I was faced with one of those choices that seem like a no-brainer. At least, for those who aren’t following Christ. Standing in the lunch line at the work cafeteria, I held my takeout box open for the cashier.
“Three dollars even,” she said, barely glancing at my box.
I did a double-take and looked at my box. I thought I’d splurged today and gotten the Tilapia. Looking back up at the register, I saw she’d charged me for chicken. Dollar bills were packed into her cash drawer so tight that it looked impossible to close. No one would miss the extra dollar I should be paying for the fish. But I could use that dollar for a whole bag of cookies.
Really, it was not an earth-shattering matter. One dollar was hardly an issue in my pocket or in theirs. But I saw how easy it was to let this slip by just because it was not my mistake. Of course, it would have been wrong if I’d try to pass the fish off as chicken, but this was a matter of her mistake being my gain. Right?
As writers, we often have opportunities to “cheat” by omission or insinuation. It’s hard to prove your credibility as a young writer. When I’m loading up my list of accomplishments, or talking to an editor or agent, I want to feverishly pull to myself any inkling of credible experience. Even if I don’t directly make up an accomplishment, it’s so easy to embellish the ones I have. But I’ve learned that my character is worth more to me than anything I’d gain by stretching the truth. When I corrected the cashier’s mistake on my fish, it was because I’d decided my obedience to God, and my character, were worth more than a dollar, or even the bag of cookies I wanted.
Building credibility is vastly important for writers. The market is competitive for any type of writing. But when we wrongfully gain writing credibility, we lose our overall credibility. When you make a habit of being above-board, people generally come to know you are a dependable person. They can often tell if you’re exaggerating your accomplishments, and everything you say afterward loses every bit of credibility.
When it comes to the writing business, it’s important for your words to be taken seriously. Your words represent you on the page when your work is published. Their credibility should be carefully guarded. When it comes to moments of possible “freebies,” make sure you know what it’s going to cost you.
Wednesday
Monday
Last week I read a writer's post about the lonely life of a writer. Yes, we're usually secluded during the actual writing times, but that's only a part of the writing process. The people in a writer's life are instrumental in the process and in the finished product.
On my research trip last weekend, I took my dad with me to the town I wanted to use as my novel's setting. Walking into a local gift shop, I wandered around the rooms, looking for something to buy that would perfectly represent the uniqueness of the little town. I found nothing, but fortunately I had brought my dad along on the trip. As I walked out of the shop, he was at the front desk, asking the sales clerk if there were any books available on the history of the town.
"Yes, there's a book on our history," the woman said. "It's out of print, but the author lives nearby."
Who would have thought that a town of 200 people would have a 400 page book on its history? As a professional writer, experience told me there would be no type of written history. My dad was smart enough to ask anyway.
There are lonely parts of the writing life, but no book was a one-man project. There are a number of people in my life that I need to function as a writer. I have soft editors for encouragement, red pen editors to shape the draft into a saleable piece, industry experts to provide accuracy, and brainstormers to help me generate ideas and work out story problems.
If writing were really a lonely project, books and articles wouldn’t be as well-rounded as they are. How fortunate we are that God created us as communal beings, meant to depend on and help one another with all our projects.
On my research trip last weekend, I took my dad with me to the town I wanted to use as my novel's setting. Walking into a local gift shop, I wandered around the rooms, looking for something to buy that would perfectly represent the uniqueness of the little town. I found nothing, but fortunately I had brought my dad along on the trip. As I walked out of the shop, he was at the front desk, asking the sales clerk if there were any books available on the history of the town.
"Yes, there's a book on our history," the woman said. "It's out of print, but the author lives nearby."
Who would have thought that a town of 200 people would have a 400 page book on its history? As a professional writer, experience told me there would be no type of written history. My dad was smart enough to ask anyway.
There are lonely parts of the writing life, but no book was a one-man project. There are a number of people in my life that I need to function as a writer. I have soft editors for encouragement, red pen editors to shape the draft into a saleable piece, industry experts to provide accuracy, and brainstormers to help me generate ideas and work out story problems.
If writing were really a lonely project, books and articles wouldn’t be as well-rounded as they are. How fortunate we are that God created us as communal beings, meant to depend on and help one another with all our projects.
Friday
Raving Fans
I learned from graphic designer Wayne Kijanowski never to be satisfied with happy customers. When you're in a competitive market place, you need raving fans.
I sold a short research article several weeks ago and charged the client per page. I liked that idea because it allowed me to spend as much time on research as I needed without worrying about running up the client's bill.
But of course the article ended on page 1.75. To make two full pages would have fluffed the piece out, making it a rambling article, instead of the strong sales vehicle it needed to be. So how do I charge him?
I filled the pages out with tables and graphs to avoid white space, and could have legitimately charged for two pages then. Easily. I'm sure he wouldn't have even questioned being charged for the two full pages I handed him.
As the words of my former boss and college professor came back to me, I realized I had a great opportunity to earn a "raving fan" in this client.
"I'm only charging you for 1.5 pages," I wrote in an email that I sent with the bill. "I only charge for text, since you hired me to write."
I made about $40 less from the paper than if I'd charged him for two pages, but I was still happy to receive a sizable check for the short piece. I kindly thanked him for his business and invited him to contact me for future writing projects. I felt great leaving that project knowing I didn't round up, didn't overcharge, and did the best job I could.
If I ever missed that $40, I earned it right back when he hired me weeks later for another paper. He also included in his email that I was a great find, and he would be happy to work with me into the future. Raving fans are an invaluable asset to any writer.
I sold a short research article several weeks ago and charged the client per page. I liked that idea because it allowed me to spend as much time on research as I needed without worrying about running up the client's bill.
But of course the article ended on page 1.75. To make two full pages would have fluffed the piece out, making it a rambling article, instead of the strong sales vehicle it needed to be. So how do I charge him?
I filled the pages out with tables and graphs to avoid white space, and could have legitimately charged for two pages then. Easily. I'm sure he wouldn't have even questioned being charged for the two full pages I handed him.
As the words of my former boss and college professor came back to me, I realized I had a great opportunity to earn a "raving fan" in this client.
"I'm only charging you for 1.5 pages," I wrote in an email that I sent with the bill. "I only charge for text, since you hired me to write."
I made about $40 less from the paper than if I'd charged him for two pages, but I was still happy to receive a sizable check for the short piece. I kindly thanked him for his business and invited him to contact me for future writing projects. I felt great leaving that project knowing I didn't round up, didn't overcharge, and did the best job I could.
If I ever missed that $40, I earned it right back when he hired me weeks later for another paper. He also included in his email that I was a great find, and he would be happy to work with me into the future. Raving fans are an invaluable asset to any writer.
Tuesday
What's the point of prayer?
When I'd finished the laundry, the same amount had piled up again. How many times had this happened? Only able to do one load of laundry per day after my fulltime job, it seemed like more of a cycle than a progression. I stared at the pile. Should I keep doing the laundry? I could imagine the same sized stack replacing the one I would be dragging downstairs today to cycle through the laundry.
There seems to be a pile of endlessly repeating tasks that the typical woman faces every day. Dinner is demolished minutes after preparation, clean rooms become messy as soon as the last bit of clutter is removed, floors need to be re-mopped as soon as the dirty water is dumped. So what's the point?
I used to feel the same way about prayer. God already knows the outcome of every situation. Why pray about it? We can't possibly hope to change the future that God already knows, nor can we change His will for any circumstance. Yet the Bible commands us to pray.
There was one sunny afternoon that I finally began to understand God's purpose in asking us to pray. I had been talking to him about my concerns for my husband who suffered from a long-term illness. I had prayed for my husband to be healed, for my own strength, and finally for God's ultimate will to be carried out. When I finally stood up, and the usual feeling of refreshment washed over me like warm sunshine, I understood what kind of gift God had given us in prayer. I had gleaned some needed truths from my conversation with him that served as reminders to my worried heart:
1. I didn't have to worry about the future, because God was taking care of it
2. God would never leave me or my loved ones
3. God was more powerful than illness, fear, and human weakness
4. Everything that happened now would be part of His will
Perhaps prayer was not meant to change circumstances; it was meant to change us. Just as reading Scripture refreshes our memories on the truths God's given to us, prayer reminds us of the basic truths meant to comfort, encourage and direct us on a regular basis. I stepped away from my time with the Lord having exchanged my worry for a proper sense of trust, my hopelessness for a Biblical sense of direction, and my fear with comfort. The time had indeed worked a change upon my heart. Better yet, it had gotten me spending one-on-one time with my Creator, allowing me to develop a relationship with my one true best friend.
There seems to be a pile of endlessly repeating tasks that the typical woman faces every day. Dinner is demolished minutes after preparation, clean rooms become messy as soon as the last bit of clutter is removed, floors need to be re-mopped as soon as the dirty water is dumped. So what's the point?
I used to feel the same way about prayer. God already knows the outcome of every situation. Why pray about it? We can't possibly hope to change the future that God already knows, nor can we change His will for any circumstance. Yet the Bible commands us to pray.
There was one sunny afternoon that I finally began to understand God's purpose in asking us to pray. I had been talking to him about my concerns for my husband who suffered from a long-term illness. I had prayed for my husband to be healed, for my own strength, and finally for God's ultimate will to be carried out. When I finally stood up, and the usual feeling of refreshment washed over me like warm sunshine, I understood what kind of gift God had given us in prayer. I had gleaned some needed truths from my conversation with him that served as reminders to my worried heart:
1. I didn't have to worry about the future, because God was taking care of it
2. God would never leave me or my loved ones
3. God was more powerful than illness, fear, and human weakness
4. Everything that happened now would be part of His will
Perhaps prayer was not meant to change circumstances; it was meant to change us. Just as reading Scripture refreshes our memories on the truths God's given to us, prayer reminds us of the basic truths meant to comfort, encourage and direct us on a regular basis. I stepped away from my time with the Lord having exchanged my worry for a proper sense of trust, my hopelessness for a Biblical sense of direction, and my fear with comfort. The time had indeed worked a change upon my heart. Better yet, it had gotten me spending one-on-one time with my Creator, allowing me to develop a relationship with my one true best friend.
Thursday
We're only suppsed to do the work
I took a writing assignment in college to create the text of our school catalog.
"But it's so pointless!" I told my coworker. "How's this fulfilling my life purpose?
This doesn't share the gospel, or tell anyone how to live rightly."
I remember she rolled her eyes at that.
I never understood why people so often took jobs just for the money. As an idealistic college student, I wanted everything I did to mean something for eternity and have an impact for God’s kingdom. I wrote the text for the catalog, but I didn’t give it my best work. I was too busy imagining the powerful mediums I’d soon be using to connect with nonbelievers through writing. I imagined books that would get inside people’s minds and rearrange the furniture, articles that would allow God’s truth to finally break through a reader’s resistance, and strong sentences that would melt hearts.
How overconfident.
God needed to run the show, not me. I was responsible for the legwork, which was whatever work He gave me to do. He was responsible for the results.
When I graduated college and was positive that it was God’s plan for me to take a job offer in the pharmaceutical industry, I began questioning.
God, are you sure? This isn’t my strength. Did I even pass science in school?
I had to stop myself and realize God only wanted my obedience. There could be a coworker there who would need something specific that God would be able to give through me. Or maybe there was a coworker that God wanted to use to bless me. Perhaps this work would bring about any number of circumstances that fit perfectly into His plans. It isn’t my job to decide, from my limited human view, the best use of my time and talents.
After five years in the corporate pharmaceutical industry, I still don’t completely understand my purpose here. But it’s sure comforting to know that God does. My only responsibility is to continue in the work that God has given me, and to leave the results to Him.
"But it's so pointless!" I told my coworker. "How's this fulfilling my life purpose?
This doesn't share the gospel, or tell anyone how to live rightly."
I remember she rolled her eyes at that.
I never understood why people so often took jobs just for the money. As an idealistic college student, I wanted everything I did to mean something for eternity and have an impact for God’s kingdom. I wrote the text for the catalog, but I didn’t give it my best work. I was too busy imagining the powerful mediums I’d soon be using to connect with nonbelievers through writing. I imagined books that would get inside people’s minds and rearrange the furniture, articles that would allow God’s truth to finally break through a reader’s resistance, and strong sentences that would melt hearts.
How overconfident.
God needed to run the show, not me. I was responsible for the legwork, which was whatever work He gave me to do. He was responsible for the results.
When I graduated college and was positive that it was God’s plan for me to take a job offer in the pharmaceutical industry, I began questioning.
God, are you sure? This isn’t my strength. Did I even pass science in school?
I had to stop myself and realize God only wanted my obedience. There could be a coworker there who would need something specific that God would be able to give through me. Or maybe there was a coworker that God wanted to use to bless me. Perhaps this work would bring about any number of circumstances that fit perfectly into His plans. It isn’t my job to decide, from my limited human view, the best use of my time and talents.
After five years in the corporate pharmaceutical industry, I still don’t completely understand my purpose here. But it’s sure comforting to know that God does. My only responsibility is to continue in the work that God has given me, and to leave the results to Him.
Saturday
Nothing New Under the Sun
We’re all trying to come up with something new. With all the writers out there, most of us try to write unique pieces that will catch the attention of editors and audiences. The truth is, it’s all been done before. There are always fresh ways to present an overdone topic, but there really are no new ideas. King Solomon said over and over in Ecclesiastes “there’s nothing new under the sun.”
When I was in junior high or high school, it seemed all the giggly, outgoing girls were the popular ones. I tried to force myself into that mode, and it just came off fake and ridiculous. It was only when I allowed myself to fall into my natural personality, designed by God, that
What really makes a best seller is when a writer makes a piece the best of its kind. When you pattern it after current fads or popular styles, it probably will end up as a lesser version of a better product. Instead, figure out what kind of writer you are, or what type of piece you are writing, and hone that. If you’re great at romances but sci-fi is the current trend, write romances. Fads change constantly, but if you continually work on the quality of your own niche, you will be known for that style eventually.
It’s far better to be the best at your own style than second or third best at someone else’s style.
When I was in junior high or high school, it seemed all the giggly, outgoing girls were the popular ones. I tried to force myself into that mode, and it just came off fake and ridiculous. It was only when I allowed myself to fall into my natural personality, designed by God, that
What really makes a best seller is when a writer makes a piece the best of its kind. When you pattern it after current fads or popular styles, it probably will end up as a lesser version of a better product. Instead, figure out what kind of writer you are, or what type of piece you are writing, and hone that. If you’re great at romances but sci-fi is the current trend, write romances. Fads change constantly, but if you continually work on the quality of your own niche, you will be known for that style eventually.
It’s far better to be the best at your own style than second or third best at someone else’s style.
Sunday
Why's honest feedback so hard to come by?
Why does everyone feel the need to give lame feedback? Any writer can get a big pat on the back by showing their work to Mom. Raise your hand if you've done that. Right, it's nice to find encouragement sometimes.
But what if your project isn't selling? Or what if you just want to improve it? Is it really so hard for all our friends to say, "Hey, this character is falling a little flat," or "You need more suspense in this part." Apparently it is, because so far all I've heard is, "looks good," or something equally unhelpful. When it really comes down to honing your actual draft, not just your craft, who out there will help?
I'd pay money for a really blunt friend right now. The kind that tells you when there's mascara all over your face. Anybody else?
But what if your project isn't selling? Or what if you just want to improve it? Is it really so hard for all our friends to say, "Hey, this character is falling a little flat," or "You need more suspense in this part." Apparently it is, because so far all I've heard is, "looks good," or something equally unhelpful. When it really comes down to honing your actual draft, not just your craft, who out there will help?
I'd pay money for a really blunt friend right now. The kind that tells you when there's mascara all over your face. Anybody else?
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