My Summer Has Been One To Remember - Has Yours?

​Hello Friend!

Here I am, emerging from the midst of a crazy busy, challengingly different, albeit inspiringly beautiful summer. It's been a while since my last blog post or writing update - but while my blog has sat quiet, the rest of my life has been anything but. 

The first few months of summer were crowded with planting thousands of baby trees for my summer job. My sister and I spent hours working under the sun, getting coated in dirt, and learning to navigate the tangle of gravel roads in our rural county. 

Once planting season ended, the usual plethora of farm work has kept me busy: hauling small square bales off the ditch, butchering chickens, training and riding our horses, pasture upkeep, and marveling at my mother's incredible garden. Of course there are also long hours of reading, sunny days at the lake, playing with kittens, or going out for ice cream with my siblings. 

And, of course, watching a pandemic shut down the world has been... interesting. ​

This summer has also given me a lot of opportunity to evaluate what I want to do with the passion for writing God placed in my heart. There are a lot of times when I wonder if I have really nailed down my niche, or if I actually know my target audience. This summer has brought up a lot of questions and I'll be honest, I didn't find many answers. 

One thing I am starting to see, however, is that answers are not always necessary and almost never immediate. 

So I'm learning to be willing to wait, and grow, trust Jesus, and do my best. 

As for writing, most of my time has been spent laboring over my fifth and most promising historical novel - the story of a girl searching for worth in a circus, and a boy who refuses to let go of the past, even as he watches the German Reich unleash WW2. 

Outlines. Structure. Edits. Rewrites. Tears. Red Pen. Glorious breakthroughs. Copious amounts of tea. 

The whole works. 

I am loving it and am so excited to begun working on my final draft. After all, it can't get into the hands of readers unless it is finished, and what is a book without readers? Besides that, I have a message to share, a passion to cultivate, and a dream to chase. Life is too short to write just one book. Think of all the stories we would miss.

Sunshine, lake days, long books, or endless days of haying... how has your summer been? Now that I am back to blogging, I want to know what kind of posts that you enjoy - lifestyle, inspirational, practical etc.? It's been a while - let's chat!