Heather Day Gilbert

Author

Where Have all the Mentors Gone? And the Winner of THE TENTH PLAGUE

First–we’re drawing the name of the winner of Adam Blumer’s book, The Tenth Plague. This is an e-book, so please let me know if you don’t have a way to download it!

And the winner is…

Jordyn Redwood!

Jordyn, I’ll be contacting you about that!

Lately, I’ve been asking myself something. Am I mentoring people? You know–like the Bible tells us “older women” to teach the “younger women?” And yes, I’m counting myself in that “older” category at this point!

Writers need mentors. When I first became a writer, I couldn’t just pop on blogspots and ask authors questions–blogspots had only started to become trendy. I knew precious few people in the industry, especially in the Christian book industry.

That doesn’t mean I didn’t try to ask questions. Yes, I e-mailed Anne Rice (and got a response!) and I sent my first chapters, un-requested, to Frank Peretti. The Frank Peretti packet returned unopened–I think there’d been a flood at whatever address I’d sent it to. But still, he’s a hard man to get ahold of! Not to mention, he didn’t know me from Adam.

Over the past few years, I’ve met some excellent author mentors. Some are published, some are not. They’ve come alongside me at various stages of this game, answered my desperate questions, and steered me with their knowledge. I can’t tell you how heartening this is for an unpublished author.

I’ve also noticed that in churches, young people tend to hang with peeps their own age. It’s only natural. But I know many older women have experienced so many things in life. I wish there were a simple way to walk up and say something like, “What could you share with me today about faith?”

Isn’t there something in us that craves a mentor–someone who’s been in this thing longer than we have? Someone who can say “This is the way, walk ye in it!” And, “Don’t try that, it’s not worth it in the end.”

My Grandma Wilcox, as a young woman

One of my mentors was my Grandma Wilcox. We’d sit on her porch and she’d share stories of people–people who’d made the right decisions and people who’d made the wrong ones. I knew what kind of men I wouldn’t date, just from those stories. I felt loved and confident and funny around her. She saw potential in me and never stopped believing I’d reach it.

All this to say, we all have stories to tell. I’m not going to shove my wisdom down your throats, about marriage or homeschooling or writing. But I’m happy to share. I don’t want to be stingy with the things I’ve learned–almost always the hard way.

To this end, on April first, some author friends and I are launching a blog called Married…with Fiction. It will be a gathering place for married peeps and writing peeps and like-minded peeps like you. It’s going to be a whole new type of blog–bringing together Christian writers, readers, editors, and agents, so we can all share our stories. We’re going to have some giveaways and there will be lovely perks of following. I’ll still be blogging here as well, though maybe not as frequently.

One of our ultimate goals with this new blog is to mentor people–authors, married people, parents–people walking the road we’ve walked. We have combined experience and we want to share with others what we’ve learned along the way. We want to promote new authors and strong marriages.

We don’t want to get to heaven and realize we sat in our pews and in our homes and kept quiet when our words could’ve changed the direction of someone’s life. I’ve seen that happen before, and it’s so sad.

I can’t wait to give you more details on Married…with Fiction. But for now, let’s talk about mentors:

****Who are your mentors? Who are you mentoring (don’t have to give names, just an idea). What wisdom have you learned from someone who has been in your shoes?****

Comments

  2. Becky Doughty says

    Oh Heather, Mentoring is soooo important in every walk of life, and you're right – we just don't reach out the way we used to. Neighbors talking over the fence, quilting circles, weekly church socials, etc. Life can be very lonely when no one is willing to come alongside you.I'm so excited for Married…With Fiction – there really is a need for it in this day and age when MARRIAGE is challenged all the way from the government down. And writers? WE NEED MENTORS! We need people to come alongside us and say, "Yes! Good job." or even "No- that's just not going to work like that. But I'm going to walk beside you through this."Very cool,Becky

  3. Erin Unger says

    One thing I've learned through ACFW is that it's so worth it to belong to this writer's group of like-faith believers. I've met(in cyber-space) so many great Christian writers who are willing to help and mentor, including Heather. What an encouragement in the writing world. Your new blog sounds great.

  4. Heather Day Gilbert says

    Thanks, Jessica and Becky, I'm totally stoked about this blog! And Erin, how sweet of you! There is nothing I enjoy more than helping others get a leg up faster than I did in this writing biz!

  7. Gwendolyn Gage says

    I'm excited about your new blog! Mentors are so important, and there's definately a need for a place where both wives and writers can go to for fellowship and encouragement.

  8. Jill Weatherholt says

    Sign me up! This is a great idea, Heather. I've received so much encouragement from both published and non-published writers. Like you, I've e-mailed many writers with questions and I don't think I've ever had an e-mail ignored. I mentor my goddaughter who is an avid writer. I love the beautiful picture of your grandmother. You look just like her!

  10. TC Avey says

    I'm excited about your new blog! It sounds great!Growing up I had excellent mentors both in school and in my walk with Christ. As an aspiring author, I need mentors on this long journey. You already are one of mine- thank you!

  11. Heather Day Gilbert says

    Aw, thank you all for your comments. I think there is a definite need for mentorship along the writing AND the marriage journey. I know this blog will encourage us as well as those who visit!

  12. Anita says

    What a wonderful idea :). I'm married, and I love fiction (and even write it!). Now that my nest is empty (more or less), I have time to 'meet' new friends. I look forward to the new blog.

  15. Ian Acheson says

    Yes, yes, Heather. Very important we do both, not just in writing but in walking in faith too. There are so many snags along the way that it's important to have someone alongside who can help us through the maze. Sometimes, we're not even aware we're in a maze, cause the enemy is so clever. So a mentor can help in the process of uncovering his tricks.The new blog sounds very exciting. Looking forward to sharing in it. Great post, Heather. Thank you..Ian

  17. Larry says

    Ah, finally dropping by on peeps blogs from Books and Such. Delighted by the quality I've been finding so far from folks, not just in the general way their websites look, but also in the quality of their content. Your new blog platform sounds pretty intriguing. That's the sort of use of technology that will keep the industry being relevant. In regards to mentors, I think you pointed out what exactly needs to be done: we all have the potential to uplift one another, it's just up to us to do so!Congrats on the blog and the new blog platform, Heather!