• Facebook
  • Twitter

Dreaming Beneath the Spires

Anita Mathias's Blog on Faith and Art

  • Home
  • My Books
  • Essays
  • Contact
  • About Me

The Lord is my Literary Agent

By Anita Mathias

Original illustration by Jo Rosenblum

David, a shepherd, addresses the LORD as his shepherd. Hmm. 
And when Jesus invites Peter initially, and re-invites him again after the Resurrection, it is in the areas of his competence. You are a fisherman? Well then, fish men. 
You have laboured all night and caught nothing. Well, cast your net where I tell you to and be astounded. And Peter catches 153 fish.
It’s easy to recognise our need for God in our areas of weakness. But our areas of competence, if surrendered to him, can bring the most surprising revelations of how we can do exceedingly abundantly more than we imagined with his ideas, and his power.
Rachel Held Evans said mockingly, “I’ve often heard authors claim that God is their agent. Mine is Rachelle Gardner, and she’s excellent.)
Hmm. Whom would you rather have as a literary agent–the Lord or Rachelle Gardner (of whom I know nothing, by the way, so nothing personal)? Whose advice would be more helpful?  
Who’s more likely to have good ideas and inspiration? Who’s cleverer and more creative? Who has more power to open doors? Who can lead you by the quickest, swiftest way to reach as many readers as you can be a blessing to?
This is what Rachelle Gardner advises, 
  • “speak frequently to large groups.” Your proposal lists every speaking engagement for the last year, and every speaking engagement already booked for the future, including the date, the event, and the NUMBER of people you spoke to.
  • We want to know your Klout score, your number of Twitter followers, number of LinkedIn contacts, number of Facebook friends or fans on your profile page. We want to know how many visitors view your YouTube channel each month. If you use Facebook ads, Google Ad Words, or Wiki Book Summaries, we want the number of monthly impressions.
  • If you’re regularly on radio, what’s your audience size according to Arbitron? If you write for a regular newsletter or journal, what’s the circulation? 
And how might one have time to write, prithee, with all this relentless self-promotion?
And how much social media success does she expect you to have before people might read your book? Rachelle writes
As a benchmark, you could shoot for 500 fans on your Facebook profile page and 15,000 monthly page views to your blog. 
 Building a platform takes time—sometimes, a lot of time. Sometimes non-fiction authors need to set aside their manuscripts and focus on gathering their tribe for awhile.
LOL!
And if the Lord was my literary agent–which (thank God!) He is?
He advises me to spend more time with Him, so that what I write is drawn from eternal wells.
He advises me to keep my blog readership growing steadily, which it is, and suggests simple do-able strategies for this. He doesn’t suggest 15,000 page views, just growth.
He also tells me that if my blog blesses people, many of them will buy the reasonably-priced books that spring from the blog, whether self-published or conventionally published.
There is rest and joy and peace in what the Lord advises, no stress, none of the relentless push for more, more, more. His strategies and advice are do-able. And I do believe that books and ideas that come from God will last longer, and bless more people than market-driven ideas which spring from the brains of literary agents.
* * *
Whatever our profession is, the Lord knows how to do it better, and WE can do it better if we lean on his guidance and inspiration. 
The Lord is my muse and my literary agent.
I shall not want. 

He makes me down to lie
In paths of green, he leadeth me
By quiet waters…

More from my site

  • Thomas Merton on Work from “Seeds of Contemplation”Thomas Merton on Work from “Seeds of Contemplation”
  • The Path of the Righteous Shines Ever Brighter, Prov. 4, Blog Through the Bible ProjectThe Path of the Righteous Shines Ever Brighter, Prov. 4, Blog Through the Bible Project
  • We are made of mud and the breath of God–and so anyone can change, anytimeWe are made of mud and the breath of God–and so anyone can change, anytime
  • “I Said to the Man who Stood at the Gate of the Year” (From “The King’s Speech”)“I Said to the Man who Stood at the Gate of the Year” (From “The King’s Speech”)
  • Spring and the EnglishSpring and the English
Share this...
Share on Facebook
Facebook
Tweet about this on Twitter
Twitter

Filed Under: In which I resolve to live by faith

« Previous Post
Next Post »

Comments

  1. Anita says

    December 12, 2011 at 1:12 pm

    @Jo, What an amazing illustration, Jo. I've used it now, with attribution! Thank you!

    @ Malcolm, thank you very much!

  2. malcolmguite says

    December 12, 2011 at 9:37 am

    Wonderful, and just what I needed to read this morning as I wait for a publishers decision. Good to be reminded where it all comes from and who it's all for!

  3. jo rosenblum says

    December 12, 2011 at 7:35 am

    I liked it so much,
    I've made a little tribute.
    Thanks Anita.

Sign Up and Get a Free eBook!

Sign up to be emailed my blog posts (one a week) and get the ebook of "Holy Ground," my account of working with Mother Teresa.

Join 671 Other Readers

Follow me on Twitter

Follow @anitamathias1

Anita Mathias: About Me

Anita Mathias

Read my blog on Facebook

My Books

Wandering Between Two Worlds: Essays on Faith and Art

Wandering Between Two Worlds - Amazon.com
Amazon.com

Amazon.co.uk

Francesco, Artist of Florence: The Man Who Gave Too Much

Francesco, Artist of Florence - Amazom.com
Amazon.com

Amazon.co.uk

The Story of Dirk Willems

The Story of Dirk Willems - Amazon.com
Amazon.com

Amazon.co.uk
Premier Digital Awards 2015 - Finalist - Blogger of the year
Runner Up Christian Media Awards 2014 - Tweeter of the year

Recent Posts

  •  On Not Wasting a Desert Experience
  • A Mind of Life and Peace in the Middle of a Global Pandemic
  • On Yoga and Following Jesus
  • Silver and Gold Linings in the Storm Clouds of Coronavirus
  • Trust: A Message of Christmas
  • Life- Changing Journaling: A Gratitude Journal, and Habit-Tracker, with Food and Exercise Logs, Time Sheets, a Bullet Journal, Goal Sheets and a Planner
  • On Loving That Which Love You Back
  • “An Autobiography in Five Chapters” and Avoiding Habitual Holes  
  • Shining Faith in Action: Dirk Willems on the Ice
  • The Story of Dirk Willems: The Man who Died to Save His Enemy

Categories

What I’m Reading

Fierce Attachments: A Memoir
Vivian Gornick

Fierce Attachments  - Amazon.com
Amazon.com

Amazon.co.uk

Wanderlust
Rebecca Solnit

Solnit --  Amazon.com
Amazon.com

Amazon.co.uk

Acedia & me: A Marriage, Monks, and a Writer's Life
Kathleen Norris

KATHLEEN NORRIS --  Amazon.com
Amazon.com

Amazon.co.uk

Opened Ground: Poems, 1966-96
Seamus Heaney

Opened Ground: Poems, 1966-96 Amazon.com
Amazon.com

Amazon.co.uk

Archive by month

INSTAGRAM

Follow on Instagram

© 2022 Dreaming Beneath the Spires · All Rights Reserved. · Cookie Policy · Privacy Policy

»
«