5 Unexpected Blessings of Being an Author

Become a published author is my lifelong dream come true. I have written stories from a young age and, if I’m honest, wanted the pleasure of seeing something I wrote on a library shelf or in a bookstore. But over the years I’ve realized there are far greater pleasures and blessings on this writing journey. Here are just five of them, in no particular order:

Friendships with readers: Whether online, or at a reader event, book club, or signing, meeting readers is a blessing. I have become lasting friends with many readers, which is such a delight.

Friendships with sister-authors: I love that in the Christian publishing realm, authors are primarily cooperative and supportive instead of pitting against one another as competitors. I am grateful for every one of my fabulous and fun author friends. There are too many to list here, but you know who you are.

Books translated into foreign languages: I never expected, never even considered that my novels might one day be translated into languages like Hungarian, Slovak, German, Dutch, and others. This has led to some interesting emails over the years—emails I can’t read without Google translate. It has also led to occasional travel to countries I would probably never be able to visit otherwise. (In fact, if all goes according to plan (Lord willing), I will be visiting Hungary and Slovakia this month.)

Lifelong learning: I was never much of a non-fiction reader until I started writing fiction. Now, I read a lot for research. There’s always more to learn! Writing is also another way to learn spiritual lessons. Often the things I’m learning in church weave their way not only into my own life but also into my characters’ journeys.

Being myself: This one’s harder to put into words. I feel like, as a writer, I am able to be more myself, and let myself be known—foibles and all. In previous careers (marketing/advertising), I sometimes felt frustrated, trying to impress, to sell products I didn’t necessarily love, to fit into the wrong mold, a la “fake it until you make it.” By comparison, talking about, even promoting books (which I love and believe in), is still not always easy, but is much more satisfying. Also, as an introvert, I’m not great at small talk and don’t always express myself well in social situations (I often don’t know what I truly want to say until my fingers are on my laptop keyboard!) Yet writing novels has given me an avenue to express more of myself. And by the time you read my books, my words have been edited and polished by skilled editors so I sound much smarter than I would if you met me at a party.

What have I missed? What blessings of the writing (or reading) life would you add? Thank you for reading this today—YOU are a blessing, too!