Writing

Finding Hope in Weary Seasons

January 13, 2022 by Ann Leave a Comment

Do you feel weary or worn down right now?

After the holidays are over, it’s temptingly easy for me to slide into a post-celebration slump. The skies where we live are perpetually gray, the ground is frozen solid, and the buzz and glimmer of celebrating the holidays with family and friends have come to a grinding halt. The thrill of the new year has trickled into a predictable routine, and compared to just a month ago, there is so little to look forward to. My soul is tired and worn down. Everything just feels dreary.

But I’ve circled the sun enough times now to know myself and to know this particular battle that I face—a battle to find joy and contentment in Christ in every season. I think this is the same struggle that many of us face as the calendar flips over. And while I’ve invested in a good sunshine therapy lamp to help ward off the winter darkness, the deeper and more important work is what I must do, practically, to tend to my soul this time of year.

Read the rest of the article here, at Well Watered Women!

Filed Under: God, Guest Post, Life, Writing Tagged With: Ann Swindell, Christ's hope, Christian author, faith, feel dreary, help in weariness, I feel discouraged, I need hope, need encouragement, post holiday blues, reading the Bible, weary season, well watered women

Writing Your Story Can Change Your Life

September 23, 2021 by Ann 1 Comment

I started writing my story years ago; long before I was anywhere near a book contract or a marketing team, I felt that the Lord was inviting me into a process of writing my story down and–in the process–meeting him in the middle of it. I’m not sure I’ve done anything more powerful in my personal spiritual journey than write my memoir.

Memoir is the genre that I love the most, because it’s the genre that allows us–even gently forces us–to re-examine the lives that we have been living as we write them down on the page. A good memoir isn’t autobiography, and it isn’t a personal journal. It’s the true story of our lives written in such a way that others can understand, access, and be changed by it.

I’m not sure there’s a more dynamic form of the written word.

Our God is the God of story, and he loves making himself known through our stories; it’s how he’s wired us. We start loving stories as children, and we inherently know when a story has a satisfying or unacceptable ending, because we were made to long for resolution, peace, and hope.

Our God is the God of story, and he loves making himself known through our stories. Share on X

If you’ve always wanted to write your story, or if you’ve been wondering how you can tell your story in a meaningful way, I’m going to suggest that writing your memoir might be one of the most powerful things you can do in your personal journey with Jesus. Down the road, might your story impact hundreds or thousands of people? I hope so! But in these days and months, writing your story will transform you most of all. I know that it has transformed me; I got to see Jesus at work all over again as I’ve written my memoir over the past years.

I just opened registration for the Writing with Grace Memoir course that starts in October. To say that I’m thrilled about this class is an understatement; I’m practically jumping out of my chair!

I’d love for you to join me over at Writing with Grace–you can even see the video that we created just for this course. And because of the craziness of the last year and a half, I’m offering this course at 25% off–for everyone. I think we all need the chance to write our stories.

So, if you’ve been aching to write your story, this is your time. I can’t wait to see you there!

Registration is open for Writing with Grace: Memoir! www.writingwithgrace.com #amwriting Share on X

Filed Under: Book Writing, Still Waiting Book, Writing Tagged With: Ann Swindell, Christian memoir, getting my book published, Gospel centered writing, how to write your story, memoir, Still Waiting, Writing with grace

The Lens of Love: Writing and Rewriting Our Stories

July 17, 2020 by Ann Leave a Comment

This is the start of my newest piece for Grit & Virtue. You can read the full article here–it’s one of my favorites that I’ve written!

My husband was at home with the baby and I was at the library when I experienced my first – and only – panic attack. It was Fall; the air outside was just beginning to thin and tumble, threading its way through newly-bare branches and alleyways. I remember that it was dark, painfully dark at 6 pm. I was tired.

I sat at one of the large tables in the reference section, my notes and books spread around me in a cluttered half-circle. I work best with large amounts of space and quiet, something nearly impossible to come by with a new baby. It was a gift to slip away to the quiet of the stacks and write the book I was working on; it was something I had missed, acutely, for months.

I don’t remember feeling particularly stressed or anxious, but I do remember the pattering in my chest that started like a whisper and progressed to cymbals. I couldn’t focus and had to turn off the computer. My breathing became narrow and superficial; I felt like I was falling down even as I straightened in my chair. The room started hovering like hummingbird wings, and I had to close my eyes and lay my cheek on the cool of the table. I wondered if I was having a heart attack or a stroke and if maybe this was how I would die, here in the quiet of the library.

[Spoiler alert–I’m still here! 🙂 You can read the rest of this piece at Grit & Virtue!]

Filed Under: About, God, Guest Post, Life, Motherhood, Writing Tagged With: am I called to write, am writing, author, Christianity, God's faithfulness, Grit & Virtue, how do I write my story, Writing, writing for Christ's glory, writing my story

Why Fiction Writing Matters in the Kingdom of God

July 1, 2020 by Ann Leave a Comment

It’s a truth I come back to over and over again: God created the human heart to resonate with story. We love to see a hero vanquish a villain, and we love to see a character reach her goal. Hallmark movies have off-the-charts audiences because we always know there’s a happy ending–and we want there to be one. Why? Because whether we realize it or not, we are all part of the epic story of the Kingdom of God—one that started in a garden and will end in a heavenly city.

It will end in victory for God’s people, with joy in His presence.

We long for happy endings because we were made for one. Thankfully, through Christ, we have the best ending we could ever dream of. It’s the best news we could ever imagine!

And for those of us who are writers, often we want to participate in telling the Truest Story through smaller stories–fiction stories. But how does writing fiction connect with the mission of God’s Kingdom on earth? It’s an honest question and one worth answering: why write fiction? And why write Christian fiction—stories that point our readers back to ultimate Truth?

Especially now, in a world that’s riddled with pain and fear, what good can fiction do for people who are asking big questions and struggling to make it through the day?

Fiction can do a world of good.

Think of the stories that have touched you deeply. These stories stay with us because they called us to something better—to something hopeful.

When we write fiction, we get to participate in this beautiful arc of narrative that is already written on the human heart and in the great epic of history. We get to point our readers to hope, and love, and Truth.

That’s why fiction matters—perhaps now more than ever. When readers are struggling, good fiction points them to the things that are worth getting out of bed for—it reminds them why life is valuable and treasured. It reminds them that there is a God who loves them, and that He has a plan and purpose for their lives.

That’s why, for the first time, I’m teaching the Writing with Grace: Fiction Writing Workshop. Registration is open through July 30th, and you can save 10% on the cost of the course by using the code WORTHIT, just for being a blog reader.

So even if you’ve never written fiction before, maybe this is your nudge to try. What stories are in your heart?

And if you’ve been writing fiction for years, maybe this is your opportunity to take your story-writing to the next level and share what’s been burning inside of you forever.

I hope that you’ll come and join me as we write stories with and for the Lord, aiming to point the hearts of our readers to Truth and hope and joy.

This world needs your story.

Filed Under: Uncategorized, Writing Tagged With: Ann Swindell, faith, fiction writing, how do I write a fiction story, how do I write a novel, Jesus and writing, Writing, writing class, writing for Christ's glory, writing for Christian publications, Writing with grace, writing workshop

This is the Year to Write Your Book

January 22, 2019 by Ann 1 Comment

Do you have a book inside of you?
Do you have a plan to make that book a reality?
To move from ideas and drafts to chapters and cover design?

If you’re writing a book, or if you want to write a book, I know what it takes to make that happen, and I also know that the road ahead is going to be both thrilling and overwhelming.

But how do you get from here to there? From idea to reality?

Personally and professionally, I know that crafting a powerful book proposal is the BEST tool for clarifying your book’s core message, solidifying your book’s structure, and moving forward to make your book a reality.

So how do you start?

You learn from others who know what you need to do.

Book proposals are huge undertakings. After having written four proposals, I know how intensive–and confusing–the process can feel. I remember trying to shuffle through multiple resources, and I kept hoping that I was doing things the right way. It became frustrating at times, but I knew that if I didn’t have a strong book proposal, my book idea would never actually become a reality. The proposal is necessary–and central to the process of writing a book.

If you know you're meant to write a book, this is for you. #amwriting Share on X

That’s why I’m teaching a Writing with Grace Book Proposal Workshop in just a few weeks! This will be a one-day, three-hour workshop in which we’ll cover the nonnegotiable elements of a powerful proposal AND how to execute those elements. Plus, we will hear from a Senior Editor in the Christian publishing industry.

If you’re aiming to write a book, you must write a book proposal, and this workshop is going to give you the tools that you need to make your proposal shine!

Registration is open now (for only a short time), and you can use the code WRITEMYBOOK10 to save 10% on the cost of the course!

We’re going to have a wonderful time together in February, and if you can’t come live, don’t worry–the recording will be available immediately afterwards for you to watch on your own time.

So, do you have a book inside of you? If you do, this is your next step.

Come join me over at Writing with Grace for all the details–I can’t wait to see you there!

Filed Under: God, Life, Teaching, Writing Tagged With: Ann Swindell, Christian writing class, Christian writing course, writing class, writing course, Writing with grace

What’s Your Biblical Enneagram Doppleganger?

February 20, 2018 by Ann Leave a Comment

This is the start of my newest piece for RELEVANT Magazine.

The Enneagram—a personality assessment tool—has gotten a lot of press lately. People are interested in it; they’re taking online tests, listening to podcasts and buying books (For example, The Road Back to You: An Enneagram Journey to Self-Discovery, released at the end of 2016 and sold over 100,000 copies in just a little over a year).

The enneagram is based on a numbering system—one through nine—and your number helps to uncover your unique personality traits. No system is perfect, but here at RELEVANT, we thought it would be fun to comb through the Bible and try to determine where some of our spiritual ancestors might land on the enneagram—and determine our biblical doppelgangers that way.

What's your Biblical #Enneagram doppleganger? Share on X

1: THE REFORMER

You’re strong-willed and justice-oriented, and you’re willing to make a stand for what you care about.

Your doppelganger is the Apostle Paul, who turned from being a (literal) judgmental Pharisee (judgment is an achilles heel of this personality type) to being a man willing to suffer extremely for the cause of Christ.

2: THE HELPER

“Service” is your middle name; you love giving to others and, as long as you’re healthy, don’t need attention to do so. (If you’re unhealthy, you’re probably looking for affirmation from others when you serve.)

Mary, the Mother of Jesus, is your doppelganger—willing to serve God at a large cost to herself but to the ultimate glory of God. Some think John the Apostle is also a 2.

3: THE ACHIEVER

You’re driven and success-oriented, sometimes to the point of caring more about how you appear to others than you should. But you’re faithful and focused—a lot like Moses.

Although he cared too much about how he looked to others (see Numbers 20:8-13), he ultimately obeyed the Lord and led his people well. Jacob may also be a 3.

4: THE INDIVIDUALIST

You feel deeply and emotions are central to your experience—as is being unique. King David could be your enneagram doppelganger—a man after God’s heart who expressed his feelings openly and wholeheartedly to God in the book of Psalms. Like him, work to focus your attention back on the Lord when you feel tempted to focus on yourself and your pains above anything else.

Read the rest of the numbers–and article–here, at RELEVANT Magazine!

Filed Under: God, Guest Post, Writing