If I were to poll every member of MBT, I can safely guess that one hundred percent of you believe that you are writing in the genre to which you were called.

What if I were to tell you that well over half of you are wrong?

I have no hard evidence to support this claim. In my 15+ years of being active in writing communities, however, I can easily name a dozen published writers who aren’t writing in the genre they began with. And probably not their second or third choices, either. Allow me to offer you my progression:

Supernatural Thriller

Romantic Suspense (so there, Rachel)

Cozy Mystery

Apocalyptic Thriller

Young Adult Supernatural

Middle Grade Historical

…and considering Chapter Books.

It’s hard to say how this all happened. Like most of you, I started with the books I liked to read. Then, as I writer, I expanded my reading list and found other genres that I liked. The Middle-Grade book landed me an agent with Hartline this year, so it would seem that I’ll stay with this genre for a while. But the Chapter Books are a natural progression.

Why am I sharing this glimpse into my writing history?

Because this will very likely happen to most of you, if it has not already happened. If you had told me, back when I was reading King and writing about a serial killer, that I would one day want to write for ten-year-olds, I would have said you were a few characters short of a tweet. But often our plans are not God’s.

And God spoke to me through stories I fell in love with. Stories written about young protagonists searching for their place in the world. I felt the call to offer them characters much like themselves. Characters who could offer them hope through a relationship with God. Though my writing cannot be classified as Christian, the elements of faith are clear and it is my constant prayer that my young readers will continue seeking through the glimpses of Christ that I offer.

That story is about me and my writing journey. Yours will be different. You will each be led into the genre where you can reach the hearts and minds of those God wills you to reach.

Just don’t be surprised where the journey leads you.

~*~

Ron Estrada is the author of the Cherry Hill series, a regular columnist for Women2Women Michigan, and contributor to The Novel Rocket. You can find out what he’s up to at RonEstradaBooks.com.