By Tara Johnson, @TaraMinistry
I was stuck.
I had exhausted every trick in my writer’s book, used every hidden gem tucked away in my idea journal, and still, the page was empty. I’m a multi-published author. This whole writing gig should be easier by now, right?
Wrong. Every experienced author I’ve interviewed has told me the writing process gets harder, not easier with subsequent publishing contracts. Why? Perhaps it has to do with increased knowledge of the craft. The more you learn, the more you layer, and with each read-through of a manuscript, you find your to-do list growing exponentially. Maybe it’s fatigue. Birthing a story from nothing is a grueling process, one that requires a writer to bleed on the page. Perhaps it’s juggling the list of expectations—marketing, social media, platform, editing—and the hundreds of other little things that are involved in creating a business out of your passion.
Whatever the reason, I reached a point when my well was completely dry. What to do?
Swiveling in my office chair, I glanced over my bookshelves. So many stories waiting to be read. Hundreds more that had painted my world with color. When my gaze landed on the worn volumes of the Anne of Green Gables series I have owned since seventh grade, I smiled and reverently picked up the battered volume. I opened it carefully, amazed how yellowed the pages had become, and read.
I didn’t stop until I reached the end, a song of satisfaction in my heart. I had reconnected with one of the first stories that thrilled my heart. The themes and characters I had taken for granted as a thirteen-year-old girl now reached through the pages and dazzled my mind with startling clarity.
I reached for another book, and then another, gobbling them up like water on parched desert sand. Little House in the Big Woods, Mandie and the Secret Tunnel, A Wrinkle in Time… I couldn’t seem to stop. Each of the treasures had taught me about the sacredness of life. The beauty found in brokenness. That light cannot be appreciated without shadows. Nuances of grace, hidden motives and quirks that give each character a unique personality-print all their own.
In the remembering, my imagination took flight.
Sometimes, we can’t go forward in our writing until we delve into the stories of our past. The themes, trials, and complexities that initially sparked our love of story become our worldview. So when our lens grows foggy, the best thing to do is remember what first moved us.
After this epiphany, I sat down and scribbled out my top five reads during my formative years. Those authors and their characters took residence in my soul…and I recalled why I love to write.
- Wings of the Morning by Lori Wick
After having spent years reading only Little House on the Prairie and a few sweet romances my mom recommended, I read Wings of the Morning. Then I read it again. And again. And again. I was entranced, not only that a story could have a historical Christian theme outside of a prairie, but that the characters struggled with deep wounds. It wasn’t pretty. It wasn’t wrapped up with a neat little bow. Parts of it were messy but beautifully redemptive. I remember thinking, “I want to read more books like this.” Now, years later, that same longing has bled into the desire to write books with the same kind of adventure and wounded characters.
- Anne’s House of Dreams by L.M. Montgomery
This fifth book in the Anne of Green Gables series was a staple as I grew up. I must have read it at least ten times as a teenager, but as I grew into my twenties, the richness of the storyline, and Montgomery’s psychological and emotional understanding of the characters like Captain Jim, Cornelia, and Leslie Ford embedded deep in my heart. This was especially true when I lost my third child. I flipped open this beautiful story once again, reliving Anne’s torment when her own precious baby Joyce died. Her lament and mourning…Marilla’s helplessness to know what to do or say…all of it made me feel as if I wasn’t alone. Montgomery had understood the torment all too well. The words she penned became a bridge between her world and my own.
- To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
I read this masterpiece as a senior reading assignment in high school. It was the first book where I stopped to re-read lines, puzzling over each words’ placement. I didn’t understand how an author could communicate such a profound truth in such a simple sentence. Although I didn’t realize it at the time, To Kill a Mockingbird was my first study in the craft of writing. It was also the first time I realized a book could make such a defining statement on social issues and, as a result, leave a lasting imprint on culture.
- Lies Women Believe and the Truth that Sets Them Free by Nancy DeMoss Wolgemuth
I cannot overstate how much it impacted my walk with God. The enemy constantly lies to us. He lies about our worth, our relationship with God, and our mistakes. This book made me aware of the many lies we all fall for and how it influences the decisions we make. It became so integral to understanding human behavior, I now base each book I write on a lie my main character has believed.
- Embracing Obscurity by Anonymous
This small but powerful book forced me to reevaluate my life and what truly matters. It’s not about my name being known, how many books I sell, or how many social media followers I have. The markers this world embraces are broken cisterns. We are a people starving to death while choking on our own self-importance. Embracing Obscurity continually reminds me that pride is the continual enemy if the goal is to love God and love people. He must increase. I must decrease. The author so beautifully illustrates this concept by leaving his name off the credits. It’s written by “anonymous.”
Now, what to do with this? To flame your imagination to life, go back to your roots. Re-explore the stories, triumphs, and losses that left an indelible scar upon your heart. In so doing, I wager you’d remember why you wanted to write in the first place.
With her stammering tongue and quiet ways, Cadence Piper has always struggled to be accepted. After the death of her mother, Cadence sets her heart on becoming a nurse, both to erase the stain her brother has left on the family’s honor and to find long-sought approval in the eyes of her father. When Dorothea Dix turns her away due to her young age and pretty face, Cadence finds another way to serve . . . singing to the soldiers in Judiciary Square Hospital. Only one stubborn doctor stands in her way.
Joshua Ivy is an intense man with a compassionate heart for the hurting and downtrodden. The one thing he can’t have is an idealistic woman destroying the plans he’s so carefully laid. When the chaos of war thrusts Cadence into the middle of his clandestine activities, he must decide if the lives at stake, and his own heart, are worth the risk of letting Cadence inside.
Everything changes when Joshua and Cadence unearth the workings of a secret society so vile, the course of their lives, and the war, could be altered forever. If they fight an enemy they cannot see, will the One who sees all show them the way in the darkest night?
Tara Johnson is an author and speaker, and loves to write stories that help people break free from the lies they believe about themselves. Tara’s debut novel Engraved on the Heart (Tyndale) earned a starred review from Publishers Weekly, and was a finalist in the Carol and Christy awards. In addition to being published in a variety of digital and print magazines, she has been a featured guest on Voice of Truth radio, Enduring Word radio, television and podcasts. She is a history nerd, especially the Civil War, and adores making people laugh. She, her husband, and children live in Arkansas.