Publishing My First Book

“Writing is thinking. To write well is to think clearly. That’s why it’s so hard.”

–David McCullough, Pulitzer prize winning author of Truman and John Adams (via @QuotesforWriters)

There’s not much clear thinking going on in my head these days. Since last Monday, my mind has been launched into a fury of excitement; my body has been jolted with so much enthusiasm that it’s hard to contain it.

I’m publishing my first book!

The book proposal for Saffron Cross: How a Southern Baptist Minister Fell in Love with a Hindu Monk has been accepted for publication in fall 2013 by Upper Room Books in Nashville.

As a result, I’ve been skipping to the beat of new author bliss, enjoying budding reader expectations, and praying I can fulfill them.

Gratitude

In as much as my ego would like to think this publication business is all my doing, it’s not. This opportunity and accomplishment is the culmination of God’s grace, good friends and teachers, an editor’s and publisher’s faith in the message,  and the continuing unfolding of the blessings of interfaith living. My role is all this is minuscule, and I’m not fooled into thinking it’s more.

I am grateful to be the clumsy, broken vessel of the Saffron Cross message of love beyond institutional limitations.  And I’m grateful for the space to share it with you.

Process

In the midst of new author chaos, Annie Dillard’s wise words of the need to “control [the writer’s] own energies so [she] can work” ring true.

“[She] must be sufficiently excited to rouse [herself] to the task at hand, and not so excited [she] cannot sit down to do it” (The Writing Life). 

My current nonprofit consulting and teaching schedule allow me to write on Fridays. When I’m unable to contain my zest enough to sit down and wrestle a chapter, I’ll be blogging on jdanatrent.com about the first-time author process, my questions, reflections, and the mechanics of building an interfaith memoir from start to finish. I want your company and feedback on this journey.

Tell me about your interfaith experiences. I want to know what would make you pick up an interfaith memoir at your local bookseller and what would keep you reading it.

Join the conversation. Subscribe to this blog and follow me @jdanatrent.com