Julane FisherOn New Year’s Day, my husband and I took our kids skiing. The night we arrived, the fog was so thick, we couldn’t see the lines on the road. This particular ski resort is called an “upside down resort”, where everything rests at 4,848 feet in the air! To get to our hotel, we drove six miles around steep curves with very little visibility. At one point, we were so close to the mountain’s edge, I thought our car was falling off the cliff. I’ve never been so relieved to see a hotel!
The next day, the view from the mountain top was breathtaking. All I could see for miles were snow capped mountains. The danger from the night before vanished as we made our way down the snowy trails.
The journey reminded me of what it’s like to be a writer. The painstaking hours of isolation. The ups and downs of disappointment and rejection. The winding roads that never seem to end. Then, one day it happens. You write “The End” on a manuscript. You submit your story for publication. Then you wait. And wait some more.
You spend years of your life working on a story, only to be told no by an agent or editor. Ever feel like you’re traveling around curvy roads for miles getting nowhere? How do writers survive the journey?
I think you have to know going in that it’s going to take a long time. It’s not an instant career. There are hurdles to jump over, obstacles to dodge, and roads to take. But it’s not impossible. I’m living proof.
One day you’ll wake up and everything will be clear. All the work, all the pain, will be worth it in the end. You see your book cover for the first time, and the tears fall. You’re told your story won the contest, and you jump up and down. The journey has really just begun, but the danger is over.
Enjoy those moments when they come. Take a minute to celebrate. Then, thank God for the journey He brought you through. Every mile you couldn’t see through the fog. Every minute you thought you were drifting off the cliff. And know, the whole time, your Heavenly Father knew where He was leading you—to the mountain top!
Tracy Popolizio
Laurie Germaine
Sharon Rene
Thank God for each part of the journey. From rejections to being accepted, God has a plan for our writing. 🙂