Novelist Lynn Austin on Believing God’s Call to be a Writer

It took 11 years from the first time I said, “I think I’ll write a book,” to the time the book was finally published. There were many points along the way where I wondered if it made sense to continue writing. Despite feeling called to put pen to paper, I struggled to have the faith to call myself a writer.

One Saturday morning, my husband was giving music lessons in the house while I wrote, our children playing all around me. One of his students was waiting for his lesson to start, and he asked me what I was doing. I told him “I’m writing a novel; I’m a writer.” Then I waited for the kid to laugh. Except he didn’t.

“Oh, my mom’s a writer too,” he said. “You should meet her.”

The next week, he brought his mom to trumpet lessons. It turned out she was a published Christian author, and she loved to mentor younger writers. God brought her right to my doorway. She became an important advisor to me; but even more importantly, that story gave me faith. I could see how God had orchestrated that moment; it was a small miracle that God had performed.    

I’d need that faith and confidence. Once I finished that first book, I had initial interest from a publisher who wanted to see the whole thing. This was long before the days of email, so I put my book in the mail, and waited. And waited. And waited. Eventually, about a year later, they told me I should hear a final answer “any day now.” I was glued to my telephone, waiting for their call.

Instead, my doorbell rang, and the mail carrier handed me a big black plastic garbage bag. Inside was my manuscript, all out of order. The box had fallen apart in the mail, and this was how it was returned to me. At the bottom of that garbage bag, I found a letter from the publishers saying, “We’re sorry but we decided not to publish this book.”

 I was heartbroken. But God kept sending me messages that made it clear I needed to continue writing and submitting my book to publishers. I never forgot the miracle God had worked, bringing the trumpet student’s mother to be my mentor.   

Eventually, a publisher did call to say they had decided to print my book—but I wasn’t home to receive the phone call. I was at the grocery store. My children were the ones to answer the phone, and the publisher gave them the message. They were so excited for me that by the time I got home, they had put up “congratulations” posters all over the house. It was a family celebration, and one of our many reminders of God’s enduring faithfulness.

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Many years later, Lynn Austin now has 30 published books, including her Christmas novella, The Wish Book Christmas. Find the full interview with Lynn at this link.