Protecting Your Dreams

I first wrote this post a year ago, but I felt it was really relevant to the changing and often-challenging face of CBA lately. Left and right, we're hearing discouraging reports about bookstores folding, filing bankruptcy, etc., and publishing houses having to bear the brunt of those changes. As a result, agents, authors, and those of us dreaming of book publication are all being affected. I hope this post encourages you today to hold fast to the dreams God has given you, and to remember that God is bigger than any industry variables that may catch us off-guard.

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"He who calls you is faithful; he will surely do it." -- 1 Thessalonians 5:24 


Hi, writer friends! Today I want to talk about something that-- after five years of being a part of this writing journey-- is close to my heart. And that is... disappointment. I see so many friends go through the ups and downs of hope and disappointment, and believe me, I've been there myself. Maybe that's how you're feeling today. Perhaps you didn't get the feedback you were hoping to receive from a contest, or an editor you really respect recently rejected your manuscript.

Image by  Evgeni Dinev from FreeDigitalPhotos.com

I'd venture to say that every. single. writer. experiences disappointment in this journey. For some, the disappointment cuts so deeply, they feel like giving up. Others actually do give up-- they walk away when their hearts just can't seem to take anymore rejection. The mountains just seem so high.

Let's get real for a minute. Writing is not for the weak of heart. It requires diligent adherence to deep vision, and dismissal of all those outside voices vying for your attention. You know the ones. Over time, they just seem to get louder, don't they? Have you ever caught yourself letting these sentiments echo in your heart?

• An editor isn't going to like that.
• Your hook isn't strong enough.
• Why are you doing this, anyway? It's not like you have any actual readers.
• Your characterization falls flat.
• Your dialogue is stilted.
• A scene describing a pencil would be less boring.
• Wait a second-- did you just rehash the exact plot from While You Were Sleeping?

As writers, we have this crazy hard job of simultaneously putting 100% of our hearts into our stories-- weaving the fabric of our being into the fabric of our characters' struggles-- and protecting our hearts from criticism and rejection. Have you ever noticed that some people are better at one than the other? When I first graduated with my M.A., I was excellent at receiving criticism. Believe me, I was well used to professors criticizing my rough-draft essays-- it was just part of the process for everyone. But you know what? As I've gotten farther along on this writing journey, criticism has actually gotten harder-- in a way-- to receive, because I find myself investing more and more emotion into each story. And that's okay.

Some people think, "If I could only get published, everything would be easier." And while, yes, I personally think having real-life readers (as opposed to merely imaginary ones) does make things easier, at the same time, publication brings its own set of rejection and disappointment. Maybe your sales numbers aren't what you want, or you're having agent troubles, or you got a round of really harsh reviews on your story.

The writing world goes a little something like this: rejection. rejection. rejection. rejection. rejection. rejection. rejection. hope. rejection. rejection. a sale!!! rejection. rejection. rejection. rejection. a sale!!!

And repeat. 

Image by vorakorn,from FreeDigitalPhotos.com

But here's the thing. If we aren't careful, we can allow ourselves to become crushed in this process. It's like we've been in an emotional battle of sorts, and we come out wounded and scarred along the way from overly-harsh criticism and dreams that seem to have crashed and burned. 

That's where 1 Thessalonians 5:24 comes in. "He who calls you is faithful; he will surely do it."

And with that in mind, I want to issue a challenge to you today.

God. is. faithful.

Do you believe it? 

Do you really believe God is faithful? And if so, that leads to my second question. Do you believe God has called you?

Because if you do, then you have a responsibility to protect and to chase your dreams. Through all the pain, and all the disappointment, and all the rejection, the One who has called you is stronger. He has a much bigger plan through it all, and He has not led you down this pathway only to desert you. If you feel like giving up, hold on-- cling to Him as you never have before, and you may find unexpected growth and opportunity when you least expect it.

God has a purpose for your stories. That purpose is greater and bigger than anything you can imagine. He's promised that. So don't give up on Him. There is a reward for those who are faithful to the calling. Imagine if your favorite novelist had thrown in the towel just before publication. How would your own life be different? Your writing journey? What if God wants you to be that author for someone else? Maybe even for the next generation?

And don't forget that God's promises are sometimes different from our own. Maybe God never intended for you to be a NYT bestseller, but He does want your story to forever change the life of the elderly widow down your street. Be open to where His plan leads, because the ultimate fulfillment is in following Him, and learning to see writing as a form of worship.

So, what do you think? Do you ever find yourself discouraged by the ups and downs of writing? What promises do you hold on to to keep you going?

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Ashley Clark writes romance with southern grace. She's dreamed of being a writer ever since the thumbprint-cookie-days of library story hour. Ashley has an M.A. in English and enjoys teaching literature courses at her local university. She's an active member of ACFW and runs their newcomer's loop. When she's not writing, Ashley's usually busy rescuing stray animals and finding charming new towns. You can find Ashley on her personal blog, Facebook, Pinterest, and Twitter. She is represented by Karen Solem.

Out of the Heart - Guarding Your Heart and Writing the Bigger Story

"But the words you speak come from the heart..." - Matthew 15:18 (NLT)

Lately, I've been feeling a bit weary when it comes to writing. I'll be honest. I still love it. It still fills me with hope and excitement and anticipation. But it feels me with other things do. Fear. Worry. Anxiety. My proposal is out there in the world right now, and while that should make my heart flitter with opportunity, it also scares me in a way I don't know that it's ever scared me before. After five years of writing and my fair share of "no's," I find myself braced for other sorts of possibilities... rejection. Even the feeling of failure. Not pretty things to talk about, but things all writers eventually deal with.

In addition to the fear that so often creeps into the writing life, our world is full of negative stories. All it takes is one glance at what's trending on your Facebook account or a few seconds of the news to hear all sorts of maddening things. Ebola. Terrorism. Kidnapping. All sorts of should-I-or-shouldn't-I scenarios begin to arise as we try to make decisions about what is safe and what is not, what is being overly cautious and what is necessary.

Too much time spent on social media can certainly exasperate this problem, can it not? I am a firm believer in standing in the gap for our friends and praying for one another's needs, let me be clear. But on the flip side, some people seem to use Facebook to exclusively share horrible news stories. After just a few minutes on Facebook, sometimes I find myself feeling burdened, depressed, or even a little panicky.

Why does this seem to happen to us so easily? And what is the answer? To go even further, how can this tendency affect our writing?

Photo by winnond, at freedigitalphotos.net

I believe that, as all youth pastors have at one point or another said, what goes in comes out. Put very simply, we feed our minds, hearts, and spirits every day. Some days-- perhaps most days-- we are not conscious about what we are feeding ourselves. But when we get that I-ate-too-much-ice-cream feeling after reading some shocking news story or imagining the worst possible scenario happening to our books, there is a reason for the feeling. We have fed ourselves the wrong things.

Don't get me wrong. I'm not suggesting we stick our heads in the sand and pretend the world is perfect. The world is far from perfect. We are far from perfect. People get sick and need healing. Jobs are lost sometimes. Evil people can seem to be so loud. And at times, the unexpected happens. We must be diligent and disciplined, compassionate and actively interceding for those around us.

But we were never called to fix the world. We were never called to be God. We were called to release our trust to Him.

How can we manage to do that when the world seems so very chaotic and maddening?

It's vital that we set boundaries in our lives and remain intentional about what we "feed" ourselves. Our thought lives, our imagination, and our hearts so readily stray from the goodness of God that we must pull ourselves back to Him, as a watering pail pulled from the bottom of the well. He is our living water. He is the answer, not only for our needs, but also for the needs of those in our world. But if we run 'round and 'round the well frantically with our hands atop our heads, we will never help anyone, including ourselves.

In practical terms, this may mean limiting Facebook time so you can spend more time reading the Bible, or watching only a few minutes of news per day. If you're a particularly creative person whose mind goes wild when you hear about health epidemics or terrorism, you may need to become especially diligent about cutting off your imagination before it breeds fear and panic.

Above all else, guard your heart. As Proverbs tell us, it is the wellspring of life.

The really cool part is, the mouth (or in our case, keyboard) speaks from what is in the heart. So if you're feeding your heart a bunch of awful stuff, it only makes sense you may find yourself struggling with your writing. But on the other hand, if you are filling your heart with living water, it's going to flow into your stories in a way only God can orchestrate.

If you want to write the kind of story that changes lives, first let God change your own. If you want your writing to be a ministry, recognize that means praying over your stories and future readers, and guarding your own heart. What is inside you will naturally flow out. And that's one of the coolest, highest callings of the writing life.

It is oh-so-easy to sit down at the computer drained, neglecting devotions and our prayer lives. But God has called us to so much more-- to create with Him from a pure heart.

I challenge you today to do something bold. Consider yourself a minister to your readers, even if you don't have any yet. Imagine what they'd look like if they were standing in your living room, in need of advice, encouragement, and maybe even a laugh. Would you offer them more than what you're doing now? Would it be worth protecting your heart for them?

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Ashley Clark writes romance with southern grace. She's dreamed of being a writer ever since the thumbprint-cookie-days of library story hour. Ashley has an M.A. in English and enjoys teaching literature courses at her local university. She's an active member of ACFW and runs their newcomer's loop. When she's not writing, Ashley's usually busy rescuing stray animals and finding charming new towns. You can find Ashley on her personal blog, Facebook, Pinterest, and Twitter. She is represented by Karen Solem.