“But there’s not much you can do about that pesky luck.”

It’s like that old joke about the man who dies and when he sees God in Heaven says, “God, I was a good and faithful servant. I followed every commandment and lived an honorable life. And every day I prayed to win the lottery but you didn’t answer my prayer.” And God replied, “I heard your prayer… but you never bought a lottery ticket.”

I think we can “help” ourselves have good luck. We have to be proactive by working hard at our craft and getting out there in the writing world at conferences and such. Like you said, if you never went to the big conference year after year, you may never have sold your first book. I think there was only a tiny smidgeon of “good luck” in there… what really happened was 99% hard work and determination!

I forget who said it but I love this quote…

Often, the only thing that stands in the way of our success is the inability to stick to the plan long enough to achieve it.

One of the highlights of the OCW conference was sitting down with an author I highly respect and idolize–in a very godly way, of course–and having him enjoy my work. Never would have happened if I hadn’t been at the conference and been willing to risk hearing my writing stunk.

Thank you for the honesty. It’s true. And if I may say so, after practising visual art for over 20 years,any HONEST artistic endeavour is incredibly difficult to achieve, never mind get noticed.

I think that much discontent comes when success is confused with fame. I would suggest that the artist/writer is called to do his work first to teach about his/her personal happiness and growth - to propel them along their own journey. To push them to find out who he or she is and what comes to them that they need to say. This is a personal and solitary road. Fame is a different thing, not necessarily connected with talent, even. Sorry I’ve made a speech!

I think my opinion is somewhere between Randy’s, Amy’s and Donald’s.

I don’t believe in luck. I believe in God. Nothing happens by chance without God knowing it. I think there are a lot of writers out there, unpublished, that work and work and work and will never be published.

Was that God’s will? I have no idea. It could be that God wanted them to write, but not be published. I learn a lot from what I write, so even if no one else gets the privilege to read my awesome awe-inspiring words (LOL), I do. (and so does my mom…) hehe

Or, it might be that they have sat on their duffs for years, writing and writing, and not doing anything else. Instead of going to God, they wait for God to come to them.

I firmly believe that God requires action. He desires patience and wants us to wait on him, but we need to be in tune with God enough to GO when he says GO, and to WAIT when he says WAIT.

To copy Amy’s tactic of an old analogy, it’s like the story of the guy who lives in a house, and a storm is coming. He prays for God to get him out safely. The storm comes, and God sends all these people (I don’t remember the story detailed… I should listen better in church!), including a guy in a boat, and the dude just says, “Nope, I already prayed. God’s gonna save me. I don’t need you or your old boat.”

He ends up drowning and is at the gates of heaven and says to God, “I trusted you, I asked you to save me and you didn’t! What’s up with that?”

God Replies, “Ok, idiot, I tried! I even sent a boat! And I KNOW I didn’t make you blind… so you had to see it!”

The point is, God will send us ways to succeed, we have to be in tune with him to listen and grab hold. God can open a door and wave at me and say, “Krista, come on over!” But sometimes he wants us to trust him enough to obey his whisper, go up to a closed door that could be locked, and open it ourselves. It takes a lot more faith to try those closed doors than to sit there waiting for the big thunder boom of lightning.

“Knock and the door shall be opened”

“Seek and ye shall find”

“Seek first the Kingdom of God…”

(sorry for the forever long comment…)

I’m on my fourth year going to the Christian Writers Guild conference in Colorado Springs. I haven’t sold anything yet, but sometimes that’s not the point. Networking can be part of it, but there’s also friendships with other writers to be built. The workshops available can many times be worth the entry fee. Every year I’ve gone, I spent the next three weeks mentally disseminating it all I learned so much.

In the meantime, I have mucho work to accomplish in polishing up my current works, and see what else I can write that will wow editors (hey, it never hurts to dream big).

Not that I’m saying don’t buy “how-to” books. They are important tools for a writer.

But you need a mix. Randy is right in that this can be a lonely business. It was for me until I met my writing partner at a conference. Now I write, but I have someone I can call or email anytime and talk things over with. We help each other, encourage, pray for, laugh with, cry with and my life is the better for her.

I’ve attended the same conference for 10 years. I’ve hit a few other conferences. I’d love to travel more and try out conferences where editors I want to meet are on faculty, but I have a special needs child. I simply can’t run around the country all during the year. That being said, attending the same conference is a good thing, but checking out other conferences can benefit you, as well. The key is to find the best place to present your work.

The problem with conferences is time and money. How long can I dedicate a week of vacation each year to conferences, when the wife is really wanting to do other things? How long can I plunk down $1,200 a year on travel, registration, and board, to have met 3 or 4 people (at most) well enough to carry on a casual e-mail relationship, and those writers in the same situation as me?

It’s a tough business. I sometimes wish the bug hadn’t bit me.

Almost tongue-in-cheek
Ann

Ann

I had a great time. Thanks, Pam.