Surprises - Are They Good Or Bad?

A writer's life is full of surprises. Some are good and some not so good.

Signing a book contract usually comes as a surprise, because you or your agent submits your manuscripts a number of places. At first, I expected the publishing house to buy the proposed book each time a submission went out. When a, "I'm sorry. This doesn't fit our current needs" or something like that came, it was a surprise. Not a good one.

I soon learned not to have that kind of expectations. I told the Lord that I would trust Him to choose the publisher He wanted to buy my manuscript. So when a, "No, thank you," email came, I took it to mean that it wasn't God's choice.

Now when I receive an offer of a contract, it is a surprise. A good one.

Sometimes, we get really good reviews. They are good surprises. Sometimes, a reader doesn't understand what you wrote or even didn't like what you wrote. That's a not so good surprise.

I received a totally unexpected good surprise last week. A person who has an active blog where she reviews books follows me on Pinterest. She had pinned the cover of my next book Mary's Blessing on her board with the books she was looking forward to reading. I commented that she might like Maggie's Journey as well. Imagine my surprise when she told me that she had chosen Maggie's Journey for her list of top ten books of 2011.

Sometimes when the royalty statements come, they are good surprises. Other times, they are not so good surprises. But surprises are part of a writer's life, just as much as waiting is a constant in a writer's life.

So I'm thankful for the surprises in my life. Some encourage me. Others help me grow in some way, so I welcome all of them. The good and the not so good.

Have you been having surprises in your life lately?

Have they been good surprises or not so good surprises?

How do you deal with them?

--Lena Nelson Dooley - www.lenanelsondooley.com