A Centreville Christmas

Don’t get me wrong. I love receiving gifts, I just don’t need sweaters or scarves to be happy. Every day when I take Jake for a walk, I look around at our charming historic town and I feel gratitude. For where I am in life, and for where I live. I love it here. Five years ago, I never imagined I would have a loving husband, live in a historic town (something I always dreamed of), and having a novel for sale on Amazon. Truly, God has both surprised and blessed me.



So, I want to share with you a little of what I experience every day on my dog walks. The picture above is of two beautiful historic homes decorated for Christmas. Grace’s favorite is the one pictured below, which we refer to as “The Gargoyle House.” Aptly named for the little gargoyle who looks out over Chesterfield Ave. and is dressed differently each season. Over the summer, he had a fish in his mouth. When school started, a giant crayon; and he even sported a Halloween costume in October.



As I walk down Commerce St., Christmas hymns and carols fill the air, courtesy of The Centerville National Bank. Every business and shop in town has a Christmas display in their window, and the Christmas Parade shuts down the entire town.



Everyone who doesn’t have a part in it sets up along the streets to watch. If you aren’t home by 6:00, you can’t get home. And everyone who marches by in the parade calls out: “Merry Christmas!” Which I appreciate since this holiday’s purpose is to celebrate the coming of the Christ into the world.



It’s easy to get stressed out (and I am) about all of the shopping and wrapping to be done, and the cleaning of the house before the relatives arrive. And it’s easy to feel down about my sweet daughter being away from me the entire week of Christmas as she celebrates with her father in Florida. But I’m choosing instead to be grateful for the love of a God who sent his Son to be my savior and who is at work in my life daily to reshape my character and make me more like him.



Our first Christmas in our new home will be special to us. We celebrated with Grace before she left, and we had a wonderful day together. And this is Jake’s first Christmas. He’s a little confused by the presence of a tree in the living room and can’t keep himself from eating it. But even if my tree has no ornaments, and the entire lower half has been literally ripped limb from limb, I’m going to cherish these days and thank God for the gifts he’s given me!

Now What?

So, the truth is I’m not good at blogging. Or talking about myself, or even about my book. I’m not a good salesperson. And I’m not that great with using technology. Basically, I don’t possess any of the skills that would be helpful in building a successful writing career in today’s world. This is what I’m good at: sitting at the computer with my cat and a cup of hot chai tea (with a secret bag of Mint M&M’s hidden in the desk drawer) and writing a story.

But every step of this journey has pushed me out of my comfort zone—which is the place where we can really grow. So it’s time for me to be uncomfortable and figure out how to get this done.

I’ve been blessed by amazing friends and family who’ve bought my novel and shared it with their friends. Hopefully I’ll see more reviews on Amazon and Good Reads as time passes and free time is reintroduced to everyone’s schedules after the holidays. Personally, I won’t be able to exert any real energy into my new writing career until the second week of January.

I’m just thankful that God already knew my limitations when he called me to write. I will give it all I have, and I’ll allow myself to sweat and stammer at book signings when I’d really rather be in my office writing. But as I was recently reminded, my job is to be obedient and leave the results to God.

So I’m going to try to relax and enjoy this part of my own story as I step into the role of author. But when you’re an uptight perfectionist who’s always imperfect, it’s tough to relax.

FINALLY!

It hasn't been easy, but it's finally ready to go! You can purchase the paperback at my E-store Createspace and by the middle of next week it should also be available on Amazon.com. The e-book is available now at Amazon.

Tenacity is the Word of the Day

This is my Determined face. Can you feel it? (Nikki, this one's for you.)

Publishing to Kindle was easy. But formatting my novel to print through Create Space has been a lesson in perseverance. I’ve been meditating on Winston Churchill’s words of wisdom: “Success is the ability to move from one failure to another with no loss of enthusiasm.” I’ve definitely struggled with enthusiasm, but at least remained doggedly tenacious.

The first proof copy of my novel revealed a need for changes to both the cover design and interior format. I have now completed those changes (after much hair-pulling and a few tears) and am ordering a second proof copy. If it doesn’t reveal any other major flaws, the paperback will be out by next week.

Nothing EVER happens according to my timeframe. EVER. Maybe there’s a reason for it, like some secret supernatural reason. Or maybe it’s just life and another opportunity to practice perseverance. Either way, here I am, still working at it.

The Journey

You may have heard me talk about how writing brings me joy, but you may not have realized how difficult this journey has been for me. The creative process is the part that makes me feel at peace, like I’m doing exactly what I was made to do. After that, the demons attack.

The journey of completing this novel, of surrendering it to friends for proof-reading and criticism, and the idea of letting everyone read it has been emotionally exhausting. At every turn, I’ve had to fight back the voices of the past that were loud with criticism and quiet when it came to encouragement. I’ve had to fight my own insecurities that tell me I have nothing to offer, and the voice of experience reminding me that I’ve never succeeded before.

It hasn’t been an easy road to travel. Two years ago I swore I would never write again. But I truly believe that this is what God has created me for and prepared me to do. Timing is indeed everything. And the hardest part of the journey begins now, as I must follow through on what I’ve begun.

Just formatting the document for the paperback version has been a test of my resolve. Now I must find a way to increase awareness of my novel’s existence to the world. And juggle all of life’s demands and still find time to finish writing book 2.

But the God who has led me this far will not forget me now. And words cannot express how grateful I am for the people who haven’t let me give up along the way, who’ve pushed and encouraged and prayed for me.

Please keep it up!

It's Here!

I am excited to announce that the e-book version of my novel is now available on Kindle! You can purchase it here: Amazon

The trade paperback won’t be completed for a few more weeks, but I’m working on that and will post an update as soon as it becomes available. It’s been a bit of a nightmare. Prayers are welcomed.

“Through Every Valley” is Book I in the series “Of Wind and Sky”

Description:

In one horrible instant, the course of her life was changed forever. She would never trust again.

Vivian Lawson came to Wyoming because it was her husband’s wish. But the discovery of his true nature leaves her bitterly determined to never trust a man again. And his sudden and timely death leaves her widowed on the western frontier, burdened by betrayal and guilt.

As swiftly as a ship sinks to the ocean floor, everything that mattered most to him was stripped away.

Rob Hudson returned to Annapolis, Maryland after years of fighting to preserve the Union and set the slaves free. But when the pursuit of his dreams leads only to loss and disappointment, Rob sets out on a westward adventure that will test his courage and reshape his character.

Sometimes the paths of our lives take us into deep valleys or rushing rivers. But through it all, there is hope.

When their paths cross on the open prairie, a new journey begins. One which will demand that they confront the shadows of their pasts and dare to believe in a brighter future. Together they must learn to surrender their broken hearts to God and to trust Him with their deepest fears and dearest dreams.

A Word of Thanks

If all goes according to plan, the e-book version should be out by the end of this week. The trade paperback will take longer because I have to purchase a proof copy to review before it can be made available to the general public. But we’re getting there.

And I’d like to pause and thank everyone who’s helped me to get to this point. My parents, who’ve read all the novels I’ve written since the time I was sixteen until now. And of course, my husband. I never would have been able to come this far without him.

Then there are those ladies who gave me invaluable feedback by reading my rough drafts: Nikki, Sarah, Lisa, Katie, and Casey. I truly appreciate the time that you put into reading through it and using that red pen to help me make it better.

Also, I want to thank Jody at Christian Graphic Solutions for help with designing and creating a book cover. What is a novel without a cover?

And to all of you who have taken the time to ask how this project is going, to reply to my blog, or to drop me a line of encouragement, I never would have continued chasing this dream without your support.

Thanks to everyone who has walked this journey with me. A new adventure is about to begin.