A Dream Becomes Reality

  When I was young I used to dream of becoming a published author. It was a secret dream, one that I did not share with anyone really. I honestly did not believe that this dream would ever come true. It was simply a fun dream that I kept deep in my heart.
  Until Jon Acuff wrote a book about following your dreams and started an online community of other dreamers where we could hustle together on our dreams and offer each other support and encouragement. I joined the group still not wanting to give voice to my real dream. At first, I simply worked on my blog and pretended that being a blogger was my dream. I was fooling myself.
   Finally at the end of February I decided that I was going to write a book. So I spent a few weeks planning, researching and writing my book. It didn't take long before I had my first draft completed. My book was not long, but it said all I wanted it to say. I found people to edit the book, I gave copies to friends and family to read, and then it sat in a folder on my computer's desktop for over a month.
   Then last week my husband and I attended a seminar about how to self-publish your book. After the seminar I did some research online and found the medium I wanted to use to self-publish. I spent the next week re-reading, re-editing, and formatting my book. Then on Friday I finally submitted my book for publishing. On Saturday morning, I awoke to a wonderful email telling that my book was now live and available in the Kindle store.

  I am officially a published author! My dream is now a reality! While I know that my book is not going to be a New York  Bestseller, but I am proud of it. Now that my first book is published, I have the motivation to keep writing. In fact, I am currently working on my first novel!
  I hope that you will take time to check out my book (it's only $0.99) and if you do check it out, please leave a review and let me know what you think!

 

Today I Hate My Body by Lisa Tant

A Goal Accomplished

       On Tuesday of this week I completed a goal that I began working on February 25, 2014. It was that day that I sat down a created an actual outline for my first book. Well, to be honest my goal began on February 18, 2014 with one of my most popular blog posts to date: Today I Hate My Body. This blog post was the catalyst for my book. I stepped out of my comfort zone and joined a Facebook group at the beginning of March called 30 Days of Hustle and I shared with that group my goal of writing a book. The purpose of doing joining this group and sharing my goal was to be encouraged and also held accountable to actually writing the book.
        I will admit that I was really scared to write a book. I feared that I do not possess the talent necessary to write a book. I feared that I would not finish since I have started many a project that have yet to be completed. I feared that I would fail.
        There were only 4 people who have known that I was writing a book since that day in February: my parents, my sister, and my husband. I later told a close friend and then even later I told the women in my Community Group. I did not want to tell people in case I did not finish. I was terrified of letting everyone down or being seen as a failure. It took a lot of courage for me to actually tell people that I was starting this journey. I knew that I would never actually finish unless there was a core group of people who could journey with me and push me towards the finish line.
        Well on Tuesday, March 25, 2014 I wrote the final words of the first draft of my book!

          I have sent the book to some people for editing and I am preparing to begin the next stage: revision! For those who have been on this journey with me from the beginning and for those who are just joining this journey now, here are some things you can pray for me and also ways you can encourage me:

1. Pray that I will be committed to the process-it would be very easy for me to just say, "I've written it and now I'm done".
2. Pray that I will accept the feedback well-I struggle with criticism, especially in regards to my writing. I need to see the feedback as ways to help improve my book.
3. Pray that I will find the words to "thicken" the book-currently the book is very short, and I feel that I do need to add to it-right now that seems difficult
4. Pray that I will remember that this is my first book and it will not make me rich and famous-pray that I will remember that this is to His Glory, not my own

        So to close, cheers to an accomplished goal and cheers to the next phase! It feels really good to be in this moment!