Strategic, and Beautifully Woven?

 

How strategic are you? Do you have a strategy with your writing where you plan carefully and outline the format of your work? Is each article or chapter structured before you commence writing? Or are you more a ‘seat of the pants’ person, and go with the flow of an idea and see where it takes you?

Strategic is my ‘one word’ for 2021. This concept is where we prayerfully consider ‘one word’ as being a keyword for the year. And choose to focus on what God is speaking to our hearts through that one word. To keep coming back to that word, as the year unfolds, and reflecting on its message through our experiences.

Strategic, to me, does not mean having a detailed plan. It is more keeping the big picture in mind, zooming back out, rather than zooming in. It means choosing carefully what I commit to, being self-aware, and examining my choices and the motivation behind my choices. And making the best use of the time that I have.

For individual pieces of work, there is also a need to be strategic, to keep the purpose and end goal in mind. It is so easy to get lost in the story or in the research and write reams. Often to the detriment of the piece overall which later just end up being cut out. As you may gather, the go with the flow approach has been very much part of my writing process…

Last year I had been thinking on whether to include book reviews, in some way, on my blog site. And whether I should apply for a book review programme. I love reading books, and I have always been an avid reader. But I did wonder if I had to read a book, to review it, would it then become a chore, would I lose my love of books. So I prayed about it and left it there.

Shortly after an opportunity came to collaborate with a U.S. website that focuses on book reviews and had a backlog of books to get through. I got to review several new independently published books. The review site has a set format, an overview of the book, and then two questions to answer. First how the book has affected you as a reader, your emotional response, and secondly who would enjoy reading the book. It was the second question that I often found myself struggling with, as it was not always clear who the target audience was for the book.

Sometimes we write for ourselves, as a journey of self-discovery. Sometimes for a particular person or a small group of people. Then there are those times when we place our writing out there, putting it on deposit, to see if it might gain any interest - with the hope that it might be a blessing to someone else. My journey into book reviewing clarified, to me, the benefits of being strategic in your writing – whether I can apply it or not is of course a different matter.

At the beginning of January I was reflecting on my one word, and whether I could be strategic enough to outline my blog articles for the first quarter of the year, when the post arrived. One of the letters was a summons to jury service in February. It is quite a drive to the nearest court and then a full day session, so straight away I could see that two weeks of my time were now going to be blocked out of my diary.

The following week my husband slipped on the wet grass in the front garden and fell flat on his back. He has fractured his spine, so he will now be laid up for three months. Thankfully, there is no lasting damage, but not the start to the year that he or we would have chosen. He is not a very good patient and I am not a very good nurse.

Our plans have a way of unravelling and life throws second choices at us.

“Faith is not just about what we know, but in trusting in what we don’t know. Unless we acknowledge that tension, we will never stand firm when second choices threaten to unsettle us.” Singing in Babylon - Finding Purpose In Life’s Second Choices by Jeff Lucas

If last year taught us anything it was to hold our plans lightly. I believe that ‘strategic’ is a timely word for me personally, that it is something that I should focus on. But I also see that we are beautifully woven too. We can trust in God’s faithfulness, He opens doors, He brings opportunities our way in His perfect timing. God works all things together, even those harder second choices that leave us struggling to understand.

“Trust God from the bottom of your heart; don’t try to figure out everything on your own. Listen for God’s voice in everything you do, everywhere you go; he’s the one who will keep you on track.” Proverbs 3:5-6 MSG

Applying for a book review programme is still on hold….