#328: Publish With A Purpose: True Stories of Kingdom Writers Like You

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 Shelli 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 everyone to this success panel. My name is Shelly Hitz and I'm the founder of Christian Book Academy and I am here right now with several of our Christian Book Academy members. Yay.

And so excited just to share their success and their stories with you. But also they're going to share some really practical tips of things that. That they have learned along the way. But we want to dive in to this time with these writers. And I'm so excited for what God is going to do before we. Before we do that, I am going to go ahead and say a prayer. So, Lord, thank you so much for this time. Thank you for every Kingdom writer that is listening right now. We pray, God, that you would just speak to them through this time, that through the stories and the testimonies and the tips, God, that you would be glorified, but also that, that things would be learned and there would be insight gained and motivation and encouragement as well. And so we are just careful to give you all the honor, all the glory and all the praise. And we pray this in Jesus powerful name. Amen.

So thank you all so much for being here and we are going to dive right in. So the first, first Christian Book Academy member that we're going to feature tonight on this success panel is Heather Erdman. So let me just bring her on. And Heather, you can unmute yourself. So welcome, Heather. Thank you for being here tonight.

Thank you. Gosh, where do I start? We have a local writers group that I've been a part of off and on for many years. And I always wanted to be a writer, but just kind of dabbled in it and never knew how to make it anything fruitful. And then last fall, one of the members told us about online Christian Writers Conference that was going to be held on Facebook and it was Christian Book Academy. And I was kind of like, okay, I'll go, you know, I just, I'll just listen in. And I think I had to work several days, so I just, I'll watch the replays. And I wasn't that into it until I started. And I was like, oh my gosh. It was literally an answer to a prayer. I had just prayed like a few weeks earlier saying, God, if you want me to pursue this writing thing, you need to give me the direction because I just don't know. You know, I knew there was so much that I didn't know.

About writing and the process of getting published and stuff. I mean, it's one thing to write it down, but to actually bring it to life into a book is a totally different thing. And so I never really got very far other than just writing a few pages, because I knew, like, what was the point? I'm just going to write it and nobody's going to see it anyways. But anyways, I went to the conference, and it was so helpful and so exciting because they were exactly the answer to prayer that I knew. This was the guidance and the handholding that I needed for every step of the way. Like, Shelly has training for. From literally writing your first draft, which is where I was stuck. I was definitely under the impression of trying to write, like, the perfect first draft. So I'd get a few pages in and be like, oh, this is terrible.

Or this has to go here.

And I knew things had to move around. And so I'm like. I put it away for months at a time. And one of the trainings talked about getting.

Ugly, messy first draft, just get it out of your head and onto paper. And I was like, that is the key that I needed. Because I'm like, I can't edit or work on anything if I don't have it, like, in existence. So I literally spent from that conference in September to the end of the year and gave myself permission to just write the draft, no matter how it turned out, if nobody ever saw it.

Yes. That's so good.

And, yeah, and I followed. I joined Christian Book Academy in December and followed all the trainings to finish my final draft, to hire an editor, a formatter, and actually just published Unlocking the mystery of marriage, Loving your spouse, the way Christ loves the church. It just went live on our 28th wedding anniversary. So it was a really cool thing because God gave me the idea, like, at a women's retreat back in April of 2019. He gave me the whole outline and everything.

Wow.

So it became a reality. Yeah. Just May 14th.

This. Just 10 days ago. Yeah, 10 days ago, exactly.

So all from September to May. Like, it went from like a nothing to a published book. So it was definitely.

Yes.

A God thing.

Yeah, I got chills because, you know, it just. Your story just is such a God story because, you know, God gave you that book and then for you to just stumble upon our conference. Right. Basically. But it wasn't. We don't believe in coincidences. We believe in God. Instances. Right. And so, you know, God just provided what you needed at the time and then for you to publish that book on your anniversary. How amazing. So, yeah, and the exciting thing too.

Is I have an agnostic brother who's 12 years younger than me and we've been estranged for many years just because he's 12 years younger. And my parents went through a messy divorce and I mean, long story, but we just haven't seen a whole lot of each other. And he's getting married June 4th. And I had prayed that I could get the book done before the wedding so that I could give it as a gift because the gospel is clearly presented and it won't be a weird way to give them the gospel. You know, here's a wedding gift, you know, on top of their regular gift, here's my book.

You know, so they can, and maybe.

They'Ll read it, maybe they won't. But I'm like, it's a chance to get the gospel into their hands. And so that also was an answer to prayer, the timing and.

Yeah. And I always say that, you know, books can be door openers and so people would that know us, you know, like your brother, like, he's going to be more open typically to maybe even just like holding on to your book. Maybe he might not read it right now, but maybe later or. But it's like. And people are not going to just throw your book away, right?

Yeah. It's like, wow, I'm really proud of my sister. Look what she's done. And it could plant a seed. You never know what's on, going, going to happen. But I love, you know that before you joined Christian Book Academy, you said you only could ever like, get a few pages out. Right. And you know, once you gave yourself permission to write that ugly, messy first draft, then you were able to move on to the self editing and, and the professional editing. And now look, you have the final product. So we are so excited for you. We're just cheering you on every step of the way. Congratulations, Heather. Thank you. Just so excited for you. And next we're going to go ahead and bring on Mary Ann Ward. Let me just bring you on. So Marianne Ward is another one of our Christian Book Academy members. Welcome to the success panel. Why don't you share a little bit about your story of finding Christian Book Academy and what God has done in your life.

Thank you very much, Shelly. I published my first book in 2017 and then published three more during COVID And I got so discouraged because I had my main way of selling books was in person, and with COVID that wasn't possible. And so I just became so defeated in it. I shouldn't have, but I did. And a couple of Christian Book Academy members.

Kind of almost at the same time gave me links in February to Christian Book Academy. And right away, on the first. Almost the first day we prayed, CJ and Shelly were praying, and I had this book idea come into my head right away. And it was like.

Well, what if? That's kind of my hint, right when we hit a roadblock. Just, what if.

We can get over this roadblock? What if with the help of others and the support and prayer of others, we can. What if I can actually learn marketing online? What if? And so that. That what if ignited in me and gave me hope to be able to do this again. Yeah.

Yeah, that's so good. And, you know, there's so much power in prayer. And one of the things that makes Christian Book Academy different is that we do put a focus on the spiritual aspect as well. Right. Seeking first the kingdom of God. And you also mentioned that it was during one of prayer meetings. So those of you that may not be familiar, every month we have a war room prayer meeting. And C.J. and I pray for you specifically. We lead you through some journaling sometimes and just some different things. And Marianne, you said that in one of those prayer meetings, God gave you an idea for a couple books. Share with us a little bit about that.

So they're called a name above all others.

One is a devotional coloring book, and then it has a matching journal to go with it. And I hadn't even planned on the journal, but because of problems with my printer and other things, I had this span of time and I thought, well, what if. What if I put together a companion? And so that's what I did. And so they're both out now. And. And another thing that was suggested or encouraged through Christian Book Academy was to create strategic partnerships. And I did that in this book. I have a photographer friend.

Who I asked to do some full color photos for the center to do kind of a feature center portion. And she did. And she has been, like, pushing these books like crazy and just been my biggest cheerleader.

Oh, awesome.

Yeah. It is just really not only for the books, but just in so many ways. She's been prayer support just so many ways that has helped me just that one strategic partner. So that was so encouraging too.

Yeah. And that's, you know, that's your Tip of just, you know, being able to reach out sometimes and ask. Right. You know, and forming these strategic partnerships. You never know what God's going to do when you do that. And we have a lot of training on that inside Christian Book Academy. But what I loved is you mentioned to me, you know, you published these two books. They were not on your radar until you were in that prayer meeting. And they combined your love for art and writing. Right. And you. You hadn't done that before, is that correct?

Well, I had done just a little snippet, but I had never done something like this or even a devotional. I had never considered myself able to do a devotional.

Yeah. And so it's like, it's a. We call it a God idea. You can have a good idea and you can have a God idea. And these God ideas are often birthed through prayer. And then you mentioned, like, you're already having to increase your initial order, right?

Yeah, I initially ordered a hundred. I knew that they were sold already, and so I called my printer right away and said, hey, let's double that. Let's get that going.

Yeah. So it's like, you just never know. God gave you the idea. You, you know, we're obedient. You did it. And now, like, not only did you sell your first hundred, now you're ordering your next hundred. And we're just so proud of you, so excited for what God is going to do. And I love that whole thought of, like, even God just giving you that idea of marrying your art with your writing and just seeing that birthed into the world and people really resonating with that. So thank you so much for sharing, Marianne.

Thank you, Shelley.

Yes. So good. And so next we're going to have Lauren Darragh. Go ahead and share with us. Hi, Lauren. Thank you for being here, Shelley.

Yeah, it's great to be here.

And so Lauren Darragh, she is part of Christian Book Academy as well. But the really cool thing, tell us, Lauren, about your birthing of book twins.

Yeah. So as Shelley explained, I actually wrote two books, so I've been working on my novel the Road From Damascus for some time. So this is the novel?

Yes.

I don't know if we can see that very well. But anyway, I've been working on that for several years, off and on. Not really feeling like I had enough time for that and sort of decided when on lockdown that, you know, I've got to get this done if it's going to be the time now, you know, this is when I'M going to have time. So I ended up joining cba. I'd had some minor sort of health blips, but pushed through that. And during that, I'd also sort of had the idea for a devotional. So CBA really helped me push through that and figure out my.

Goals and sort of realize that I can. It's okay sometimes if you don't quite make your own personal deadline. You know, we have to do the pace of God's grace, as Shelley always says. And yes, for me, I think joining CBA helped me sort of figure out productivity a little better in terms of my writing because I would spend a lot of time at times working on it, and then I wouldn't suddenly have no time to work on it. And it was sort of learning how to use time, blocking in my schedule and at the same time make time. So even if I only have 15 minutes, just doing that 15 minutes, because at least I'm getting that out. I'm getting my creative, Creative. Creative outlet out there. And that's very important for me. I found, for my emotional, well, being, God made me to write and be creative. And if I don't do that, I don't feel very good. And I find that Even doing that 15 minutes helps me feel better and productive. And then I don't feel guilty if I'm not spending, you know, hours and hours on it because I'm actually making time for it instead of stepping away for a few months and then coming back to it, which isn't consistent and it makes it hard to get anything done.

Yeah. And, you know, you've been working on this novel for seven years. You know, that's kind of like a biblical number. Right? Seven days of creation, all these things. And, you know, I remember when you joined cba, you were just like, oh, you know, I had this goal to finish at this date. And then, you know, you pushed it back and like, oh, now it's this date, and now it's this date. And so, you know, it was. It was hard at times because, you know, you had your idea, like you said, of when you wanted to publish, but you were also writing and publishing two books, and this was your first time. So you're learning the process at the same time. And your devotional book, it kind of ties in with the themes of the novel, Is that correct?

Yeah, the devotional book, there's four parts, it's short, and it follows each. There's. For the main perspective characters, one of them isn't as much of a perspective character as the other three, but it's sort of go through different theories, themes in relation to their journey. I picked a theme per character and wrote that out, included a few stories. Some of them are more personal to me than others, but yeah.

And so that's like a little tip if you are writing fiction, you know, there might be a time when you might want to include some sort of like devotional or companion journal or, you know, something like that that goes along with the themes. But I just love that that you. You finally gave birth to those twins. And we'll just say it was God's perfect timing, right?

Yeah. And it'll be God's perfect timing when they take off too, right?

Yes. Yep. One step at a time. But you really talked also about learning, you know, this, that productivity and, you know, you talked about having writer's guilt, you know, and just, you know, feeling like you wanted to write, you wanted to finish this book, and yet not feeling like there was progress. How does it feel now, like, to have seen these two books published into the world?

It just felt really amazing to know I finally accomplished that goal. I sort of had done a little vision board at the beginning of the year and my goal, one of them was to, you know, get my books published. And, you know, being able to check that one off was, yes.

Awesome.

After all these years.

Yeah. And inside Christian Book Academy now, every month we have like a 15 minute writing challenge where we have you write like five days for 15 minutes. I remember when we were first doing this, you had that aha moment of like, oh, I can write in just 15 minutes. And that you really enjoy it. Like, it fills you. It is your creative outlet. Right. And so I just love that you have really discovered that. And anyone listening, that is a great tip because you really can accomplish a lot. Even if you are just writing 15 minutes at a time, you can accomplish so much. It is amazing when we have these, these just little mini challenges in CVA like what you can accomplish. So thank you so much for sharing, Lauren. We are so excited for you.

Thank you for having me, Shelly.

We're going to bring Denise Goosby on now. And so, Denise, I'm really excited to also highlight you and share a little bit about your story of joining Christian Book Academy and some of the success that God has brought into your life. So just share a little bit with us about your story.

Well, first of all, thank you so much for having me. It's a pleasure to be here and it's an honor to be with all of you ladies tonight. And for me, it was just the CVA came at the right time for me because I was going through some hard things. But I was also very blessed because God gave me a dream of writing, actually a second dream. I had dreams of being a writer as a child, but actually spent most of my working life as a teacher. And a couple of years ago, he said, no, I want you to go back to the future, back to your love of writing. And so he allowed me to write a couple of books, one nonfiction book and one children's book. And when I was coming into the CVA, I heard about it from Dr. Sandra Dalton, who was one of my first mentors when I decided, when God called me back into writing. And.

I really enjoyed what I saw when I visited the website, when I saw some of your Facebook lives and your presentations. But I think what really sold it for me was that prayer war room. I mean, I thought, wow, this is God's spirit at work. His spirit at work in these people who love him and who want to share his message through their writing. And that just resonated with me so much, and I just had to be a part of it. And it's just been such a blessing to know that I'm part of a community of writers who love the Lord, who love Jesus, who love creating with him, and who just depend on him and let him write through him, because that's what it's all about.

Yeah. And it is amazing. Like, CJ And I have often said, you know, we go into the war room prayer meeting, and sometimes, you know, you just kind of feel a little bit down or tired or. And we always leave energized. And, like, God shows up every single time. And so we're just so grateful to be able to do that every month inside Christian Book Academy. And, you know, you said that, you know, one of the things that you have really just learned even more since joining Christian Book Academy is just the importance of asking God what to do next. So share a little bit about that.

Yes.

Well, as I said, I published a nonfiction book, and this is the book here. It's scarred, like him seeing the beauty and the life you live. And it was published last October. And.

I thought, okay, this is just the first. You know, God had already given me the idea for the sequel to the book.

And.

Of course, I'm the type of person I just want to get started. I just want to, you know, get it written, get it done, you know, And God was like, it's okay. I know. I know this happened pretty Quickly. Which it really did. It only took me several months from start to start to writing it, to getting it published, maybe about seven or eight. But God wanted to do something else. He said, now that I've given you this message for this book and also for the children's book, which is also a spin off, actually, of the nonfiction book. Now that I've given them to you, I want you to share the message of those books.

Wow.

You know, you need to do that first, and you need to be able to, you know, give them the time that they're due, that, you know, then we'll work on the next books. You know, I've given you the ideas. Yes. But it's like a seed, you know, and the seed doesn't grow up over a day. You water it, you nurture it, you put it in good soil, and then it grows. So my priority are these books right now. And then he's already given me ideas for the next one, so I guess it's just kind of getting me prepared.

Yeah.

And getting my heart prepared for what he wants to write through me for the next one.

Yeah. And I like to say capture those ideas. A lot of times as writers, we're creatives, and so we're. We're going to have ideas galore. And most of you have more than one book in you. Most of you on this call have already published more than one book. I think all of. Well, except for Heather. But, you know, it's like you have all of these ideas, and yet I love what you said, Denise, of, like, listening to the Lord and saying, okay, God, take a deep breath. Let's work on marketing these books first, sharing the message, and then you can move on when the time is right. And I've had so many of those moments in my own life of where the Lord's, like, slowing me down because I'm a. I'm a go go person, too. Like, I'll just dive right in. And so I love that he's just been leading and guiding you all the way. And I also like, you know, how your book and your children's book, they kind of connect. Right. The.

The messages do, and they do. Yes.

And so you can market those that.

I finished this book on a Monday, and God said, you know, don't stop. I know you're tired. I know you don't think you want to write anything, but do the children's book. So in a couple of days, maybe five days later, I started writing it, and I finished it over a weekend.

Wow.

So, you know, I mean, sometimes God works very quickly, and sometimes he works very slowly, but it's still a journey of getting to know God, even in the writing, and a journey of basically being. Being more like Jesus. You know, he uses our writing to refine us, you know.

Yeah.

He's the God of. Of many things. We can minister to others, and we can. We can have him minister to us through the process and the journey.

Yeah. And so just like Lauren's books were connected, your books are connected, and so you can actually market them together. And so that's just another tip for those of you watching. Like, I have my book, Broken Crayons Still Color, which is an adult book study. And then I have a children's book, Broken Crayons Still Color. And so a lot of the women who buy the book may want to buy a children's book for their children or nieces and nephew or whatever. And so that's so awesome. Well, thank you so much for sharing with us today, Denise, and being just an encouragement.

Thank you so much. Well, we have one more member to feature, and so Shelly Larocque is here with us. Welcome, Shelley.

Thank you, Shelly. It's wonderful to be with everybody. And congratulations, Denise. That was a very encouraging story, and I'm glad you're back to your first love, if you will, with writing. So thank you for sharing that wonderful story. And my story may be a little different.

Because I never thought about writing. So I'm a new writer, and my hopes is when people hear about how the first book came about, which is the sunflower journey.

That they will be encouraged, that when God calls you, he will equip you for his glory, even if you don't know where to begin, like myself. So my journey started April of 2020, where the Lord put on my heart to plant sunflowers. Now, the interesting thing about that is I don't plant flowers. Quite frankly, I don't know the first thing about a flower, except they're pretty.

Now, I will say that some flowers are my favorite, so that was exciting.

So, anyway, the seeds got planted, thanks to my husband, who gardens with fruits and vegetables. And, you know, when the Lord put on my heart to plant the sunflowers, he said to document every stage of their growth and put it into a children's book. Now, I did ask why a children's book? And what I heard was, it will not only reach the child, but it will reach the adult reading to the child as well.

Very true.

What I did was I went out to the garden almost every single Day, I really didn't know what to do. So I just started looking around and I would start taking pictures, and then I would document what was on my heart as far as watching the sunflowers grow. And then eventually I would add biblical verses to go along with that.

So when it was time to put the book together, I had no idea what I was doing.

So I thought, well, now what.

I remembered. A friend of mine wrote a book and I called them, and they did tell me about KDP to self publish. Of course, I didn't know anything about that. So I did some research. And long story short, her husband was instrumental in helping me to upload and do some formatting for the book. And we would just kind of go back and forth. I would proof it and. And then, of course, I went through the steps through KDP to self publish, and I learned a lot.

But then as. As time went on.

Another book came about. And it with the sunflower journey. On the first one in the garden, these flowers start appearing. And I didn't know what kind they were, so I contacted my friend who I knew would know. She said they were morning glories. And I said, oh, okay. And the next year, they miraculously started appearing. I was just intrigued by their colors. It was incredible. And what I noticed was the leaves of the morning glories. They resembled angel wings.

So that's where the morning glory bedtime story came about. The Lord gave me the title and also the words now. Now I'm at the point where I have to figure this out myself. And on my Facebook feed, guess what shows up? Cba. And we know the perfect timing. God's timing, right? And like, like I always say, you don't know what you don't know until you know what you don't know.

Right?

And so I was like, I saw this, and it was the right timing because I had wrote the first book, but I had no idea how to market it. And of course, you were offering the free workshop, Shelly, on the many marketing messages. So I signed up for that. And then I looked into to cba, which is incredible because it has training on everything from writing your first draft to self publishing to marketing, and just. Just so much more. And now it was time to put the book together. But it's a children's book, but for a much younger child. And of course, those books are more animated, but yet I wanted to use my original pictures out of the garden, and I didn't know how to go about it. So I went through a training in cba. And learned about illustrators and. Which was fascinating to learn about that. But I realized that sometimes it can be a little expensive, and I wasn't prepared for that. So I was wondering how I could get these pictures that I had into that type of form.

With CBA and the private Facebook page.

The group, you can ask questions, you can get feedback, you can get prayer and suggestions. It's just a wonderful place to be for everybody to support each other. And one lady had shared with me that you can actually upload your original pictures into a website and they would actually turn them into paintings. It could be anything from mosaics to pastels to anything you can think of in a. In a paint form. So I did that for all the pictures that I had and was able to put it together and self publish the Morning Glory bedtime story of April of this year. So it was very exciting. I'm learning a lot, and I look forward to learning more as the Lord is putting on my heart to. To also write poetry as well. So I'm so grateful for kdp. I'm grateful for Shelly and cj and thank you guys so much for doing what the Lord put on your heart and bringing us all cba. So thank you all.

Yes. Well, thank you so much for sharing your story. And, you know, I was an unexpected author as well. Never thought I would write any books. And you just never know. I call it the Twists and turns of life. Right. And so now here you are, published author of two different books. So thank you so much for sharing. And I hope that all of you have just been really inspired by these testimonies. And if you're wondering, what is cba, it's just Christian Book Academy is what we say. For sure it is cba. Do any of you have any other final thoughts or encouragement for those that are watching?

I would just like to tell the writers out there, especially those who are aspiring to write. You know, God has his own writing journey for you, his own unique path that he wants you to walk. So, you know, don't. Don't get caught up in what other people are doing or what you even think you should be doing, because he's already planned out your writing journey for you and he will help you to have success, the success he wants you to have in that and to do what he's called you to do.

Yeah, that'll preach, Denise.

That'll preach. You know, it's so easy to want to compare. And on our recent war room prayer meeting for cba, I just felt like the Lord gave Me, the picture of tulips. And, you know, it's like spring. And I just felt like he was encouraging me to encourage all of you. Embrace the tulip in you. Right. Instead of comparing to a rose. Well, the rose, you know, is. Is featured at weddings and in corsages and this and that. You know, I'm not a rose. You're a tulip. You know, you have your unique characteristics, and you have your unique writing path. And so I love that you shared that, Denise, because no matter how far into this journey we are in, like, it's easy to get into that. That comparison. Right. And, like, just staying in our own lane and doing what God has created us to uniquely do. So I love that so much. Thank you.

Yeah. I was just gonna say, I know from my own experience, and I've seen a lot of the writers in cba, we're all going to experience roadblocks. You're going to experience things come up that you did not expect when you're writing your books. But it's important not to give up. Just lean on God. He's going to help you through it, and you will reach the finish line. Because I think all of us know, deep down, even if we are having trouble.

Getting past what the enemy is telling us, you know, deep down, if God has given you a gift to write, and it's important to get that out there and just follow what he's given you, and you'll reach the finish line, like I said.

Yeah. And, you know, Lauren, you've been an example of just having a lot of different roadblocks, Some health issues, some other things, some delays. And yet here you are, you're now a published author, and you're working on a third book now, right?

Yeah, I'm working on the sequel to my novel. And I'm actually also working on a short story sort of at the same time I finished my draft, so we'll see if that gets out there or not.

Yeah, well, it's all, like Denise was saying, a journey with God, writing with God. Right. Allowing him to lead and guide the next step. Steps. And so thank you so much for sharing that. I love, you know, just sharing the scripture, Galatians 6, 9, when it comes to writing, because, you know, it says, we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. And so I love that. We do have a question for you, Shelley. Dana had asked what tool you would use to turn your photo into a coloring page. Do you have the name of that tool you used or the website?

Yes, actually, I do. It's called Be funky dot com.

How do you spell that?

B, E, F, U, N, K, Y.

Okay. Yes. Good. Be funky.

And did you find it pretty easy to use?

Yes, actually, it is very easy. You can upload the pictures right from your computer and then just click on, you know, pastel or mosaic or watercolors, whatever your style that you would like, and you can go through. They give you many, many design choices. And you can. I just click through. I click through them all until I found the one that I was led to put in the book.

Yeah.

So it's very easy. And then you just save it onto your computer.

Yeah.

Now, do you have your book with you? Can you show us a couple of the inside pages? So go ahead and show us a few of the interior pages just so we can see what it looks like.

Now, I'm going to show you first, because I also put the original pictures in the book.

Okay.

So, for example. So that's the originals.

Okay.

And these are.

Okay. Yeah. Cool. Well, thank you so much for sharing. And the cool thing is, like, you as creatives, as writers, you get the opportunity to create something, you know, with God, that you know that you can create it as you want. And so I love how you took that and you wanted to include the. The picture in there, the photograph, but then also the illustration as well. And so thank you so much for sharing. And Linda says, I really appreciate and feel encouraged by all of your testimonies. I have never heard of writer's guilt before. What is it? So do you want to share a little bit? Lauren, I think you're the one that had mentioned that.

Well, I would define it as you want to be writing. You feel like you're supposed to be writing. And of course, life gets in the way. You don't feel like you have enough time. And then when you do feel like you have enough time, you're writing it. And sometimes maybe you're putting other things aside and not like you're either feeling guilty for not writing, which is more the writer's guilt side, or you're feeling guilty for spending too much time on writing, which is just the human side of, oh, there's all these other things I need to do, and feeling like they're more important because other people say they're more important.

Yeah. And so, you know, you. You said you learned the pomodoro method, which. The pomodoro, for those of you that are unsure, it's basically where you write for a chunk of time. Typically, it's 25 or 50 minutes. Then you take a five or 10 minute break. So you write for a focus period of time. You take a break, you write and it's really focused, deep work. You turn off all your notifications. We do that every month in our two day virtual writing retreat in Christian Book Academy. And so it's a very productive time. We come together as a community. But then you said you also learned time blocking. So share with us just a little practical, like what does that actually look like for you? Maybe in a day to day.

For me that just means setting aside a specific period of time where I'm going to write. Obviously sometimes that means you have to push things around, but just making that time, even if I know I'm only going to have from this time to this time to work on something and I expect to be interrupted even though I don't want to be. But.

Just choosing a time where you think you're least likely to be interrupted and being able to focus on that task.

Yeah, and I love that. I mean time blocking is such a productivity tool for me as well. And basically, you know, if you can find even, you know, it can be even as little as 15 minutes, but if you have like two hours, you know, to set aside for a task and then if you can do a similar task for that period of time. So even if you're working on marketing tasks, you know, if you're working on all of your social media at one time, like in Christian Book Academy, we give you the many marketing messages, templates that you can use. And Shelly, I think that was how you found us was through that workshop. But you know, you can then just get in the flow and then you can get more done whether it's your writing, your marketing or so forth. Deborah has a question. She says, has anyone started books via a blog? How did you switch from one to the other? And she says, I find myself wondering if the blog will cause a problem when I go to write the book. So I want to see do have any of you here started? Denise, you want to share a little bit?

Yeah, actually some of the stories in the book Scarred like Him came from my blog. I wrote them as articles and actually one of the articles I submitted and it was accepted in an anthology and from there I started writing the book.

Nice.

It's actually a great way to start writing a book. You can actually kind of write it in little pieces in little article pieces on the blog and then start putting it together.

Yes, good. Yeah, and I've done that too myself. My Very first book was actually started as actually it was back when it was just more website articles versus blogs back in 2007. And then God just brought someone into our life and showed us that like oh, that's a self published book. And I'm like, oh, I've been writing on this website for the last year for teen girls for this ministry. And all of a sudden I was like those could become a book, right? And I edited it so that there was like flow between the different chapters. You know, I saw like what could go where I had to fill in some blanks. And then I created or I had a team that helped me create to the a Bible study guide for it to go along with it as well. So I added to it. But there's many ways that you can do this and I just encourage you that like Denise said, you know, getting some of your writings out on a blog can also give you feedback because you can hear from people that are starting to read your writings. And like when I did that teen girls were like responding and, and some were even beginning to accept Christ. And you know, there were so many things starting to happen. I knew like this was going to be powerful in a book, right? And so what I think you can do is, you know, if you want to start writing the blog, just start writing. It doesn't have to be in a certain order. You don't have to think about the, you know, the outline or any. Just as something is laid on your heart, start writing. That's what I did. And then, you know, ask God for wisdom of what to include, what not to include. You're going to have to add some transitions. And the only downfall is if you ever wanted to be in the Kindle Select Program program, which that means you have to go exclusive on Amazon. Only 10% of your book can be anywhere else. So I've done that before and then I've just unpublished previous blog posts, you know, if I wanted to be in that program because I've done many books that way where I blogged them first. And so definitely it's something to try and you know, there's a lot of ways to do it. So I hope that was helpful. If you want some more information, feel free to ask a follow up question. And Angeles says when is the next writing retreat? Is there a cost? So we have a virtual writing retreat this weekend if you're here with us live right now. And it's going to be Friday and Saturday. We do it Friday and Saturday. So that if you work during the week you can still come a day, or if you prefer to come during the week, you can still come a day. And it's actually included in a Christian Book Academy membership. But if you join us, then you get to come for free. How many of you on the call here have been to a virtual writing retreat? Just raise your hand if you've been. Okay, Most of you have. So do any of you have feedback or stories about what you've accomplished on a retreat?

I would say that was where a majority of my book got written and edited.

Because it's a solid focus time that like, like Lauren was saying that you set aside just for writing. And my family knows that I'm going to be busy from, you know, 10 to 4 on Friday and Saturday and. Yes, and it's a mindset thing too, definitely.

Yeah. And I've had, you know, people say they've gotten their first drafts written during one of those retreats. I mean, it just really depends. And everyone goes at a different pace. Right. So we're not, we really try to emphasize in Christian Book Academy, we're not here to compare. We're not here to say, okay, I got 500 words done, you got 100, you know, but to any progress is progress. Celebrate every word. But it is powerful. I think part of it is you come together as a community. And so we kick off these virtual writing retreats, CJ and I, with encouragement, with prayer. And every time it's like I ask people, do you feel more encouraged? Do you feel more ready to write? And it's always like, yes.

And then one of our mentors, we have a team of mentors that also helps to just answer questions in the Facebook group. I'm also very active, but also helps to lead different events. But Deborah L. Butterfield, she leads our, our virtual writing retreats. And so it's just a really powerful time to come together and to write. We do it once a month. So it's 11am Eastern through 5pm Eastern. And we have two main chunks of writing. Two hours in the morning, two hours in the evening, or whatever your time zone is. We also have some recordings of these retreats that you can go through on your own time if you don't have, if you're not able to join live. I know Esther, she's in Australia and she said that she went through one of our recordings and it was just as powerful, she says, as if she would have been there live. She really got a lot done. And Shelly asked, is it open to attend for a day for non members? It Is not. It is only available for Christian Book Academy members at this time. We used to charge $199 for this two day retreat. Now you get it every month included in your membership. And to be a member in Christian Book Academy is only $39 a month. So just for the virtual writing retreat, you know, even if you just joined for that, you know, you're getting some so much value for what you're doing and able to just, you know, see God, really move and work in your life. We do have it once a month. Typically it's the last weekend in the month that we have them.

So I think the retreats are wonderful because you're, you're dedicating that time to writing. You're, you're going to the Lord in prayer for guidance. And you know, even, even if you do like you were saying, Shelly, the 15 minute challenges, it's amazing. I know I experienced where I had prayed before and I was, wasn't really sure what I was even going to write on. And the Lord provided and, you know, he put on my heart and I just started writing and it was a surprise to me because I, you know, I didn't know what it was going to be about. So he will definitely equip you and I think it's exciting when we're able to just allow him to work through us.

Yeah. And I've heard that often and I actually encourage you and we do this if we have any sort of like group writing sessions, but you know, just take a moment, invite God into the process. Right. And then take another minute and ask the Lord, you know, this was my idea of what I came here to write. What is it you want me to write? And sometimes it's this. He confirms, this is what I have for you to do. Sometimes he, he gives you a little detour, gives you something different to write. And so I love that. All right. Yeah. Edwina says the membership is well worth the $39 a month. Thank you so much.

The only thing that comes to my mind is it doesn't matter where you are on your journey, whether you're brand new or you have published several books, there is way more in Christian Book Academy that we can all learn that we can all gain from it. And that's one of the surprising things to me, I think, is that it really is for all types of authors, all types of Christian authors, and so much in there.

Yeah, we really try to provide training across the spectrum and we have what's called the Kingdom Writers Path, where we take you through the five stages. The first draft, your final draft, self publishing, book launch, and then impact lives. The final stage is ongoing marketing. And so there is something for every one of you. Even, you know, we focus on self publishing. But if you're a traditionally published author, you can join for the marketing stuff, right? And so one of the things that we really encourage you to do, though, when you do join and those of you here can attest to it, it's easy to be like, oh, there's more training, there's this, there's that. And, you know, it's easy to get distracted sometimes by it too, but trying to just really say, okay, what phase am I in? And let me, you know, use what Christian Book Academy has for me in this phase. And a lot of times in the Facebook group, someone will ask a question, I'll be like, oh, you know, we have a training on that. It's right here. And I'm like, oh, yeah, I knew you'd probably had a training on that somewhere.

Because there's just a lot in there. But I've been doing this academy for, let's see, since 2015. So it's been like almost seven and a half years. And over the years, we have updated the content, we have rebranded. It used to be called Author Audience Academy, if you didn't know, But God has just done a lot and, you know, we just have a lot of experience. And so even if there isn't a training for you in that specific area, a lot of times either my, myself or one of our mentors or even like what Shelley was saying, she was asking about illustrations and somebody said, oh, you know, try this website. So there's usually someone and, or something that can help you along the way. So let me just check. Esther says it's worth every cent. I joined November last year and published my first YA in April. I followed the step by step modules in CBA Learning Library. Yes. So excited for you, Esther, and totally could have had you on this call as well, but maybe next time. Well, thank you so much for all of you sharing your stories. It is inspiring. You know, the Bible says in Revelations 12:11, I think it is, we overcome the enemy by the blood of the lamb, which is Jesus and the word of our testimony. And so there may be some of you here right now that are struggling to even just find the time to write, or you have some of that writer's guilt like Lauren had, or you may, like Denise, have a million ideas and it's like, oh, I want to do this, this, this, and The Lord's like, let's focus, right? Or like Marianne, you're getting new God ideas that he's going to give you to, to take that, that new path. Or like Heather, you're. You're getting ready to, to write your first book and God's equipping you for what you need. And, and with Shelley, you know, just writing more books and the unexpected. Right? Just want to, before I close in prayer, I just want to encourage every one of you that God has a path and a journey for you, just like Denise was saying. But everyone, it looks different. You know, some people come into Christian Book Academy, like Jennifer Nelson, she published her book 10 days after joining. And some people, it takes years, some people months. You know, typically it's months. But you know, everyone, it's different. And then, you know, God has different reasons, different purposes for your book. Who is it that God is going to touch through your act of obedience of publishing this book? Right? I want you to start thinking about that. Start praying for those people and who he wants to even continue to touch if you've already published a book. So, God, thank you so much for this time. Thank you for all of the stories, all of the encouragement, all of the things you are doing and through Kingdom writers around the world and also right here in Christian Book Academy, in our community, Kingdom writers. And we just pray, God, that you would just blow your wind upon each of us. Some people right now need encouragement. They're stuck, depressed, you know, just discouraged. Lord, some of us need to be held back and redirected or focused in another direction. Some of us just need the exact training and tools or community and just to have that. So I just pray you would just provide right now whatever each writer needs that's listening. I pray that you would pour out your spirit upon each one of us, that your favor would rest upon us. We thank you, Lord, that we get to do this, we get to write, we get to be able to be used by you. Like C.J. often says, we are priestly pens in the hands of the author of life. And so we are writing with you, we are marketing with you. We are including you in the entire process. And I pray this in Jesus, powerful name. Amen. All right, well, thank you all for being here. Denise, Marianne, Heather, Lauren and Shelley. So fun. And what we'll do is we'll post in the comments links to their information and their books. Definitely go and support them, support them and check out their books. And we're so glad that you all joined us. And I will see you next time. Bye Bye.

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 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 into 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 invite you to join our community of Kingdom Writers.