Eight Encouraging Tips to Keep Your Pen Flowing

8 Encouraging Tips to Keep Your Pen Flowing
By Chris Courtney

Haven't had any successwith your writing yet? Have you collected enough rejection letters to wallpaper your office? Is that ink pen feeling heavier every time you lift it? I have three words for you: do not quit. The only way you will lose is if you stop writing. Just because you haven't yet achieved your writing goals does not mean you never will. Here are eight tips to help you keep on keeping on with your writing.

1. Keep the Fire Burning

Find what ignites your passion. Discover the aspects of ministry that fired you up. Then write about it. Share your heart with others. Be yourself, and let the words God gives you flow from your fingers onto the paper (or keyboard), and into the hearts of others who need to read what you write (and, yes, people need to read what YOU write!). Let your spark ignite your writing, and let your writing ignite others' lives.

2. Writers Write...Always!

Journal. Jot. Note. Scribble. Everyday. Write something. Even if it's just a page. Even if it's just a paragraph. Even if it's just a pithy new word. Create. Daily. Never leave home without a notepad and pen. You never know when the muse will strike. Be ready when it does.

3. Get Connected

Find a writing accountability partner. Join a writing group, either in your town or online. Make friends with like-minded people and get connected with the writing community. These folks will help you stay focused and excited about your writing, and offer plenty of practical help (publishing tips, critiques, etc.).

4. Pray

Ask God for guidance on what you write. Ask Him to open doors of opportunity to share your heart, and trust that He will. Pray for another struggling writer who needs encouragement.

5. Set Goals

Make your goals attainable and flexible. Don't aim straight for the NY Times best seller list right off the bat. Try some smaller print and online publications at first, to build up a resume. Then grow from there. By the way, if your goal is to get rich quick by writing, there are better ways to do it. My total sum income from writing thus far this year is a whopping $26.65. Will the pay get better? Absolutely! But, right now, I realize I'm sowing seeds. I've only been attempting to get published for a few months now.

6. Don't Get Discouraged

If you miss your goals, don't beat yourself up. Re-evaluate and revise your goals, and go again. If you get rejected, hey - it isn't personal. Editors have a myriad of editorial reasons for rejecting wonderful works. Those reasons are not necessarily a reflection on your worth as a writer or a human being.

7. Turn Off the TV

Televison will only suck the intelligence from your brain. Besides, do you really want to watch the twenty-four hour "Friends-A-Thon"?

8. Flush the Fear

Get rid of the doubts. If you're thinking, "I haven't a thing to say that would ever benefit anyone", think again. God created you with a purpose! My wife and I have a ministry called E-ncouragement. We send out a twice-weekly e-zine as well as a daily e-devotional. By committing to this, we have reaped tremendous benefits. We have seen readership jump nearly six-fold since the beginning of the year. We are reaching people with Christ's love around the globe, touching lives we would never have touched otherwise in places we never dreamed we'd reach. This commitment has also done wonders for sharpening my writing, editing and communication skills. In a nutshell, it boils down to two things: faith and perseverance. Keep on keeping on.

Write your little heart out. And trust God with the results. You will be richly blessed with a wonderful career as long as you never give up.

Chris Courtney, along with his wife Jennie, is a Christian writer and (soon-to-be) speaker based in Minneapolis MN. Together they operate E-ncouragement, a place of refreshment for weary souls on the web. You can contact Chris and Jennie at: e-ncouragement316@cfaith.com or by visiting their website at: http://www.e-ncouragement.com