Got an Agent

Don't know what to do with her.

Hmmmmm..........

What it Takes to Be an Author, Part II

Guts.

Pure and simple.

You can't be an author if you're not willing to face your fears. Fear of failure. Fear of rejection. Fear of letting others down.

Fear that the answer to the following questions is 'No!':

Will I ever write another book?

Will I ever write another GOOD book?

Can I really do this again and again and again?

Those three questions have haunted me since day one of this journey.

I love to write.

I hate to fail.

To write, I must be willing to fail and to learn from it.

That's the difficult thing. That is the struggle. I must not only allow myself to fall from the high of, "I've completed it!" to the low of, "It stinks worse than rotten eggs", but I must also be willing and able and even compelled to pick myself up, brush myself off and fix whatever is broken (in me and my manuscript).

It's a gigantuine task. One that takes a will of steal and a whole lot of coconut cake (please see previous post for details).

Writing, you see, is not about one victory. It is not one defining moment. We often discuss The Call as if that were the end of the journey, but it is truly only the beginning. The Call is simply an opportunity. It is an editor saying, "I believe in you," and us responding, "I believe in what I'm doing."

Because without that belief, we will publish one or two or three books, and the journey will get more difficult as we try to balance family life and writing and editing and creativity. We will feel overwhelmed and wonder if it is worth it, and we will begin to doubt what we are doing. If we are not careful, we will lose our passion to our panic and self-doubts. Sadly, I have seen this happen. I know several people who have published one book and never published another. Or published two or three or four and then thrown in the towel and said, "enough!".

So, yeah, The Call is the defining moment, but it is not THE moment. That does not exist. To be an author every moment must be THE moment. Each time we sit down to write, we must force aside our anxiety and worries and endless questions, and we must pour ourselves into the book with nary a thought of rejection and failure.

And that's a hard thing to do.

What does it take to be an author? It takes guts. Lots of guts.

And, of course, friends.

And faith.

And the belief that what we're doing is exactly what we were made for.

What it Takes to Be An Author, Part I

Seriously, I know it seems like being an author should be all about writing the book. Creativity, inspiration, passion, those are the things I expected to bring to the party (so to speak) when I began my journey to publication.

And I have.

But there is a lot more to writing than....well....writing.

Take for example, the copy edit stage.

Once you've written "The End", sent your baby off and had your story accepted by an editor, you can't just wipe your hands of the matter.

Really. You can't.

A few weeks or months after acceptance (depending on how far you are from publication date), your 300 or so pages of writing will be sent to a copy editor. It is the copy editor's thankless job to check the details of your story. Does John Doe have a different name on page 21 than he did on page 10? If so, the copy editor will notice it. Things she notices or has questions about are jotted down for future reference. Meanwhile, your editor is hard at work making her own notes.

When they are finished, you will open your front door and find this on your stoop -



Generally speaking, the big red sticker means that what is inside is extremely urgent and time sensitive. Take my advice and do not set the package on the counter to be opened at a later date. Otherwise, receiving a manuscript just days before it is due back to your editor might pose a problem. Case in point, the cover letter from my most recent copy edits. I received them on the 29th and they needed to be back on my editor's desk on the 5th.



Once you gird your loins and open the package, you'll find your entire manuscript marked and ready for your critical eye. During this stage, it is not the editor's job to make you feel good. There may be smiley faces and hearts sprinkled in the margins of your masterpiece, but you will also have comments like, "Please don't have them kiss when she's got strep throat," jotted down in the white spaces. Such comments will, of course, make you cringe, and it at this point you must hike up your big-girl britches and face your nemesis head-on (and by nemesis I mean your embarrassment, defensiveness, self-doubt, etc....NOT your editor's comments.)

In order to tackle your copy edits effectively, you may want to read through the comments and get an idea of what may need to be fixed.



After that, you will spend an inordinate amount of time searching for the perfect red pen. Okay. Maybe you won't do that, but in my house, with five kids constantly borrowing my pens, that's how I begin.



Now, this is the time when things get tough. It is your job to answers the queries presented by your editor. You may feel that what you wrote was fine, and you may STET the recommended changes. You may realize that the editor's keen eye has once again caught you in less than stellar writing form. Either way, you must employ full use of your red pen, cutting and hacking and recreating so that your vision for the book and your editor's align.



The process is labor intensive. The beauty of a manuscript is in the details, after all. Slowly, slowly, you will work your way through the pages, reading comments, reworking sections. You'll get a crick in your neck and a massive headache, and you'll be reduced to breaking your diet and eating this:



Which will give you enough of a sugar rush to get you through the remaining pages. That's when you will realize that your house is silent, and that it's the wee hours of the morning and that every sane person is asleep.



But who said you were sane?

You are a writer, right? And writers, must do what they must to get their books to production. So, you'll print new pages of manuscript and attach them to old pages

At least, you will try to.

If your house is like mine (and it probably isn't, because my house is NUTS!), you'll spend too much time searching for paperclips and finding them like this:



By this time, the house will no longer be quiet, and you will enlist help in finding paperclips.



And finally, you will be done.

At this point, no matter how bad the weather, you will hop in your car and you will take your manuscript off to be overnighted (if, like me, you had only a few days to return it) into your editor's waiting hands.





Because that is what an author does if she is truly an author.

True to Life

Deep characterization comes from true to life characters. I was reading contest entries and one of the things I noticed in several was that the characters were overdone. In my mind, that means they were caricatures rather than true-to-life people. When you're working, remember this - the characters you create must be real enough to become your reader's friends (or enemies).

What is real?

I suppose that depends on the character type. What one character says or does is not necessarily what another will say or do. The same is true of life, of course. Different people act different ways in the same situation. As you're writing, continually ask yourself if your characters' actions make sense.

Another interesting aside about the entries is that three of the seven entries I read involved people who were either a product of foster care or adoption. I won't speak to any specifics because that isn't my place or my right. Suffice to say, we must delve deeply when we write rather than simply accessing surface feelings or the most recognizable of emotions. All of life is about balance and dichotomy. As writers, we must capture both to truly capture the essence of humanity.

Anyway, here is a piece of real life that has been in my mind as I craft the story I'm working on. When I think about the heroine I'm writing, these are the emotions and feelings I am trying to sink deep into her fictional psyche. No matter how hard I try, though, I can never quite convey the depth of feeling I want to. On the one had, she must feel them deeply. On the other, she must be strong enough to internalize rather than over dramatize them. It is a difficult balance in life, and must also be a difficult one in fiction.

There is a picture on my computer. In it, a man holds two little girls. His head is bowed, his right hand lifted toward the sky, his left arm wrapped firmly around his charges. The girls are squirming bundles of energy. A matched pair, they look to be identical twins. The photo can’t hide their anxiety nor can it hide the man’s gaunt cheeks and thin frame. The picture was snapped by an adoptive mother visiting an orphanage in Ethiopia, and it showcases a moment that not many adoptive parents will ever get to see. It is the last hug, the last prayer, the last goodbye.



I cannot look at the photo without crying.

These are my nieces. This is their biological father. This moment is the last they will share together.

My sister received the photo via email and forwarded it to me. I called her, and we talked about the image. The conversation will probably be lost to time, but the feelings we shared, the mixture of joy and sorrow, it will live in both of our hearts forever.

In the wake of that conversation, I find myself thinking about my daughter’s birth family more than I ever have before. I have heard it said that we should not romanticize our children’s birth parents. I have heard it said that we should not tell our children that they were given up because of love, and I have found myself persuaded by this argument – if you tell your daughter that her birth mother loved her enough to give her up, you will make her question the security of her life with you.

I see the logic of that. I understand the reasoning. I even buy into it to an extent.

But I cannot buy into it fully.

And that, I guess, is my problem.

One day, I think Cheeky will ask – Mom, why was I abandoned? How did I become the girl in this picture:



What will I tell her? That her birth family could not care for her? That they may have already had a child and could not afford to have another? That laws that limit family size might have forced her birth mother’s hand?

Any of those reasons may be true. All of them may be the truth. Maybe none of them are.

I don’t know. I will never know.

But I do know this: Sometimes love means holding on and sometimes it means letting go.



My husband and I were talking about our new nieces. He was surprised to learn that their biological father was still living. “How can someone do that?” He asked. “How can someone say goodbye to children he has raised and loved for three years.”

I’ve been thinking about that a lot since that photo arrived in my in-box, thinking about the birth father’s gaunt cheeks and thin frame, his hand reaching toward Heaven.



What if I had no money, no food, no house?

What if keeping my children meant that they would never get an education, never go to college, never get married? Worse, what if keeping them meant their stomachs would never be full? What if keeping them meant watching them slowly fade away?

What if giving them up was the kindest most selfless thing I could do?

Would that mean I loved them less? Or would it mean I loved them more?

Sometimes in a quest for honesty and authenticity in telling our children’s stories, we feel compelled to state the facts and nothing more. Perhaps that is the way it should be.

Perhaps.

But there is a photo on my computer. My nieces and their birth father in the last moments they will share together. In Birth Father’s face I see sadness and anxiety, desperation and hope.

And, in my mind’s eye, an image plays over and over again – a dark-haired mother setting her pale child in a box and walking away. I think if I could have seen her face, that woman who walked into a crowded train station with a baby and walked out without one, I would have seen sadness and relief and hope and more desperation than I ever want to feel.

It is true that I do not have all the facts, but it is also true that my daughter’s story is about more than facts. It is about being abandoned and it is about being found. It is about miracles both big and small. It is about sacrifice and about sorrow. It is about all of those things.

And, yes, it is also about love.

My love.

Foster Mom’s love.

Even Birth Mom’s love.

When she asks, and I know she will, this is what I will tell my daughter – I can’t know for sure why your birth mother couldn’t parent you, but I do know this - sometimes it takes more strength and more love to let go than it does to hang on.



I wrote the above piece as a reflection of my own thoughts concerning my daughter's birth family. As always, though, what I experience in life finds its way into my books. I've written several characters who were adopted or in foster care, and I've written one book about a heroine who gave her daughter up for adoption (EVEN IN THE DARKNESS, in case you're wondering). Now, I'm working on another. My experiences this last year lend themselves to writing a more defined heroine than in DARKNESS, but I'm not sure I can do her justice.

I'll keep trying, though. That's what we writers do......

Hmmmmmm......

318 pages......The End

What Is It About Writers?

I've noticed a pattern in the critiquing I've been doing lately. It goes something like this.

Writer asks for a critique of her/his work.

I agree but say, "I want you to know that I am always honest."

Writer says, "That's exactly what I want."

So, I critique.

I send the critique to the writer and after a few days of silence receive an email much like the following:

Shirlee, Thank you so much for taking the time to critique -------. I appreciate your insight. I'm so glad you liked my story idea and thought my writing was strong. You said my heroine lacks motivation, but I wrote on page 85 that she......... I thought that was plenty of motivation. Also, you said that my hero lacks depth and that you don't understand his actions. I've had several other people read the manuscript, and none of them thought that. I think I'm just going to go ahead and query on what I have.

The above is not a verbatim note but a compilation of several that I've received. The gyst of all of them seems to be the same - while I appreciate your opinion, it is only that, and I choose not to apply it to my work.

The writer is, of course, correct in assuming that my critique is only opinion. However, the writer is wrong in assuming that it has no value. After all, I have spent hours reading through the manuscript. I have carefully worded all my critiques so that they are both positive and helpful. All that aside, I'm a multi-published author, and I'd like to think that I do know something about saleable work.

I want to be irritated by the "I'm not going to change it" notes, but I can't be.

I understand the knee-jerk reaction writers have when it comes to their work. Over the years, I have learned to be thick skinned about my writing. Still, every once in a while, I am faced with editor queries that make me feel defensive. It isn't that my editors are wrong. It isn't that their ideas lack merit. The fact of the matter is, I have never refused to change a manuscript based on an editor's critique.

So, what drives me to be defensive? What makes me want to dig in my heels and say, "This is the way I wrote it. This is the way it's going to be."?

Maybe it's pride. Maybe it's that I've poured so much of myself into my writing and I don't want to have to pour in more. Maybe it is that it hurts to hear that someone doesn't see my characters and my story the same way I do. Maybe it is simply a product of embarrassment over my less than perfect work.

Whatever the case, the feeling has given me insight into the various post-critique notes I've received. Knowing what it's like to be on the other end of the critique is what motivates me to keep offering my time and my opinion.

Sometimes, though, I want to sit Writer down and say, "I learned something really early in my writing career. I learned that, in order to improve, a writer must be teachable. To be that, a writer must decide now that nothing she writes will ever be perfect. She must purpose within herself to carefully consider all critiques. She must, as it were, learn to separate the chafe from the wheat. Only in doing so will she ever make a career out of writing."

Of course, I never do. I simply accept the thanks and let Writer do what she must with her work. My opinion can't, after all, make her work saleable. Only she is capable of doing that.

Still, those notes make me wonder:

What is it about writers that makes us cling so tightly to our stories and our words? Is it that we are so deeply invested in our characters and plots that we find it painful to change them?

Or, perhaps the better question is:

Could we be writers if we weren't so deeply invested in our work that critiques and critisms hurt?

New Cover

This is for the 2010 continuity. All the covers for the series are cool.

Me

A friend challenged me to take a personality test.

This is me.

Or maybe I should say...this is me?

Introverted iNtuiting Feeling Judging
by Marina Margaret Heiss

INFJs are distinguished by both their complexity of character and the unusual range and depth of their talents. Strongly humanitarian in outlook, INFJs tend to be idealists, and because of their J preference for closure and completion, they are generally "doers" as well as dreamers. This rare combination of vision and practicality often results in INFJs taking a disproportionate amount of responsibility in the various causes to which so many of them seem to be drawn.

INFJs are deeply concerned about their relations with individuals as well as the state of humanity at large. They are, in fact, sometimes mistaken for extroverts because they appear so outgoing and are so genuinely interested in people -- a product of the Feeling function they most readily show to the world. On the contrary, INFJs are true introverts, who can only be emotionally intimate and fulfilled with a chosen few from among their long-term friends, family, or obvious "soul mates." While instinctively courting the personal and organizational demands continually made upon them by others, at intervals INFJs will suddenly withdraw into themselves, sometimes shutting out even their intimates. This apparent paradox is a necessary escape valve for them, providing both time to rebuild their depleted resources and a filter to prevent the emotional overload to which they are so susceptible as inherent "givers." As a pattern of behavior, it is perhaps the most confusing aspect of the enigmatic INFJ character to outsiders, and hence the most often misunderstood -- particularly by those who have little experience with this rare type.

Due in part to the unique perspective produced by this alternation between detachment and involvement in the lives of the people around them, INFJs may well have the clearest insights of all the types into the motivations of others, for good and for evil. The most important contributing factor to this uncanny gift, however, are the empathic abilities often found in Fs, which seem to be especially heightened in the INFJ type (possibly by the dominance of the introverted N function).

This empathy can serve as a classic example of the two-edged nature of certain INFJ talents, as it can be strong enough to cause discomfort or pain in negative or stressful situations. More explicit inner conflicts are also not uncommon in INFJs; it is possible to speculate that the causes for some of these may lie in the specific combinations of preferences which define this complex type. For instance, there can sometimes be a "tug-of-war" between NF vision and idealism and the J practicality that urges compromise for the sake of achieving the highest priority goals. And the I and J combination, while perhaps enhancing self-awareness, may make it difficult for INFJs to articulate their deepest and most convoluted feelings.

Usually self-expression comes more easily to INFJs on paper, as they tend to have strong writing skills. Since in addition they often possess a strong personal charisma, INFJs are generally well-suited to the "inspirational" professions such as teaching (especially in higher education) and religious leadership. Psychology and counseling are other obvious choices, but overall, INFJs can be exceptionally difficult to pigeonhole by their career paths. Perhaps the best example of this occurs in the technical fields. Many INFJs perceive themselves at a disadvantage when dealing with the mystique and formality of "hard logic", and in academic terms this may cause a tendency to gravitate towards the liberal arts rather than the sciences. However, the significant minority of INFJs who do pursue studies and careers in the latter areas tend to be as successful as their T counterparts, as it is *iNtuition* -- the dominant function for the INFJ type -- which governs the ability to understand abstract theory and implement it creatively.

In their own way, INFJs are just as much "systems builders" as are INTJs; the difference lies in that most INFJ "systems" are founded on human beings and human values, rather than information and technology. Their systems may for these reasons be conceptually "blurrier" than analogous NT ones, harder to measure in strict numerical terms, and easier to take for granted -- yet it is these same underlying reasons which make the resulting contributions to society so vital and profound.



I think my family would probably agree that the above description fits, but I think when it really comes to knowing me, all a person has to do is look at what I value. The picture says it all. That is me.

As we write, it is good to know who our characters are, and it is just as important to know where they come from. After all, the one is completely and absolutely connected to the other.

"But I Don't Feel Like Writing,"

the author whines, and then she sits her butt down in the chair and she writes.

And writes.

And writes.

That has been my week.

Writing.

Not really wanting to but having to.

Not because I have a deadline or because I'm getting paid or because I want my career to continue.

But because I am compelled.

I must write. When I don't, I become grumpy and irritable. When I don't, I feel as if a part of myself is missing. When I don't, I am not as relaxed as I think I should be.

Writing, after all, is work. Being away from work should make me happy.

But it doesn't.

Because my work stems from something inside that I cannot put words to. It is an obsession, a passion, a need.

Which sound really strange and slightly off.

But it is what it is.

I was a strange kid. A bookworm. An imaginative child. The kid who sat in the back of class and daydreamed about other worlds and other lives.

Now, I am a writer, and my dreams come to life on paper. Those other worlds and other lives take wing as my fingers move along the keyboard. My writing isn't always good, and it is seldom great, but I still write.

Word after word after word.

Until a page is done and then a chapter and then a book.

It has occurred to me that true success in writing must lie in the author's obsession with the craft. How else do we force ourselves to do what we don't feel like doing? How else can we possibly tend to all that needs doing in the real world and then, when we are exhausted and needing a break, turn our attention to our characters and their worlds?

So, I don't feel like writing, but I will.

It is, quite simply, who I am.

This Year I Resolve

To stop and smell the roses.

This past year and a half has been a whirlwind of activity. We moved clear across country. We flew halfway around the world to meet our new daughter. During this time, I also managed to keep our heads above water as far as homeschooling and kids' activities. I wrote five books. And I did copy edits for them and AAs and art fact sheets.

These are all worthy things. They are all things I am happy and content to spend my time doing.

However, in my rush to finish everything that must be done, I often forget to take time to breathe.

So, I've resolve to slow down.

Strangely, as I think of what 'slow down' means, I realize that it does not mean cutting back on what I'm doing. I am fully capable of getting kids to activities, homeschooling, writing and breathing. The problem comes when I put off until tomorrow what I really could and should do today.

Seriously, it is much easier to put things off than to face them. That pile of laundry? I can do it tomorrow. Grading the kids' papers? I can do it tomorrow. Write 2000 words? That'll fit in tomorrow, too.

But it doesn't.

Putting things off piles them up.

And I don't need any more piles.

What I need more of is this -



Time to be still, to daydream, to let my imagination soar. It is in those quiet moments of reprieve from my hectic pace that I hear most clearly God's direction for my life.

So, the next part of my resolution is to do what must be done now and then to do nothing at all. For minutes or hours. To walk or sit or dance in those moments of freedom, and to let every bit of life's joy seep into my pores. To let myself be awash in hopes and dreams and imagination. To allow myself to hear His call to action or to stillness.

Therein lies the secret to doing all that must be done.

May your new year be filled with deep breaths of pure joy!

Editor Speak

I thought Running Blind would be my last book in the Heroes for Hire miniseries. Yesterday, my editor emailed to approve the proposal and suggested that I 'stretch' the series. She said that she and my senior editor had talked about it and they thought it would be a good idea.

The words she used were....perhaps consider.

Now, I knew I could take that literally and perhaps consider writing up a proposal for a few more Heroes for Hire books. I mean, my darling editor would never force me to write books I didn't want to write.

On the other hand, I'd never actually had an editor suggest I continue a series, so I figured that the suggestion was a gentle nudge in the right direction. The direction my editors wanted me to go, that is.

And that was fine.

I had toyed around with the idea of writing a few more Heroes for Hire books, but this business is tricky. If my editors really liked the concept of the first three books then selling a few more would be relatively easy. If they didn't really like the concept, then the proposal might not make it to contract.

And I really didn't want to write something they didn't want.

That's the hard thing about this business. An author has to balance what she wants to write with what readers want to read and what editors want to buy. It's great when those three things line up, but sometimes we've got great ideas that just won't make it in the market right now.

So, we must study the market and what our targeted publishing house is buying. Then we must adjust our needs as creative beings to suit the market trends.

I know people who would disagree with me on this and who insist that authors should write what they want. I think they are right. To a point. It is good to write what you are passionate about, but if you continue to get feedback from editors that indicates that your book was a good read but didn't quite fit the line, then you might perhaps consider (ha!) figuring out what the editors do want and tailoring your book to fit their needs.

Doing this does not mean selling out or giving in. It simply means being pragmatic about the business. Trends are what they are. What sells sells. It isn't really the editor's choice any more than it is the writer's. A good book that won't sell is a book that the editor cannot buy.

An writer who loves the craft can craft a story that fulfills his creative needs and still meets the market trends.

If you're curious to know what Love Inspired Suspense seems to be buying now, I'd say they're leaning toward very suspenseful and action packed stories. I've seen a trend toward slightly more gritty tales since the new senior editor arrived. She wants very compelling first chapters that immediately grab the reader and give a sense of the danger and suspense that is to come.

That is, of course, simply my assessement as an author, but I think it will hold true for most people submitting to the line.

If you happen upon this blog and have any questions you'd like to ask regarding the Love Inspired Suspense line feel free to email me at shirlee@shirleemccoy.com.

One Way?

While I absolutely agree there is only one way to Heaven, I'm completely opposed to the idea that there is only one way to write a book. That's why it always surprises me when I visit writing forums and read threads posted by authors and aspiring authors that outline the correct way to - brainstorm, plot, character sketch, edit, revise, etc, etc.

Sure, it's great to share ideas, but ideas alone don't write a book. They certainly can't get a person published. Sometimes, I think too many ideas muddle the process and make focusing on what really matters difficult.

What matters?

Writing compelling characters and interesting plots.

This is something that cannot be taught. It is something that must be learned word by word, page by page. It is the product of observation, imagination and good story telling ability. It comes from somewhere deep inside, and, while it can be shaped, it can only be harnessed by hard work and commitment to the craft.

So, if you're thinking of buying a How To writing book for Christmas, don't. Save your money and spend your time. Time building a plot that makes sense. Time creating characters that are three dimensional. Time learning to be better at the work you're doing.

Listen to yourself and your own instincts.

You may be surprised at how far that takes you.

Beginning Again

Today, I'll begin writing the proposal for the Love Inspired Suspense 2011 continuity. The six book series centers around the murder of a Texas Ranger, and during the course of the books, that and several other mysteries will be solved.

I've always enjoyed working on continuity series. It's fun to try to weave a seamless story arc when six authors with six distinct voices are doing the weaving. In this series, my book will be the last, and it will be my job to tie up all the loose ends.

I was originally offered the first slot in the continuity but had a conflicting deadline, so book #6 it is.

I mention that because I suspect my editor is worried about me being the one to tie up the loose ends.

Not, of course, that she doesn't have complete confidence in me. But we've worked together for a lot of years, and she knows my strengths and weaknesses as an author. If asked she'd probably say that I write compelling, clean, well-written stories and I turn them in on time. If pressed, she'd probably admit that I have a tendency to get lost in the stories and forget the details.

That's okay, though. As I always say to my kids, "We've all got strengths and weaknesses. It is our job to grow in the areas where we are strong and to work on strengthening the areas where we are weak."

And now it is time for me to live what I say.

So, I'll begin this story by writing the synopsis. Generally, I write the first three chapters and then write the synopsis. That gives me a chance to get to know the characters before I have to face the torturous process of writing them into a long summary. This time, because I've got other characters from other stories to get to know, I'll begin with the synopsis.

If it seems as if I am repeating the same thing over and over again, it's because I am. I do not want to ever write the synopsis, so writing it first is at the bottom of my list of things to do. I'm hoping if I say that I'm going to do it enough times, I'll eventually convince myself and get working.

So...here we go again with more emphasis:

My goal is to have the synopsis finished before Christmas.

Considering how long it usually takes me, that'll be pushing it.

Anyway, I've got a goal, and goals must always be part of the writing process.

Right?

Right.

So, what are you working on?

Questions

The best questions are the kind that have no answers. These are the questions that help me begin a story. Often, I'll see a house, an abandoned car, a person whose face simply screams for me to pay attention, and the questions will start.

Who?

Why?

How?

And then the story will begin.

The other day, someone asked if I ever run out of story ideas. I don't, because I never run out of questions. What is hard is finding the determination to put those ideas and imaginings down on paper.

I say finding because we all have the ability to perform difficult tasks (and, make no mistake, writing a book is difficult). What seperates those who do from those who don't is the ability to channel hope and dream into work and action.

Each day, we wake up to a hundred responsibilties and a laundry-list of tasks. If we're married, we must think of our spouse's needs. If we have kids, we must help them along with their day. If we work, we must meet our obligations to our company and boss. If we are working at home, we must clean and cook and clean again. If we homeschool....well, I'm sure I've made my point by now.

So, we dream about writing. We think about it. We talk about it.

And, when it comes time for doing it, we are too tired, too busy, too braindead from too many hours spent working on other things.

Sunday, I sat at church trying desperately to look wide awake and interested. No offense to our pastor (who is a wonderful preacher and teacher), but I was so tired the words just weren't registering. And then the pastor said something that I have heard and read hundreds of times, and it was as if someone flipped a switch in my brain. Everything inside me sat up and took notice.

Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light

And it sounded so good.

Rest for your souls.

Rest for my soul.

Rest.

In this season of miracles, it is good to be reminded of the simplest of truths. It is good to remember the importance of dedication not just to our writing craft, but to our relationship with our Creator. As we make time to sit in quiet communion with God, we begin to free our souls of the stress and worry that bogs us down and keeps us from fulfilling His purpose and plan for our lives. As Christian authors, our relationship with Him must come first. When it does, everything else will fall into place.

Perhaps you thought this post was going to be about finding time to write.

In some ways it is.

It is about prioritizing and about knowing what is truly important.

Pursuing publication takes more than a story idea, it takes knowing without a doubt that you are doing what you should be. It takes believing with all your heart that you must write. It takes sacrifice of time and of energy and of rest. It is good, then, to know where our strength lies and to cling to that....cling to Him....as we continue our journey.

BTW, the photo above is an example of how everyday things spark my imagination. I was shooting photos of my children, and they were happy and smiling in every one of them. This shot, though, was different. Click on the photo and look at the expression on the face of my youngest. Look in her eyes and see if you don't start asking questions. Believe it or not, I've already got two story ideas. I also have an aching heart, but that is a discussion for another day.

Things You Don't Have to Do to Get Published

Lately, I've been perusing writing related forums and reading advice given by other writers. Their ideas certainly have value, but often I want to say, "None of that matters if an aspiring writer isn't able to listen to her own internal voice. None of it matters if she doesn't know how to write her own story with her own characters with her own plot that comes simply and completely from her own head."

If you noticed a theme, then I've done my job of over stressing the words her own.

Writing forums are great. Critique groups are wonderful. Conferences are fun. But none of those things matter if a writer isn't able to sit down by herself and craft a story.

I wrote three books completely on my own before I got published. I put words to paper, character to story, plot to page without anyone offering me advice on how to do it. My sisters (who are phenomenally creative and who are extremely talented in their own right), read the manuscripts after they were complete and offered me advice on everything from grammar to plot, but neither of them were published and neither knew squat about writing a book. I can remember the three of us laughing at my rookie mistakes though we had no idea there were names for them.

Pacing? What was that?

Point of view? Did it matter?

Goals, motivation, character arcs? Did anyone really care?

So, book one and two stunk and were shoved away. Book three was slightly better, and, after putting it aside for a few months, I pulled it out (while on bedrest and pregnant with my oldest daughter) and began reading as if the work were not mine, as if the story were a book I'd picked up off a shelf. A light bulb went off, and I recognized all those things I still didn't have words for. Pacing, point of view, character arcs and motivation. I rewrote the entire book in a few weeks, and sent a query off to Melissa Endlich. The rest, as they say, is history.

The point of this post is not to discuss my road to publication, though. The point is to make it clear that it is possible to get published without:

Knowing someone in the writing industry.

Going to conferences.

Entering contests.

Being in a critique group.

Following all the rules in every book ever written about writing a novel.

Paying someone to critique your work.

Though there is nothing wrong with the things I've listed, they can often dilute a writer's voice, stilt her creativity and sap some of the passion that must be part of the crafting of any novel. There is only one thing that matters when you're pursuing publication, and that is your ability to sit and write. It is your story, your voice and the unique soul you bring to your writing that will lead the way to success. Sometimes we need solitude to hear our own thoughts most clearly. Sometimes we need to be alone to truly listen to the heartbeat of our story.

Don't be afraid to be a maverick when it comes to writing. Pursue your craft with passion, with an honest eye for flow and detail and with the knowledge that you must be your own worst critic.

Friends and family may want this for you. Critique groups may be determined to help. In the end, though, you are the one who must make it happen. Write. Rewrite. Write again. Remember when things get tough and the ideas refuse to flow that each word is a paving stone on the path to publication. You and you alone are responsible for laying them down one by one, thought by thought until you finally reach your destination.

Ted Dekker's Rant and Other Things That Make Me Laugh

I'm afraid I wasn't able to jump on the bandwagon and give Ted Dekker a piece of my mind for the rude and condescending things he said about Steeple Hill Guidelines. The fact of the matter is, I can ill afford to give away even the smallest piece of my mind. The other fact of the matter is, I saw the rant (as it is being referred to) as nothing more than a desperate bid to get attention.

And, really, I've been condescended to before.

What I write isn't literary enough for some, isn't hot enough for others. It isn't real enough. Isn't Christian enough. Is too Christian. In the years I've been writing for Steeple Hill, I've heard it all.

When I first got published, I discovered two things. First, a LOT of people seem to want to be writers. Second, most people who want to be writers (but who have never actually finished writing a book) think that writing is easy. Especially if what is being written is romance.

I can't tell you how many times I heard, "Oh, you got published with Steeple Hill? Maybe I should try that."

As if by simply trying they would easily be able to accomplish what I had.

The truth of the matter is, writing a book (any book) is hard work. Just getting that first draft of that first book done takes persistence and determination. Then, of course, comes the editing and rewriting and looking at it with fresh eyes and rewriting again and editing again. And that is before an editor ever lays eyes on it.

Work is exactly what writing a book is.

And torture as the manuscript is finally ready and submitted and the waiting begins.

Even after the first book is sold and the next and the next, there is always that feeling of anxiety as another story begins, as another completed manuscript lands on the editor's desk. Plus, there is more work. There are revisions, art fact sheets, copy edits and author alterations. To make writing a career, time must be devoted to it, hours must be spent, passion must be balanced with the knowledge that the book belongs to many more hands and heads than simply the author's.

Which brings me back to why I did not respond to Ted Dekker's bizarre diatribe.

I don't have time to defend what doesn't need to be defended. The books I write are clean and wholesome and fully entertaining. I write because I truly believe it is what I'm meant to do. I write because without writing, I'm not sure who I would be.

What's to defend in that?

So, Ted Dekker's weird rant amused rather than alarmed me. Just as any conversation about the depth and breadth and impact of what I write does. Only God can determine what lives will be touched by my work. The Ted Dekker's of the world can't. Neither can the Shirlee McCoys. Thinking anything else is simply a waste of time and energy.

PS.... Alamo Rangers. I didn't even know they existed, but they do. Cool uniforms, too.

Things That Distract Me When I'm Working On The Dreaded Synopsis

ONE: The Neighbor's Cows





Two: My Daughter Dancing Through the Field




Three: My Sons Taking Their Sweet Time Walking Through the Field





Four: My Daughter Bringing Me Flowers




Five: The Osmosis Egg Which Has Taken On a Life and Personality of Its Own.






Lesson to be learned from this: It doesn't take much to distract Shirlee when she's working on the dreaded synopsis!

Just Thinking

Questions I ask myself as I'm working on the synopsis -


Who is she?

Where is she in her life?

What is she searching for?

How has her past shaped who she is?

What catalyst brings the hero into her life, and what is her first impression of him?

Why can't she fall in love with him?

Why must she?



Then, of course, I repeat the process for the hero.

Anyone working on a synopsis besides me?