I love the new title and am having a lot of fun revising Jake and Gracie’s story to get it just right. As soon as I’m finished with these revisions, I’m going to start a ‘behind the scenes’ blog mini-series about all the things that have gone on since getting “The Call.” I know it’s something I would have been interested to learn more about as I was working toward publication, and a few folks on Twitter said they’d like to see it too.

So…stay tuned! More to come!

On March 26th, I got the call from RWA that Language of Love was a Golden Heart finalist. I was blown away.

But then, this morning, just over a month later, I got the call from Melissa Endlich, Sr. Editor for Love Inspired telling me she wanted to BUY Language of Love for publication!

As my kiddo would say: Oh. My. Good. Ness.

I am so excited to be joining the family of super-awesome Love Inspired authors. I’ve been reading LIs since they debuted 15 years ago. And I can’t believe I’m going to walk in Wal-Mart (or  Target or B&N or anywhere that will sell this book–believe me, I’m going to be taking a lot of random trips to stores and pinching myself) and see MY book sitting on the shelf!

I will definitely be writing up THE CALL story very soon. I still have to process it all! But I couldn’t wait to post it up here on my blog!

I need to go change some things on the page about my books now!

Today I’m being featured on the Ruby Slippered Sisterhood’s blog, talking about all things Golden Heart and writing. I’m so excited to be hanging out with this sisterhood of Golden Heart finalists!

Aaaaand…not only do you get to listen to me talk about writing, my books and miniature donkeys, but I’m giving away one copy of my awesome friend Vicky Dreiling’s latest release–How to Ravish a Rake. Vicky is a TRIPLE Rita nominee this year and I just love her stuff. Since I don’t have a book of my own to give away, I can’t think of a better book to share with you!

Stop by the blog and say hi! I can’t wait to hear from you.

http://www.rubyslipperedsisterhood.com/meet-2012-golden-heart-finalist-kristen-ethridge/

–Third Day, “Rock Star”

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FGwInxJi_nY

We all want to be something, don’t we?

I remember in college, we’d joke about the girls majoring in the MRS degree. What they wanted came with a diamond ring and a happily ever after.  When my dad goes fishing, he wants to catch the big one–the fish that will make a good meal and a good story. Recently, I watched Baylor women’s basketball coach Kim Mulkey talk openly about what she wanted–another national championship and an undefeated season to go with it.

Some of those girls got their man. Sometimes my dad gets the fish. And you’d better believe Kim Mulkey got her championship banner.

But what about you? What do you want that seems so close you can’t fail to get it, yet so far that there’s no way you can reach it?

In my life, it’s probably writing. Something I’ve seemingly been working on my whole life. When I was 17, my dad signed me up for a continuing education class at University of Houston–Cinco Ranch on fiction writing. And it was there that I saw I might really could be a writer. I’ve pursued it sometimes less, sometimes more over the years, but I’ve never been able to let go of the imaginary people in my head…or their stories.

But really, I’ve always been on the outside looking in. I mean, I know I could be a writer… if someone would just let me in the club. That “lucky break” mentioned in the song lyrics above. I’ve finished manuscripts, started a few more, joined professional organizations, entered contests, and queried agents and editors until I’ve pretty much run out of people to give the opportunity to tell me no.

But I’ve kept at it. Maybe that’s the “drive and determination” Third Day sings about. I guess they’d know. They’ve sold a few albums and won a few awards in their genre.

And this last month, something changed. First, I got a call that I’d finaled in the Romance Writers of America’s® Golden Heart® contest. The Golden Heart is the Oscars for unpublished romance writers. Literally…I get to buy a fancy dress and everything. (Mine has rhinestones…but I doubt that surprises you.) And then yesterday, I got an email from an editor I greatly admire, saying she’d seen my book in Harlequin’s® So You Think You Can Write® contest and she liked what she’d read so far.

Now, the funny thing is…I entered both of these contests, because as I’ve mentioned earlier, I’d pretty much run out of agents who could say no to this book. So, I threw my hands in the air and threw the manuscript into two contests that could conceivably land Language of Love on an editor’s desk. And if it didn’t, well, that would have to be the end of the road for Language of Love for now. Because although I love this book and I believe in it, I was just plain out of options.

But it’s kind of hit me over the last few days and weeks…when God puts a dream in your heart, He doesn’t allow it to just die there. The Bible says “the thief comes to kill and destroy”–and that’s the opposite of God. He comes to bring life and build up. He just needs some of your drive and determination so he can create those “lucky” breaks (which aren’t really luck at all, but faith.)

I wanna be a bookstar. But I ain’t got what it takes. But this past week, I’ve been reminded again that I’m so thankful I’ve got a God who has never, ever given up on that dream he put in my path so long ago. And while I’ve still got a long ways to go–no awards have been won, no agents have signed me, and no editors have offered me a publishing contract–maybe, just maybe, one day I’ll get to be a bookstar.

What about you? What’s your dream? Have you given up on it? Are you still pursuing it? Do you need to ask God to give you vision and fire for it again?

I have a strict policy of only having actual real-life friends on my Facebook page, so most of the people on there know I’m a little goofy. So, I have been talking about this for the last week or so–and thankfully, I have a lot of friends who share my goofiness and we’ve had some lovely discussions about tiaras and tea. But I also have several friends who think I’m a few crumpets short of a tea tray. One mentioned today that there were probably medications I could take for my obsession.

I know he meant it all in fun, but I’ve gotta set the record straight. I love happily-ever-afters. Now, obviously, Prince Charles and Princess Diana proved that merely walking down the aisle with a fancy dress and a kiss on the balcony of Buckingham Palace is not the answer to happiness or a successful marriage. But there are worse places to start.

In truth, it doesn’t take a fancy wedding to start a marriage. Some people simply walk down to the local courthouse. Others have more elaborate plans. And some people have miniature donkeys serving drinks at the reception (ok, that was me…) But another thing it shouldn’t take is an expectation that the warm fuzzies are going to hang around forever.

I love happily ever afters. It’s probably why I love to watch chick flicks and why I think it’s a privilege to write Christian romance novels. But I also know that happy is an emotion, just like love. And to truly get to the “ever-after” part, we have to build our relationships on something that will stand the test of time.

And that’s where the idea of commitment comes in. Being in it for the long haul. Recognizing that while you may be more in love at sometimes than others, you still have to be in commitment at all times. In my own life, I’m blessed to have found someone who makes the ongoing exercise of being both in love and being in commitment worthwhile.

I hope that after all their time together, William and Kate will be able to echo that same sentiment. They will have the added glare of the spotlight that none of us have as a party in our own personal relationships. But at the end of the day, royal or commoner, we all have to navigate life’s ups-and-downs, emotions, and milestones with respect and concern for the ones in it with us. And that’s the key to commitment…and love.

But…if I could give them any advice for tomorrow’s big day, I’d tell William and Kate to be sure and have some miniature donkeys on hand for the reception soiree at Buckingham Palace. They make great servers and look fantastic in photographs.

The bride. The groom. The donkey.

Question for you: Are you planning to watch the Royal Wedding? What do you think is the key to a successful marriage?

I love the can-do spirit, don’t you? Someone gets an idea and RUNS with it. I think everyone comes up with great ideas, especially those of us who work in the creative arts. If we didn’t come up with big ideas, we wouldn’t have any material with which to create. But too often, we stop at the first stumbling block we hit. We shelve that idea far too easily.

Instead of just throwing them away, Amy wanted to pair up these mis-matched socks and donate them to people in economically disadvantaged places who had none. But then she hit a stumbling block. She discovered that agencies who work in this area only want new pairs of socks. But instead of quitting and saying her idea wouldn’t work, Amy expanded her vision. She’s now collecting the gently used socks AND new socks. She’s making sock puppets and other toys out of the orphans and sending the new pairs to ministries and shelters all over the community and the world.

My friend Courtney did the same thing. After multiple treatments for an aggressive form of cancer, she saw a need for patients to have something to love on during treatments. Remembering how much her own Humpty Dumpty doll meant to her as a child, Courtney began to make dolls she called “Dundy” and partnered with an organization called Lifeline Chaplaincy to donate them to cancer patients. When customers buy a Dundy of their own (my daughter LOVES hers!) or any of Courtney’s beautiful embroidered products, they help more Dundies to go straight to cancer patients. And now, Courtney’s not just giving Dundy dolls to patients in Houston. Dundy is national! She’s been able to expand her vision. Even a diagnosis of advanced-stage breast cancer at only 29 years old did not deter her from helping others. Instead, it inspired her vision.

It’s almost Easter, a time when we remember God’s expansive vision for us. Sin didn’t stop God from loving us. He expanded His vision to include Jesus Christ and our redemption. You can’t get much bigger than that.

What is God calling you to do today? Maybe it’s something as simple as inviting a friend, a neighbor, a co-worker to hear about God’s giant vision at an Easter service. Make a point to bring someone with you. And listen to that small voice of inspiration. You never know who you can touch by following your dream.

Question for You: Do you work with a charity you love? How do you show love to those in tough situations? Is there someone on your heart who needs to hear the love of God and see your own friendship and support more clearly?

I know a lot of writers struggle to define themselves. They’ve got a regular 8-5 job (and in this economy, they may even have part-time work on the side.) They write when they can, minutes and hours sandwiched around breaks, weekends, late nights or early mornings, and in between goals at Junior’s soccer games. So, when someone asks what they do, they are more likely to define themselves by their reality–that 8-5 grind–than by their dream–to be a published author.

But in the world of writing, you have to believe in what you’re doing. You have to set it up front and center. Being an author is about taking action and owning that action. You have to write it. Then edit it. Then submit it in order to find someone to produce it. Then you have to market it. And then you have to do it all over again.

No matter where you are in the cycle, you have to own the fact that you are a writer. No more putting it in the back closet with your hobbies.

Even God and Jesus wrote –and declared their actions. No, it wasn’t a book, but instead, parts of the story of their love and redemption of humanity. They talked about the writing they’d done in the greatest story ever told. They knew the action of writing made an impact. It had value.

In Luke 22:20, Jesus said, ”This cup is the new covenant written in my blood, blood poured out for you.” He wrote the story of salvation in the ink of His blood. He’s a writer.

In Isaiah 49:15, God describes His never ending love for us in purely authorly terms: “I’d never forget you—never. Look, I’ve written your names on the backs of my hands.” He took the action to write down the names of those He loves. He wasn’t shy about telling us he’d done it. He’s the author of our names.

This week, practice saying “I am a writer. I am an author.” When someone asks you what you do, tell them. You have to believe in yourself and the dream God has set in your heart.

Question for you: What keeps you from speaking up about the dreams God has placed in your heart? If you don’t think you qualify to call yourself a “writer” or “author” at this stage in your career, why not? If you do proudly call yourself a “writer” or an “author,” when did you get comfortable with that?

But when I got the third notice, I was in the car, heading for some family pictures. You know, those things where you have to smile and look happy? And happy I was not. I cursed the fact that I did not have on waterproof mascara. I needed a moment. I needed a good cry.

I still needed to look good in those pictures, darn it all.

So, I delicately dabbed at my eyes with an old Wendy’s napkin from the back of my glove compartment and tried to make sense of the messages I was receiving. How could this whole big door be closing? It seemed like such a sure thing not too long ago. There were options, accord, enthusiasm. And then fell the silence. After the tears dried, I realized I wasn’t mad that the door did close. I was genuinely hurt by how some of it happened.

But regardless of all that, I needed to start asking God what path I’m supposed to be on. And I needed to open my eyes and ears to hear the small responses He was putting out there for me to see and hear. One friend posted a Facebook status about a current event but her words “God’s will is the only thing that matters” hit me. Yes. Okay. That’s right. I don’t ever want to be anywhere except in God’s will for my life. So, I put one searching foot in front of the other and kept looking.

A note in my Twitter feed said “The LORD is my helper; I will not fear. What can man do to me?” Heb 13:6 Fear! Yes! I had been living with the fear of how could anything work out if this sure-thing didn’t? I WILL NOT FEAR.

Shortly thereafter, another Facebook status that leapt off my little phone screen: ‎”And now, my daughter, don’t be afraid. I will do for you all you ask. All my fellow townsmen know that you are a woman of noble character.” Ruth 3:11 NIV More about fear. And more about His ability to do more than we could ask or imagine if we just don’t fear.

And for some reason, I woke up this morningwith a snippet of a U2 song (“Who’s Gonna Ride Your Wild Horses” from Achtung, Baby) in my head, and I knew it was all part of the message He was sending:

So, God’s will is what matters. Don’t fear. Trust. Don’t look back. I’ll be completely honest with you that I still don’t know what God’s will in this situation actually is. But I do know what He originally tasked me to do: be a writer for Him, be a wife and a mother. It shocked me when I realized that NOTHING has changed about that. His original guidance to me three years ago didn’t change. The door closed on a change to that plan. Not on the plan itself.

As I write this very blog, I just looked at the coaster on which my glass of apple juice sits. It says in bold print across the bottom “Wherever you go–go with all your heart.”

I’m going where God leads, with a willing heart, not a spirit of fear. I’m staying on His path until he shows me a fork in the road I need to take.

Question for you: Does God use others to speak into your life? How has someone done that recently?

U2: “Who’s Gonna Ride Your Wild Horses?”

Last week, I started my new book, Second Chance Cinderella. Like most new creative works, it’s going to take time to get the pace rolling. My characters don’t know me yet and they’re not opening up. But I’ve got to get something out of them or the book will be a total yawner, and that’s not good storytelling. I needed inspiration.

I flipped over to the webpage of a group played on a station my husband listens to. The band is called the Turnpike Troubadours, and they play what I like to call Texas Country (even though they’re from Oklahoma.) I listened to their entire album, Diamonds and Gasoline, online. And the song that’s getting radio airplay right now, “7 & 7 (Ain’t It Strange)” completely spoke to me. All of a sudden, I had a conduit to my characters, something both they and I could relate to.

The chorus of the song goes “I had no clue/I’d be the boy who/Your mama warned you about…” I really think that could be Dan, the story’s hero, talking to Meg, the heroine, as the book unfolds. I’ve kept the music playing in the background as I’ve been writing this week so that Meg and Dan and I can all sing along together as I type. (If you’re a writer, you’ll get that sentence. Otherwise, you’ll probably write me off as a fruitcake!)

Music can be very powerful. Even my toddler finds herself making up songs throughout the day and learning new concepts at preschool through music. It has the power to evoke feelings and trigger memories. And, apparently, to get characters through their shy phases at the beginning of a new project.

Question to you: How does music inspire you? What songs have encouraged your creativity? What are you listening to these days?

Check this out: Turnpike Troubadours Official Audio Page and a Live Version of “7&7 (Ain’t It Strange)” from a show here in Dallas last week (that I tried to go to…but it was sold out!)

Generally, when the enemy throws arrows my way, my natural reaction is to pray for God’s protection and His peace. But for the first time in my life, I found that I couldn’t. It wasn’t a conscious decision. It wasn’t a denial of my need of these things. My emotion was poured out there on the countertop. I didn’t have enough inside to ask God anything. The writer no longer had any words.

But I had to function. In the middle of all of this, my autopilot pushed me into the shower. But before I got in there, I flipped on my iPhone and sat it on the ledge outside of the shower, tuned to the Chris Tomlin Pandora station. And “Our God” came on.

Our God is greater

Our God is stronger

God you are higher than any other

Our God is healer

Awesome in power

Our God

I let the words wash over me like soapy bubbles. And, just like the shampoo directions say, in the days and weeks to come, I lathered-rinsed-repeated. As the mother of a small child, about the only 5 minutes I have to myself is in the shower. And so, every single day, I put on my praise music when I got in the shower. I still couldn’t form prayers of my own, but I had years of practice at singing in the shower. I could praise along with Chris Tomlin, David Crowder, and others. I made their words the words of my heart.

And if our God is for us

Then who could ever stop us

And if our God is with us

Then what could stand against?

In the middle of the worst season of my life, I chose to praise. I chose not to accuse. I chose not to rant. I chose not to argue. I chose simply to praise God who knew this was happening and who allowed it to happen. I made a choice to ask him to use the dark hours for my good and His glory. And He has been faithful. We have been singing this song in church recently, and every time I hear it there or on the radio, it reminds me again how great is His faithfulness.

Someday, if I’m ever ready to talk about what went on, I’ll have a heck of a testimony to His amazing plan and faithfulness.  But even if I don’t get there, I can still share the most important lesson with you–even when you feel like you can’t pray, don’t stop talking to God. He’s created shoulders for us all to stand on in the times when our view is blocked.

“The sun of righteousness will dawn on those who honor my name, healing radiating from its wings.” –Malachi 4:2 (MSG)

Watch this great video set to Chris Tomlin’s “Our God” http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=op4n0EF3PdU

Question for You: What songs are speaking to your heart these days?