My First Book by Steph Beth Nickel

 

Not That First Book

When I read the prompt for this month's posts, "tell us about your first book," I, like many writers, thought of my first (and as of yet, only) published book.

But then I thought, "No, the first book that I shared with others goes back many, many, many, many years."

When I was in school... (I can't remember if it was elementary or secondary school.) Way back then, one of our assignments was to write, illustrate, and produce a board book for young children.

I can still remember how I felt when my book was chosen as one to be displayed in our school library. It still brings a smile to my face decades later.

Books & I Go W-a-y Back

My mom loved books. Although my dad didn't read as much, he, too, was a reader.

It's no wonder I can remember many of the books I read as a child and some that my mom read to me.

Each Christmas my mom would read The First Noel and 'Twas the Night Before Christmas to me. I'm sure she read many others throughout the year, but I remember those two distinctly.

P. D. Eastman books, such as Go, Dog. Go!, Sam and the Firefly, and Are You My Mother were among my favourites. They were part of the "I Can Read It All By Myself" series, published by Dr. Seuss. I also had several more books in the series.

And like many young girls, I read a plethora of Nancy Drew books. This is where I first learned about including cliffhangers at the end of a chapter. It was also where I picked up the just-one-more-chapter philosophy of reading.

As the Years Went By

Reading (and writing) remained an important part of my life until, ironically, I attended Bible College. Because our Required Reading List was so long, it was over a year and a half after I left college that I picked up a book just for the sheer pleasure of doing so.

Over the years, I've written several articles; dozens of blog posts, poems, and devotionals; a number of unpublished picture book manuscripts; and at least a couple of partially finished fiction manuscripts. Additionally, I coauthored Paralympian Deb Willows' first memoir, Living Beyond My Circumstances. We are currently working on a follow-up volume, tentatively titled Keep Looking Up.

Currently, I post to Substack one to two times per week. On Mondays, I publish a chapter of the YA (young adult) manuscript I'm working on, and on Fridays, I post devotionals based on the gospel of John that I originally wrote for HopeStreamRadio.

From Board Books to...

While some writers "stay in their lane," this isn't in my nature. And that's okay.

Do I plan to publish my YA novel and a selection of the devotionals I've written? I do.

Would I like to publish some children's books? I would.

Will I continue to write blog posts and other short pieces? I would imagine so.

Whatever I end up writing and putting out into the world, it had its foundation in a little purple board book displayed in a country school library way back when.

Steph Beth Nickel is the former Editor of FellowScript and the current InScribe Contest Coordinator. Steph is an editor and author and plans to relocate to Saskatchewan from Ontario to be close to family in 2027, Lord willing. (Headshot Photo Credit: Jaime Mellor Photography)

Focus for a New Year by Steph Beth Nickel

 

Photo Credit: Didgeman on Pixabay[dot]com

My word of the year is FOCUS. And while I have long-term dreams and aspirations, the things at hand require my focus.

As an editor, it is, of course, vital that I focus on doing my best for each of my clients.

As a writer, I have numerous ideas for books I would like to write. But for now, my focus must be on completing the memoir I'm coauthoring with Paralympian Deb Willows, a follow-up to Living Beyond My Circumstances. I will also focus on the blog posts I've committed to write and my monthly newsletter, as well as social media posts.

And since my hubby will be retiring in March, nine days after his 70th birthday, I will be focusing on helping him prepare our home of over 20 years for sale. Lord willing, either this year or next, we will be moving west to be near our son and his wife.

And most importantly, as a believer, I will be reading less of the Word each day in order to dig deeper and focus on what He's teaching me. 

While, in many ways, I won't be "niching down," as it were, I will be quieting my mind and focusing on the task at hand. Not easy for an eclectically interested, eclectically involved "extrovert on steroids," but doable.

So, my fellow InScriber, what is your focus for the new year?

To help you determine where your focus should be, you may want to ask yourself the following questions:

• What do I want to accomplish in the first quarter of 2025?
• Which of these tasks are important as opposed to urgent, as Stephen Covey says? ("Urgent" being those tasks that distract us from what we truly should be focused on.)
• Which tasks can I delete from my list or delegate to someone else?
• What tasks that are truly achievable can I add to my current list?
• What am I going to set aside in order to achieve my goals? Watching TV in the evening? That extra half hour of sleep in the morning? Doom scrolling?
• Which optional tasks get my mojo flowing? What are those tasks I'm driven to accomplish even if it would be easier not to?

And THE question we must ask as believers . . .

How is the Lord leading me this year?

As you look to what you have at hand and how it can glorify the Lord and bless others, may He give you the wherewithal to discern what He has for you this year and all you require to accomplish the good works He has prepared for you.

Reflecting on God's Goodness by Steph Beth Nickel

As writers, we may look back over the year and reflect on what we've accomplished or what we've failed to accomplish.

Either way, there are benefits to reflecting on our writing and writing-related goals through the lens of God's goodness.

When we made our plans w-a-y back at the end of 2021, we didn't know what the following 12 months would bring. And for some of us, that's an understatement to say the least.

Every year, I make plans and set goals. (This is one of my favourite things to do.) Throughout the year, I update those goals. 

I, unlike many people, don't mind dreaming big on paper (or the computer screen) and then bumping things to the next week, month, or even, the next year.

For several years, I've dreamed of indie publishing two or more books annually. Could I? Quite possibly, but it hasn't happened yet. And that's okay.

The good news! I've gotten back to writing the YA spec fiction I started two or three years ago during NaNoWriMo, National Novel Writing Month. A number of individuals have encouraged me, although they only recently found out about the project. Never underestimate what a kind word to a fellow writer might mean to them.

What will happen with this book, what I hope is the first in a series? Only God knows. But I need to push past "the murky middle," where my enthusiasm for a project typically dies out, and persevere. Those encouraging comments by a couple of individuals went a long way to motivating and energizing me. God used them to spur me on.

As I mentioned, I'm great at dreaming big. However, I also put the "pro" in PROcrastination.

I'll do better tomorrow—or next week. This thought runs through my mind a lot.

Sometimes, I fail to achieve my goals because I put too many things on my To-Do List. Sometimes, it's because I've become an expert at procrastinating.

Still, as I reflect on the goals I achieved—and those I didn't—it's important that I do so prayerfully. As I set my goals for the coming year, I intend to let my imagination soar. But I also intend to ask the Lord for wisdom, so I can know what projects He wants me to focus on in 2023. 

While I began working on my coauthor, Paralympian Deb Willows, on the follow-up to her first memoir, Living Beyond My Circumstances, an embarrassingly long time ago, we have made strides forward this year. We have begun to meet online every 1-2 weeks, and I did have the opportunity to spend the best parts of a week with her, working on the book and enjoying our friendship. 

God caused our paths to cross, and Deb has been an inspiration and an encouragement to me over the years. She has had an especially rough go of it over the last few years. Because of it, the book, tentatively titled Keep Looking Up, will be much different than we originally intended. On the positive side, it has the potential of impacting readers in a powerful way. 

So, even though I didn't work on this project as diligently as I would have liked to, I see God's hand in it all. Learning to balance my understanding of God's sovereignty and my responsibility to accomplish the tasks before me is an ongoing endeavour.

Although I haven't achieved anywhere near what I had hoped to this year, I have seen God's goodness at work in my life. How about you?

What is one writing goal you've made steps toward accomplishing this year?

What is one unfinished project you would like to complete in 2023?

What is one specific priority you believe God has for your writing life?

Whether 2022 has been incredibly productive or filled with unexpected challenges that have kept us from accomplishing the goals we set for ourselves, let's ask ourselves how we can see God's goodness through it all.

Go for the Gold with God by Steph Beth Nickel

This lady right here—gold medal-winning, world record-setting Paralympian Deb Willows—taught me so much about perseverance and overcoming one's circumstances. She also taught me what it looks like to go for the gold with God. 

When I saw the theme for this month, “A Metaphor from the Olympics,” I was thrilled. Having co-authored Deb’s memoir, Living Beyond My Circumstances, I knew I had a storehouse of information and inspiration. 

As writers and as Christians, how can we, too, go for the gold?

Dream big!

When Deb was a girl, she sat watching the Olympics with her dad. When she saw the swimming events, she said, "I want to do that."

Now, because Deb has cerebral palsy, her limbs don't always do what she wants them to. Many parents would have encouraged their child to set the bar a little lower, but not the Willows. They provided her with every opportunity to achieve her dreams—and she did.

What can we learn from this? 

If there's something seemingly impossible that we want to achieve, let's prayerfully ask God for wisdom and direction and do all we can to achieve our dreams (unless, of course, the Lord directs us on another path). It may just pay off in ways we'd never imagined.

Commit to Practice, Practice, and More Practice

Deb didn't just show up at an event and say, "Well, I'm here. Let's do this!" Of course not.

She spent countless hours in the pool strengthening her limbs and learning how to propel herself down the lane ... as well as learning to propel her wheelchair through a slalom course, play wheelchair soccer and bocci ball. 

When she felt like it, she practiced. When she didn't feel like it, she practiced. When a migraine hit, if at all possible, she practiced.

This woman's determination has taught me that anything worth achieving is worth hours of planning, preparation, and practice—even when we don't feel like it. This is true whether we're on our way to becoming a record-setting athlete or the best freelance columnist our local newspaper has ever hired.

Press Through the Hard Times

I already mentioned Deb's migraines, but one thing especially impressed me. As she said, the organizers of a Paralympic event won't reschedule simply because an athlete has a headache. Deb has competed when her body wanted nothing more than to stay in bed. 

Deb also tells of another Paralympian with whom she played wheelchair soccer. During the match, there was a loud crunch. This man's foot had gotten squashed between his footplate and that of another athlete's. The truly amazing thing is this: he refused to let the doctor put on a cast until after his swimming events. Talk about dedication.

Do I have this kind of dedication when I face hard times in my own life? Too often I'd have to say no. In fact, I can't even imagine persevering in these scenarios. What about you?

Don't Give Up When You Don't Achieve Gold

Deb was away from home competing in the Games. Normally, she would get in touch with her family after she had won a medal (or several medals). On this particular occasion, she hadn't won any medals or set any world records, but she did want to talk to her family. So she called home and who should answer but her brother.

He asked, "Did you win?"

When Deb said she hadn't, he asked why she was calling.

Brothers!

It is important to do the best we can—to do everything in the name of Jesus as it says in Colossians 3:17—but that doesn't necessarily mean we'll win a gold medal or hit the best seller list. However, one thing's for sure, if we give up, we never will.

By the way, Deb and all the members of her family are extremely close and have great fun together.

Give God the Glory

Here's Deb's perspective on what's truly important:

"In a very real sense, the medals I won are worthless. But when I share my faith with others, now that is pure gold. If back on that June day I did not swim my race, how many opportunities to share God's love would I have missed?" (from Living Beyond My Circumstances)

It reminds me of 1 Corinthians 9:24-27, which says, "Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one receives the prize? So run that you may obtain it. Every athlete exercises self-control in all things. They do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable. So I do not run aimlessly; I do not box as one beating the air. But I discipline my body and keep it under control, lest after preaching to others I myself should be disqualified" (ESV).

Will you go for the gold this day? And will you give God all the glory whether you achieve your dreams or not?

Steph Beth Nickel is a freelance writer and editor (among other things). She seeks to go for the gold from her home in southwestern Ontario. Deb and Steph are currently working on a follow-up book that will cover the years after Deb’s active involvement in sports. They’ve given it the working title Still Living Beyond My Circumstances.

When Writing is a Calling by Steph Beth Nickel

Could you not write?

I've heard that question more than once and I've given it quite a bit of thought.

Could I not write another blog post? I suppose.

Could I not write another poem? Most likely.

Could I not write those novels that are bee-bopping around in my head? Without a doubt.

But could I set aside writing all together? Now that's another story.

I didn't set out to co-author a memoir and yet that's how God led. It was my honour to help Deb Willows tell her story. And much to our surprise, it was shortlisted for this year's The Word Awards. That announcement struck me as surreal actually. (You can purchase Living Beyond My Circumstances from Castle Quay Books and other online and physical bookstores.)

 

A number of month ago Ron Hughes contacted me to know if I knew of anyone who might be interested in contributing to HopeStreamRadio. As is typical, I jumped in with both feet. This daily podcast seemed the perfect place to share a series of devotionals based on the gospel of John, which I titled "If You Love Me . . ." 

When I completed this series, I asked Ron what he thought I should write about next. I am currently working on "Family Life Lessons," using both Old and New Testament passages for inspiration.

I also upload two book reviews each month.

Did I have previous experience in devotional writing? Only a little.

Did I have previous broadcasting experience? None.

Is this a door God opened for me? I have no doubt. In fact, it is one of those things I just know He wants me to do.

Both of these opportunities plus the opportunity to co-teach the Creative Nonfiction Intensive at Write Canada this month made me feel like this . . . 

Not very spiritual, huh? (grin)

Do I believe, from past and present experiences, that God has called me to write? Absolutely.

Therefore, could I not write? As long as I feel it is what God would have me do, the answer must be a resounding NO!

How about you? Could you not write? Why or why not?

Fresh as the New Driven Snow by Steph Beth Nickel

Oh, no . . . wait! That was yesterday. Thankfully, the temperature was high enough to get rid of the snow that fell, an early April Fool’s joke. The trees did look beautiful with the clean white stuff clinging to their branches, but like most people, I am glad to see the signs of spring.

Autumn has been my favourite season as long as I can remember. I love the sights, the sounds, and the smells. It wasn’t until my hubby started keeping me posted on the development of the buds on the trees that I even really noticed spring. And now the crocuses, the tulips, the robins, and yes, the buds touch my heart with their promise of new life.

And with spring comes Camp NaNoWriMo. Many of you may be familiar with the original version of NaNoWriMo that runs in the fall. Thousands of writers sign up with the aim of writing the first draft of a novel, at least the first 50,000 words, in a single month.

While I have never signed up in the fall, I have “attended” camp a couple of times and am doing so again this month. The nice thing is that we can set our own word count goal and our own projects plural. (In fact, this post is counting toward my goal. Hooray!) My personal goal is to write at least 30,000 words this month. That shouldn’t be a problem with my eclectic interests and endeavours.

And that’s how I keep my writing fresh: I write several short pieces on a wide variety of topics.

Let me take a moment to say kudos to all of you who invest the time and energy to draft, write, and rewrite (numerous times) full-length books. I am somewhat in awe of you. While I did coauthor Deb Willows’ memoir, Living Beyond My Circumstances, it was more about getting to know her and her family and relaying stories from her life that she wanted to share with readers. I’m all about relationships, so this didn’t seem quite the same as holing up for months on end to write—and rewrite—a single book.

I have what I call the Butterfly Syndrome. I love to flit from one thing to the next to the next. This is why I overcommit at times. So many different things catch my attention. Some of you may be able to relate to sayings like “Oo . . . pretty” and “Squirrel!”

Unless ideas are bouncing around in my head like a pinball, I feel lethargic. I have to focus my endeavours—or nothing gets finished—but I can’t rein in my thoughts completely or it’s like someone has turned off the tap and left my lazy, listless self sitting in my chair—or on the couch in front of the TV—for hours on end.

So when I was asked to guest post on my fellow writers’ blogs and when Ron Hughes of HopeStreamRadio approached me about being a contributor, I was over the moon. Coming up with new content regularly means my ideas and my writing must stay fresh.

When writing devotionals for HSR, I dig into God’s Word. I’ve found, once again, how amazing it is to find new insights in passages I’ve read dozens—maybe hundreds—of times before. It truly is the Living Word.

And when I’m writing blog posts, I often follow the advice of a visiting missionary who spoke at our church years ago. When asked to speak, he considered what the Lord had been teaching him at the time. He most often used that as the springboard for his message. When I approach a new post, I look to what has been going on in my life. I often find the inspiration I need to get started from my day-to-day life and go from there.

Keep a lookout. Fresh ideas and inspiration are all around, just like the signs of spring.