by Sandy Kirby Quandt @SandyKQuandt

Although many writers make New Years resolutions and choose a verse or word for the coming year, I’m not one of them. It doesn’t work for me. Possibly the reason it doesn’t work is God constantly shows me new things throughout the year which would change my chosen beginning of the year resolutions, verse, or word. So instead, I’m reflecting on something I’ve noticed recently in the writing world to see how it applies to me. 

Perhaps it’s fallout from this past year’s uncertainty and chaos, but it seems to me some writers forgot what it was like before they became published. Reminds me of the country saying, “Don’t get above your raisin.” 

These writers forgot where they started, where they came from. They forgot how even the smallest crumb of encouragement, no matter how insignificant it may appear on the outside, feeds the writer’s soul. 

Whether that crumb comes by way of a critique partner, mentor, fellow struggling writer, contest win, or publication, it means a lot. In fact, who knows? That bit of encouragement might mean the difference between someone quitting or soldiering on. As Proverbs 25:11 says, the right word at the right time is like precious gold set in silver.

In my writing life I’ve been blessed to receive the right word at the right time from critique partners, mentors, fellow struggling writers, as well as through publication and contest wins. I’ve also been blessed to have opportunities to offer the right word at the right time through those means. 

A moment of the right word at the right time which truly stands out above all others is the night I walked into an evening session at a writer’s conference. A well-known multi-published author stopped me. He asked how I was doing. Obviously, he knew enough about the struggles of writing to interpret the look on my face and understand all was not that well with my soul. After I explained a little about my writing struggles, he stepped aside to let others pass, reached for my hands, and prayed right then and there for my writing. Encouraged? You bet I was. 

A well-known multi-published mentor/friend invited me to join her monthly critique group in the early years of my writing journey. Her motto is to pay it forward, which is exactly what she does. 

During one conference, a writer friend asked how one of my editor appointments went. When my eyes got a little misty, he called his wife at home in another state. He told her I had a difficult appointment, and asked her to pray for me not to be discouraged. 

You know, now that I think about it, maybe I do have a word for 2021 after all.

Remember. That’s the word. 

Remember the struggles.

Remember the victories. 

Remember those who come along the path a few steps behind us, and offer a helping hand. 

Remember those further along who helped, and be grateful. 

Remember every critique, contest win, encouraging word is important. Even if someone else believes it is not. Each of these takes you one step closer to your goal. 

Remember what it felt like at the beginning of the journey. Keep the door shut against pride. Especially when tempted to believe we’re all that and a bag of chips.  

As UCLA Bruins men’s basketball coach John Wooden said, “Talent is God-given. Be humble. Fame is man-given. Be grateful. Conceit is self-given. Be careful.”

We may or may not be a well-known multi-published author in a position to offer encouragement, but as writers, each of us understands the struggle. We know enough to value the immeasurable good a spark of encouragement can achieve. 

No matter which rung of the ladder we might find ourselves precariously standing on today, may we never get above our raisin’. And may we never withhold encouragement when it is in our power to give the right word at the right time.

How have you been encouraged in your writing journey? How do you plan to encourage another in their writer journey? 

Sandy Kirby Quandt is a former elementary school educator and full-time writer with a passion for God, history, and travel; passions that often weave their way into her stories and articles. She has written numerous articles, devotions, and stories for adult and children publications. Her devotions appear in two Worthy Publishing compilation books; So God Made a Dog, and Let the Earth Rejoice. She has won several awards for writing including the 85th and 86th Annual Writer’s Digest Writing Competition in the Young Adult category, First Place in the Blue Ridge Mountains Christian Writers Conference Children’s Literature 2016 Foundation Awards, First Place in the 2017 Foundation Awards in the Young Adult, Middle Grade, and Flash Fiction categories. Looking for words of encouragement or gluten-free recipes? Then check out Sandy’s blog, Woven and Spun. When The Way Is Steep