Don't Just Write For God, Write With Him.

Writing is different for every writer. For some its an outlet, for some its a job, for some its a hobby, and for others it is simply something their good at.

Writing was a huge emphasis in school. My mom homeschooled us and I remember her telling us we needed to write everyday. It didn't matter what we wrote, if we added pictures, if the spelling was on point, or if the grammar was correct, none of it matter as long as we wrote something. As we grew up, we would learn to edit what we had written and this became a major foundation in my current writing process.

Writing turned into an outlet for me. Expressing myself verbally is difficult, especially when I am upset. But on paper, I can write my thoughts as fluidly as they come. It doesn't have to be spelled right or grammatically correct. No pressure. Just words on a page. I simply write what I feel. There were a lot of letters I wrote to explain what was going inside of me because I was unable to say it aloud.

Then writing became fueled by emotion. I started writing poetry. Tell me to write a poem and I could do it. It would be hard, but I could achieve it. But it flows more naturally when it stems from my emotions. When emotions weren't there, I relied on inspiration. Books, movies, music. Anything really. My stories are created through some spark of inspiration. I wrote my first book when I was eleven and the sequel six months later. I recognized that God gave me the ability to piece words together in some form of literature and was going to use my writing to glorify God. So that's what the first two books were writing for. For God.

Then I started my third book, the process was harder. I was 13, fresh into high school, life was crazy, and it was the first book I seriously wanted to publish. Trying to juggle school, several sports, have a social life, and write a novel was no easy feat. I kept saying I was writing for God. It took me a while to realize that while I was doing it for God, I was doing the heavy lifting without Him. It was for His glory, but I wasn't inviting Him into the process. I was trying to do it on my own. So I decided to change that. Before each writing session I started asking God to work with me.

Inviting God into your writing process helps take off the pressure that you have to make it happen. Whether its asking Him to give you the words to write, the target audience He wants you to aim for, the editors, agents, and publishers He wants you to submit to, intentionally invite God into your process. Pray over the manuscript before you send it in. God's will shall be done. If He wants your work with a particular group, then He shall make it happen. Work along side God. Don't just write for God. Write with Him.