way we want. When He doesn’t move in the areas we desire, we may believe the lie that He has forgotten us. Our expectations can blind us. In reality, He may just be trying to get us to shift our focus off the old to the new.

2) Regret

After God has removed the "old thing" in our lives, and we are in our in-between place, if we don't believe that God is at work, in despair, like the Israelites, we may want to go back to our own personal Egypt. In Isaiah 43:18, God says, "Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past." Oh, boy, can this be hard when we are in-between and longing for comfort! It's at these moments, that we have to make a conscious effort to believe God.

3) Striving

Remember that when you are in an in-between place, it's not your job to figure out how God will get you to your new thing; it's your job to trust Him.

Proverbs 3:5-6 says, "Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and He will direct your paths."

There is nothing like the discomfort of an in-between place to cause me to want to figure it all out so the discomfort of my transition with vanish. For analytical types, controllers, or those of us who always like to have our ducks lined up, being in an in-between place can feel like torture!

According to Proverbs 3:5-6, God doesn't expect you to figure out how to get to your new thing; He just wants you to trust Him. I had someone once tell me, "It's not your job to get yourself to your destiny; it's God's." I believe this is a great word for in-between places.

When you are in an in-between place, believe God is at work, look ahead to the future even if you wonder if you should be in your in-between place, and trust that He will get you to your new thing.

~~~~~

Betrayed by God?

Shana Schutte is an author and popular speaker. A former editor for Focus on the Family, she has been published by Today’s Christian Woman; Focus on the Family’s flagship magazine, FamilyLife; Mission of Mercy; Clubhouse Jr., At the Center; and Focus on the Family’s website; family.org, and others. Shana is the founder of Beyond Imagination, an organization dedicated to helping people find answers for everyday problems through biblical truths. Her nationwide radio program airs daily on over 400 Christian stations. She also leads seminars across the country. Shana's new book, Betrayed by God? Making Sense of Your Expectations, was written from Shana's personal experience and her many journal entries.

Turning the Pages Series: Seasons

How Seasons Affect Our Writing
Turning the Pages Series
Net's Notations Tuesdays

Sure feels like fall here—cooler temps, darker skies, more rain and lots of color on our deciduous trees. Ahhh … autumn.

Time to put away the patio furniture, grab the rake and prepare for winter.

In summer, we can step outside without a coat or shoes to let our dog out. In fall, we’ll have to keep slip-ons by the back door.

In summer, I can grab a book, a lawn chair, and my sunglasses and read in the sunshine, soaking up some Vitamin D. In fall, all the reading happens indoors.

In summer, the kids are home from school, with an open schedule. Near the beginning of fall, they start back to school, have to stick to a schedule and more is expected of them by outside sources.

New seasons call for new actions, new approaches to familiar territory, and visiting of new territory. New seasons call us to answer to different authority figures, meet different deadlines, change our schedules.

Isn’t that true in our writing seasons, too? Some writing seasons are for “penning” that first draft. Others are for editing. And then others are for submitting. Then, *hopefully* there comes a season of answering to an editor for your book. What used to be yours is now shared.

Are you aware of the season you’re in? Maybe you’re a parent of small children, and the focus is on them. Maybe you’ve started a new job and are still adjusting to fitting everything into your schedule.

The key is to know the season you’re in, make the appropriate changes for that season and follow through. A student can be all prepared for the school year, but if she never attends classes, never sits under the teaching, never studies, she’s not truly engaged in her season, and she won’t reap the benefits of all her preparation.

God may be turning the pages of your writing season right now. Are you on the same page as He is? Be glad for new seasons, they mean you’re growing, moving ahead.

Now, go ahead, peek at that new page the Author of your faith is penning. Together, start at the top and work your way down. It's going to be good.