Failure is not an 'F' word

By Wendy Parker | @ACWriters

Failure is not an ‘F’ word

Come again?

I said, failure is not an ‘F’ word

You may feel like a failure when you stand in the bookshop

Browsing through those endless copies of other people’s books

Feeling that familiar sense of hopelessness creeping over you like a well-worn overcoat

As you stand there, wondering if you’ll ever actually find those, “two steps forward”

In the publishing world, instead of, “three steps back.”

But take heart!

There is a reader out there, just waiting for you to stop throwing your own pity parties

And start writing that story that’s been buzzing around in the recesses of your mind

For what feels like an eternity

It’s time to have some faith and act on that dream that’s burning in your soul

If you’re 100% sure it’s what God wants you to

Go for it!

Never compare your writing to someone else’s, or you’ll start to question and doubt

And you’ll be asking yourself, “Is this really what I’m meant to be doing?”

Writing isn’t about grammar, punctuation or brilliant prose (although, it does help)

It’s about the sheer guts and determination of a person

Who is willing to bare their soul, for all the world to see

But, what if I try and fail?

I’ll feel like a failure…

…And then what?

Well, that thought alone will send fear into the fingers of any budding author

And bring to a halt any imaginative flow you have

Quicker than you can sharpen your pencil

Stop doing that to yourself!

Remember, failure is not an ‘F’ word, my friend

Ed Catmull, founder of Pixar and author of Creativity Inc. book

Talks about trusting the process of creativity

He says, “When we trust the process, we remember that we are resilient, that we’ve experienced discouragement before, only to come out the other side.”

Failure means you’ve actually gone further than all those other aspiring talents

Who, one day, maybe, if they find the time and energy

They will, perhaps, eventually get around to writing that book in their heads

Failure means you’re committed to your work

And you don’t care how many failures come your way

You’re not going to give up – ever, until you see success!

You showed a willingness to step out in faith

And take the next steps toward your dream of becoming a published author

And God will honour that

Writing takes work, it takes commitment and it takes courage

1 Chronicles 29:20 reminds us to

‘Be strong, courageous, and effective. Do not fear or be dismayed, I know that the Eternal God, who is my God, is with you.” (The Voice Bible)

Write something that will make those agents and publishers have no choice

But to sign you up

Failure is not an ‘F’ word

It’s the paving stones that make the path to your success

You are not a failure because you’ve failed a few times

O.K?

Come on kid, this is your dream

Take the leap of faith

And see what God can do!

Wendy xo

Wendy is a member of the Australasian Christian Writers Group and Christian Writers Downunder. When she isn’t shouting from the rooftops on how to discover the real you through listening to God’s voice, she lives in a quite village in the Southern Highlands in Australia. Along with her wonderful husband of 23 years, her incredible adult son, her beautiful teenage daughter and one spoilt chocolate Labrador, named Rose.

Like this post? You can check out Wendy's blog at www.thebigvoiceonline.com and join the tribe! 

Small Things, Slow Beginnings

by Jeanette O'Hagan

From small seeds, mighty Bunya Pines grow

Do not despise these small beginnings, for the Lord rejoices to see the work begin, to see the plumb line in Zerubbabel’s hand.” Zechariah 4:10, NLV*

There is something exciting about the beginning, the start of something new, the very first moments pregnant with vision and hope. Perhaps that's why we celebrate them - engagements, weddings, births, first day at school, openings and launches. Those very first words on the blank page, the first time we type THE END, the first contract, the first time we hold our book in our hands, the first launch.

But often our high hopes are tested when things don't happen as fast or as big as we imagined. When our hopes begin to strain and things take longer than we expect or we face more obstacles or set backs than we believed possible. When it is easy to give up.

A few years ago, Australian marine scientist and multi-published novelist,  Ian Irvine, said: 

"Here’s the sad truth: most people who write a book will never get it published, half the writers who are published won’t see a second book in print, and most books published are never reprinted. What’s more, half the titles in any given bookshop won’t sell a single copy there, and most published writers won’t earn anything from their book apart from the advance."

In fact many people who start writing a novel never complete it.

That is rather depressing thought, though it doesn't discount the successes. Determination, hard work, adaptability, stick-ability and exploring new options all help.

It's not easy to find readers in a saturated and sometimes cynical market.

A couple of Saturdays ago, Omega Writers held it's second Book Fair in Brisbane - great venue with a wonderful and diverse range of authors, publishers, booksellers and editors including Rhiza Press/Wombat Books, Breath of Fresh Air Press, Gary Clark of Swamp cartoons, Kathy Hoopmann (All Cats have Asperger Syndrome) and our own award-winning authors such as Lynne Stringer, Adele Jones, David Bennett, Catriona McKeown, Ruth Bonetti, Hazel Barker, Anne Hamilton and more. As in the previous Book Fair - many of the authors read excepts of their works to an appreciative audience. It was good day with a small, steady trickle of readers and sales.

This year we pulled out the stops with advertising & we'd had positive feedback from some schools and organisations, so to be honest, I was hoping for a greater attendance of readers. A mob would have been just about right.

A wise person said to me, 'Do not despise the day of small things.'

In looking for the big and the grand, for the crowds and the accolades, we often miss 'the small things' that matter to God.

Over the next few days, various people mentioned how they had enjoyed the day and got special something out of it.

“Didn’t know what to expect. Thought it would be a small bunch of middle-aged authors. Surprised by the range and quality.’ One of new authors.  (Authors ranged from teen or twenties to 70plus, non-fiction & fiction for all ages.)

“This is so needed. It is becoming harder to find appropriate material for my children” Homeschooling Dad

“Treasure trove of great books from the Omega Book Writer's Fair last Saturday. I can't adequately express how much I enjoyed meeting authors and looking at books. ...  I was most excited to put books in my son's hands that are written FOR him, from his perspective and exploring the Asperger's world with positivity and humour! Love it!!” Mum whose son has Asperger's

"Wonderful event. Pity not more people came. Their Loss. Looking forward to Next year's event."

 In Sydney last weekend, I noticed a big hole in the ground - where a huge skyscraper were under construction. I was reminded of how long it takes to build the foundations.  Things worth doing, take time.

And I'm tickled that 'the Lord rejoices to see the work begin' Zechariah 4:10

As always, we come back to these questions. Why do we write? Why do we seek publication? Why do we look for readers of our scribblings, stories, books?

Called to serve

Just as God calls his anointed among the returned exiles (Zech 4:12) to serve Him, so we as Christians are called to serve in the church and in the world. For me, writing and encouraging other writers is part of that calling.

In line with God's character.

The one called does the work in line with God's plumbline (Zech 4:12). For Zerubabbel, this meant rebuilding the temple in line with God's purposes. 

For us, it means building in line with God's will and character. Which surely means doing the best work we can, being willing to learn, not cutting corners, and not becoming proud or slanted by wrong motives.

Not by might, but by God's Spirit 

While we labour --- learning, crafting, plotting, writing, connecting, promoting --- the impact of our work is ultimately in God's hands. He says, '“not by might, not by power, but by my Spirit said the Lord’ (Zech 4:6)'.  His timing is not always our timing, His objectives are not always our objectives.

He says to us, 'Do not despise the day of small beginnings.'

Do not be disheartened if things are not happening as fast or as big as we hope.  Good things take time to grow.

On the other hand, if we have success, if we are going well, do not despise others because nothing seems to be happening, or their sales are low. We don't know what impact another's work (or our own) might  have.  After all, Van Gogh only sold one painting in his lifetime, and that was to his brother (or so I believe).

So whether Ian Irvine is right or not, is not the point. The returnees Zechariah addressed were a small, motley group facing an impossible situation, an overwhelming task, huge opposition, and yet God was at work among them. 

We have the same God at work in our midst. I can't wait to see what He will do.

* New Living Translation (NLT)
Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved

All images © Jeanette O'Hagan 2018

Jeanette recently published a collection of fantasy and sci-fi Nardvan stories, Ruhanna's Flight and other stories. She started spinning tales in the world of Nardva at the age of eight or nine. She enjoys writing secondary world fiction, poetry, blogging and editing. Her Nardvan stories span continents, time and cultures. They involve a mixture of courtly intrigue, adventure, romance and/or shapeshifters and magic users. She has published numerous short stories, poems, two novellas and her debut novel, Akrad's Children. Find her on Facebook or at her webpages Jeanette O'Hagan Writes or Jenny's Thread.

Active Waiting For Writers

by Jeanette O'Hagan

I was seven and full of enthusiasm. After all, I loved paw-paws and this luscious, orange fruit was plump full of tiny, black, round seeds. Paw-paw seeds grow into paw-paw trees, which grow more paw-paws. What’s not to like? Armed with a little knowledge and a great deal of enthusiasm, I separated out a single seed, found a gardening spade and marched out to the back garden. I dug a hole—probably about 30 cms deep—placed the seed in the hole, flooded it with water from the hose, piled in the dirt, patted and shaped it into a mound (drawing on my uber-mudcake making skills), wiped my brow and waited.

Next day, I checked my tree-in-the making. The mound looked just as I left it. Maybe, little drier under the baking Mt Isa sun. I added some more water. The next day—nothing, just bare dirt. The following day—well, you guessed it, nothing. Frustrated and worried, I grabbed the spade and dug up the seed to see if it was growing yet. Nope. Buried it again. Dug it up the following day. Mum said, ‘Seeds take time to grow, it doesn’t happen overnight.’

My first venture into horticulture was, I confess, a huge failure, but it taught me something. That good things take time to grow. That patience is an important asset. And, as I learnt more about plant requirements, it also taught me that knowing what you are doing helps. 

Growing plants requires knowledge—what does the plant like in terms of soil, water, position, depth to plant the seed etc—and experience.

It also requires, active waiting. Passive or idle waiting is doing nothing and expecting something to grow. In active waiting, we plant, care for and tend the plant, but we don’t keep digging it up each day to see if it’s growing.

These are lessons I’ve had to re-learn when it comes to writing.

The first book I wrote came easily, it poured out of me. When it was finished I sent it to two publishers and one was interested with changes (a rewrite to make it more ‘Christian’) that I was reluctant to make. Then life took another turn and decades later I started writing again, studying a post-graduate degree, and relooking at the old novel, writing the prequels, starting on the sequels.

I can remember the elation of finishing the first draft of this second novel. I wrote the next one. 

Meanwhile, no one except my beta-readers seemed interested in taking up my opus. I was learning, getting feedback.

'Writing styles had changed.' 'The first line must sizzle.' 'Creative dialogue tags and using adverbs are literary crimes.' 'Pace and structure matter.'

I was learning and, I believe, improving, becoming a stronger writer, but it still felt like I’d never be published as year after year went by and the patch of dirt remained bare of even the tiniest of tender shoots.

Pundits advised writing short stories as a way to get published and improving one’s skills. 'But,' I said, ‘I’m am more comfortable writing long stories, like epic novels. I struggle with short stories.’ An opportunity came to submit to an anthology – maximum of 5000 words. I wrote three stories, the first two over 7000 words, before I managed to hit the sweet spot with The Herbalist’s Daughter. My story was published—and then some more stories were pubished in various anthologies and the acceptances began to flow.

Last year I published my first novella Heart of the Mountain—but my novel still languished. I’d edited it, sought feedback from editors, other writers, beta-readers and edited again, and again, and again. This month, I’ve finally published Akrad’s Children after six years of germination.

What I’ve learnt along the way is:

1. Enthusiasm isn’t enough, knowledge and practice are vital. (Don’t bury a single paw-paw seed deep in the earth and cement it in with mud 😊 )
2. Writing means waiting—waiting to hear back from editors or agents or publishers, waiting for feedback, waiting for a piece to be accepted, waiting for reviews (any reviews), waiting for sales, waiting to be noticed, waiting for the break-out novel, waiting …
3. Good things take time to grow—but waiting doesn’t mean ‘idle’, it means watering, weeding, nurturing; it means continuing to write, to learn, to grow, to encourage others.
4. We may plant and water, but it’s God that gives the true growth. 

When, we start writing a novel, we see typing THE END as the summit, but there is always another summit ahead however far along the journey we are. I’m learning to become more content with my Father’s timing while I wait.

How about you? What are you waiting for? What are you learning?

*****

Jeanette O’Hagan is thrilled that her novel Akrad’s Children will be released as an e-book just days away on 22 September 2017 (available for pre-order). https://www.amazon.com/Akrads-Children-Legacy-Book-ebook/dp/B075BK8436/

Four young lives, a realm ravaged by war, a haunting legacy

Four young lives are bound together in friendship, love, rivalry and tragedy. A realm ravaged by civil war, a ruler scarred by betrayal, a legacy that haunts them all.

Caught between two cultures, a pawn in a deadly power struggle, Dinnis longs for the day his father will rescue him and his sister from the sorcerer Akrad’s clutches. But things don’t turn out how Dinnis imagines and his father betrays him.

Does Dinnis have a future among the Tamrin? Will he seek revenge for wrongs like his sister or forge a different destiny?

Jeanette started spinning tales in the world of Nardva at the age of eight or nine. She enjoys writing secondary world fiction, poetry, blogging and editing. Her Nardvan stories span continents, time and cultures. They involve a mixture of courtly intrigue, adventure, romance and/or shapeshifters and magic users.

Recent publications include her novellas Heart of the Mountain and Blood Crystal and short stories The Herbalist's Daughter and Lakwi's Lament. Other short stories and poems are published in a number of anthologies, including Glimpses of Light and Futurevision. 

Jeanette continues to write her Akrad’s Legacy Series—a Young Adult secondary world fantasy fiction with adventure, courtly intrigue and romantic elements.

Find her at her Facebook Page or at Goodreads or on Amazon or on her websites JennysThread.com or Jeanette O'Hagan Writes . if you want to stay up-to-date with latest publications and developments, sign up to Jeanette O'Hagan Writes e-mail newsletter.

About My Audience

By Mimi (Mary Jones) 

I like writing 

Narelle asked me to tell you a little about myself. I thought the easiest way to do this is by telling you a little bit about my audience. One of my favourite mentors taught me to figure out who my audience is and to start writing to them. The thought hadn’t really occurred to me till she mentioned it. I was just writing because I liked writing. I was writing stories and making little flip books before I even went to school. My mum was the best audience any child could ever have.

Following up on the advice of my mentor, I sat down and started writing to my mentor but she was preoccupied with her own love and war novella and my love story did not resonate with her. Undeterred I decided that if I polished up my writing enough then maybe my family would like to hear what I had to say.

My nearest and dearest

I love and adore my siblings and couldn’t wait to share my newfound love with them. Unbeknownst to me, my little sister has acquired psychic abilities, or so she tells me. The reason I believe that she thinks she has gained some psychic ability is because she says that she doesn’t need to read the Good Book to know that it is filled with fairy tales.

I don’t have her ability because when I open The Word I read mainly Truth and history and parables sprinkled with a little mockery here and there. I find out about the history of our planet and the Jewish people with surrounding nations and I read about ordinary human qualities such as love and kindness as well as wars and treachery. I can see no fairy tales.

My oldest sister who has been a devout church goer for the last 25 years has been kind enough to correct this newbie whenever I quote the Holy Word about anything. Because what I haven’t learned as yet is that to some devout church goers God’s Word means to say what the denomination intends for its congregation to hear. This confuses me but I politely nod and try to figure out a way I can share the bible without having to listen to a particular denominational interpretation of it. I haven’t got that sussed yet.

My oldest brother is busy and my youngest brother’s warm brown eyes smile kindly at me when he tells me that he doesn’t understand what I’m talking about.

My much adored bible teacher makes it clear that he will be open to listen to whatever I want to share as long as I sign on the dotted line and agree to abide by the rules of his chosen denomination.

An elderly family member tells me that the bible was written by the Catholic Church and therefore we should listen to what they (The Vatican) tell us, and do as we’re told, or we’ll go to hell.

Soldiering on

I know that this is just training ground and I am busting with excitement as I refine and polish my story till it literally sparkles and pulsates with my new found love. And I am not talking just any ordinary romance here.

My story about redemption brings more joy than winning the lottery; it is literally about love, life and death. Not ordinary love but true and abiding love. And not anyone’s life and death but yours and mine including the priceless pot of gold at the end of the rainbow and the Holy Grail. How can I not share this?

There are cousins and nephews and nieces and neighbours and friends and I won’t give up. If the simple Truth doesn’t get the message across then how about a documentary, fiction, graphics, video? Anyone? Hello?

About my audience

I am wondering if I have done enough hard slog to graduate into a position or situation where I can start writing to an audience which may be receptive to my tentative first steps on cloud nine. How can I not share being head over heels? I must share the love, joy, healing, blessings, guidance and comfort I receive daily from The Word. For the sake of my children I will leave a legacy.

I am also practicing my dancing skills because my favourite teacher tells me that certain situations call for leaps of faith as well as joy.

I’d love to hear how other writers deal with finding the right audience.

Bio

Mimi has written articles for home schooling magazines on depression and bullying. She won prizes for her poems on happiness and in-laws. In her spare time she writes lyrics for the band People is Grass https://itunes.apple.com/au/album/mother-of-all-living/id356012158 and was placed as runner up and chosen as staff pick for her songs Mother of All Living https://liveforeverhowto.wordpress.com/2014/06/02/the-concept-of-living-for-ever/ and Jonah goes to Nineveh. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rOjrDdImvI8 

Mimi has contributed two stories as Amelia to ‘A Life Like Mine,’ for The ‘Resource Manual on Violence Against Women with Disabilities Project http://wwda.org.au/issues/viol/viol2006/vrm2007/  

She recently completed her book titled “My Story of Survival” which can be downloaded for free from http://mosaichouse.co/products/free-e-book-a-story-of-survival.

Mimi is the founder of www.freescripturecards.com and www.mosaichouse.co and the editor of the liveforeverhowto blog https://liveforeverhowto.wordpress.com/. You can find her on FB under her pen name Mary Jones https://www.facebook.com/live4everhowto

Life, Ambition and other Strange Animals

By Lynn B. Fowler

For me, it is the unanswerable question: What made you want to be a writer? The truth is, I never wanted to be a writer, and probably still don't. In fact, for most of my life my relationship with writing has very definitely been in the love/hate category.

Dad was a freelance writer, and wrote Australian bush poetry, so writing was kind of in my DNA. I don't remember a time when I didn't write. It was just one of the things I did, like getting dressed in the morning. It would no more have occurred to me to want to be a writer than to want to be a person who dressed.

My ambitions were much more interesting. I was going to be a ballerina and an engineer - at the same time! I figured I could engineer by day and dance by night. After all, when you are ten years old, who needs sleep? Or, for that matter, ballet practice? (And no, the fact that there was not a single female engineer in Australia at that time did not make the slightest difference.)

By the time I was thirteen my focus had changed. Dad's death the year before had made me aware of the reality of God, and I had become convinced that He wanted me to become a nun. That caused all kinds of problems, given that I was not a Catholic. Throughout this time I kept writing, but never thought of becoming a writer.

Eight years, a marriage and two children later, I was working in the publicity department of a television studio. The job involved constant writing: press releases, on-air promos, in-house and client newsletters, occasional radio ads and a weekly television magazine. By that time some of my poems had also made their way into print. Yet I still never thought of myself as “a writer” and, even though I thoroughly enjoyed the work, I certainly never saw it as fulfilling either an ambition or a calling.

Through the very difficult years of my childhood and early adulthood, writing - particularly poetry - kept me sane. It was the only method I had of expressing the anguish that was within me. It was intense and personal: not so much that I wanted to write, or even liked to write, but rather that I simply had to write.

Then, when I was 24, I was saved and called into ministry. Writing took on a whole new aspect. It was now part of the ministry package. With very few exceptions, everything I wrote was designed to inspire and encourage people in their walk with Christ. Today, writing is still part of the ministry package. I don't see myself so much as a writer, but rather as a minister who happens to write.

So, why do I write? Partly because there are words inside that insist on finding their way onto paper (or onto a computer screen.) That's the reason I wrote as a child; it's the reason I wrote as a troubled teen and young adult. Today there is also another reason. I believe God has given me something to say to the Body of Christ, and whether the words are written or spoken, that message needs to be given.

Lynn B. Fowler is a Christian minister and writer who lives in a tiny country town in Victoria, Australia. She has had numerous articles and poems published in Australia and overseas. Her children's book, A Crazy Alphabet, was published in Australia and the USA in 1990, and was nominated for the Children's Book of the Year award in Australia. 

She has published three Christian books: Called to Battle, a manual for spiritual warfare, is now available only in digital format, and only to her newsletter subscribers who receive a free copy when they sign up; My Little Chats with God, a collection of Bible meditations, is currently being revised and expanded and hopefully will be re-released in July 2015; her latest book, Real, Radical and Revolutionary - Building Kingdom Relationships with God, with Each Other and with the World, was released in March 2015.

My personal web site: http://lynnbfowler.com

Real Radical and Revolutionary site: http://rrr.lynnbfowler.com (includes links to the places where the book can be purchased.) 

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/revdrlynnbfowler

Twitter: http://twitter.com/revlynn