A Sneak Peek

After many requests and much trepidation, I agreed to show you a snippet of my book.  I know it is silly for me to be afraid to show people, since my ultimate goal is to get my work published, but showing it before it has been edited by a professional, is a little scary to me.  I have edited this page, many times, but as many authors/editors will say, I am too emotionally attached to my work to look at it objectively.  I realize this type of genre isn't everyone's preference, but I hope you will look at it with objectivity for what it is and what it is supposed to be, a Christian Historical/Romance Fiction.  If you spot any errors that need editing, please feel free to comment and help me out.   So, I am giving you a sneak peek and hoping you enjoy a glimpse into my story. Introducing......the first page in my book, Hope for Charity...by Sandy Kay Slawson.

Hope for Charity

Chapter 1

Husthwaite, North Yorkshire, England

1747

Charity Baines stood across the street looking at the mercantile.  O, how she wished there were another choice, that wasn’t a days walk away or more.  After overhearing what she did from her father and step-mother, Gwyneth, a few nights ago, she wished she never had to walk into that shop again. Now, she didn’t know if she would ever feel comfortable in there.  She wrapped her shawl around her shoulders tightly and gave a shiver.  Spring would be here any day and she could not wait.  She did not like being cold, although she tolerated it, when she had to, but give her a warm day and she blossomed with the flowers.    At least the clouds had vanished and the sun was unhindered from shining down and warming up the day to a bearable chill.  Charity glanced at the sun.  She had hoped to get an earlier start today, but here it was almost noon.

Charity looked at the mercantile and the shops surrounding it and noticed how the village was changing and growing.  Men, women and children seemed to be busy as bees going here and there and doing who knew what.  She wondered how many people lived here now and where they all came from.  Some of the women and men looked like they were wearing their Sunday best, unlike her in her everyday work dress. She supposed if they lived in the village, they didn’t need to wear work clothes like a sheep farmer’s daughter.  She didn’t come for a Sunday or Monday (as this day was) stroll, though. She had a list of supplies she needed to get and she needed to get it done in a timely manner or Gwyneth would throw a fit.  She just did not want to go in that shop.

As Charity mentally prepared herself for her task, she looked again at the buildings across the street. The mercantile connected with the post office and a barber shop.  It looked like someone had recently painted the front of all three places of business.  The mercantile had  some new stenciling in the window.  She read it out loud, “Hawksworth’s  General Store and Mercantile Since 1729.”  Almost as long as she had been alive.  She looked down the street and saw the smoke from the blacksmith and the houses along the street that were growing in number.  She saw men going in the tavern and heard a piano start playing a tune she wasn’t familiar with.  As the village grew, there would surely be more shops in the village and hopefully one of them would be another mercantile.  Charity chastised herself for her cowardice, that could be years away and she needed supplies now.  “I have to stop putting this unpleasant chore off,”  she told herself.

Delete and Rewrite

I know you are all as excited as I am to delve into my editing adventures. To learn about my adding in commas and fixing those run on sentences and let's not forget the oh so exciting misspelled words! But, for the sake of time....and not boring you to death.  I am only going to talk about one aspect of my editing the Delete and Rewrite. (I am up to Chapter 8, by the way.)  

As I was fixing the coffee yesterday morning, I was thinking about my editing. (Doesn't everybody?) And I was thinking about how as the creator of my story and my Characters lives, I have the power (HaHaHa).......I have the power to delete something they said or did and rewrite it.  It is then, as if it never happened.  It is from this thought, that I saw the comparison to our Creator, the Lord God Almighty.  Now, my little creation and God's CREATION is of course not comparable, but it is the ability to delete and rewrite or the way the Lord does it, wash white as snow and remake, that I would like to try in my own feeble way, to compare.

Isaiah 1:18

"Come now, let us reason together, says the Lord, though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be white as snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall become like wool."

2 Corinthians 5:17 

"Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation.  The old has passed away; behold, the new has come."

Now, when I rewrite a scene or a sentence, it only affects my one story.  When the Lord Jesus, takes a sinner and deletes their sin and remakes them, He is affecting, changing that person's life as well as every person they come in contact with.  Generations of people can be affected by one sin and generations of people can be affected by one sinner forgiven.  Some examples of this are: Adam, Sarah, Abraham, David, Saul....Me.  Look them up, great Bible stories that tell about sinners sinning and how we are affected, even today, by some of their sins.  And I can see in my own kids, the results of some of my sins and how that can be passed down to their children. (Sorry, Kids!) But, the Lord Jesus not only stands ready and willing to forgive, He is able to forget your sin....all of it.

Isaiah 43:25 

"I, I am He who blots out your transgressions for my own sake, and I will not remember your sins."

As I delete and rewrite, I care that my Characters end up acting and looking just the way I want them to.  Our Creator wants us to act and look like Him.  He said, 

1 Peter 1:15-16

"but as He who called you is Holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, since it is written, "You shall be holy, for I am Holy."

I don't know about you, but if it weren't for Jesus Christ washing me clean, I would be awfully filthy with my sin.  I didn't want to carry that burden on my back.  We can't be holy on our own, but God is so good.  He thought of everything!  Listen,

2 Corinthians 5:21

"For our sake He made Him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God."

So, He doesn't only wash us clean of our sin, He remakes us with His Righteousness (Holiness)!!!  What a deal!  You can't make things in your life unhappen, like I can in my book, but our Creator can bring beauty from the ashes.  He can forgive and forget completely.  Are there still consequences to our sin? Yes, because we live in a world full of other sinners, and it is hard for a sinner to forget or forgive and most of the time, they (we) don't even want to.  But, the Lord Jesus says, 

Matthew 11:28-30

"Come to Me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly of heart, and you will find rest for your souls.  For My yoke is easy, and My burden is light."

Would you like for the Lord Jesus to delete and remake your story?  This is how,

Romans 10:9

"because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved."

Romans 5:6-10

"You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly.  Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous person, though for a good person someone might possibly dare to die. But God demonstrates His own love for us in this:  While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.  Since we have now been justified by His blood, how much more shall we be saved from God's wrath through Him!  For if, while we were God's enemies, we were reconciled to Him through the death of His Son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved through His life"

My oldest brother recently shared a song by Singer/Song Writer Natalie Grant (one of my favorites), called "Clean" and I felt that this song really puts into words what I am so in-eloquently trying to explain today.  So, I thought I would end with it.  I hope it blesses you, as much as it blessed me.  

Thank you, Lord for using Your servant Natalie Grant to speak truth to us through song,  Please take my attempt at explaining Your amazing love, ability to completely forgive and forget and speak to someone's heavy, burdened, sin stained heart. In Jesus' Name Amen.

What Comes Next?

So, I finished my Novel...well, not quite.  I finished my 1st Draft, so what comes next?  Although, I took a day or two to relish my accomplishment, I didn't stop there.  There is still work to be done and that starts with Self-Editing.  "What is that?" you may say.  That is where I go back through my work, maybe many times and look for mistakes, inconsistencies, or just maybe see if the story flows and reads well.  So, all of that takes time, but I have gone through Chapters 1-4 already at least once and hope to get 5 and maybe 6 done today.

There is much help out there for a newbie like me.  YouTube is filled with Writers and Authors giving advice on Self-Editing and the Web has many great places to get advice on how to make my writing the best it can be.  Just this morning, I read an article in The Writer magazine called The top 10 golden rules of self-editing by Ryan G. Van Cleave, a writing teacher and Author.  If it weren't for helpful information like this, I would be a little lost in how to go about this rather overwhelming endeavor.  Not quite as overwhelming as writing my novel in the first place, but pretty close.  Why does it matter?  Well, it matters, because I want my work to be the best it can be.  Several people have asked to read my novel NOW ha ha, but it is my work of art.  Would a painter allow you to hang up their painting, before they got it just the way they wanted it?  Probably not...to me letting someone read my work, before I get it the best I can get it seems...a little like walking around with a hospital gown on...it just shows a few more flaws than we would want anyone to see.

Why didn't I do it right the first time? During the creative process of writing, getting the story down on paper or typing it on the computer, is more important than getting it completely right.  If the story is flowing through my mind to my finger tips, I don't want to quench my flow of creativity by worrying about whether my grammar is just right or if I am contradicting myself.  Those errors can be fixed later, when I am not in the middle of writing down my story as I see it happening in my mind.

I hope to get through this process quickly, but I don't want to rush too much and miss something.  I am already in contact with a professional editor, who actually contacted me first and I am gathering information there.  I hope to compare a few editors, before I take that step.  I have a little time, before I make that decision.  My goal though, is to keep moving forward and making progress, because nobody want to see this through to publication and beyond more than me.  I am continuing to pray for guidance and I hope you will pray for me, too.  

In Christ,

Sandy Kay Slawson

THE END!!

I did it!  I wrote my first Novel from beginning to end and I am so excited and thankful!  Thankful to the Lord for giving me this desire to serve Him, through the creative process of writing and thankful to my husband and family for their support and love.

As much as I want to celebrate this achievement and I will...I know the work is not done yet.  There is self-editing, professional editing, publishing, marketing and probably a few other things in there I don't know about yet.  For now though, I am going to enjoy this moment.  With tears in my eyes and joy in my heart I say, "Thank you, Lord!"  

This book, just the way it is, came straight from my heart and a desire to share a story that has been there for many years.  My novel isn't ready for consumers yet though,  there is no telling how many grammatical errors that will need to be fixed and a multitude of other things that will need to make it ready for readers, but the story is the one I wanted to write and I did it.

I will try my best to get this book ready for your eyes quickly and hopefully the publishing process will be an exciting adventure and not a frustrating headache.  I hope you will pray for me and the work I still need to do.

THE END

In Christ,

Sandy Kay Slawson

Back to Reality

Well, sort of.  I am back to reality bodily.  Back to the daily routines and chores.  Back to real life, except my mind, which is at least some of the time still in the fictional world I have created around the characters in my book.  Bodily, I have been on a working vacation with my husband.  Spending hours on the beaches and by the pools at or near our hotel in Florida.  Working on my book, while hearing the waves roll in or the waterfall by the pool splash down, was wonderful.  It's hard to say goodbye to days full of fun in the sun or writing in the shade, as the case may be, but real life calls.  

So, it is back to writing in between doing dishes, folding laundry, taking care of animals, etc. etc.   Finding time to do the necessary things of life, even has to happen on vacation, but any responsible person will do what needs to be done, even if they would rather be doing something else.  Some things are just harder to make yourself do than others.  Most people have jobs they go to most everyday. When they go to their job, no one expects them to do anything else and when they leave work, they don't have to think about it until the next day.  I know some jobs aren't like that, work follows them home,  but when your job is at home and in my case is the home, as well as my writing, there is no getting away from it, except to go on a vacation or take a long weekend away.

Sitting on the beach, I could stare at the sky and think about the blue of my hero's eyes and how to describe that kind of blue.  I could stare at the green of the water and think about how to describe the green of my heroine's eyes.  With my husband beside me, encouraging me to take the time to write, the only distraction, was the sound of a pelican or seagull nearby.  If I had those kinds of working conditions all the time, I could write a book in no time.  But, real life calls and I will write as I can.  I am on the last two chapters, though.  So, I made great progress.   I am so thankful for the chance to get away and a husband that takes me away every now and then and encourages me to write.  

I hope you are able to take a break from reality sometime soon, too.  Even if it is only through the pages of a good book.  Maybe it will be mine!

In Christ,

Sandy Kay Slawson

Big Decisions-Secular or Christian Markets

When Writing a book, a big decision has to be made.  Who will my readers be?  There is a great divide.  The Secular Market and the Christian Market and the debate is going strong among Christian Writers about which market we as Christians should be targeting.  There are Christians writing in the secular market, Erika Clay, Mark Young, Dean Koontz, James Scott Bell, and John Lescroart and let's not forget old favorites like C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien.  One Writer/Author that left the Secular Market is Terri Blackstock.  They all have their reasons for their decisions to target one or the other.  Today, I would like to discuss some of those reasons.
Most Christian Authors feel called to one market or the other and some to both.  Why would a Christian Author write for the Secular Market?  One reason is because the market is bigger and there is more opportunity for success. The second reason is there are more readers who could be reached with an evangelistic message or a message of faith.  The ability to self-publish now allows for those types of books to be published in the secular world, whereas in the past those same books would not have made it past worldly publishers.  If an Author feels called to write for the Christian market, it may be that they feel called to minister through their writing to the church/believers for disciple making purposes or maybe they feel to write for the Secular Market would mean they would have to compromise their values to appeal to a more worldly audience.
Certainly, not everyone who reads in the Secular Market is an unbeliever and not everyone who reads in the Christian Market is a believer, but there is a larger number of believers or non-believers depending on the market you are in.
Do you have to compromise values to write for the Secular Market?  Author Mark Young doesn't think so, he said,

 "I think we do not have to walk down that path. That we can write in good taste and still meet the expectations of readers. Personally, I think it is more challenging—and more rewarding—for a writer to be able to present a realistic view of life without dragging the reader through the gutters to get there."

Another Author, Terri Blackstock left a successful writing career many years ago in the Secular Market, and switched to the Christian Market.  She is now a success in that Market also.  She says,

"One day I got down on my knees and repented, and told God I wouldn’t write anything else that didn’t glorify Him. I decided then that I wanted to make a clean break from writing romance, and write what I loved to read-suspense. But I feared that the Christian publishers would reject me because of my past. That wasn’t what happened. Instead, I quickly sold four books to Zondervan, and my Christian writing career was underway."  

It is probably easier to write in the secular world without compromising your values today, with the ability to self publish.  Terri Blackstock made the right decision for her at the time, though.  Where am I in this debate?  I am wherever the Lord calls me to be.  Right now, that is in the Christian Market, because the book I am writing belongs there.  Maybe one day, He will call me to write a more evangelistic book for the masses.  I will try my best to be true to my values and faith whichever Market He wants me to write for.  There are teachers and preachers in the church and they are needed and there are evangelists and missionaries in the world.  They are all needed to do the work of God.  We are all part of the body of Christ.  So, where He leads me to write, I will follow.

In Christ,

Sandy Kay Slawson

CampNaNoWriMo

As of yesterday, CampNaNoWriMo has started!  The race is on and I have set a goal of finishing my novel by the end of April.  I can hardly believe I am that close!  The years of dreaming about and working toward the writing of my novel "Hope for Charity", are so close to being realized, I can almost taste it.  Will the work stop at writing The End?  No, but getting my story written, even if it's not perfect enough for reader's eyes yet, it will be something I thought may never happen.  Thank the Lord, though, that through the support of my husband and family and a desire the Lord Himself placed in my heart, I can see the finish line.

CampNaNoWriMo stands for Camp National Novel Writing Month.  Here is a quote from their website  "Camp NaNoWriMo is a virtual writer’s retreat, designed for maximum flexibility and creativity." We have Camp sessions in both April and July, and we welcome word-count goals between 30 and 1,000,000. In addition, writers can tackle any project they’d like, including new novel drafts, revision, poetry, scripts, and short stories." 

I am in a virtual cabin with 14 other women.  This is National, so there are many, many Writers working with other Writers in their own "cabins".  My group is all Christian Women Writers and the point of breaking off into these "cabins" is to encourage and support each other as we reach for the different goals we have each set.  After I write, I enter in my word count and there is a graph and chart that shows me where I am in reaching my goal.   

The goal I have had for about the last year and a half, has been to reach 80,000 words.  As of today, I am at 80,087!!   That isn't quite enough to finish my story, but it means I am almost there.  I am so happy to reach that goal, though, because when I made it, it seemed almost impossible. 

Philippians 4:13 

"I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. "   

If it is God's Will for me, then I will finish the race to complete this book and the race to finish this life and I will do it well, for His glory.

2 Timothy 4:7 

"I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith."

Discussion, Comments and Questions: