Forgive me for rambling. This is the one post that I couldn’t decide whether to publish or not. I think I’m going to be loquacious.
I’m not sure if you would even understand my notions, so I’m trying to put myself in your shoes. If this was written by somebody else, would I get it? I’m not sure if you’ll get lost on the way, but stick with it and hopefully by the end, you will have a clearer comprehension of what my ultimate goal is for writing books. Should you even care? No, you don’t have to. I am not the slightest bit interested why a professonal golfer does what he does, so likewise, you have no obligation to stay. But if you are curious, saddle up, and let’s get down the road:
I’m always saying that there is at least one book inside of everybody. I don’t mean that your digestive system is full of ink and pulp – everyone has a story – an interesting tale to tell, whether it’s the product of one’s own imagination, or based on reality.
So, with this in mind, imagine that you wrote a book and a close friend who was an amazing artist, offered to create some stunning illustrations for both the dust jacket and pages inside. You looked at the finished product and thought,
“Wow, I’m one lucky dude! This looks awesome”
A few months down the line, you discover that your book has been shortlisted for a literary prize. You go straight onto LinkedIn to brag about your success: “First time author up for coveted award.”
Then you win! You actually nailed it! You bagged an accolade that most writers only dream of!
Now the world is your oyster because this news is pasted on the front page of your website and every social media platform known to man.
It works. The public are attracted to your title because of the little gold trophy that shines in the top corner, pronouncing to the world that you are one of a kind: newbie writer who shoots to stardom in a flash. The local radio want to do an interview, but you hold out for the national one, because you know you’re heading for Panorama, The One Show and an interview with Louis Theroux.
Alas, Mr. T is busy in Utah filming polygamous Mormons who are investigating which one of the nine wives are poisoning the stew, but, The One Show are ready for you.
When a pretty Welsh lady asks how the writing process was, you wave your hand gallantly in the air and declare, “Oh, it was a breeze. Piece of cake.” Then, to make yourself sound a little more humble, you look directly at the camera and say encouragingly, “Anyone can do it. It’s easy.”
While other writers strive over how to conquer Search Engine Optimisation, your book is found on the first page of Google when people type in; “Best selling books of the year.”
Customers are now buying copies of your books in the droves, and you sail onto Amazon’s top 30 list.
Emails from Goodreads are now welcomed by avid readers and none of them are deleted when they receive advertisements with your name on. Nobody, absolutely nobody is tempted to search the for ‘unsubscribe’ button in the small print at the bottom. They just can’t bring themselves to do it.
YouTube death scrollers who are searching for something visually stimulating, become excited as they begin to notice pop-ups for your book whenever they are online. As they stare at your title, they get annoyed when the ‘Skip Ads’ button appears. Why would they want to do that?
Even the dyslexic, who have shied away from things in print, love your book. Your artist friend got the colours just right, so that nothing jumps about on the front page. What is even more exciting for them is that they discover your publishers have converted your treasure into an audiobook. It is becoming the most popular search on LibriVox!
You nip into your local library and staff begin nudging one another.
“Look who’s just walked in!”
“An entire 7 tier bookcase is showcasing 150 copies of your amazing work and even during Pride month, the rainbows become hidden beneath the artistry on the front cover. LGBTQ supporters are rather forgiving when they discover that their motto has been stolen and edited so that on the top shelf are the words, “Out, Proud and Sold”.
A man in 6 inch heels totters into the warm room and begins to sweat as he sees your name displayed. He removes a platinum blonde wig of bouncy curls and fans himself rapidly. Flicking his eyelashes in concentration, he opens his scarlet mouth to make a speech. He puffs out his 45HH bosom and declares,
“This cause is more worthy than ours. It is of utmost importance that locals realise that they should have this title in their collection at home. We will even call of next week’s march so that we can change our placards to say, “Buy this book today!”
With that, he spins around and wiggles his hips vigourously as he heads towards the water fountain with a copy of your book nestled between his ample cleavage.
Later that month, a marketing consultant contacts you to say he thinks he can get you an American audience and after signing a lucrative contract, he arranges for your book to be translated into several languages.
Well, snagging the Pulitzer Prize was a doddle after that.
Are you still with me? This is not a silly dream – this is pages of your words in print. You are on a role, so keep up.
So, not only is your book an international best-seller topping the charts in the USA, Canada, Australia and South Africa, but there are editions to be found in Dutch, Spanish, Chinese and of course, les Francais l’adorent.
There is a slight hitch now, though. You see, JK Rowling is beginning to get a little insecure about your rapid rise to success. She Googled you and wiped her brow, then rummaged through her top drawer to find a spell to keep you at least 2 below her in the literary charts.
Ah yes, you are a renowned best-selling author. But there is one snag.
You intrigued people. You entertained them. You made teenagers laugh and grown men weep. Even the Pope chuckled when he snuck a peek at his Latin copy. Women warmed to you as they fell sleep to your marvellous tales – yeah your audiobooks are swell.
But, nothing you said, nothing you wrote about, nothing you described and shared with the world, made any eternal difference to your readers.
Oh, people smiled when they chatted about your books while hugging a copy close to their chest. Mothers in the playground boasted about having known you before you were famous. Another smug parent silenced them all when she walked up to them and claimed she was so familiar with you that she had actually seen you in a onesie.
But nothing you wrote about made any difference to what mattered most – their spiritual conscience – the state of their soul. Fans still died unsaved and unaware there was anything wrong with the direction they had been going. Even your Christian readers became anxious because your words contained no hope. They put down their bibles and picked up a bottle of pills.
This brings me to my final point in the story. My books may make no difference to people either. I would never be so arrogant as to think that just because I’m harping on about Jesus and death and God and Hell and trust and faith and hope, that this is a guarantee that people will be blessed and lives will be changed.
But it is my desire that they do, and therefore, my prayer.
My goal in writing books is that something, somewhere among the pages would resonate with someone and sow a tiny seed in their heart. That a light would be switched on that helps open somebody’s eyes to the truth of where they stand before an Almighty God who loves them dearly, but has to punish unrepentant sin because he is also holy. Or, that somebody gains added strength to continue serving him, if they already have the privilege of being saved.
I do not strive, nor hope to have the success as described above. I don’t care if my name does not become a household familiarity. Let’s be real, it never will. I am like a single grain of sand in the entire world of beaches. In plainer terms, I am just as insignificant as you are. But God can take grains of sand and turn them into glass that reflects our true character. He can use it to make bricks, which help hold up a wobbly foundation. He can stir it up to make concrete that can withstand the fiercest storms. But without him, we can do nothing.
You don’t have to agree with me, but I believe that everything we are gifted to do should be solely for the glory of God.
Is that crazy? Is that super-spiritual? Is that unrealistic? You might think:
“Wait, wait, wait, wait, wait. Are you seriously saying that all the zillion books that have ever been written were useless unless they were evangelistic?”
No. That would be daft. There are factual books, memoirs, biographies, humourous tales and amazing novels. It’s wonderful to be able to share fun stories. All I am saying is that I’m a bit pedantic about God’s gifts and so I feel that if all I do with any talents he gives me, is enterain people, then personally, my view is that I have wasted my time. It may seem rude of me to judge that other writers have wasted their time also, but some of them actually have, whether we agree on this or not.
Nobody has the power to change people’s thoughts, mindsets and opinions. That’s not my job. But it is my job to care about you, because God cares.
Let’s face it, for a lot of people, life sucks. You don’t have to be suffering from depression to realise that thngs rarely turn out the way we hoped or wanted, and people are rubbish at being kind to one another – just watch one week of any news channel and see how hard it is to disagree with that fact.
So, if I write stuff merely to receive human accolade, fortune and popularity, I have failed miserably.
Speed is not advantageous when you are going in the wrong direction.
No disrespect to any being with any talent, but racing along the path of success and taking oneself and others in the wrong way, means one might as well have not bothered in the first place. Being rich in money but destitute in soul is not an eternal advantage and renders those persons to be pitied more than the poorest person on this earth. A person’s skills doesn’t make them exempt from having to one day, stand before their maker to give an account of what they did with the gifts that were bestowed upon them..
I’m not sure I’m explaining this very well.
“Yea, you’re all over the place. Get to the point, because right now, I’d gladly give up an hour to hear Tiger Woods go on about swing drills, 7-irons, wedges, the best putt in history and how he polishes his tees.”
Well, in 1Corinthians 3:15, it says,
“On judgement day, fire will reveal what kind of work each builder has done. The fire will show if a person’s work has any value. If the work survives, that builder will receive a reward, but if the work is burned up, the builder will suffer great loss. The builder will be saved, but like someone barely escaping through a wall of flames.”
I know that Christians don’t work for rewards, they do what they do out of a natural love for God and desire to help people out of the darkness – so it is the secret thoughts of the heart that are what’s at stake here. We should be constantly checking our motives for everything we do and thus, that is why I say that I am wasting my time if my passion for writing is coming from a desire to have fame, wealth and kudos. I am all too aware that I am at risk of my books becoming useless embers if I am writing them for the wrong reason.
But please don’t misunderstand – I am not here to impress God, I am here to be obedient to what I believe he has called me to do. There’s a massive difference. The former brings a sense of duty, the latter, unspeakable enjoyment.
I am sorry if my books do not appeal to you. That is okay with me. My joy is knowing that at least one person somewhere among the grains of sand, read something that moved them to genuine repentance. My joy is knowing that one struggling Christian was inspired and encouraged to continue on their journey, despite how narrow the road is becoming and despite how hard it can be to see through the tears.
Could I have got my point across in just 3 paragraphs? Probably. If you have stayed with me until the end, bravo! I’m in awe of your patience.
May God bless you on your continued journey to find the truth and may your eyes be opened to see just how much your God really wants to destroy your ticket to Hell and replace it with one for Paradise. May your eyes be opened to see that no matter how bad the suffering is here on earth, one day it will all be over.
