Is
it too high a price? Not when, finally, it all comes together. Your
book is born. Your dream becomes a reality. There is nothing like
holding that first copy of your new book in your hands . . . or so
I'm told . . .
For
I have yet to hold the first copy of Her Rightful Inheritance
in my hands.
Though
I'm well past the dreaming stage . . . and a great distance through
the cost stage . . . I continue to labor.
At
the present time I'm preparing the proposal for my first inspirational
romantic suspense novel. Very soon I will launch its marketing campaign
and enter the endurance stage . . .
Only
our beloved God knows if and when Her Rightful Inheritance
will take shape as a published novel.
In
the meantime, with your permission, I will share my journey with you.
Who knows? One day we may share a joyous cyber-shriek as I announce
the arrival of Her Rightful Inheritance in the "Promised
Land" of published novels!
***
Dear
Reader, thank you for accompanying me on my journey this far. Until
the next time . . . Dream big and go with God's blessing!
~
Beth
Copyright
2003 Beth Ann Ziarnik
The
Fear
Fear
gripped me in the pre-dawn dimness! Had I tackled a writhing anaconda?
What made me think I could weave all the intriguing elements of fiction
into flowing perfection? What made me think I could capture readers'
attention . . . entertain them . . . inspire them . . . make them
feel my characters' passions as they pursued their dreams?
I
squeezed my eyelids shut and burrowed my head in my pillow. Even if
-- by some fluke -- I managed to do all that, what made me think
someone would publish my novel? The marketplace grew tighter every
day . . . the competition greater. I was getting older!
I
groaned. Was I out of my mind? O God, you gave me this dream.
I'm doing my best, but I'm scared to death I can't pull it off.
God
has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power, and of love and of
a sound mind.
Wha
. . . ? The words from 2 Timothy 1:7 (NEB) wrapped me like a warm
blanket -- words I had written on a note card and kept on my desk
as a reminder that fear is not from God. His enemy uses it, pressing
in to squeeze the life from my creative efforts . . . to stop me from
accomplishing the good God gave me to do.
I
threw back the covers and bolted out of bed, wielding the words like
a sword. "God has not given me a spirit of fear!" I shouted,
"but of power! Of love! And a sound mind!"
Fear
slithered away.
I
took a deep breath and marched into my home office, vowing to fight
fear with the Word of God every time it showed its scaly head. For
"I can do everything through him [Christ] who gives me strength
(Philippians 4:13, NIV)" and "with God all things
are possible (Matthew 19:26, KJV)."
Sitting
down before my computer, I prayed as I booted up. Time to get to work
. . . with the Lord.
***
Thanks
again, dear reader, for sharing in my journey---a writer's journey
not unique to me. Until the next time . . . Fight fear and work with
the Lord!
~
Beth
Copyright
2004 Beth Ann Ziarnik
The
Frustration
I
slumped at my desk and closed my eyes in an effort to trap the tears
that threatened to escape. "I'm ready to give up, Lord! I've
worked on this manuscript and worked on it some more. It's just not
getting anywhere."
"I'm
weary of the battle, Lord. I don't think I'll ever finish this novel."
Tears traced wet paths down my face.
Oh,
great! I palmed them away. "Please, Lord, if you have an
idea to share, I could use it now."
Commit
your work to the Lord, and then your plans will succeed.*
What?
Surely God knew I had dedicated all my writing to him from the very
beginning.
Commit
your work to the Lord, and then your plans will succeed.*
A
cold fist hit my heart. Obviously I was missing something behind those
twelve short words. Something important.
Several
hours later, I pushed my concordances, commentaries, and dictionaries
aside and picked up what I had distilled from them. I stared at the
pages. So that was the problem.
Committing
my work to the Lord was more than offering a quick prayer before I
barreled ahead with my writing plan. It was spreading everything before
the Lord each morning -- my manuscript, plans, deadline schedules
-- and most of all, myself. It was sharing my difficulties and delights
with him, whether writing and otherwise. It was praying, "Lord,
here am I. Use me. What do you want me to accomplish today?"
I
knelt down to do that very thing.
Before
long I saw significant progress in the novel's development. Excitement
about the project returned! I couldn't wait to get to my desk each
morning and boot up the computer.
How
glad I am to have learned this valuable lesson: Being a Christian
writer isn't a simple matter of being a Christian and writing. It's
being a Christian who lays her writing gift at the feet of the Lord
and obeys him. As I look back, every one of my published manuscripts
was a fruit of God's plan, not mine. Painful as all the years of struggle
have been, I am grateful that God continues to preserve that precious
pattern.
*
Proverbs 16:3 (NLT)
***
Dear
Reader, this piece has been a long time coming, and now you know why.
Until next time . . . look to the Lord. He will help you overcome
your frustrations!
~
Beth
Copyright
2005 Beth Ann Ziarnik
______________________________________________
The
Fog
But,
Lord, I thought I was finished!
I vividly recalled the moment I wrote the final word of my novel.
Heroine and hero had lived through danger and discovered love. Better
yet, they surprised me with the unique manner in which they concluded
their story. I had breathed such a sigh of satisfaction!
So,
what's this? All the rewrites I'd labored on, perfecting their story
were not enough? My novel required yet more work?
Not
fair!
I
won't do it. I don't want to do it. I . . . sputtered to a stop.
The
truth was, I had no idea what to do next. Everything I'd learned had
only taken me this far. What more was there?
Stunned
. . . confused, I wandered in a fog for two months, doing my best
to ignore that troublesome novel. Besides, I had plenty to keep me
busy -- including my (yea!) new novel.
Yet
that first novel refused to let go. It waited in silence until I could
stand it no more.
Okay,
I did want to do whatever it took to bring it to a publishable state,
but . . . was I even capable of pulling it off?
I
closed my eyes and sank back in my chair. Slowly breathing in and
out, I willed myself into a calmer state.
Lord,What
will it take? What must I do? Please show me the way through this
unfamiliar territory, this terribly dark place.
Words
I'd read earlier that morning flowed back to me.
"I will answer them before they even call on me. While they are
still talking to me about their needs, I will go ahead and answer
their prayers" ~Isaiah 65: 24 (The
Living Bible, Tyndale
House Publishers).
I
sat up, eyes wide open.
Did
this mean the book I had ordered about revision and self-editing was
God's answer?
Maybe.
Maybe not.
But
one thing was sure. Before I ever called out to him, God saw my need
and had gone ahead to answer my prayer. Without a doubt, he would
also show me the way out of this awful writer's fog. He would enable
me to finish my novel.
***
Dear
Reader, many challenges test a writer's resolve. Until next time .
. . In a fog? Call out to God, and you'll find the answer already
on its way.
~
Beth
Copyright
2009 Beth Ann Ziarnik
__________________________________________________
The
Shock
Am I getting close, Lord?
Deciding
to find out, I entered American Christian Fiction Writers' Genesis
Contest for unpublished novelists.
Weeks later, my scores arrived. I didn't final but -- oh, joy! --
had missed by a mere fraction. One of the judges, a multi-published
romantic suspense author, gave my entry an astounding "100"
and assured me I had a publishable manuscript.
Lord,
is it true?
A month later at the Write-To-Publish conference in June, the manuscript
evaluations for the first chapters of my two novels came back running
over with enthusiastic comments. The publicist who evaluated them
surprised me by inviting me to use her name to contact a Guideposts
editor she believed would consider the manuscripts.
I
was stunned, but God
wasn't done.
At
the same conference during an evening critique session, a well-known
author of romantic suspense listened as someone else read a portion
of my manuscript. "Now that's great writing! " she said.
Really?
I was overwhelmed.
Then
in September at the American Christian Fiction Writers Conference,
agents and editors and published authors shocked me with their enthusiasm
about the novel I pitched. Not only that, but one agent told me the
publishers at the conference all said they were looking for romantic
suspense. Somehow I had slipped into writing publishable fiction just
when Christian publishers were seeking my genre.
What
happened, Lord?
God's answer was abundantly clear. "For the Lord is a just God.
Happy are all who wait patiently for him" ~Isaiah
30: 18 (The
Living Bible, Tyndale
House Publishers).
After
years of hard work and waiting on the Lord, my time had come.
***
Dear
Reader, you may be hurting now. You may wonder if all your hard work
will ever result in publishable fiction. Please don't give up. God
is with you, working behind the scenes to bring you to that right
moment.
Until
then, believe in your growing ability and God's purpose and for your
writing. Trust in his timing.
~
Beth
Copyright
2010 Beth Ann Ziarnik
