by Mary A. Felkins, @MaryAFelkins
“You fail only if you stop writing.” Ray Bradbury
A decade ago God called me to take His hand and pursue the wild, wonderful world of writing. When He did, I committed to the hard work involved, and in 2015 I signed my first contract for a contemporary romance.
For two years I was an agented author.
In January 2021, I was offered a contract for a contemporary romance series, and each of these 3 books is scheduled to release over the next two years.
Yay me.
Except … My walls do not hold one single certificate, and my shelves are devoid of trophies—and not for lack of repeated submission to contests and a significant amount of financial investment, all effort swaddled in prayer.
But I am an award-winning author. I’m confident you are too.
These awards aren’t tangible like the ones received after an exuberant walk toward a brightly lit stage in a hotel ballroom accompanied by applause.
They’re better. Far better!
They’ve come from genuinely satisfied readers who have made it a priority to assure I knew my writing changed them for good in some way, and that their investment of time was well spent. Many of these awards have been verbal affirmations shared among a small circle of witnesses in my little corner of the Appalachian foothills.
You reflecting on your awards yet?
And then there are those unsolicited texts and DMs we’ve received—typically in the moment when our hearts needed it most …
THANKS FOR NOT ONLY THE HAPPY ENDING BUT THE STORY OF REDEMPTION. THROUGH CHRIST WE CAN NEVER SAY PEOPLE CAN’T CHANGE.
Award.
DON’T STOP WRITING!!!
And another.
KEEP WRITING. THE WORLD NEEDS HOPE IN JESUS
Aw, one more.
HEY KEEP WRITING, KEEP SHOWING PEOPLE JESUS. YOU ARE HIS STAR
Wait. Another?
KEEP WRITING FOR JESUS.
HE IS USING YOU TO CHANGE LIVES
I JUST WRAPPED UP READING YOUR BOOK AND LOVED IT! IT WAS A BLESSING TO MY HEART.
Award, award, award!
The day my oldest daughter confessed that she got weepy reading a portion of the mother-daughter dialogue in my debut novel, I’d received award enough and could have called it a day. Unbeknownst to me, God used a little portion of text to awaken her heart. Having wandered from the faith, that precious child of mine needed it.
Some of the highest awards we receive are granted by the Creator to His created. These soulful, Spirit-breathed whispers rise above (and silence) our mental chatter.
The voice of almighty God inspires us to stick with it because He’s using the gift of writing to achieve His higher purposes, and He is wholly compassionate toward what it costs us.
If anyone understands the risk involved in releasing the message of one’s heart out into the world, it would be God.
The Word.
On those days when we’re sagging in doubt’s relentless effort to get us to give up on what can feel like a fruitless endeavor (No one cares. No one’s reading. No one would consider this an award-worthy story …), we can pull these affirmations from the sacred spaces of our soul and hold them high as a thank offering to the Lord.
The Author.
The one who called us to offer some semblance of joy, inspiration, and Truth to readers. Because they’re out there.
And in various ways they’ve let us know we’re award-winning authors.
When these awards are granted, let’s …
1. Accept them in a spirit of humility, remembering that the message/story/blog we wrote originated with God.
2. Express gratitude for their willingness to read the book and bless us with their thoughts. Our pleasant attitude will be remembered each time a new release hits the market.
3. If appropriate, we should respectfully request they share their kind and honest review on Amazon, etc. to help snag the attention of avid readers.
Though it’s wise to invest time and resources to improve our writing, expand our reach, and increase exposure, the goal of writing isn’t to amass earthly awards. It’s to be read. And the lives of readers who are impacted for good result in an impressive collection of imperishable awards we’ll treasure for all eternity.
How did you become an award-winning author?
Tracy Cassidy, a self-reliant ED nurse, must choose between her dream job or staying in her hometown to help support her mother’s faltering ministry. Even if it means falling in love with the kind of man she said she’d never marry. Why risk being Laurelton’s next cop widow?
Tom DeLaney, a hyper-vigilant cop and new hire from Texas, is wearied by failed rescue attempts to save his marriage. After he moves to the foothills of North Carolina, he hadn’t expected to fall for Tracy, but when Tom’s adolescent son is diagnosed with a chronic illness, he faces the risk of loving another woman with keep-out issues.
Fears related to the death of Tracy’s cop father and Tom’s inability to forgive the past threaten to sabotage any chance at love.
To trust again means surrender. Will they risk their hearts and answer the call to love?
Mary A. Felkins is an inspirational romance author, blogger, and contributor to writer’s blogs and inspirational publications. Her debut novel, Call to Love, is set in Hickory, North Carolina, where she lives with her husband. They have four young adult children. She is a member of ACFW (American Christian Fiction Writers) and My Book Therapy.
Her purpose in writing is to reclaim God’s intention when he created the world–to enable readers to know his heart and experience his love.
The unmerited gift of a large, unopened bag of Peanut M&Ms® or an episode of Fixer Upper will lure her from her writer’s desk. A surprise appearance by her teen idol, Donny Osmond, would also do the trick, although she’d likely pass out.
Upon introduction, if she likes your first or last name, expect to see it show up in one of her novels.
To receive Mary’s story-style devotions and/or quarterly author newsletter offering book-related giveaways, subscribe via email on her website. www.maryfelkins.com
Mary A. Felkins’ books on Amazon https://amzn.to/3cxll0d
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Comments 4
Love, love, love this post, Mary. So right! So encouraging! Praise God!
yes praise the lord for the good books that people have wrote to teach or to make you think so thank god for authers that have the time
thank you for the books you have writen for us to injoy
to all good writers for the good books that you have writen