Me, a Novelist?

Last spring, I went to an author meet-and-greet, and it changed my life. Angie Breidenbach and Tiffany Amber Stockton were there sharing about their new novels. They were animated, excited, and fun to be around, and when my husband and I left that meeting, I casually said, “I could do that. I could write a novel.” I proceeded to tell him about the basic premise of the story that would become my first novel and lead me in a new career path.

For the next several months, I read a dozen or more books on writing a novel. I attended writers conferences and sat in on novel-writing classes. I researched and researched and researched the setting and history and everything I could about the topics of my story.

And then I wrote and wrote and wrote. It was a blast!

Then, a few weeks ago, I had a crazy conversation with my literary agent. I had a plethora of writing projects working, and I was determined to do it all. My novel. Check. My children’s book series. Check. My nonfiction book. Check?

Why the question mark? As we conversed, it became quite apparent that my excitement, passion, and joy came from writing fiction. Really?

Really.

For more than 35 years, my life verse has been, “The joy of the Lord is your strength,”
Nehemiah 8:10b. The Lord faithfully fills me with joy and I find strength to do whatever He puts my hand to do. And it’s been a journey, for sure.

I’ve taught language arts. I’ve had a newspaper column. I’ve written missions curriculum. I’ve been the editor or editorial director of a dozen publications. And I’ve written hundreds and hundreds of articles as well as two published books.

But now I have a new title. I am a novelist! There. I said it.

And it’s exciting beyond words. Everyday I get to dream up stories and journey with God as I write them down. I get to wake up every morning so excited about my day simply because my day has adventures that I don’t even know about.

What new situation will my characters face today? What new characters might I meet? What’s going to happen next?

Who knows? It’s the journey that really matters.

What new journey has God put you on these days? I’d love to know.