Restored Hope: My Writing Journey (Pt 2)

All righty folks, here we are for part two of my writing journey. Part 1 is here in case you’ve missed it. So far in my journey, I’ve:

• Quit my full time job to be a mama at home
• Started learning the craft of fiction
• Decided to focus on contemporary inspirational romance
• Entered the ACFW Genesis contest for the first time (I didn’t place.)
• Attended my first ACFW conference and scoped out agents
• Received a publishing contract
• Turned down publishing contract
• Decided to enter the ACFW Genesis a second time

Does my journey sound hopeful to you so far? 🙂

2013, Writing Contests, and the Voice of God

Around 2013, I entered the ACFW Genesis. I remember entering and thinking not much was going to come from the contest. I had been still feeling the disappointment of having to say ‘no’ to the offer to buy my book. I know what you’re thinking at this point: “If you were so disappointed about it, why’d you say no?” Good question. I had to think long term about my career. If I had accepted that contract, I wouldn’t have been a happy writer in the long run. (Side piece of advice: Whenever you’re faced with a decision, carry out the ramifications of that decision to its ultimate end. Take your emotions out of it and really ask yourself: Is this where I want to end up?)

Anyway, I entered the Genesis. I forgot about the deadlines and all that and kept on with my life. Then one day, I was sitting at my computer, and the phone rang. That’s when I heard the voice of the Holy Spirit speaking to my spirit.

(I’m not joking y’all. I heard His voice. If you ever meet me in person, please don’t run in the other direction and think I’m some kind of weirdo 🙂 I don’t hear His voice all the time, but when I do, I know.)

I can describe the voice of the Holy Spirit in four words: calm, quiet, steady, authoritative, and true. True, true. True. Okay that was five words (or eight).

Anyway, I heard the Holy Spirit talking while the phone was ringing, He said: “That’s the category coordinator for the Genesis. She’s calling to tell you that you semi-finaled in the Genesis.

Me: She is?

No answer from Upstairs.

I’m completely frozen at this point, a bundle of nerves, and the phone is ringing and ringing and ringing. Finally, I pick up.

Category Coordinator: Hello, is Preslaysa Williams there?

Me: Yeah.

Category Coordinator: Congratulations, you semi-finaled in the Genesis.

God was right. (He usually is 🙂 ) After I heard that first sentence she started talking about some other stuff which I forgot about because by then my brain was going a million miles an hour. After I got off the phone, I was still in this twilight zone state of mind.

Someone else (a couple of someone else’s) liked my work. My writing wasn’t a complete fluke!  I was a semi-finalist!

So I did what any over-the-moon excited writer would do. I waited until they made the official announcement, and then I wrote my huge Facebook post!

I then checked how many likes I received. I got about thirty of those…

A Contest Final, Queries, Insecurities…and Hope

A couple months later, I found out that my manuscript was a finalist in the Genesis too! (I didn’t hear the voice of God that time 🙂 )

And shortly after that, another editor whom I had submitted to had requested my full manuscript!!! At this time, I was also actively querying and researching agents. I received some non-responses from agents, some rejections from agents, and some requests for fulls too!!

Squee!!! I am over the moon thrilled. But then I realized that I’d be attending the 2013 ACFW conference as a Genesis finalist and all my fears and doubts and  insecurities soon followed:

What if I win?

What if I don’t win?

What if the editor buys my book?

What if the editor rejects my book?

Who do I pitch to at ACFW?

Should I get an agent?

How do I pitch anyway?

What if I mess up my pitch?

Too many questions in my head. But there was one thing that had held me together during that time…hope.

I had hope.

Part Three Next Week….

(P.S. I haven’t forgotten about my high school story, either. I’ll be continuing that in future posts.)