An Advent Creed for Writers

It is hard to believe we have almost come to the end of another year. It is beginning to look a lot like Christmas at my house. As Advent begins, I love to plan my reading and writing for the month ahead, for that is partly what Advent is all about. A season of preparation for the Nativity of Christ at Christmas. It always begins on the fourth Sunday before Christmas, to my family's surprise. They sometimes assume that it starts on December 1st to coincide with the first day of the chocolate Advent calendars. But no, this year it started yesterday, Sunday November 27th. As the weeks of Advent stretch before us, there is perhaps no better time to prayerfully ponder the writing plans we wish to commit to.   

I was reading Matthew 13: 10-17 in The Message version of the Bible. The apostles asked Jesus, "Why tell stories?" I paid close attention to his reply because I've often been asked the same question and come up with nothing better than, "I enjoy it" which seems too self-indulgent to justify.

Here is what our Lord and Saviour said.

"You've been given insight into God's kingdom. You know how it works. Not everybody has this gift, this insight; it hasn't been given to them. Whenever somebody has a ready heart for this, the insights and understandings flow freely. But if there is no readiness, any trace of receptivity soon disappears. That's why I tell stories; to create readiness, to nudge the people toward receptive insight. In their present state they can stare till doomsday and not see it, listen till they're blue in the face and not get it."

That's a wonderful way of putting it. All my life I'd always loved reading fiction but used to put it aside as a treat for my spare time when more 'important' work was finished. When I started writing fiction, I assumed that of course others would be approaching my books the same way. I spent years trying to get into the habit of acknowledging that just because my work is targeted for people's leisure moments, it does not follow that said work is "light-weight" or frivolous. In fact, our leisure moments may be the ideal time when we are most receptive to those things of depth and significance.

Knowing that a 'Creed' is a written set of beliefs or aims which guide or form our actions, I searched around to see if I could find a fiction writer's creed. When I couldn't, I decided to write my own. For all you friends who love to write, you are welcome to share mine with me. It doesn't have to be fiction either. Since I first wrote this over ten years ago, my writing has taken many different forms across various platforms. 


A WRITER'S CREED

1) I will do all I can to stir readers' hearts, to create fertile ground for insights and understandings to flow freely to them from God.

2) I will study and ponder God through His Word and prayer, to keep a clean heart toward Him and stay sensitive to what I believe He would have me write.

3) I will offer my very best to make people smile, cry, laugh and enjoy every moment of time they've put aside to read my books, articles, blog posts or social media thoughts.

4) I will re-write and edit to make the finished result as polished as it can be. I will accept the sacrifice of hard work and time involved.

5) I will continue to study the craft of writing, willing to learn more.

6) I will not focus on praise, money or recognition as a gauge of how I'm going. I will be content to be a spark of light where God has placed me, trusting Him to open doors.

7) Having said that, I will look out, being ever vigilant for opportunities to introduce my work to people through speaking events such as talks and workshops, or written words such as articles or guest blogs.

8) I will take setbacks in my stride as an inevitable part of the journey but I will not let them turn me away from my chosen path or cause me to give up.

Paula Vince is the author of nine fiction novels set in her home state, South Australia. She also writes articles, blog posts, reflections, book reviews and creative non-fiction. She loves to dig into old classic novels and consider their relevance for our 21st century era. Follow her musing at www.vincereview.blogspot.com