Linda is offering 1 copy of her novel, THE CAT'S LADY'S SECRET, to 1 randomly chosen commenter. The winner will be announced here on Friday, November 27th between 5-6 PM EST. To be entered in the Giveaway, please leave your contact information within your comment (you may choose to use the Contact Me form to privately send me your email address--the form is in the right-hand sidebar on the blog's main page, toward the bottom).
How I Learned To Like Where I’ve Been
Planted by Linda Yezak
Recently, I attended a writers
conference at a Baptist university in Texas. The town may be small, the college
may be small, but the speaker and guest list included some heavy-hitters in my
field. Cecil Murphey, who ghost wrote both Gifted
Hands: The Ben Carson Story and 90
Minutes in Heaven with Don Piper, the preacher who is the subject of the
story. Don Piper was there, also. James H. Pence, singer, artist, and author of
Terror By Night, the story of the
brutal murder that took the lives of the Caffey family in 2008, an event that
hit all the major news outlets, because it was Terry Caffey’s daughter who
masterminded the murder along with her boyfriend.
I got to visit with these
authors and others personally, aside from attending their classes. I couldn’t
help being a tad bit star-struck and more than a tad bit jealous. I write
romance and women’s fiction, fun little stories intended more to entertain than
to deliver a deep message.
I want to be one of the authors
who delivers a deep message.
One of the things that struck me
during the conference was the number of times someone would tell me of the
horrible things going on in their lives or awful things that had happened to
them. Some were already turning their traumatic tales into devotionals or
non-fiction books or fact-based fiction in hopes of helping someone else in
similar problems. How beautiful to be God-led to help others.
I’ve never wanted to write of
the things in my past. I’m fine with them buried where they belong. Perhaps
that makes me selfish, I don’t know, but I’ve never felt a calling to write
about them. And for that, I am truly thankful.
Although I enjoyed every minute
of the conference and the entire experience of spending a couple of days with
peers, talking of the one thing we all have in common, I came home under a
cloud of sadness. I want God to use me like He apparently does those other
authors. I want to be a tool for Him, to glorify Him, to help others realize
how precious He is.
But I write romance and women’s
fiction. Fun little stories intended to entertain.
I wrote about the conference on
my blog, 777 Peppermint Place, leaving
out all the specifics of my doubts and disappointments, mentioning only that I
had a lot to pray about. And I did spend quite a bit of time in
prayer–everything from is my work worthy,
Lord? to am I being arrogant to want
more? to am I even doing what You
want me to do?
Self doubt is a wicked thing. It
steals your confidence, leaves you questioning your very worth as a person
sometimes.
But God is so amazing in His
love. He uses His children to uplift each other and to deliver His special
messages to us. How precious is He and our siblings who call themselves by His
name?
The very day I posted about the
conference, one of my friends, a dear sister in Christ, typed this in the
comments:
Feeding the
Poor
Feeding both
body and spirit – complimenting someone, listening, caring, writing stories
that feed the heart and mind with God’s love.
See that? “Writing stories that
feed the heart and mind with God’s love” is feeding the poor, both in body and
in spirit.
Authors of Christian romance pen
not just stories about love between a man and a woman. We write about a love
that is to be treasured and based on more than physical attraction. We write
about hope and forgiveness and second chances and first loves and last loves
and long-lasting, till death do we part love.
We provide a glimpse of what the marital relationship should be according to
God’s greatest scheme and gift–a relationship that keeps God at its center,
loving and being loved in return.
There’s far more to it than
that, of course, but really–how can you beat that?
So, let me introduce myself: I
am Linda Yezak, blessed to be an author of Christian Romance and Women’s
Fiction.
Linda's Ah-hahs To Tweet:
Everyone’s
Story: Meet @LindaYezak, “blessed” to write #ChristianRomance and #WF.
#BookGiveaway. (Tweet This)
@LindaYezak:
#Writers, can you admit your self-doubt over the stories you write? (Tweet This)
@LindaYezak:
#Writers, how is God using you and your writing? Are you content? (Tweet This)
Author's Bio:
Places to connect with Linda:
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Please note:
--I will soon launch a specially designed website that will incorporate Eveyone's Story blog. I hope you will follow me on this new site. When it goes live, I'll make the announcement!
Please note:
--I will soon launch a specially designed website that will incorporate Eveyone's Story blog. I hope you will follow me on this new site. When it goes live, I'll make the announcement!
