I attended the Ragged Edge in August of 2011. It was a life changing experience for me as an author. I got to meet one of my favorite authors and spend some time talking and listening to him in what was an intimate setting less than a hundred people in attendance. There were a number of other phenomenal authors that I learned from during that conference and I came home renewed and refreshed.
Let me rewind to my book Runaway for a second to catch you up. Runaway, as I mentioned in the Book section of my web page was inspired by my poem The Juvenile. I will post it in the download section if you'd like to see the inspiration. That poem was written in 2002, from the poem I wrote two chapters because I knew there was more to the story. I laid the chapters down and didn't do anything with it until December of 2006. I picked up the two chapters, revised them and completed the rough draft within six months. I went through editing and revisions. I then started searching for a publisher or agent. I finally found an agent that worked with me and introduced me to several publishers but I didn't have any luck the traditional publishing route. I ultimately paid a professional editor and self published Runaway.
Fast forward to a couple weeks after the Ragged Edge. I was writing my second novel and about a third of the way through the rough draft when I suddenly just stopped writing one day. I didn't realize at the time, actually I didn't realize until just a month ago why I stopped writing that second novel. It went back to something that Ted Dekker said to us. He said something to the effect that when he finished his first novel someone told him to put it in a drawer and start on the next one. He advised us to do the same. Now, mind you I was writing the next novel but the thought of putting Runaway in a drawer bothered me. Even if no one ever reads it, I had worked a very long time on that book. It was birthed from me and will always be special to me. I internalized what he said subconsciously and did the opposite. Over the last eight years I have seen several other authors from the conference churn out work after work while I'm still sitting here. What Ted Dekker said was TRUTH.
That brings me back to the present and having lost sight for so long. I wrote a short story, my first ever during my vacation at Christmas. I got hung up on wanting to be a successful author and lost sight of why I really write. I write because it's who I am. I write because I am not complete unless I do, I do not function at my best unless I am writing and creating something. Even if no one ever reads it, even if I am never published, I will write because it is my nature to do so.
It's Time!