Please welcome this weeks guest Allyson Carter for The Journey. She answers the question: How have you seen God work in your writing journey?
Kristena asked me to write about my writing journal and what God has done for me with it. I panicked, and had no clue what to write about, because, well let me explain, what I mean by what I just said. I’m a Christian, who writes, but until recently I wrote in a very hot genre. So, as you can see I had no clue how or what to say. Well, then, my daughters had to come home due to violence and a knife threat to my oldest. My girls are in middle school…crazy they have to even worry about that, but anyways, I started home schooling.
I couldn’t continue to write hot with a lot of sex scenes with them home. I just didn’t feel right about it as my oldest, Shay, loves to read and would read over my shoulder. I surely don’t want her to read that stuff. God has been working behind the scenes with me on this. It hasn’t been easy. Let’s just say it went something like this. Are you sure, God? No, I’m losing my mind. That’s it.
Some road blocks came up with an agent and I gave up…like totally and wanted to scream. But, Kristena was there to cheer me on along with my critique partner Jen. I was still apart of a group and was told I was still writing too hot. That’s part of my voice to have sexual tension in my books even if it is sweet romance. That’s when a friend suggested; I should read some books by Julie Lessman. I was reading and was like yes…yes there’s sexual tension without going over. It was like what I needed for confirmation from God.
I went back to my book I was making into a sweet romance and tweaked and tweaked it until it was where I wanted it to be. I’ve since sold that book as a series to Sweet Cravings Publishing. So, I’ve made the switch from hot writing to sweet romance. Even though I’m a Christian not all my books will be in the Christian genre, and I’m okay with that. But, I also want to write stuff that Christians can read that are secular and vice versa. If I can bring in readers who aren’t saved with my sweet stuff and they see about Christ’s love in my Christian romance that is so huge, well, at least for me it is. My other goal is to write stuff now that my grandma and my daughters can read.
There’s been a lot of blessings since we’ve had to bring our daughters home to school, and it’s flowed over into my writing career.
Allyson, thank you for your honest answer here. So interesting to see where and how God leads us.
June,
You’re welcome. I believe in being honest even about my writing journey. It is interesting to see how God is leading me in this.
ALLYSON!!! Good for you, girl, we need more authors like you, willing to reach the secular market with the love (and precepts) of God, so you go, girl!!
You said, “If I can bring in readers who aren’t saved with my sweet stuff and they see about Christ’s love in my Christian romance that is so huge.”
Oh, AMEN TO THAT!! That has been the cry of my heart all along, but back when I started almost six years ago, my agent told me I had NO CHANCE to make it in the secular market (which is where I wanted to be because of what you just expressed), saying God was too prevalent in my books. So I got published in the Christian market instead (a HUGE feat in itself, given my “passion with a purpose” style of writing), but sometimes I feel like I’m preaching to the choir, you know? I SO long to reach the secular market with the message of faith, but I feel strongly God is telling me to stay where I am. Which is why I say MORE POWER TO YOU, my friend!! May God use you mightily in that very needy market.
Hugs!
Julie
Julie,
Thank you for the encouragement! The bringing the two genres together is something that I’ve wanted to do for a while now. I know just what you mean about preaching to the choir. I hope and pray He uses me to do this.
Ally