Alli Prince's Blog, page 3

The #1 Excuse of The Enemy

We’ve all been there before.

“I just have a really bad memory.” You say. “It’s really hard for me to remember those things. I just can’t do it.”

LIES. EXCUSES. Straight up UNTRUTH.

Well, maybe not.

The truth is, nobody has a perfect memory. There are things that we let slip. Stuff we can’t seem to remember.

I’m especially guilty of this. Sometimes, no matter how many reminders I seem to put on my phone or how many sticky notes I stick up around the house, there are just some things I forget.

Have you ever been there?

Memorizing Scripture

I’ve always found it challenging to memorize scripture. It just doesn’t stay in my long-term memory when I try. If there’s a particular verse from the bible I want to keep in my head, I have to spend months repeating it to myself, writing it, and doing memory drills to even hope to keep it in my head. I’ve even prayed and asked God to help me memorize scripture quicker. I’ve tried to improve in this area, really, I have. But nothing has worked.

I know it’s in my heart. There are moments where the words come to mind, like when I’m praying, but I can’t just pull up those verses with the snap of my finger, and I really couldn’t tell you where in the Bible those verses actually are. Not like the people around me can.

For a long time, I used that as an excuse to not memorize scripture.

“I just can’t do it,” I’d say with a resigned sigh as I stared out the window, the rain cascading against the paned glass. “Woe is me, the terrible Christian who can’t even memorize scripture.”

Saturday Therapy and Coffee

I have this friend that I meet every single Saturday morning for coffee. While it started as just a fun way to spend my Saturday morning, it has quickly become my favorite part of the week. We laugh together, we cry together, and we convict each other. It’s a grand time.

One Saturday, we were talking about scripture, and woefully, I confessed how I wished I could memorize scripture.

“Alli,” she said. “Don’t think about it like you can’t do it. Sure, God didn’t make your brain memorize a bunch of scripture rapidly. But maybe he doesn’t want you to memorize it like that. Maybe he wants you to meditate on the scripture. Maybe he wants you to spend months on one verse before moving onto the next one.”

That was a life-changing reframe.

Suddenly, the guilt I felt vanished. Suddenly, the tasks of memorizing scripture didn’t seem all that daunting.

Suddenly, I realized that the enemy had convinced me: “I just can’t do it, so why even try?”

Sneaky little freak.

Excuses Excuses

There are lots of things we can’t do in life. Sometimes, they’re valid. I can’t breathe underwater (on my own, at least—super open to God doing something crazy there). But sometimes, there are things that are hard for us to do, that we are called to do, but that we don’t because we believe the excuse the enemy has provided.

“I just can’t memorize scripture.” “I just can’t find a church that I can really connect with.” “I’m just bad at asking for help.”

Feel convicted yet? I know I do.

Don’t let him do that to you anymore, and especially stop coming into agreement with those excuses.

If God has called you to do it, you can do it. It might be hard, and it might not look exactly how you think it should, but you can do it. Maybe you need help. Maybe you need to spend a lot longer on it than you think is reasonable to do it.

But maybe, just maybe, God cares more about the journey than the result.

Currently, I’m memorizing Isiah 53:4-5. I’ve been memorizing it for about three weeks now, and I’ve got roughly the first part of it. I expect to be meditating on this scripture for a while, until I know that I know that I know that it’s true and that it’s in my heart.

What scripture are you memorizing right now? Comment below!

Don’t fight the enemy alone. Join my fight club!

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The Power of Propaganda

Did you know that spinach doesn’t actually make you stronger?

Yep. That’s right. Popeye lied to you. Popeye, the cartoon, was created during World War II as propaganda and has set entire generations astray when it comes to spinach.

Okay, Alli, you may be saying. What’s that got to do with me?

Story Is Powerful

The point is, there’s power in storytelling. There’s power in words. The words we speak over ourselves, sure, but also the words we put out into the world. The words we speak over others and about others.

There’s a reason we think Dalmatians work alongside firemen, that rabbits like carrots, and that spinach makes you stronger. All of these things were in stories and changed how a whole generation thinks about a certain thing.

Isn’t that cool?

Words are powerful, and they’re important. So when we see words that we agree with, or that we think should change a generation, it’s important to play our part in that. If the words never reach anybody, were they really even said?

So, I want to tell you about some important words I’ve come across. (and for legal reasons, this book ISN’T Propaganda).

My friend Noah published his first book, Outlaw Blood, and oh boy does this book pack some intense spiritual truths between the pages. It’s a thrilling sci-fi western about redemption and poses an interesting question…is it ever too late to redeem your name?

This book is perfect for any older teen interested in reading about real topics with heavy biblical themes. It’s got grit, justice, and, most importantly, such an interesting world!

Outlaw Blood

Clye Galler is the last of his outlaw gang. Or so he thinks.

On the run from the law and the guilt that haunts him, Clye sets out to redeem his sullied name.

Turned loose with a posse of bounty hunters, Clye cuts a deal to capture his former blood brother in the Yeller gang. The lawmen want him alive for hanging–to satiate the town’s lust for blood.

Clye has enough skill with a pistol to make a lawman blush, enough power with sand to blind the keenest hawk, and a load of guilt heavy enough to sink a cathrahd to its knees.

In a western sandscape where honor’s everything, Clye is pitted against a conquering gang that has mercy only on those willing to give a finger in sacrifice.

In his stunning debut book, Noah J. Matthews conjures up the depth and grit of Cormac McCarthy, the fluid prose of C.S. Lewis, and the imagination of Neil Gaiman.

They say the blood of an outlaw ain’t worth a pint of milk.

Clye’s bartered with a lot of things in his life–never with his blood…Yet.

Outlaw Blood is on Amazon today, so go wrangle your own copy today! https://amzn.to/43dMvE2

The enemy lies to us all. Don’t fight them by yourself! Join the club and fight the enemy with me 🙂

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Are You Playing Against God?

How does God speak to you? Is it through a quiet voice or a sudden knowing in your chest?

For me, God speaks to me in a pretty unique way.

Sometimes, when I’m praying, I’ll get extremely vivid imaginations. Pictures of me and God doing something together, usually chatting, sitting on a swing or a picnic blanket. Sometimes, I’ll ask to see these things, but sometimes they just pop into my head randomly when I’m praying.

Sometimes, they’re comforting, but other times, they’re convicting. That’s how I know it’s Jesus.

Praying about Love

What? I’m a twenty-five-year-old single Christian girl, of course I’m praying about my love life. Let me set the scene.

I was in my room, laying under the covers of my bed, curled on my side. I was praying something like, “Lord, if it is your will for me to maybe one day find a person who could possibly love me that I could also love and that both of us could probably encourage each other to grow closer to you, that would be super! Please just tell me what I need to do to get that done.”

I’ve had two relationships so far in my life. Both of them in the past year. Both of them have ended, in my opinion, in success—through the relationship both parties decided that we did not work in a long-term relationship. So I ended them. That’s what dating is all about, right? Figuring out if this person would work in a marriage.

Don’t get me wrong, I was pretty upset both times the answer was “no, this wouldn’t work”. At some point in the relationships, I shifted from praying with God about them, to trying to figure out what I needed to say to get what I want.

Have you ever done that?

Have you ever prayed a prayer to God, trying to make sure your heart is in the right position and your words are the right words so that you’ll find favor in his eyes and get that physical healing? Or get salvation for that friend or family member you are worried about? Or that financial provision or etc. etc. etc.

They are good things that you’re praying for, but as you go into the prayer, you hear a tiny whisper. Maybe God doesn’t want to give you this thing, or maybe he’s waiting for you to say the magic words, or have the perfect heart, or blah blah blah.

God’s Grace

So, there I am, laying in bed and trying to figure out the right words and the right heart, when I get a vivid picture from God.

We’re sitting in a coffee shop at a circular table. In front of us, on the table is a game of dominos, except on the dominos are a bunch of strange symbols I don’t recognize. I realize that I have no idea what sort of game we’re playing. I have some dominos in my hand, and Jesus is sitting across from me, with his own dominos. It’s my turn to place one down, and I don’t know what to do.

“Are you tired of playing against me?” Jesus asked. “Can’t we play this game together? I promise you, we can build a beautiful picture with these dominos if we’re on the same side, but you have to trust me.”

Trust is hard, especially for me. But if there’s anyone I can trust, I know it’s God.

Crazy enough, and as wild as it seems, God truly does love us. He doesn’t want evil for you and he gives good gifts to his children. It’s not about going to God and saying the right things or having the right heart. It’s about going to God and being honest with him. Being vulnerable. He knows what you want already, he’s just waiting for you to ask him.

So, I changed my prayer.

“God, guide me. Teach me to do this with you.”

I find the simpler prayers are usually the more honest prayers. God and I are doing this thing together, now. And when I shift to the other side of the board and try to take the dominos for myself, he’ll remind me and I’ll hand them back again, and again, and again.

So, are you playing against God?

Together, we can fight the lies of the enemy one at a time! Join my newsletter for weekly, biblical truth!

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Nobody Asked (or did they?)

There are two types of people in this world.

There are people who will just tell you things and there are people who feel like they need to be asked before they tell you things. Often, these two people marry each other. But more often then that, both groups have a hard time understanding the other. I’ve seen lots of misunderstandings come about because of this little quirk. And a misunderstanding is fertile ground for the enemy to come in and sow lies about the other person.

Things like, “They don’t care about me. If they did, they’d do [blank].”

Have you ever felt like that? Like your friends or your family or even your spouse simply doesn’t care about you?

Let’s break down that lie.

For the purpose of clarity, we’re going to name the first group of people “The Talkers” and the second group “The Listeners.” Let’s define those terms.

The Talkers

Talkers, like the name suggests, like to talk. They have a lot of things to share because that’s how they bond and connect with people. If they like you, they’ll talk to you. Simple as that. However, they view the bond of information-sharing as extremely important.

When you don’t share things with them, they can take this to mean you don’t want to bond or connect with them. This is especially true if you’ve told someone else something important and forget to mention it to them.

The Listeners

Listeners generally like to listen. They don’t share things because they’re either waiting for a moment that they can or they want to be asked before they do. They feel cared for when you ask and give them space to share. The ask is the most important part of bonding for them.

When you don’t ask them, they can take this to mean that you don’t care and that you don’t want to bond or connect with them. They tend to hate being interrupted because that shows them you aren’t listening.

Application

Me? I’m mostly a listener myself. I have a hard time just sitting down and telling people things about myself unless it’s been clearly established that they are someone who wants me to share (or if it’s something I deem insignificant. I can talk about non-vulnerable things all day). Sometimes, I feel like I need permission before I can speak about what’s going on inside my head. I need that verbal confirmation that what I’m about to share is important. That I’m important.

My lovely roommate Vella is a Talker. When there’s silence, she’s there to fill it—and I adore that about her. I love to sit at the table in our kitchen as she tells me about her day, her dreams, what God’s been speaking to her, all of it! God created her to be A Talker, and he created me to be a Listener.

But if we’re not careful, we can make assumptions about each other and our intentions.

For example, if Vella never asks me to share, I can get resentful. I can start assuming that, because she didn’t ask, she doesn’t care.

The same thing can happen to Vella. She can start to think that, because I didn’t tell her, I don’t trust her. She can think that maybe I don’t’ want to hear her talking and that I secretly hate her.

See what the enemy did just there? It’s the same lie. “Because they didn’t do [blank], they don’t care about you. They view you poorly. They must hate you.”

The Truth

Talkers and Listeners are people God loves. They both have unique strengths and weaknesses. If we want to do what God says and love each other as he commands, then we need to understand where the other is coming from and have grace.

If you find yourself in The Talker camp, try to be present and ask your friends more questions. Ask them about their day, what God is teaching them, etc.

If you find yourself in The Listener camp, try sharing things without being asked. Take a deep breath and just tell someone about your day, or about what God is teaching you.

Depending on the situation and who you’re around, you can find yourself in either group. Why? Every single person on Earth needs to be able to fulfill both of these roles to love each other properly.

We need to be able to take a moment to listen, to let the other person talk, to be present or them with what they’re going through. But we also need to be able to share. We need to be able to communicate what’s happening “behind the scenes” in our innermost being. We need to be able to connect with each other.

The truth is, just because nobody asked doesn’t mean nobody cares.

The truth is, just because someone didn’t tell you something doesn’t mean they’re purposefully keeping things from you.

So, which group do you generally find yourself in? Comment below!

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God Doesn’t Just Love You

Maybe you’ve heard this saying before. “I love you—but I don’t have to like you.”

It’s the difference between a choice and a feeling. Really, what people are saying is, “I am choosing to love you—but my emotions are upset with you.”

I get that. Sometimes, it’s really true. Sometimes, I have a fight with someone or a misunderstanding, and I am upset. I don’t like them in that moment. But sometimes I take that too far, too. Sometimes, it sounds like people are saying, “You, as a person, who God created you to be—I don’t like her at all. But I’ll still pray for you sometimes, I guess.”

Even worse, sometimes I take that thought and project it onto God.

Growing up, I knew God “loved” me.

He died for my sins. He gave me salvation.

But did he like me or was he generally dissatisfied with me?

Yes, he loved me. But did he roll his eyes when he heard my prayers? Did he sigh, pull off his glasses and set his book down when I asked him for something? When I just wanted to spend time with him?

Yes, he loved me. But did he like me? Did it bring him Joy when he saw me making mud-pies with my brother and tracking a mess through the house? Did he like hearing me talk about my day or my favorite book series of the month?

Did God like me?

Growing up, I didn’t think so. It’s hard to imagine someone like God liking you when you don’t even like yourself. It wasn’t hard for the enemy to get into my head and convince me that, yes, yes, God loved you—but that doesn’t mean he likes you!

So, if you struggle with that concept, that idea…here are three reasons God doesn’t just love you, but he actually likes you too.

1. We are made in His Image.

I don’t think this verse applies in a strictly physical or spiritual sense. (in fact, there are a ton of verses about it. Check out a list of them here!)

I think it applies in more ways than we can ever imagine. His characteristics, his creativity, his imagination. All of those are things we have that I think God uniquely designed.

When we study the Word, we can see God’s character shining through. His justice. His creativity. His compassion.

No matter who you are, you share specific characteristics with God because we are made in His image. Why would God despise those parts of you?

2. He knit you together

We were knit together in the womb. It says so right here.

If you’ve been around babies for any amount of time, you’ll know that they are born with a personality. They may be tiny humans who don’t know much about the world yet, but they’re tiny humans. They are real people with thoughts and feelings and a personality—right from the beginning. They might not have the words to talk about it, but it’s there.

Do you really think that God didn’t create that part of you? That he wanted you to be a completely different person than you are today? That those tiny, little humans who have such a personality and light in them from the beginning…that that’s the result of our fallen and broken world? I doubt it.

3. Personal Experience

The older I get and the closer I get to God, the more I realize how much I don’t fully grasp His love for me.

I can’t count the amount of times I have gotten something important to me without ever praying for it. The amount of times I have prayed for something and seen God move!

The fact that I get to have a personal relationship with God—where I get to tell him my worries and my fears because he cares for me—because He wants me to have a relationship with Him blows my mind!

It’s hard for me to memorize scripture. The reference never stays in my head and if I don’t spend months on a single verse, it just won’t stick in my long-term memory. But there’s one verse that I spent countless hours memorizing, countless days meditating on, because it’s just that important to me.

Cast all your worries and cares on God for He cares for you.

1 peter 5:7

I want you to take special notice of that last bit. He cares for you. Put a different emphasis on those last four words each time you say it.

He cares for you. He cares for you. He cares for you. He cares for you.

No matter which way you say it, the truth remains. He doesn’t just love you. Even if he did, that’d be enough. But I’m so thankful that he doesn’t just love us. But that He likes us, too.

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Why You’re Secretly A Cannibal

I know what you must be thinking.

“Alli…last I checked, I hadn’t eaten any human, so how am I a cannibal?”

Well, let me start off by saying it probably isn’t you that’s the cannibal (at least I hope not). It’s your inner critic—and it’s eating you alive.

Think about it like this. Every negative comment you think about yourself, every time you look in the mirror and tear yourself down, your inner critic is taking a nice little bite of a juicy steak—and that steak is you.

If you aren’t careful, your inner critic can run rampant and out of control. It’ll eat, and eat, and eat until there’s nothing of you or your self-image left.

When I was younger, I let my inner critic eat me alive, and it left me hollow and empty inside. It’s taken years to regrow parts of me that the critical inner voice had devoured. But the first step to recovering those parts of me was to gain control of the runaway train that was my thought life.

So, here are three ways to stop your inner critic in it’s tracks

1. Recognize the Voice

I get it. It’s hard to distinguish your thoughts from that of the enemy sometimes. Sometimes, it is us speaking badly about ourselves. But sometimes, it’s the quiet whisper of temptation to agree with a lie instead of the truth.

The first step to halting your inner critic is recognizing that it’s your inner critic speaking. Ask if it’s the truth when you think something negative or demeaning about yourself. Are you seeing reality or a twisted version that makes you out to be the worst version of yourself?

2. Choose to Fight

Once you recognize it’s your inner critic, it’s time to fight back. Did you know that for every negative comment we receive, we need to hear three positive things?

Affirmations can feel silly to say, but if you have them paired with scripture it’s not a silly little affirmation. It’s speaking truth–which we’re called to do as Christians.

For every negative thing you thought of yourself, your writing, whatever it is, I want you to say five positive things to combat it.

3. Ask for Prayer

It’s scary to be known. It’s scary to open up about the mean thoughts in your head. But often times, those thoughts lose power when we speak them to a friend. Especially when you and your friend pray. The best way to fight against your inner critic is to invite Jesus into the conversation instead.

My inner critic sure has a lot to say about me. But Jesus has even more, and I can bet everything I own that what Jesus has to say is way more honest than my inner critic ever will be.

Don’t let your inner critic eat you alive, because that’ll make you sorta like a cannibal—and cannibal’s aren’t cool like, at all.

Want help putting your inner critic on a healthier diet? Sign up for my newsletter!

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What To Do When You’ve Let Your Inner Critic Win

I talk a lot about strategy on this blog.

As someone who has been battling their Inner Critic for the past twenty-five years, I’d like to think I have some great tips on the subject. I can give you some good mindset reframes to be intentional about. I can even tell you what type of inner critic you have through this quiz.

But usually, in a war, there’s loss on both sides and sometimes your Inner Critic gets the upper hand. You loose the battle. Your Inner Critic beats you down and no matter how you reframe your thoughts or how intentional you are about mindset, it feels impossible to get back up.

What do you do?

Let’s go back to a year ago today—the release of my anthology, Lawless. (Happy one-year book release anniversary!)

There was a lot I had to do for that project. I mean, as the managing editor, it was literally my job to do everything. I did the editing, the interior, the copyedit, and the proofreading. Literally all of it. I was supposed to be editing a novel at the same time, too

It was a rough workload. On top of that, I had some things happen in my personal life that sent me spiraling. Memories I hadn’t dealt with were brought up. In the quiet moments, when I’d stop working, I’d relive those moments of time that I’d long since forgotten. They’d play like a movie I couldn’t stop in front of my eyes.

With it came the horrid voice of my Inner Critic.

You’re not good enough. You disappoint everyone around you. How can you expect to be a full-time author if you can’t handle one measly project?

The list goes on.

I’ll admit. I gave in to those voices. The moment I agreed with them, the project got a whole lot harder. For a long time, I was horrified with myself and felt like I’d failed. I viewed my “failure” as confirmation that I wasn’t a good writer. That I wasn’t a good author. I even met with my mentor and considered that maybe this whole “writing thing” wasn’t for me.

Obviously, I didn’t give up. In fact, I went on to release another book, Copper Lies, and am working on my third now. So, how did I keep moving forward even when I wanted to quit?

1. Seek Help When You Need It.

First, I had to deal with those pesky memories. I met regularly with my pastor, and we prayed through them together. I also met with my mentor about it. After a period of time, I figured out how to invite Jesus into those memories and realized more than once that I’d believed a lie that not only aided the voice of my inner critic but encouraged it to be stronger.

I’m so glad those memories were brought up—as painful in the moment as it was. Because if those memories hadn’t been brought up and I hadn’t been forced to deal with them, I’d still believe those lies. That’s God’s glory and grace. He brought me out of those lies.

2. Repent.

Nobody likes to hear it, but when you agree with the voice of the enemy—when you decide to say, “Yes, that horrible awful thing my inner critic said about me is true. I’m not smart. I’m not pretty. I’m not good enough.”—you’ve decided to step off the path God wants you on.

Harsh? Yes. But we’re told very clearly in the Bible what our brains are supposed to be focused on.

Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.

Philipians 4:8

The voice of the inner critic is a liar. Sure, there may be half-truths weaved in, but they’re lies at the core. When you’ve decided to agree with and believe the lies of your inner critic, there needs to be a moment when you decide to stop agreeing with it and choose to agree with something else (preferably the truth).

Repent of agreeing with the lies and accept God’s truth in it’s place.

3. Get Back Up.

It might take a while to feel like yourself again, especially if you’ve agreed with the lies for a long time. It might be hard, and it might feel impossible. But at the end of the day, you have a choice. So, keep moving forward.

I know it’s hard, friend. But I believe in you. 🙂 Comment below, what are some strategies you use to keep moving forward?

Oh, and if you haven’t yet, go leave a review for Lawless as a celebration for the 1-year release! It’s never too late to leave a review on a book. 🙂 You can do that through this link!

Leave a review!

A great way to keep moving forward is to sign up for my Newsletter! I’ll send you weekly articles on overcoming your inner critic, moving forward in your writing, and so much more!

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Is it the end of the world?

I’ve got a new project I’m working on.

It’s a dystopian sci-fi of sorts. Dystopian is my favorite genre to read. Sometimes, I’ll lie and say it’s fantasy just to fit in, but it’s not. It’s dystopian. Books like Hunger Games and Maze Runner had a huge impact on my early teen years, and the genre has continued to impress me as I’ve grown up. There’s just something about total societal collapse that I find intriguing.

I’ve had to research the end of the world a ton for this project. I’ve also been incredibly stressed about this project. I want it to live up to the standard of the genre. I want it to be impactful, to be unique! I want it to be perfect.

And thus, my want for it to be perfect has led to it being the exact opposite. It’s hard to write when the standard is so far above you.

When God speaks to you.

Believe it or not, I struggle against anxiety quite a bit.

“No!” You gasp. “You, a creative, emotional personality type, struggle with anxiety? The horror!”

Dramatically, I lean against my throne, an arm draped over my forehead. “It’s true.” I whisper. “I do.”

“Okay, Alli.” You cross your arms. “What does your new writing project and anxiety have in common?”

Well, let me tell you!

Anxiety and The End of The World.

I was having an emotional breakdown, you know, as you do, and was praying to God. I sat huddled in my room, my bible and journal open, praying and whispering, trying to figure out how to move on. Finally, I cried out to God and told him that what I was experiencing felt like the end of the world. Then, I heard his quiet whisper.

“The end of the world is the end of the world, Alli.”

It was a revolutionary concept.

The end of the world is the end of the world and nothing else. That project that’s due that you’re stressed about, the relationship you’re worried about, your future decisions, your past—none of it is the end of the world, so stop treating it like it is!

I have a tendency to spiral downward when it comes to my writing. My inner critic takes control and makes business decisions it has no authority to make. But the end of the world is the end of the world, and nothing else.

When your inner critic is out of control or when you find yourself in a downward spiral, I want you to think that phrase to yourself. Ask, “Is this the end of the world?” And if it’s not, maybe calm down a bit, huh? At least, that’s what I’ll try to do.

What phrase or questions do you ask yourself to calm down? What helps bring the voice of your inner critic into control? Tell me in the comments below!

Sometimes, the voice of our inner critic is so loud…
but did you know that there are different personality types your inner critic can have?

Take the quiz to find out what type yours is!

Take the quiz!

The post Is it the end of the world? appeared first on Alli Prince.

3 Common Book-Release Fears (and How to Overcome Them!)

Releasing a book is a daunting experience.

You spend the better part of a year pouring your heart and soul onto the page and get ready to show your friends and family why you’ve been squirreling away with your laptop for hours on end. Only, what if it isn’t as good as you thought it was? What if this is a spectacular flop and you embarrassed yourself?

I just released my debut Novella, Copper Lies, and let me tell you, fear was a real struggle.

I did the writing bit. I even did the editing bit without much stress (that’s a bold-faced lie, by the way. Check out my last blog on how to get over your fear of critique!) I thought, maybe, just maybe, I could step into the marketing phase of this book release without any anxiety whatsoever!

The habits you form in your thought life will go with you—no matter what you’re doing. And this book release was no exception. The closer I got to release day, the worse I felt. I had three distinct fears present as my doom, I mean…book release day approached.

Fear 1: This is going to fail

No matter how much planning I did, how many social media posts I prepared, or how much help I got, this fear was (and sometimes still is) present.

“Your book is going to fail, and this will be the end of your career,” the inner critic whispered. “Shot down before you even flew. How tragic. You are a failure.”

I had a choice—and so do you. I could listen to this voice (agree with it, set the project down and never even try) or I could shut it down. There was one thing I repeated to myself whenever this voice reared it’s ugly head, and maybe it can help you too.

“I’ve put in the work. I’ve done what I can and God is with me. No matter how this book release turns out, my worth and my tasks are in his hand. My identity is NOT ‘failure’ but ‘chosen’.”

Fear 2: Everyone is going to hate this.

The moment I’d assure myself that, no matter the outcome, I wasn’t a failure in God’s eyes, fear two would pop up like a mole, ready to be whacked.

“Your friends and family will read the words you’ve written, and they will be embarrassed by you. Stop while they don’t know how cringe you are.”

This one was harder to ignore. After all, the only way to really reassure myself it wasn’t true was by putting it out there and proving the voice wrong. Low and behold, my inner critic had to eat it’s words!

As book release day came and went, reviews began to pour in. Here are just some of the kind things people have said.

Breanna – “If I could have read this when I was growing up, I would have eaten this up! This book is perfect for girls in their tweens who have been told that they are too much or too loud. This is for those creative people who feel like their work will never be good enough. This book is comforting, funny, action packed, heart warming and tear jerking. I related to the main character and so many others! It’s almost impossible to not see an aspect of yourself in this story. If you are looking for clean fiction for your tween, this is the author to look for.”

Summer – “Copper Lies has a similar whimsy, adventure and intrigue as Anne of Green Gables, with the added bonus of dragons. The writing style is so immersive, you can’t help but fall in love with the characters and story, while forgetting you’re even reading. It’s clean, there’s a sweet romance, and there’s an honesty of being a character with real flaws. Overall, such a lovely read!!”

Corrine – “Steampunk coming-of-age stories aren’t my usual genre, but I enjoyed this one. It brought to my mind the quote, attributed to G.K. Chesterton, “Fairy tales are more than true. Not because they tell us that dragons exist, but because they tell us that dragons can be defeated.” And I will add that a teenage orphan has everything necessary to defeat the dragon they were created to face. Excellent job, Alli Prince! Keep writing!”

Not everyone is going to like this story, and that’s okay, because not everyone will hate it either. Some people will like it. Statistically, it’d be pretty cool if everyone in the whole world came together and agreed that your book sucked. That’s world peace right there, so it’s kinda a win.

But my point is this: Not everyone will love it, but not everyone will hate it either.

Fear 3: A meteor shower that rivals the dinosaurs extinction will happen right before we release it—and everyone will die as aliens invade and the zombie apocalypse starts, all at the same time!

Just me? Okay. But my point stands. Sometimes, we have fears that are extremely unrealistic. It’s important to ask yourself, “Is this a realistic fear? Or is my brain running away with my anxiety?”

I found as I dealt with fears 1 and 2, random, unrelated fears began to pop up. Things that didn’t have anything to do with a book release, but instead with future and past projects. With those fears, I found one very helpful question to ask myself.

“Is there anything I can do about this fear in this exact moment of time?”

The answer was usually a solid no. So, it was time to be intentional with my thoughts and actively choose to focus on something else.

Having Fears is Normal

When you do something new that puts you in a vulnerable position, it’s normal to be a little wary of what people may say or how it might go. If you aren’t wary, please share your secrets with me, I’d love to be in that spot mentally. But know that, while it’s normal, it’s so important not to let yourself get carried away with your anxiety. To take a second to recenter yourself with Christ and give him your fears. Don’t let anxiety narrate your life. Instead, invite Jesus into those spaces and ask Him what He thinks.

Comment below, what writing-related fears do YOU have?

Want to make fear 2 eat it’s words? Check out Copper Lies!

One lie can lead to many secrets…

If you make something, and then that something accidentally comes alive and destroys your entire town…would it be fair to say that you destroyed the town, or can we just blame it on the thing?

Lillian Booker is dying to experiment on the strange glowing rocks hidden inside her adoptive father’s workshop—but the professor forbid it before he left on his journey. As Lillian learns all she can about the stones without breaking the professor’s rule, she finds herself stuck between two worlds.

Will she live the life of a brilliant inventor or give up on her dreams and become a respectable lady instead? What will make her happy? Most importantly, which will prove to the professor that he didn’t make a mistake when he chose her?

When Lillian secretly builds a mechanical dragon, one mistake leads to another—the strange glowing stones collide with her creation and the dragon roars to life. Lillian must make a choice…lie and keep her dragon a secret or finally face the truth?

Will any of it matter anyway if the town’s already been destroyed?

Buy Copper Lies Today!

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How to get over your fear of sharing your writing

We’ve all been there.

We, the authors, wring our hands together as our friend, mentor, or parent reads whatever we’d just given them. It’s a horrifying ordeal. Whenever someone reads something I wrote in front of me, I get this icy ball in the pit of my stomach. It sends chills up my spine, makes my hands feel cold and clammy, and it’s all I can think about as they read the words I’d put on the page.

For a long time I let this fear control me.

I refused to let anyone (my parents, my siblings, not even my closest friends) read anything that I wrote. I always used the excuse, “it’s not finished” or “I haven’t edited it yet”, to keep them from reading the words I’d poured my heart and soul into.

It sucks to feel this fear. It’s really, really, hard to get over, too. But here I am, just two years later, and I’m a professional author. I’ve recently released my latest novella (check that out here!), and I have published a few short stories, too! So, how did I do it? How did I get over this all-encompassing, life-threatening fear of sharing my writing?

I shared my writing.

Unfortunately, the only way I’ve found to overcome this particular fear is to face it head on. Yeah, your words might not be “good enough” to publish yet. That doesn’t mean it isn’t worth growing and practicing. The only way you’ll know is if you walk to the edge of that cliff and jump, friend.

And I have just the way for you to jump!

My friend (and awesome roommate) Vella Karman is producing an anthology! This is the moment. You can take a look at this paid opportunity and continue to hide behind your screen, or you can take a leap and hit submit. The choice is yours.

Fantastical SummerAnthology releasing may 2025

The Fantastical Summer Anthology will be produced by The Company and released by The Pearl Magazine in May 2025. Never heard of an anthology before? An anthology is a collection of short stories written by different authors but combined by one driving theme.

The theme? Fantastical Realism. What is the fantastical realism genre? It’s a story set in this world, the one we live in, with just one crazy, interesting change.

We like to start with the question: “what if God had made the world different in this specific way?”

What if God had given his followers the ability to time travel? What if the ocean was filled with purple bioluminescent waves? What if dragons lived with us as pets?

Above all, we’re looking for fun stories! Our goal is to present a clean lighthearted summer read.

Interested? Read more on the website!

Check it out!

So, here’s the question…are you going to leap?

You don’t have to leap alone. Join my newsletter and get weekly encouragement to keep writing and pushing forward!

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