Jot Writer’s Conference is one of my very favorite things. Why? Well, I have 10 reasons.

1. It’s free. No. Really. It costs nothing.

2. It’s one night. So you don’t have to take a day off work … unless you work at night. But you should do it. It’s only one night!

3. It’s at Baker Book House. It’s one of my favorite places in the world.

4. Zachary Bartels. He’s the author of Playing Saint, one of my favorite reads from last year. He’s speaking at Jot on inserting real life in fiction.

5. Amelia Rhodes. She’s one of my besties. She’s also the author of Isn’t It Time for a Coffee Break and the creator of Pray A to Z.  She’s going to present on how to make time to write.

6. Tim Beals! He’s the owner of Credo Communications, my literary agency.

7. Kenneth Kraegel, author of King Arthur’s Very Great Grandson and the soon to be released Song of Delphine. He’s my favorite storybook author and illustrator. Also, he’s a nice guy.

8. Writers, writers everywhere! It’s a hangout for people who understand the writing life. It’s fabulous.

9. Icons Coffee. They seriously have the best chai in all the world.

10. The Weaklings. They’re the dudes who plan and put on the conference. Andy, Josh, Bob, Thomas, and Matthew are cool and fun and like the 5 little brothers I never had. Even though they’re all way taller than I am.

If you write or think you might like to, you should think about coming to Jot. It’s free…you have nothing to lose but a few hours of your time. If you don’t live in the area, I believe they’ll have a livestream set up. So mark March 13, 2015 on your calendar. Show up at 7pm (or a little before). I’ll be at the registration table, so make sure you say “hey” to me.

Oh! And after the 4 presentations, I’ll be leading a workshop on blogging. So, there’s that!

In 1995 I was a good Christian girl growing up in a good Christian home attending a good Christian school. And I listened to Pearl Jam, Nirvana, Veruca Salt, Hole…you know, the normal, 90’s grunge bands. I liked the hard edge of their sound. The angst in their lyrics. The raw and very true emotion.

Then conviction set in. It came in the form of a speaker I heard who said that good Christian kids needed to stay away from evil rock bands. The speaker said that we should go to our good Christian store and find some good Christian bands.

So, I turned off the Michigan State University run alternative station and tuned into the Christian station. I drove to a Christian store and perused the music.

I am not kidding when I say they had a chart for finding Christian alternatives to the secular bands. It went something like this.

If you like Pearl Jam … You’ll LOVE Third Day!

If you like Red Hot Chili Peppers … You’ll LOVE Skillet!

And so on.

This silly phenomenon has become a bit of a joke between my husband and I. Here’s a taste of my weird list…

If you like Katy Perry … You’ll LOVE Amy Grant!

If you like Metallica … You’ll LOVE The Gaithers!

If you like Eminem … You’ll LOVE Sandi Patty!

Hear me out. I’m not making fun of the artists who record for the Christian industry. I think their music has validity. They have an audience. Many of these artists are deeply talented.

But why do we have to compare them to mainstream music?

It isn’t fair to the artists who are trying to present a unique sound, to pigeon hole them into competing with a band that is different musically, ideologically, and in the audience they are striving to meet.

I happen to write for the Christian market. I certainly don’t want anyone saying, “If you like Jodi Picoult … You’ll LOVE Susie Finkbeiner” (Note: I’ve never read any of Jodi Picoult’s books). What would I rather have people say? “Hey, there’s this book I think you’d like called A Cup of Dust!” (Note: A Cup of Dust releases October 27, 2015 with Kregel publications…wink, wink).

I don’t want to feel like I’m in a cage match with Jodi Picoult. I mean, I’m sure she’s super talented and that her books are moving. And I’ll bet she’s a nice person. Plus, I’m a yellow belt in Tung Su Do. It wouldn’t be a fair match.

What I’m saying is this: I write novels that reflect my worldview. That worldview just happens to be Christian. When I wrote Paint Chips I had to make a hard decision. Write it for the secular market and keep the Jesus bits out or write for the Christian market and keep the cuss words out.

For me, the Jesus in the novel was far more important than the cussing. (What the George Herbert Walker Bush? That’s my favorite euphemism in Paint Chips).

That, my friends, is why I write for a Christian market.

It’s not because I’m trying to preach at my readers. It isn’t because I’m afraid of the world. It’s not because I don’t think I could make it out there in the ABA (American Booksellers Association…or mainstream publishing).

I write for the Christian market because Jesus in my stories can’t be dulled. He’s in the fabric of the novels I write. He changes the characters and, while they’re fiction, I am not. And as I write, I’m being changed. My hope is that the reader is too, even in a small measure.

I don’t write so that readers have a cleaner, more wholesome option. Sorry. That’s not my style. I’m not competing with the mainstream market. In fact, I refuse to compete at all in my career.

I write stories of faith because I’m a person of faith.

So, that said…

If you like Stephen King … Read Stephen King.

If you like Amish Romance … Read Amish Romance.

If you like Harry Potter … Read Harry Potter.

And if you like Susie Finkbeiner (and I kind of hope you do) … Read Susie Finkbeiner (pretty please).

Enjoy the art that speaks to you.

The art world, between Christian and otherwise, doesn’t have to be a cage match.

This quote from Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix jumped out at me last night. Well, not literally jumped out. Although, that would have been very Harry Potter of it.

When I read the words about the evil one (Voldemort), it made me mindful. I had to pause, read it again, dog-ear the page so I could flip back to it easily.

The enemy (Voldemort…shudder) was an expert in causing divides among friends in an effort to overcome them with his evil. The only way to defeat him? Unity.

I’m going to be honest with you, there are a whole lot of people who I’ve hidden from my “timeline” on Facebook. I can’t see what they post.

Why would I do that?

Because I can’t stand the discord their posts cause.

They might have something valid to say. Their point may be good. But it’s the venom behind it that I can’t take. I’m not kidding (I wish I was), here is just one example of what I’m talking about:

“If you don’t vaccinate your child, YOU ARE A FOOL! Go ahead, unfriend me. I can’t be around you or your child because you could make me sick. You are a fool and you are neglecting your child.”

No. Really.

This same person called people who took exception to this “rude nut cakes”. She also compared “anti-vaxers” to abortionists.

She told people who disagreed with her to “GO AWAY”.

Oh. And she talked about Jesus in that post, too.

This kind of thing raises my hackles. It upsets my tummy. Makes me flustered and embarrassed and just plain old upset.

And, guess what, it has nothing to do with the vaccination debate. It has to do with the way this woman has chosen to holler about it. Her words are divisive, ugly, poison. There is nothing of unity in her posts.

Let’s revisit that idea from Harry Potter…and let’s alter it just a smidgen.

The enemy (satan) is an expert in causing divides among Christians in an effort to overcome us with his evil. The only way to defeat him? Unity in Christ.

That’s not to say we agree on all things. We won’t. And that’s all right. It’s in the way we handle our disagreements. Are we rending the Body of Christ in an effort to be right? Then satan wins that battle.

It’s insanity to claw at your own body. That’s what we do when we attack our brothers and sister in Christ.

Are we putting love behind our words of disagreement? Are we seeking to maintain our Oneness in Jesus? Are we acknowledging the worth of the other person as an image bearer of God? Good. I believe that, in this, God is glorified.

When I was a kid, growing up in the United Methodist Church, I was taught the value of love. Say what you might about that denomination, they sure know how to love people. All people. We sang a song called “They will know we are Christians by our love”. It’s straight from John 13:35. The words of Jesus, “They will know you are My disciples if you love one another”.

Not if you can win a debate.

Not if you’re always right.

Not if you’re the loudest in the screaming match.

Not if your candidate wins the election.

But they will know we are Christians, followers of The Christ, by the way we love each other.

By the way we stick together. Pray for one another. Serve each other. By the way we lovingly approach disagreements.

By our love.

It’s Lent, my friends. A time to reflect on our lives with Christ. It’s a great time to focus your prayer life. Can we pray for unity within the Body of Christ? Our brothers and sisters in places like Iraq are being murdered for their faith. This is one thing we can pray for in unity. Right? Pray, even if you don’t know what to say. Just tell God your concerns and that you have no other words. The Bible says that The Spirit will take over. 

Yesterday I had the honor of reading this book to my boys’ kindergarten classes. I had a blast writing it and even more fun reading to the sweet kinders. So, here’s my Valentine to you. I hope you enjoy it!

I hope you have a lovely Valentine’s Day! 

Valentine’s Day is almost here! Yippee Skippee!

Actually, I’ve never been big on the day. I think the day was ruined for me in 2nd grade with Eric R. gave me a conversation heart that said, “Buzz off” and told me that he only gave me a Valentine because his mom told him to. Sad face.

So, today I’m going to redeem the holiday for myself by saying 14 things I love about my job.

What? I have a job?

Yes, of course I do! I’m a full time writer! I know it seems like all I do is sit around and daydream…but…

1. I love making up stories.

2. Reading is part of my job.

3. Sometimes I get emails from people who love what I wrote

4. Holding a copy of my book for the first…seventh…twentieth time.

5. I get to hang out with other writers all the time. Writers are cool people.

6. Ann Byle is my agent. What’s not to love about that. (I really love her a lot)

7. I’m on the planning committee for the Breathe Writers Conference (I run the blog and I love it!)

8. I get asked to lead workshops at both Breathe and Jot Writers’ Conference (because I’m kind of good at pretending I know what’s up in the writing world)

9. The massive amounts of money I rake in…Ha ha ha haha! Yeah. That was a joke.

10. Being a little eccentric is expected of me.

11. People think I’m a super human (really, though, all I can do is write…I can’t do math and I’m a terrible employee. TERRIBLE I tell you)

12. My kids’ classmates think I’m cool, even though they’ve never read anything I’ve written. At least I hope they haven’t.

13. Books are a write-off

14. YOU! I love this community that we have here on the blog and on Facebook. I can’t say enough how I have the greatest friends and readers in the world. Many of you I would never have met if it weren’t for my job. I love that very much.

I hope you all have a wonderful Valentine’s Day. Remember it isn’t all about smoochy face love, but about the unconditional love we can give and receive. I’ll be teaching at church on Valentine’s Day and hope to remind them of how very much Jesus loves them. I hope you remember that, too. I need the reminder, myself.

I kill plants.

I know. I’ve blogged about this before. You can read about my attempt at chamomile HERE. (You should know that I did kill that chamomile plant and three others…I actually blame the tornado for the last three, though).

So, in light of being guilty of planticide, I was a tiny bit nervous when my pal Amelia gave me a cute, little plant for my birthday.

“Don’t worry,” she said. “It’s a succulent. You can’t kill it.”

Kiss. Of. Death for anything green, handing it to me like that.

I took the plant home, worrying that the late January chill would kill it. That the hard brake I made at a stop light would kill it. That I’d jostle it too much in the pretty gift bag and kill it. I put it on my desk, then worried that it wouldn’t get enough sun because it’s Michigan and the sun forgets about us this time of year. On the few days that the sun remembered and graced us, I put the plant on the window sill. I’ve talked to it (it doesn’t answer back), worried about it. I’ve down right fretted over this little plant.

I finally broke down and did a google search on how to take care of an indoor succulent. That only compounded my confusion. “Don’t water them too much”, “Don’t let them dry out”, “They don’t belong inside”, “They need full sun all the time”, “Blah, blah, yada, yada”.

Then, finally, I found a blog that said the words that made me realize that I might just be able to keep this sweet plant alive. “Succulents thrive on neglect”. YES! I can neglect a plant like nobody’s business!

Then and only then did I dare name the plant. (Here in the Finkbeiner home we name everything: the oven is Stella Mae, the coffee maker is Joe, the van is Minnie, the blender is Sir Mix A Lot). My daughter wanted me to name the plant, but I feared it would die and would hurt worse if it had a name.

I’m neurotic, I know.

Anyway, I decided to name the plant Muley Graves.

Now, if you’re a nerd like I am, you’ll remember that Muley Graves is a ghost like character from The Grapes of Wrath. He dares to stay in the dust-destroyed town after all others have moved West for work in California. Muley’s a spiky, forgotten, neglected character.

I’ve always liked Muley Graves. He’s gritty and a little off his rocker.

So, what’s the point with this blog post? Truly. I don’t think there is one. And that’s okay for a Monday morning, right?

Oh, and don’t worry, I’m an attentive mom. My kids are fed and clean (sometimes) and dressed (even if their shirts are on backwards and one of them likes to see how many days he can get away with wearing the same socks) and loved deeply. Just in case you worried that my poor gardening skills were evidence of poor everything skills.

Anywho. Thanks for reading my plant ramblings. Off to work it is for me.

Have a splendid day, Friends!

I like to pretend that I’m good at small talk. That I can play the extrovert and chit chat. Truth? I hate, hate, hate small talk. I don’t know what to say. Things get awkward. I end up looking like a fool. Or at least feeling like one. Then, for a week or more after the exchange, my neurotic self rehashes every single word, agonizing over how very icky the small talk went.

For instance, when someone asks how I am, I struggle to answer. No, really. That’s a very difficult question for someone like me. Do I say that I’m “good” and risk offending the Grammar Police? Do I say that I’m “well” and risk seeming snooty? If I’m having a crappy day, do I over-share that information? Do I talk about all the cool stuff that’s going on (because I really do have a lot of cool stuff going on) and risk being braggy?

Neurotic triggers flashing, I usually answer the “How are you” by default.

I say, “Good. Busy.”

I am not kidding. Even if that day was full of nothing but eating chips and watching Netflix (which never happens…no…never), I still say, “Good. Busy.”

What the hee haw.

I’m not busy. I mean, I’ve got projects for days and kids who need snuggles and food and a husband who needs adoring…but I’m not busy.

The dude that drives 90 on the highway while texting and on a conference call is probably busier than I am. The mom with a couple toddlers is busier (I know because I was her for awhile). You reading this right now – yeah, you – I bet you’re way busier than I am.

So why do I say that I’m busy? Because I think that’s what’s expected.

But it’s not always a good answer…unless of course I’m in a big rush, then it’s not as offensive as saying, “I don’t have time to talk to you!”.

Can I just tell you how I am? From the safety of my little desk on the other side of the internet.

I’m happy.

Not busy.

Happy.

It won’t always be that way. I’ll have moments and days when happy isn’t the right word. But, that’s how I am right this very moment.

It’s true.

So. How are you today?

The last time I was on open water, I was super pregnant with my first child. My husband and I were guests of friends who own a cottage on Lake Michigan and he talked me into riding on the Sea-Do with him.

I told him I would, but that he couldn’t go beyond where I could touch bottom if I fell off. Also, that, if I fell off, I’d never ever ever forgive him. Ever. Never. Not at all.

He promised.

I believe it’s the only promise he hasn’t kept.

We rode out to open water.

I may or may not have screamed so that they heard me in Wisconsin.

Now, don’t worry. He didn’t go crazy fast, much as he wanted to. And we didn’t go super far out (I could have made it back to shore…I’d been swimming with that big ole belly all summer). I was in no danger.

Still, I screamed. Not completely because I was scared. More because it was thrilling to be out.

I didn’t tell my husband then (but he’ll find out tonight when he reads this) that it was a wee little bit fun to be on the water like that.

That Sea-Do was meant to be ridden on the waves, away from the shore.

I spend a bit of time each week, contemplating my writing life. Let me tell you something, there are days when it is appealing to just stop writing. Call what I’ve done “good enough” and move on to a safer, more predictable job. One with an hourly wage or a regular paycheck (contrary to popular believe, authors don’t make a terribly large amount of money). Something with a retirement plan, the potential for tenure.

There is no guarantee that I’ll be able to keep finding publishers for what I write.

Some days I wonder if it would just be safer to keep close to the shore. It’s secure there. Comfortable.

Problem is, that’s not an option for me. Not now, at least. I was made to write. So, that’s what I have to do. As terrifying as it may be.

If I stay in safety, I’m denying that I was made for more than a comfortable life.

And I’m telling God that I don’t particularly trust Him. Ouch.

So, out I go, into the open water of this writing life. Even if it’s just an inch at a time.

I know we aren’t all writers here. But we all were made to do something that requires courage. What is that for you? Today, on the Breathe Conference blog, Deborah King writes about something similar. Go ahead and check out her post! Click HERE.