Nine Steps from Fear to Freedom
By Debby GiustiMy first book was released in 2007, the yearthis blog went live. Nine years later, I came up with ninesteps that took me from the fear I felt as a new author to freedom. I wanted to share them with you today.
Pray. In my opinion,everything should begin with prayer. We were a military family and moved everytwo to three years. Each time we changed locations, I prayed for the Lord todirect my steps to what he wanted for my life.
Make adecision to write.I had published a few articles when my children were young, but as they grew, Iset aside my love for writing and volunteered heavily in their schools, in ourchurch and within the military community in which we lived. All the while, theLord gently reminded me about my heart’s desire to write. When we moved to Georgia, Irealized I was running out of time and needed to try my hand at writing again.
Ignorethe negatives.Early on, I purchased Julia Cameron’s book, THE ARTIST’S WAY. Cameron talksabout the negative voice that lives within each of us. It’s the discourager whorears its ugly head all too frequently with caustic rhetoric, such as “Who doyou think you are? You will never be a writer,” or “You’re stupid to expend somuch energy on something in which you will never succeed,” or even, “Get real.You’re too dumb to write.”
I controlled the negative voice by followingCameron’s advice. She says to turn each negative into a positive and write itfive time. When Mr. Negative whispers, “Who are you trying to fool? You’re nota writer,” I countered by writing and rewriting “I am a writer. I am a writer.I am a writer.”
Fictionmirrors life.The characters in our stories have baggage and so do most of us. Screenwritingconsultant Michael Hauge, in his book, WRITING SCREENPLAYS THAT SELL,encourages writers to explore past wounds that shape the way their charactersact. Characters must overcome or heal their brokenness before they can live fullyin the present.
My father was an excellent technical writer,and in my youth, he always corrected my creative attempts, perhaps a bitoverzealously. Growing into adulthood, I never felt my writing measured up tohis standards. Realizing that even my dad would have struggled to create a full-lengthwork of fiction freed me to move forward on my writing journey.
Put Godin control. Soon after receiving “The Call,” I penned “TheWriter’s Prayer.” The Lord provided the words, and I was merely the scribe. Asmany of you know, I give the prayer away at conferences and in mailings, and somany authors have told me how meaningful the prayer has been in their ownlives. “The Writer’s Prayer” sits next to my computer and always helps me focusas I start to write. It also reminds me that the Lord is in charge of mycareer.
We’re notalone.While working on an especially tight deadline in the wee hours of the night, Iwas overcome with fear that creating the next story depended totally on me.Thankfully, I was able to power through that fear and complete the manuscripton time. The truth is that authors have the support and expertise of theireditors, copy editors and marketing and art departments. That entire team isworking together to make the story the best it can be.
It’s common knowledge that writing is asolitary profession. Whether published or pre-pubbed, writers need to surroundthemselves with writing friends, critique partners and blog communities, likeSeekerville, for support, affirmation and encouragement.
Analyzethe process.Once we have a few books under our belts, we might see a pattern in the way wewrite. By understanding our process, we can take comfort, knowing we have faced doubts before and have gone on to accomplish our goals. My husband andchildren remind me that with each book I go through the this-is-the-worst-thing-I’ve-ever-writtenphase, the this-story-will-never-work phase, the I-should-just give-up phase,and how-can-I-call-myself-a-writer phase. Eventually, the story is completed,submitted and, with the help of my wonderful editor, reaches publication.
Noticking time bombs.Our stories have ticking time bombs, but that’s not what we need in life. Instead,we need to set achievable goals and give ourselves adequate time to completeour projects, to learn new craft techniques and to write our books or get ourstories ready for submission. As the saying goes, Rome wasn’t built in a day. Neitherwas a writing career.
God’stiming is always perfect. Some years ago, I meditated on the idea of God’s perfect timeand realized He always provided the wherewithal for me to write my stories andmake my deadlines. That realization brought a sense of security. Now even whenI’m short on time or when I’ve overextended my schedule, I trust that the Lordwill provide enough time—His perfect time—for me to complete the work.
What steps have youtaken to overcome fear and achieve your goals?
Wishing you abundant blessings!
Happy writing!
Debby Giusti
AMISH BLAST INVESTIGATION
A June 2023 Release!
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A deadly explosion.
A dangerous search for the truth.
After an explosion rocks Becca Klein’s bakery and kills one of her customers, she teams up with the victim’s son to find justice. Though estranged from his father, Englischer Luke Snyder is compelled to help the Amish woman uncover why his father died. But ruthless killers believe Luke’s father gave Becca something they want, and they’ll stop at nothing to get it. Can Luke keep Becca safe until they discover the truth?
