Reflections

I'm very slowly working through a Bible study for writers entitled, Write His Answers by Marlene Bagnull. I haven't made it any further than the foreword by Lee Roddy. In it he commented the following:

"Many writers, filled with inspiration, start off strong. Then they get discouraged and quit. When they do, God's vision for them is lost. How sad!

If it's God's will to write, then it's logical that publication should eventually follow. After all, an unfinished manuscript cannot change lives. Even a finished script cannot minister in a drawer or filing cabinet.

Only in published form can a book go where you and I will never go, to people we will never meet. Only in a published form can a book make a difference in eternity.

I don't know of a single successful author in the inspirational field who hasn't experienced doubts and discouragement. The unsuccessful are the ones who quit." *

It's been a few weeks since I read these words, but they have taken hold in my heart. I thought about them yesterday when I handed a friend a copy of a manuscript that I had written almost twenty years ago to read. It was in a filing cabinet. I had sent it off to one publisher many years ago, and it was rejected. Life got busy with having babies, and it remained in the cabinet.

A few years ago, I went to a writing conference and spoke with a publisher in regards to a nonfiction book and Bible study I had written. The editor took it along back for perusal. I never heard back, despite emails.

When I was in high school, I wrote a mystery for preteens and entered it in a contest at my English teacher's urging. It didn't win. It too went into a drawer.

I have written three different Bible studies that I have taught through the past several years. I haven't pursued publication for them at this point. I have shared them with others that are interested.

There have been some publishing successes through the years. In high school I was editor of our school's magazine and newspaper and had numerous things published. I wrote a few poems that were published in magazines and take-home papers. I currently am a by-monthly columnist for a homeschooling magazine.

Why do I share all of this? I desire to be a great writer. I'm finding this won't happen by writing and filing it in a drawer. I need to step outside my comfort zone. I know that God has a call on my life to write, and I don't want to be one of the ones that become discouraged and quits. I desire more.

* All quotes were used with permission from Marlene Bagnull and Lee Roddy. If you are interested in the a copy of the book, check out www.writehisanswer.com.