#231: Teamwork Makes the Dream Work (Finisher Series)

Welcome to Kingdom Writers, where we help equip and empower Christian writers of all genres to share your unique gifts with the world. We're your hosts, C.J. and Shelley Hitz.

This podcast is filled with spiritual encouragement as well as prayers to help you overcome the resistance you face as a writer. Your story matters.

Welcome to our Finisher series. So if you've been following along, last summer we did our breakthrough series, helping you break through those obstacles keeping you from writing your book. Then in the fall we did our Overcomer series, just helping you overcome and really do what God has created you to do in your writing. Now it's time for the Finisher series and we are going to be focusing this series on helping you cross the finish line of publishing your book. This is spiritual encouragement, but we're also going to be talking about some practical things and we record these live inside our private group for Christian Book Academy. Now I would love to invite you to join us. Just go to ChristianBookAcademy.com I hope this episode encourages you today. Today's theme is Teamwork makes the the dream work and we are going to talk about having a team that helps you with the process of independent publishing. Last week we talked about the benefits of independent publishing and before we dive into this topic, I just wanted to share a few testimonials from members in Christian Book Academy this week. It's so exciting. So Pam Bowen shared that on Friday, March 13th, Green and Purple Publishing will celebrate two years. Congratulations, Pam. And she said in that time we have published 12 books.

Wow.

Incredible. So excited for you. She says thanks to all of you who have supported our efforts in the last two years. I couldn't have done it without Shelly Hitz and Christian Book Academy. So we are definitely cheering you on. Famous.

Yeah. Nice job, Pam. Probably one of our most active members in the group. Yes, definitely encouraging to see see Pam.

And we've got another one here. Congratulations to Deborah Butterfield, who finished her first fiction book and says, quote, I sent my book out to a few beta readers so I'm letting my story ruminate until I hear back from them.

Them.

So congratulations on the fiction edition, Deborah. Deborah is no doubt one of our most prolific and just competent people that we have in the group. Just seems like you have a wide skill set on a whole lot of things.

She's also one of our mentors and editor. She hosts our productivity parties. So thank you Deborah. And that's a huge step. So. So we're proud of you, Karen Almenderz. Hopefully I said that right, Karen, Congratulations. She shared with us this week that she's republishing and relaunching her book, Tragedies A Mom's Journey Through Grief with a new cover. Rewritten. I almost said rewitten. Rewritten. And a new title. Now she's in the process of building her launch team. So that is so exciting, Karen. And I just want to remind all of you that when you independently publish, you can do something just like Karen is doing. We did that with our book forgiveness formula. Remember that? C.J. yeah, we changed the title and it was because it was confusing people. And so as an independently published writer and author, you can at times update book covers, give it a fresh look, you can update content. And I've done this to many, many of our books over the. So I'm so excited for you, Karen, and for all of you. Make sure to be posting your updates and breakthroughs in the Facebook group so we can be cheering you on.

So, you know, as Shelley mentioned, you know, teamwork makes the dream work. That's really what we're talking about today. And we want to let you know that you don't have to do everything by yourself. I think many times we as authors are guilty of that. You know, we kind of just say, well, we're going to write it, we're going to do all this different stuff, but there might be people around you that you don't even know about that can really ease your burden. That can really help take the load off. And I like this quote by John Maxwell. He says, if you want to do small things, do a few small things, right? Do them yourself. If you want to do great things and make a big impact, learn to delegate. And I think that essentially what John Maxwell is saying is that the more people we're able to get on board, not only with the vision God's put on our hearts, the more people are going to be able to help us accomplish that dream that God has put inside of us.

Yeah, I've also heard a quote, and it was really a theme for me last year as I was just really growing my team and the responsibilities that they have, but said, if you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together. And so this could even include a book launch team like Karen was mentioning. Like, you know, instead of trying to do your launch all by yourself, you have a team of people that believe in you and your book and whatever you have or love to read the fiction or the children's book, and they're willing to Come alongside you and help you.

Yeah. And just a few examples from scripture that really stand out. First of all, Jesus had 12 that he surrounded himself with. It's interesting that he chose these 12 after coming off 40 days of prayer and fasting. And if that doesn't tell you the importance of that decision, it wasn't by coincidence. It was very intentional. I think Jesus was getting a part led by the Holy Spirit out into the wilderness to really just not only be refined himself, but to press in, who is it, Father, that you want to surround me with and to help accomplish this mission now that it's about ready to unfold? And it was only going to be three years, but three years of pouring into those 12. And there's another great example that many of you are familiar with in the Old Testament, and It's Exodus, chapter 18 starting in verse 13. I'm going to actually just read this story. And it's the story of Jethro.

Not on the Beverly Hillbillies, by the way.

Not that Jethro, anyone remember that show?

But this is Moses's father in law. And so Jethro, just to set the the stage here, Jethro has brought Zipporah as well as Moses's sons out to the wilderness, you know, to visit Moses. Oh, Moses was on his own out there, you know, along with all of the Israelites and his, his co leaders. But I'm sure he was pretty lonely, missing his wife and his sons. And so Jethro brings the family out to, to see Moses. And when he's there, he, he notices some things here. And let's pick it up there. In verse 13 it says, the next day, Moses took his seat to hear the people's disputes against each other. They waited before him from morning till evening. When Moses, father in law, saw all that Moses was doing for the people, he asked, what are you really accomplishing here? Why are you trying to do all this alone while everyone stands around you from morning till evening?

You know, I think another translation there might be man, you know, you think people enjoy just standing around here listening to you? Babylon, you know?

So Moses replied, because the people come to me to get a ruling from God. When a dispute arises, they come to me. And I am the one who settles the case between the quarreling parties. I inform the people of God's decrees and give them his instructions.

This is not good, Moses, father in law exclaimed.

He was direct.

You're going to wear yourself out. And the people too.

Anyone feel worn out?

This job is too heavy a burden for you to handle all by yourself. Now, listen to me and let me give you a word of advice. And may God be with you. You should continue to be the people's representative before God, bringing their disputes to him. Teach them God's decrees and give them his instructions. Show them how to conduct their lives. But select from all the people some capable, honest men who fear God and hate bribes. Appoint them as leaders over groups of 1000, 150 and 10. They should always be available to solve the people's common disputes. But have them bring the major cases to you. Let the leaders decide the smaller matters themselves. They will help you carry the load. So that's important right there. Carry the load, making the task easier for you. If you follow this advice and if God commands you to do so, then you'll be able to endure the pressures and all these people will go home in peace.

And Moses listened to his father in law's advice and followed his suggestions. It is good to listen to your father in law. By the way.

He chose capable men from all over Israel and appointed them as leaders over the people. He put them in charge of groups of 11, 50, and 10. These men were always available to solve the people's common disputes. They brought the major cases to Moses, but they took care of the smaller matters themselves. Soon after this, Moses said goodbye to his father in law, who returned to his own land. And so, you know, Jethro was a really helpful guy. I just know that the Lord led him at that time to come for a visit. It was God's timing. And I think there's another way. You know, Jethro himself was an example of taking burden off of Moses just by watching his family, Zipporah, his daughter, his grandsons living with him while Moses is, is out leading the people, leading this mission, you know, to the promised land. And so Jethro is an example here of taking burden off of Moses. And yet he had this wise advice that really helped ease the burden and remove the pressure, you know, from Moses. And then there's another example. I don't know if you want to chime in or if anything stands out here, but I'm going to go to one more passage real quickly.

Yeah. One thing that I've seen through the years mentoring Christian writers is that seen that it's really hard.

You know, in general, it's really hard for you to ask for help. How many of you would agree that when it comes to asking people to come on board and to help, whether it's just, you know, reading and posting a Review or, you know, it's helping in another way. How many of you have found that it's hard to ask for help? And I feel like that is one of the ways the enemy has us in his control to hold us back. Because if we are.

It'S almost like, you know, we have to humble ourselves. Right? You have to humble yourselves. And if we're not willing to humble ourselves and to ask God, who can help me? You know, right now you might be thinking, I don't know who. Like sometimes you hire people, you know, and then sometimes there's volunteers or things that you can barter. But asking God, like, who is it? That could be part of my team, I know that's been a really big thing that's held a lot of people back even from starting a prayer team, is just simply asking. And so I just want you to know that God can lead you in who to ask and that he's able to humble us, he's able to bring us to a place and it is okay to ask for help and also to give help, you know, so I just wanted to mention that.

Yeah, so the other example that I wanted to mention is, is in Acts, chapter six, the first seven verses. And it's another example of, of delegation. And let's pick it up there in verse one. But as the believers rapidly multiplied, so the church is growing. The early church, after Jesus's resurrection.

There were rumblings of discontent. The Greek speaking believers complained about the Hebrew speaking believers saying that their widows were being discriminated against.

In the daily distribution of food. So the 12 called a meeting of all the believers. They said, we apostles should spend our time teaching the word of God, not running a food program. Now I think it's interesting there that the apostles did recognize where the most bang for the buck was going to be in terms of their time. And what is it that you get the most bang out of, out of your buck for? You know, what is it that you might be toiling? It's good. You're doing this other thing on the side, and it's good. There's nothing wrong with it. There's nothing wrong with a food program. It was needed. It was just that they recognized we really could better spend our time doing this over here. And I think sometimes we do the same thing. We, we might be doing something good over here on the side, but it's not the very best way that we can spend our time and get the most bang for our buck. So I thought I'd mention that. And so verse three Brothers, select seven men who are well respected and are full of the spirit and wisdom. We will give them this responsibility. Then we apostles can spend our time in prayer and teaching the Word. That was important, especially in the early church, you know, for things to be right in terms of accurate teachings of Jesus. Everyone liked this idea, and they chose the following. Stephen, a man full of faith in the Holy Spirit, Philip, Prochorus, Nicanor, Temon Parmenas, and Nicholas of Antioch, an earlier convert of the Jewish faith.

These seven were presented to the apostles who prayed for them as they laid their hands on them. So God's message continued to spread. The number of believers greatly increased in Jerusalem. Many of the Jewish priests were converted, too. So incredible things were happening. And then just, you know, I won't go there. But just one other example of delegation that comes to mind is you read the Apostle Paul's letters. You see in letter after letter, him going out of his way to thank individuals, naming them specifically and saying, if it wasn't for these people, this ministry wouldn't be happening. Yeah, thank you to such and such who provided food or hospitality, or they. They helped me, or they wrote the letter.

Like, he had people actually write the letters for him.

So he was constantly aware that he wasn't the only show in town. Yeah, you know, he had helped. And I think it's just good to see examples from Scripture to say, this is God's way of helping us so that we don't have to carry an extra burden. We have people around us that are more than gifted. Isn't it amazing how there are so many different people in the Kingdom of God, People that have gifts that you and I don't have, and praise God for that. I'm glad that there isn't 7.6 billion other CJS, you know, out there. First of all, it'd be really boring. But second of all, I mean, we'd be limited, you know, if they were the exact same replica. There are different people with different gifts that want to help you and who God has put specifically in your life to help you accomplish this vision, this. This goal of publishing your books. So, yeah, so, yeah, as Shelley said, really press into God and pray regarding who it is that would step forward.

Yeah. And these examples that CJ shared, Moses and then the apostles, the picture I kept getting is like, if they continue to do it in their own strength and in their own time and energy, they would eventually reach a glass ceiling. Right. They would eventually reach a maximum of what they could do, but because they were able to Find trustworthy, competent, skilled, experience, spirit filled, people that they could delegate to. Then, you know, it said the gospel continued to go out. People's lives continued to be changed. Moses was able to, you know, do other things. And it makes me think of you and me. Are you right now burdened and trying to do everything on your own? If so, you'll reach a glass ceiling. There's going to be a maximum of what you can do. And God has really stretched me in this area the last probably five years, six years as I've been hiring team members and some have not worked. You know, sometimes that happens. But now I have people that, including our mentor team, that are trustworthy and that can help me and so that I can do the things that only I can do, if that makes sense. But I have seen over and over and over again, writers get stuck in the process of publishing their book because they think they have to do everything themselves and don't reach out or don't hire people to help them. So one very common area that I see people getting stuck is the formatting of their books. Now, I will say some of you love that, and once you learn it, then you can do it over and over and over for your books, and it saves you a lot of money. And we have many trainings and many different ways that you can learn to format your book if you want to do that. For me, I pull my hair out. Like, it's just not fun for me. It takes a lot of time and energy for me, and it stresses me out. I would rather pay someone to do that for me. And so, you know, those are some things to think about. If you start reaching an area where you're stuck, who do you need to ask for help? Sometimes you just simply need to ask. Ask a question. In our Facebook group, how many of you have ever had a question but then you hesitate on asking it in the group? Oh, I don't want them to think that I don't know what I'm doing or, you know, I don't want to. I don't. I don't want someone, you know, whatever, and I want to put myself out there. Post in our group. It's a private Facebook group. We are loving, supportive. We're. There's no. There's no, you know, question that.

No, bad question.

No, bad question. Yeah, I was trying to think of a word for that. No, bad question. And if you have the question, it's likely someone else does. So if you're stuck anywhere in the process, stop and say, okay, where Am I stuck? And, you know, who do I need to ask for help? Maybe the first step is asking in the group. And then maybe there's someone that you actually need to hire and take that step forward. And yes, it's a learning process. Your first book is going to be the hardest because you're learning. So you may not really connect with that first book cover designer you hire. That's okay, you can hire someone else, you can try someone else the next time. It's a process. But once you have your team in place, like C.J. and I do, we've published over 50 books. And so we have a team now. The person that formats our book, the person that does the COVID you know, the person that edits, then we don't have to think about it. We're just like, okay, we'll send an email to the editor. Okay, well, we'll, you know, send this to the book cover designer. Okay, we'll let our formatter know this is ready. And so now we have a system. And so don't get stuck, ask in our group. Develop a system that's gonna work for you, and then it can be repeatable over and over and over again. Hire a team to help you. And we teach you how to hire the right people for your book project within your budget. So. So everything from a very, very small budget to big budgets for editing, book cover design and formatting. And so this allows you to focus on what you do best writing your book. And another thing to consider, as Christian Book Academy members, you may also decide that you want to have somebody else help you and almost like be in a assistant for you through the process and manage the process of book publishing for you. So, you know, you're doing the writing, you're communicating with that one person. Then that person goes and hires the book cover designer. That person goes and does the things. And that person can also then go into the member area, learn the trainings, like, go through the trainings, learn all of that. So you're not spending your time investing in that. And an example of that is one of our members, Craig, did this and he reached out to us and he's a busy guy, has a lot of stuff going on. And he said, I have someone that is willing to help me with my book. Could she also have access to the membership? And we're like, yeah, sure. And so if you have someone that could help you with your project, let us know. And, you know, depending on the situation, we most likely will approve that they can also get access. And then they can be the ones going into the member area. They can be the ones asking the questions in the Facebook group. And Craig ended up publishing his book, but he was stuck. He was stuck for a while. Like, I remember you talking to him, right?

Yeah, I remember, you know, he was just mentioning several things that he wasn't as good at.

You know, he still was putting full time into another full, you know, job that he had. So the writing was really on the side, but he had finished the book and now really just needed help, you know, getting it across the, the finish line. And when he brought that up, that he, he had, you know, in his area, he had someone that could actually handle.

A lot of the little things that would take a load off him. You know, I said, that's a no brainer. You know, sure, she can have access to your, your membership and be able to go in, figure out, you know, the steps of the, look at the training. And it was really cool to see. Within a couple months he had actually published that first book.

He got unstuck.

He had three or four books that he was going to be publishing, and that was the first one. It was sort of like going to be the first domino, you know, you know, to get the momentum going. And so, you know, praise God for the help that he has. And all of us could probably look around and say, there are people that can help remove that burden.

Yeah. And we're all in different places. Some of you have the time and the energy to manage the process. C.J. and I do manage our own process still at this time, but we hire people for the different things. Dr. Tim Riordan, he's one of our members. He's a very busy pastor and he owns rental properties and he's a father and he does all sorts of things. But he has a team of people from his church because a lot of what he does is ministry through his books that have volunteered their time to help him. And when we were early on in our book publishing, I had a lot of books for teen girls that were ministry related. I had people volunteer to help, be our book cover designer, volunteer to do editing. So sometimes you can get volunteers, but don't hesitate in asking God to provide the resources to also hire people. And it will be a blessing to them as well. And then you're building your dream team, Right? We're all going to have a different dream team. And there might be some people from your local area that can really come on board, be part of your prayer team, be part of your book launch team. There's so many ways that people can get on board with what you're doing. And so many times I think as writers, we just want to isolate. We just want to, you know, just be in our little corner. And we don't want to have to ask anyone for help. But that's where the magic happens. You know, when the apostles started delegating, they could really allow the word to go forth when Moses started delegating. And so don't hold back and ask God not only to provide the people, but to provide the funds as well.

Yeah. So we're at that time where we want to do a one minute reflection and really just have you ask the question, what's God saying to you specifically? And so we're going to play just a little bit of soft music as well as give you a minute just to say, father, what are you saying to me? How do you want me to apply this to my own life? And who are the people in my sphere of influence that do have gifts that maybe I don't, and people that can alleviate some of that load or burden that I have? So let's go ahead and take a minute and.

Just between us and the Lord.

Sam.

All right. And if you feel comfortable, share in the comments. Whoops. Sorry about that. Share in the comments.

Anything that you sensed God saying to you, and I love this. Jan says this group is like a little Christian writer's village. I love it. Yes. And part of the support and community that you have as a writer is here for you in Christian Book Academy. So please, please, please don't hesitate. Our Facebook group is open 24 7. You can post questions at any time. That's what we're here for. But I was asking today, God if there was, you know, just a picture or an encouragement that he wanted me to share with you. And the picture that I got was of like, almost like this footprint in the, in the.

Mud or the dirt. And it was like a big footprint. And then like seeing another footprint or another foot following in those footprints. And C.J. and I are both runners and he's competitive, but I just do it for exercise and enjoyment. But a lot of times when, when it's muddy, you know, you get those footprints and then, you know, you see them as you're running along. But I saw these foot, you know, I saw you stepping in these footprints that had gone before you. So I just asked the Lord what that meant, and I felt like you were following the path that had been cleared by others previously. So have you ever been in a remote Area could be here in the United States. But for me, I think about mission trips that I've taken where there are no roads and there are no paths. You know, it's just like I've experienced this in a few countries, Africa and Belize, where like we would go out into the bush, right, and there's no roads. And we're trying to get to this little village and we take this little path. It's not an official road, but somebody has taken a machete and you know, gotten this, the, you know, the, the different stuff down. And then, you know, we're following the path that they have already taken before us. And, you know, this is what we provide for you inside Christian Book Academy. You know, we provide this path that we have gone down before, our mentor team has gone down before. And now we're not saying you have to do exactly what we have done, but we provide for you the path and the options and the different training that you need. And it's almost like you're following this path that's already been blazed. There's footprints there that you can follow. And we have put together lists of people that you can hire for editing, that you can hire for book cover design and formatting. And like I said, we've provided extensive training and many, many, many different options, multiple software options for PC, Mac, all different sorts of things if you want to format your book yourself and if you want to learn that. So all of that is in the member area for you. We are in the Facebook group ready to answer questions for you. And you are not creating a brand new path through the bush alone. When you're part of Christian Book Academy, like, that's the picture I got. Like, there are others with you. We are in this with you, and our mentor team is here to help. In fact, I saw Jan posting some things in the Facebook group today about formatting. And some of our mentors, Rebecca and Kim, were jumping in and answering her questions, helping her. And that's what we're here for. I added it up, I asked each mentor and collectively, as a mentor team, we have over 130 years of publishing experience. That's over a century of experience literally at your fingertips. And I really believe that most of you are not taking full advantage of that. And so, you know, ask questions, you know, reach out for help. That's what we're there for. But you can finally stop wandering around in your writing wilderness by yourself and discover the well worn path that leads to the summit. Publishing your book, it's a feeling of confidence and safety, knowing you're on the right path and following a proven trail that others have taken before you. But like I said, we're all going to have just a little bit of a difference system, a little bit of a different way we hire people or who we hire and the things that we do. But we are here for you. We have provided the most comprehensive training that I have really seen on independent publishing. Our publishing challenge is. I mean, it's incredible the amount of just guidance that you have there, as well as the ability to ask questions in the Facebook group. So know you are never alone. You inside Christian Book Academy.

Yeah. So we're going to close in prayer and we want you to also, you know, just share what God's Shelley mentioned, you know, share in the comments, you know, what, what God has spoken to you, how this particular episode has. Has affected you or spoken to you, or maybe it triggered something, another thought. Feel free to share that. And, you know, just know, as Shelly said, that there's. There's a whole team of people that have been there and done that, so to speak, and can help you navigate some of the things. Thankfully.

You know, when you think about maybe a scientist in a laboratory that experiments with something over and over and over again, and then finally they. They're able to duplicate several times something that works. Maybe you think about the light bulb, you know, with Edison, thankfully, there has been experimentation for some of you newer members.

There'S been the experimentation. This program does work when you implement the steps, as Shelley mentioned, all of us are going to do that just a little bit differently. But just know that it's a tried and true program. So, yeah, let's come together in prayer and let's just ask the Lord to bless our work and give us guidance in whatever he wants to do in each of our writing journeys. So, Father, we thank you so much for each and every one of our CBA members. They are all on a unique journey of something that they're writing or something that you have put on their hearts. And yet we're all on this same team of desiring to accomplish very similar things. And I pray that each of our members would be able to lean on those around them, not only in this group, but I pray that you would specifically point out people in their sphere of influence, wherever they live, that can really help them.

That can really help ease the burden so that they can really be about doing the things that they're most passionate about doing the things that they're most gifted in.

When it came to the apostles in acts there, you know, they felt like prayer and teaching the word.

Was their primary calling. And in a lot of ways, we as writers are very similar. We're pressing into you and we're writing messages that you put on our hearts and inspire us with. And we're endeavoring to see those messages planted in people's hearts around the world. And so I just pray that you would surround each of us with.

Individuals that can make up our own little team, similar to what Craig did with in his neck of the woods. And I just ask that your spirit would be the lead and guide us this whole process, the whole journey. And we're going to give you all the glory and the honor for the things that get accomplished and the fruit that's borne out for your kingdom. And we ask this in Jesus Christ name, Amen.

Amen. So we are so excited for you. Join us again next week and we'll continue on this Finisher series where we are helping you to finish your book. Love you guys and we will see you next week.

Teamwork makes the dream work.

Yes. Awesome. All right, bye bye. Thank you so much for joining us for this episode of the Finisher series. It really means the world to us that you would invest time and be here with us today. So thank you. We have a free gift for you. We recently just made this available to the public. Previously was only available to the paid members in Christian Book Academy, but it's a copy of my publishing map. I hand drew and lettered this map out for you and it literally takes you through the steps of of publishing your book. And our members love this resource. Some have said they print it out and they use it every single time they publish a book. You'll also get access to a video of me explaining the publishing map to you. And so I really hope that this also helps you overcome any confusion or overwhelm regarding independent publishing. And you can download this for free@trainingauthors.com.

Or just swipe up and the link will be in your show notes. Thank you again for joining us. We love you all so much. See you next time.

Thank you for listening to this episode of Kingdom Writers. We believe that you, as a Christian writer, have a specific role to play in the kingdom of of heaven to impact lives for eternity.

And because of this, we choose to pour out our lives into encouraging writers like you to not only tell your stories, but to take the courageous step of self publishing your stories in books that will outlive you and leave behind a powerful legacy. This podcast is sponsored by Christian Book Academy, where we help you give birth to your books. We. We invite you to join our community of Kingdom writers.