Divine Moments

The dream in my heart has always been to write fiction novels that entertain, encourage and inspire, and for the past four years I have pursued that goal by putting one word after another onto the pages until sentences became paragraphs and eventually those paragraphs grew into a few chapters. And, yet, that project is still unfinished.

I look forward to the day when it is completed. The process has certainly given me a whole new appreciation for the meaning of perseverance, but in the meantime, God has steered me in a different direction, one in which I am writing more nonfiction than fiction. And, that's okay, because only He knows why and for what He designed me. I'm just the tool in His shed.

Earlier this year I was honored and so excited to be part of a project entitled Divine Moments, a compilation of true stories about God's amazing presence in our lives. The project was spearheaded by Yvonne Lehman and includes fifty stories written by thirty seven different authors. The book is a project of love and exhibits the passion each writer has for sharing the amazing power of God with the world. All author royalties will be donated to Samaritan's Purse, a Christian organization that provides spiritual and physical aid to hurting people around the world.

And it is with equal excitement that I am looking forward to the release of the next book in this series entitled Christmas Moments that will be out in time for the holiday season. Like the original, all author royalties will be donated to Samaritan's Purse.

These stories weave a common thread which suggests that perhaps the only explanation is that God had a hand in it.

Do you remember a time in your own life when you felt God's divine intervention? I look forward to hearing your story.

The Not Knowing

 “A man’s steps are directed by the Lord. How then can anyone understand his own way?”

Proverbs 20:24

Recently, a friend of mine related a conversation she shared with a co-worker about those times in our lives as a Christian that she calls the period of “not knowing.” It’s that moment or long pause or seeming eternity when we take a step of obedience to God but do not know where to go from there nor where it will ultimately lead.

The story I’m about to relate to you is not a biblical one, nor necessarily biblically sound, but it made me realize how we can’t always anticipate the impact of our choices to obey God.

You may or may not remember Joan of Arcadia, a television series that aired from 2003 to 2005. Joan was a modern day teenager who could hear God speak through various people that wandered in and out of her life. God would give her assignments that seemed to her offbeat or sometimes downright ridiculous. She struggled to understand what her part played in the task. She would ask God if she really had a choice whether or not to do what He asked. He always confirmed her freewill.

In Episode 4 of Season 1, God asked Joan to build a boat. Her response was, “I don’t know how to build a boat.”

“You’ll figure it out,” He told her.

Discipline and Destiny

After watching this lesson by Dr. Charles Stanley on the importance of developing discipline, I realize how important it is for us to practice discipline in all areas of our lives. As a writer, I am aware of how lack of discipline affects productivity. I hope you will be blessed by Dr. Stanley's words.


Discipline Determines Destiny

Discipline

Isn’t it interesting how we writers can always find something to do whether it be checking email, feeding our Pinterest addiction, sweeping cobwebs out of corners. You name it. Anything but writing.

Why do we do that thing which doesn’t have to be done right this minute rather than doing that thing which we can’t live without if we don’t do it? As I listened to a Charles Stanley sermon yesterday, the reason was drilled into me in a single word. Discipline.

Writing is like any other area of our life. It requires intentional discipline, especially if the writer has another full time job that pays the bills. It is easy to think, “Oh well, I’m tired this evening, or I’m soooo sleepy this morning. I’ll just lay this little novel thing aside and work on it later when I feel like it.” Unfortunately, one too many times and we’ve created a habit. A bad one.

So, what does a beginning writer do to establish good writing habits and unmovable discipline when there is no time clock to punch, no boss to fire you, and no threat of loss of paycheck since there is no steady stream of payment anyway because the project lies dormant in your computer? And, if you are like me, that writer in you is a free spirit that just wants to daydream and make up new interesting people in your head. You certainly don’t want to dampen their spirits by slowing down the motion and confining their conversations to the conventions of writing guidelines. Ugh.

But, it must be done. Eventually, if you are to become a writer who is taken seriously by others in the industry, you must settle down into your seat, and begin to arrange words on the page. So how do you tame your free spirit and develop discipline? Discipline requires a plan. The following steps are essential in developing that plan.

 

1.     Write down your goals or objectives for your writing project.

 

2.     Add a timeline to meet the goal. 

3.   Create a schedule. What days of the week will you dedicate to write, what time of the day, and for how long?

 

4.    Share your schedule with friends and family. If they are made aware of your schedule, then they should respect that time and your interruptions will be minimized.

 

5.  Post your schedule in an area that is visible to you on a regular basis. It should taunt you when you are doing something else during writing time.

 

6.  Finally, keep track of your progress. Take note of when you comply with the schedule and when you don't. This process will make you feel guilty, if nothing else, and spur you to action.

 

7.    Reward yourself. Each day that you discipline yourself to follow your schedule, make sure you do something fun after the writing session. Eventually, you will begin to crave the reward enough to put in the work required to get it.

  

Like exercise, with writing, the end result is desired, but the activity involved is sometimes dreaded. We must push through the tough stuff to get to the other side. And that requires discipline!

 

 

Writers - Develop A Relationship With Your Readers

Fran Lee Strickland

Writing fiction is more complicated than ever. Gone are the days when an introverted lover of words can just lock herself into a room and hammer out page after page until the two most loved words in a writer's vocabulary are typed..... The End. These days an aspiring writer, or even an established one for that matter, must interact with her readers along the journey. There is blogging to be done. Pins to be pinned. And status updates to be updated.

The writing should be the hard part, but I am quickly learning that it may very well be the easy portion of this journey. Technology today provides so much opportunity to meet the world while sitting comfortably in your living room. Stepping out from behind my page of words to greet the public is, to say the least, somewhat intimidating, but I am convinced that God gives us the grace to do what He has called us to do.

So it is with reservation, but confidence, that I'm taking classes on blogging, learning about self promotion, marketing, publicity, and making connections with published authors, editors, and agents. If you are passionate about being a writer and are seeking guidance about the steps you should take, from the actual writing to reader relationship, I would like to share some of what I've learned while writing my first novel. And, yes, I'm still working on it. Because of a full time career in finance management my writing time is restricted to evenings and weekends.

1. First of all, pray. Ask God to guide your words and to send the right people to help you along the way. He will. I am still amazed at the number of well established people in the industry whom I have met within the last two years.

2. Join a local writer's group. The ACFW (American Christian Fiction Writers) organization www.acfw.com has regional chapters all over the country. They are a wonderful resource for taking online classes, networking with other writers, and learning about writing opportunities.

3. Attend writing conferences. You will learn things you didn't even know you needed to know and your attendance will indicate to those potential editors that you are serious about your writing. Forking out dollars for the registration fee, accommodations and food shows you are willing to make the investment necessary to establish your writing career.

4. Join a critique group. Fortunately, my writing group, the  ACFW-SC Chapter, provides a speaker for each meeting but also reserves time for critique sessions. Having someone critique your work and give good knowledgeable feedback is invaluable. It will sharpen your skills.

5. Think about your platform as you write. Select themes and ideas from your story that you can use to create Pinterest boards and to blog about. Your readers will want to interact with you about the characters, settings, and ideas.

6. Learn to blog. It will be your form of expression. Your readers will get to know you and you will earn their trust. Reveal things about yourself. Let them know you are interested in them. What was it Theodore Roosevelt said? People don't care how much you know until they know how much you care. For more information on managing the social media environment visit The Write Conversation.

Writing is a two way relationship. Long after you have penned the words "The End", the story preceding those words will linger in your reader's minds and they will have questions. After all, isn't that why we write? To stimulate the mind, entertain the senses and encourage our readers. In return they will motivate us to keep writing. How many times have you heard someone say, "I can't wait until her next book comes out". Can you imagine any more beautiful words?