Advice for Aspiring Writers

While it feels a bit presumptuous to have a page dedicated to giving advice, I receive a number of emails on a regular basis from people who want to become writers and writers who want to pursue publishing. (You may be surprised to learn that those are not the same endeavors.) I wish I had margin to answer every email with tailor-made advice, but I know my limits. That said, I want to help when I can because I know how much I was helped by seasoned writers in my early days of pursuing writing as a ministry and a career. So, this page is dedicated to answering the questions I get the most from new writers and aspiring authors!

Please note: not everyone’s path to publishing takes the same shape. My path will be different from yours, and yours will be different from some of your other writing friends. But, there are general principles we all must follow if we want to grow our writing lives, strengthen our craft, or move ahead with our writing goals. As far as my own credentials, I have a B.A. in Creative Writing from Union University, and I’ve kept some sort of public blog for twenty years. I’ve published three books with traditional publishers, and have written numerous times for online periodicals such as The Gospel Coalition, Risen Motherhood, Journeymen, Revive our Hearts, Well-Watered Women, Proverbs 31, YouVersion, Dwell Differently, Practical Shepherding, Crossway, and many more. I am certainly no expert, but I have learned a lot about writing over the years, and I’m happy to share what I’ve learned.

If publishing is your ultimate goal but you are not writing regularly, please don’t skip the “Advice to New Writers” section. You might want to skip all of this and ask me for an email address for an acquisitions editor, but I need to tell you up front that I will not give it. I do not have the pull at any of my publishers that you might think I have! And honestly? You need to do the work because the work is what grows you as a writer. It has done that for me.

ADVICE TO NEW WRITERS
There are two things that will, without a doubt, make you a better writer: writing and reading. You cannot grow in your craft without those two practices. You’re going to find those two elements as the foundation of most of what I suggest from this point forward. So first, you need to write. Privately and publicly. A lot. Daily—even if it’s just a few sentences. Here are some ways to do that.

Keep a journal.
I know not everyone is a fan of writing in a journal, but because so much of a writer’s work is shared publicly, a journal is a good place to work out what you’re thinking, feeling, processing, praying about, and learning privately. Journaling can help you get in daily writing without having to polish it for an audience. It helps you work out those writing muscles in a safe, unseen way. It can also serve as a jumping off point for content that you want to think through more. Much of what I share in my books or on my blog started in my journal in a very rudimentary form.

Start a blog.
I would suggest starting a blog or a Substack (a little easier to start than a regular blog and is also free) where you write on your niche topic fairly regularly. Share your work on social media. You’ll garner some regular readers this way, and it will teach you to develop content regularly and write for a specific audience. Some writers only want to write for themselves. That’s fine. That’s called journaling. But if you want to write as a ministry or if you think you might have book aspirations someday, you need to write for readers. Blogging can help you develop a target audience and write with them in mind. Blogging can also help you develop a regular writing habit.

Write articles.
While writing and reading are non-negotiable for growth in skill, another necessary ingredient for growth is working with an editor. I am terrible at proofing my own work. I miss typos and mixed metaphors all the time. Sometimes I just can’t see what a piece needs without letting someone else read it. Writing articles for online publications can help you learn to write with expertise because you’ll work with an editor to sharpen your work. You’ll learn a lot about communication, grammar, addressing the reader, and (if you’re writing to teach a Scriptural concept) writing with a biblical lens. While it’s always a scary feeling to open a document full of red marks and comments, your work will be better for it. Consider submitting an article on your niche topic to ministry blogs like Risen Motherhood, Journeywomen, Proverbs 31, TGC, Desiring God, GCD, For the Church, etc. Many of these places take open submissions or have guidelines on their websites somewhere.

If you’re an aspiring author, you must begin developing a portfolio of online publications to establish yourself as a credible writer. The more you’ve written for other publications, the more comfortable a publisher will feel working with you in the future. Additionally, working with editors at online periodicals will prepare you for working with editors and copy editors at a publisher.

Read. Read. Read.
Reading books about writing will help sharpen your craft and often inspire you to get out of a writing slump. Bird by Bird by Ann Lamott is an excellent one to start with; it was the first book on writing I read in college and it has stayed with me. I’d also recommend The Memoir Project by Marion Roach Smith to learn how to write about real life stories with integrity. On Writing Well by William Zinser is a good nuts and bolts book on grammar and sentences. If you’re not strong on the fundamentals, be sure to read that one. Blogging for God’s Glory in a Clickbait World was written by some writer friends of mine and is great for a heart check. I’d also recommend Write Better by Andrew T. Le Peau.

Additionally, if you’re not a fiction reader, become one. Nothing will improve your writing skills like reading good creative fiction. I have zero aspirations to write fiction myself, but undoubtedly, being a voracious fiction reader has made (and continues to make) me a better writer. Much of what I write about is abstract, but learning to anchor abstract truths in concrete settings has come from my fiction reading habit.

If you’ve not read much in your niche, you need to begin reading books in the category that your writing would fall into. Even if you don’t have book aspirations, find other writers who write on your favorite subjects and read them.

Listen to writing podcasts.
Below are a few that have lots of interviews with different kinds of writers that will encourage you and keep you focused. You’ll learn about the industry as well. You can find them on any podcast app.

HomeRow by Jeff Medders
Pastor Writer by Chase Replogle (not just for pastors)
Writing Off Social (for writers who don’t want to use social media)

ADVICE TO ASPIRING AUTHORS
So you’ve been writing for a while (I hope) and now you’ve got a book idea. Great! As one of my editors told me years ago, “the world will always need new voices on old topics.” That said, publishing is a difficult industry to break into. That same editor told me that getting your first book contract is the hardest part. A second contract or third or beyond? Easy. It’s the first one that’s hardest. And that’s because you have to establish yourself as a credible voice on your topic. Most publishers want three things from an author: a good idea, good writing skills, and a large online platform. They’ll usually take two of the three, but ideally they’d like all three. Some publishers lean towards good idea + large platform. Others are fine with good writing + good idea. I’ve been blessed to work with three publishers who were more interested in my ideas and my writing than my small online following. That says a lot for their goals in putting out good content. You can purchase a large following (but you shouldn’t). But good writing? That’s a skill that must be developed.

You’ll see some overlap here with my advice to new writers. But I do receive emails from people who write a lot and think they can write a book, but who have never written with an actual reader in mind. A lot of journal pages do not add up to a full length trade book. Journaling helps you write but it does not make a book.

Keep in mind that most authors have received numerous rejections in the course of their writing life. Sometimes that’s because the publisher doesn’t have room in their editorial calendar for the author’s book idea. Sometimes they’re already working on a project that’s similar in nature. Sometimes it’s because that book idea should really just be a blog post and nothing more. Sometimes it’s a case of right book, wrong publisher, wrong time. One of my books was rejected by a publisher I’d already published with. So it found a home with another publisher who ran with it and, in my estimation, made it more successful than it would have been otherwise.

Speaking of success…don’t expect it. There’s not a lot of money in writing, especially in Christian non-fiction trade books. I feel like two of my books have been unusually successful in comparison with their peers in the general market, but I can’t make a living off of them. I don’t want to burst the bubble of your publishing dreams, but you’re probably not going to write a bestseller. That said, you can still write good books for the church that can encourage and equip and comfort and teach. You can trust that God will get your books into the hands of the readers who need them. Whether that’s 500 readers or 5,000 is up to Him.

Okay, now for some concrete steps to pursue the path to publishing.

Network with other writers.
In my experience, networking with other writers is one of your best ways “in” to traditional publishing. It’s helpful to learn from other writers, train with other writers, talk with other writers, read other writers. When writers cheer on other writers, we all benefit. So, join a writers’ network. A good network would include peer reviews, writing prompts, coaching and training for specific types of writing (fiction, non-fiction, proposals, etc.). My personal favorite is the GCD Writer’s Guild. Other options include Compel, which provides good training and coaching for devotional writing, and The Young Writer for younger writers. Even if you don’t have book aspirations but simply want to grow in your skills, a writer’s network is invaluable.

Established writers may, at times, connect you with acquisitions editors at publishing houses or with literary agents who represent authors to publish, but please do not seek out relationships with established authors to this end. I can’t speak for all authors, obviously, but I feel very protective of my editors’ email addresses. I would only pass on the name of a writer to one of my editors if I felt very strongly about their work. Still, networking with other writers in a setting that exists for that purpose is a good way to establish yourself as a voice in your writing niche and to make friends who will support one another.

It’s not quite networking, but you might consider hiring a writing coach if you feel like you need one-on-one support. Ann Kroeker comes highly recommended, though I’ve never used her services. My friend Marissa Henley offers freelance editing support, and she knows her way around a book proposal. She helped me with my first one. (Let me be clear: I am not a writing coach. I’ll leave that to the professionals.)

Keep writing.
Keep blogging and writing articles online. Every publisher will want you to have some kind of online platform and a portfolio of published articles. Working with editors at online periodicals can also help you make contacts with acquisitions editors at publishing houses. In my case, a writing friend whom I met through networking mentioned me to an editor who then researched all of my writing online and emailed me with a request for a proposal.

Hire a literary agent.
Confession: I’ve never had a literary agent. It’s really unsual to publish without one, but I’ve always worked directly with acquisitions editors and it has worked well for me. I once met a reputable agent at a conference who told me this was not normal and kindly offered to represent me. I’ve not taken advantage of that offer yet, but I keep it in my back pocket because I know it’s odd not to be represented. Because I’m not an expert on this part of the publishing process, I’ll direct you to the Christian Writer’s Market Guide (updated yearly) for the contact information of agents you can query for representation. Once agented, you’ll be represented to publishers to “shop” your book proposal. Basically, agents help you develop a proposal, shield you from publisher rejections, and negotiate contracts. You’ll pay them a percentage of your advance if you receive a contract.

Write a book proposal.
Once you feel like you’re ready to move in the direction of a book, start writing a book proposal. Publishers don’t want a finished manuscript. They want a proposal and some sample chapters. Many Christian publishers have a template or guideline on their website. While you’re unlikely to get a response when you submit an unsolicited proposal through their website or submissions email, the templates provided can help you see what they’re looking for. Publishers differ on the format, but the information is basically the same. A writer’s networking group should offer training on this, but so will a thorough Google search. This post is helpful.

Attend a writer’s workshop.
While not necessary, this is great for networking with other writers, gives you practice in pitching a book to an editor, and can teach you all the ins and outs of publishing. I’ve attended three in the last ten years and learned a lot at each one.

Consider your platform. Or not.
I don’t love to recommend this one, but as mentioned above, some publishers want you to have a large social media following, but most of them just want you to have some kind of online presence so you can share your work with followers. I hate the marketing side of this, but if you’ll view social media followers as readers rather than followers, it will help you keep your heart in the right place. I’ve got a very modest online following of readers. I try to be helpful in what I share, but where I really like to connect with readers is through my monthly newsletter. I find it to be a bit more personal to send a thoughtful email than to rely on readers to sift through the glut of posts on social media to know what’s going on in my life. A newsletter subscriber has to take an additional step to stay connected to your writing work. I take their investment seriously, and I have reason to believe that publishers these days may be more interested in a newsletter list than a social media account. You can, of course, write a book without a social media account or a newsletter list, but I think it will be much harder.

Take the long view.
It’s not easy to break into the world of publishing as a first-time author, nor is it quick. Many authors put in years of writing before getting a book contract. Publishing itself is slow. From contract to publication, most books take 18-24 months to complete. And that’s after you’ve done the work of building up your writing portfolio, narrowing your focus, networking, learning, reading, writing, sharing, writing a proposal, shopping the proposal, and waiting for a contract offer. Most book ideas live in a writer’s mind for years before they become a book you can hold in your hands. I wrote the phrase “the promise is His presence” in my journal in 2014. My book with the same title was published in 2019.

All that to say, you know you’ve got a book in you if the idea is still burning after you’ve worked long and hard to build your blog, your network, your portfolio of articles, your proposal, your agent queries. If you believe that you have something to say and are willing to take the long view, it’s possible to bring your dream to life.

One last thing…
You’ll notice I haven’t mentioned self-publishing once. I honestly know so little about that route of publishing that I feel ill-equipped to advise you how to pursue it or if you even should. You need to know you’ll do all of your own editing, designing, and marketing of your book if you self-publish, or you’ll have to hire out those things. (A traditional publisher is invaluable in helping you market your book because they have more resources and a larger reach than you do. They budget for marketing your book!) If you’re good at those things and have margin for them, self-publishing might work for you. Or, if you want to write something for your own personal record (think a bound book of journal entries or family stories), self-publishing is probably the best path for you. You can look into Create Space via Amazon or simply Google “self-publishing” for more information than I can give you. Hybrid publishing boasts of bridging the gap between traditional and self-publishing, but to me, it seems like you’re paying a lot of money for what you could likely do yourself. Again, I have to remind you I don’t know enough about the process to speak with any authority here. Definitely take my opinion with a grain of salt. I can’t speak very authoritatively on this.

Below are some helpful articles that may answer additional questions you have about writing and publishing. I’ll add to these and update this page as I see good articles come across my feed.