“This is just what I was hoping for!” It’s my favorite refrain from writers who I enjoy working with as a book coach, writing coach, and editor. This deep desire to see their words come into being may date back decades or may be a fresh endeavor. Either way, joy dances when words exude wonder.
Ideas linger long, don’t they? Yet getting them to the point of fruition challenges writers. In Andrew T. Le Peau’s excellent book, Write Better: A Lifelong Editor on Craft, Art, and Spirituality, he addresses three components of the writing life:
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- Craft
- Art
- Spirituality
Writers gain skills necessary to create with words. They tap into how inspiration occurs and what it takes to keep inspiration alive. As Christ-centered people, writers also delve into the spiritual component of their writing life as this impacts both their interior life and their exterior way of being.
At some level, most writers I work with explore these areas on their own to some degree. Yet, what writers most desire is to watch hope come to reality. When the writer’s resilience joins hands with a book coach, editor, or writing coach who offers companioning accountability, they behold hope for their creative endeavors. What’s often missing in the writing life is the element of a sounding board. As writers, we often work along. Working with a trained listener provides space to delve into ideas as well as enjoy accountability for a work-in-progress. This can move a writer from a dream to a reality. There’s something about sharing what we are working on that is integral to us all.
The Child and The Writer
Watch a child build a sandcastle at the sea, a twig fort in the forest, or a Lego scene in the living room. Exuberance and energy glow. Hours unfold around the pleasure of creating. Yet creating alone is not quite enough. What the child craves the most is someone to share their creation. Creativity enjoys companionship. Just ask any teacher, parent, grandparent, or neighbor who is within view of a child at play. Invitations flow fast.
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- “Come see! Look how the moat goes deeper here and how the waves almost fill it up.”
- “Did you see the tiny frog by the wobbly stack of rocks holding up that crooked branch?”
- “I cut up a piece of string to make pretend noodles for my Legos campfire meal.”
Writers echo the same sentiment.
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- “Listen to this turn of phrase!”
- “What do you think about this plot twist?”
- “Do you think my readers will grasp this concept and analogy or does it need reworking?”
Hope persists. Our desired outcome is possible, yet hope also desires encouragement.
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- “Be gentle. These words took long hours of work. I feel a bit vulnerable in sharing them.”
- “I could use a dose of encouragement that this bit of writing is not just a bunch of junk.”
- “I’m trying to accomplish opening the reader to a new perspective. From your reading of it, how am I doing?”
When accompanying writers in their writing journey, I help them see that hope isn’t just a wild wish or a lofty dream. We need to Behold Hope in its many forms as we move forward in the writing life.
Hope’s Presence in a Writer’s Life
Hope is first and foremost based on a true and certain Person, Christ Jesus, our hope. (1 Tim.1:1) Not only is Christ our hope, but we have this incredible gift. Christ indwells us. We can access Him within us. As Colossians 1:27 says, “Christ in you, the hope of glory.”
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- He is our hope from days past, the One who came to rescue us from sin and the grave, to bring us from death to life.
- He is our future hope. We wait for the day He shall gloriously appear again and take us to our truest home.
- He is our current hope, the One in whom we live and move and have our being.
When we behold Jesus, we Behold Hope. When we look in the mirror, we behold ourselves as ones who hold His hope within us. As writers, we want to take that hope and offer it to a world in need of healing and the goodness of hope. Through imagination and education, fiction and nonfiction provide ways to deepen the hearts of those who desire to inhale more of the Kingdom of God in their daily lives.
The work we do as writers expands as we lean into the Holy Spirit. We are crafted by God. We are His poeima, His craftsmanship, created by Him to do good works. We are the ones invited to begin good works with our words, then collaborate with Him.
Recently, my writing life felt lumpy and bumpy. Rhythms of writing needed a fresh infusion of hope. I considered Le Peau’s components: craft, art, and spirituality. Talking with Jesus, I realized I was weary of working alone on growing in the craft of writing, yet recognized that my capacity for change is quite small at the moment. Still, I hope for more.
For a sustainable shift, I hired a writing coach and editor. A writing coach and editor hiring a writing coach and editor brings joy. I’m headed towards hope in this choice. My writing coach/editor comes alongside. She sharpens my thoughts with her open-ended, thought-provoking questions. She reminds me of basics I know but haven’t applied, while she also suggests new ways to consider the use of words.
It’s a vulnerable place to stand when we writers take our rough drafts—whether essays, poems, or blogs—and let another set of eyes see. Working with another person’s point of view refines not only the words but also me, the writer. I’m all in, yet still, it’s a risk to be vulnerable. What you are reading right now hasn’t been through the filter of her perspective yet. Future blogs will have that opportunity.
Why risk it? I could stay on even keel and not make any changes. That would be the safest route, in my comfort zone. Yet because I have hope that my words might encourage hope for both my audience and my writing clients, I’m intentional in choosing growth. It will be worth the time, energy, and risk. I want my writing life to grow in craft, art, and spirituality. How about you?
Next Steps:
How might you keep going with the hope you have for the words housed in your heart, those you are eager to see appear in the world? What routines and rhythms stretch you? What places find you stuck and in need of expansion? A few rhythms I enter regularly include prayer, persistence, and presence. I imagine all of these are familiar to you. Would it be worth the risk to step in and try them again?
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- Prayer: We talk to God about our hopes for our words. We listen to His hopes and guidance for those same words.
- Persistence: We tackle stewardship with caring for our craft, art, and spiritual resources. We invite the Spirit to help as we discern growth points to explore.
- Presence: We take on the delight of companionship by engaging with a book coach, writing coach, or editor.
In other words, we don’t go through this writing life alone. Start with the One who matters most. Dig into the delight of words, just as a child digs into the delight of play as a way of creating. Stay steadfast by risking the accompaniment. Let someone offer accountability.
“This is just what I was hoping for!” It’s the refrain I aim for with my current works in progress. It can become true for you, too, in the fullness of life with Christ. Dig into your gifting. Hear the cheers of another person who sees your hope and holds it with you as you move in sync with Christ in you, the hope of Glory.
Like a child at play, I ask my writing coach/editor, “Come look. What do you think about what I’m up to here, and there, and yonder?” I practice to grow to be a better writer. In turn, this personal journey helps my professional journey as I become a more attuned book coach, writing coach, and editor.
As I behold Hope, I behold God’s goodness in the companionship of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Colossians 3:23 reminds us that we are invited to show up with hope. We ask for help as we work with all our heart to bring hope to those in the Kingdom of God and those who don’t yet know Jesus.
What’s holding you back?
Leap!
P.S. Investing in Yourself:
I’m currently booking clients for June through December.
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- In the areas of editorial work, such as developmental edits, I look at an entire manuscript.
- As an editor, I look at the punctuation, usage, grammar, spelling as well as tone of voice, plot or theme holes, and ways to engage the reader more.
- As a book coach, I companion writers from the spark of an idea to the sparkle of creation of a book. We travel a path of the whys, whats, and hows of writing.
- As a writing coach, I help writers grow in their craft of words.
- I also customize what you need to bring your writing life to a place of hope.
What can I do to come alongside and encourage you? Investing in yourself as a writer is both vulnerable and a holy practice. You are choosing to invest in the gifts and hope God has given you. Wouldn’t it be fun to say, “This is just what I was hoping for!” one day soon? Let’s schedule a FREE consultation appointment to see what God has in store for you.
