Happy Monday! I hope you’re as excited about starting a journey with our hero as I am!

This week, we’re going to be studying PREMISE – It’s that blurb that tells us what kind of journey the reader will take with our hero. It involves stakes, and hopes, and most of all, a happy ending.

Just as our hero is on a journey, we are also, as writers. And today, we’re going to start the idea of premise by asking…what are the elements of a successful journey? We talked about practical elements, like prioritizing our time, and keeping a journal. More important, however, is our perspective. I’d like to share with you a few things I’ve learned on my writing journey.

I love Psalm 16. (and I’m not going to write it down – so you’ll have to look it up!) But it’s where I return to when I feel like I’ve lost my focus on where I am, and where I’m going. It contains the 3 keys to keeping on track with our journey.

Key 1: Seek God for the good ideas.
Ps 16:2 – I said to the Lord, You are my Lord; apart from you I have no good thing.

I love this statement by David, because he is reminded that God is the originator of all the blessings in his life. For me, that means that God gives me the story ideas, the words, and that I need to keep my eyes on Him for direction. God wants to be with you on this journey!

Key 2: Be grateful for where you are in your writing journey.
Ps 16: Lord, you have assigned me my portion and my cup; you have made my lot secrete. The boundary lines have fallen for me in pleasant places, surely I have a delightful inheritance.
David is talking about contentment. Through it all, he knows his journey is in God’s hands. I don’t know about you, but I am so prone to pick up a book and immediately judge whether I can write as well, or if that author is way above me. I can be SO defeating to look at all those other best-sellers around you and think – I’ll never be as good! Baloney! BUT, if you let that thought consume you, it’ll paralyze your writing and your creativity.

Trust that God is going to grow you as a writer, and be grateful for the writing lessons/ability He’s given you to date. Be thankful for every story He’s worked out through you, and don’t bemoan your weaknesses – pray about them, and ask God to help you grow.

Key 3: Expect great things!
Ps 16:8 – I will praise the Lord, who counsels me; even at night my heart instructs me. I have set the Lord always before me. Because he is at my right hand, I will not be shaken. David always keeps a perspective of God with him, helping him on the journey, equipping him for each step. And he expects victory, even when things look dark. I truly believe that when we trust God for one area of our lives, he then builds on that and leads us to a new place of trust.

A lot of people ask me how I got to be an author – the simple answer is that I followed God, one step at a time, from writing newsletter, to devotionals, to magazine articles to novellas and finally to novels. And He equipped me for each step.

I believe, that when we do these things, we’ll have what vs. 11 talks about:
1. Peace, because the path is made known
2. Joy at God’s presence in our lives
3. Delight at the eternal rewards

Keep your eyes on God, be grateful for where you are in your journey, and trust Him to equip you. And I promise that wherever He takes you, it’ll be exactly where you’re supposed to be.

Okay – tomorrow we’re going to take a look at the KIND of journey we’re going to take – more than genre, we’re going to talk about how to craft that premise that sells!