Serenity Prayer Just for Authors

Reinhold Niebuhr wrote The Serenity Prayer which, in the 1970's was printed on plaques, books, cups, clothes, and anything else wholesalers could think of.

A few years ago I took the thought of Niebuhr's Serenity Prayer and created my own serenity prayer Just for Writers.

I usually print it on cards and send to writing friends at either Christmas or New Year's.

I'm breaking that tradition now because just about everyone I know has had a tough emotional time since January.

So many people I know have family members with serious illnesses. Many have lost a mother, a husband, a brother, a sister, and friends.

Reality of Being a Writer

We're facing change and loss and many of us find it hard to write in the face of all this emotional pain. It's difficult to create fictional worlds and breathe life into fictional characters when all we can think of is the breath leaving the body of someone we love.

Writers draw from the emotional well within. Sometimes, it's just too painful to tap into that well.

We begin to wonder if we'll ever finish the manuscript we're writing. Will we ever get another book contract from an editor?

Will our agent hang in there with us if we're not sending something soon? Will readers forget who we are if we don't publish frequently?

It's bad enough to deal with heartbreak and sadness, and it's made worse when we worry about our cash flow and career.

That's why I'm sharing this with my writing friends today.

Perhaps this bit of wisdom will help you put things in perspective and keep going despite the bumps in your writing road.

A Serenity Prayer for Writers by Joan Reeves

God grant me...

The Serenity to accept rejection of my writing over which I've sweated blood and wept tears.

The Courage to persist and keep writing and revise manuscripts that might do better with editing, better marketing copy, and new covers.

The Wisdom to know the difference between those manuscripts that have a chance of selling well and those that need to be mourned and forgotten.

And also the Wisdom to know when to step back from my writing and take a mental and emotional break to deal with real life. Amen

Takeaway Truth

Always remember that those you love—and the time you spend with them—are of greater importance than any number of words you'll ever write.