Every time I see a book on “structure” or “story” I find myself bracing for the inevitable battle. If you’ve hung around with writers for long you know why, don’t you? 
Someone is about to get in an argument about THE way to write. In my mind, I see a group of literary protesters. “Structure Leads to Perfect Stories!” shouts one side. “Structure Leads to Predictable Stories!” counters the other.
I see myself standing in the middle of the crowd singing, “LET IT GO!”
Don’t get me wrong. If someone has figured out how they write, I want them to tell me how they do it. I really do.


But I have absolutely no illusions that the way they do it is going to wind up being the way I do it. I wish it would work that way but I know a lot of writers, and I have yet to meet one who writes exactly like someone else.
I’m okay with that. It’s part of the mystery of story…and I love a good mystery.
Want to know more? I’m guest posting today over at The Write Conversation. Come by and join the conversation!

I got home from the gym the other day, and I felt great. Well, I didn’t feel great physically. It took me an hour to stop sweating enough so I could take a shower.

But mentally? I felt great!

Why?

Because that workout was the kind of workout I wanted to skip. 
Because burpees.
Burpees are my nemesis.
This workout had 60 of them. With 60 wallballs thrown in for good measure. 

The only silver lining was the 13 minute time cap. A guarantee that the misery would end. When I walked in, I honestly didn’t expect to finish. But I did. With time to spare.

So when I got home and my husband asked me how it went my response was, “Good! I finished!”

I felt pretty good about that all day. And then I messed up.

I don’t know why I did it, but I looked at the whiteboard. The whiteboard is where everyone’s results are posted. When I pulled it up on my phone, I realized that some of my friends had not only completed the workout in significantly less time than I had, a whole bunch of them had done a much harder version!

My result didn’t seem so good anymore. In fact, it stunk. It was ridiculous. I’ve been doing CrossFit for a year and a half and I still struggle with burpees. I bet the coaches see me coming and think, “We don’t know why she’s still so bad at this.” 

Thankfully, this crazy train of thought didn’t last long, because as I was scrolling through the results, I saw where one friend had made this note on her time. “I showed up.”

Indeed.

The whiteboard isn’t intended to make anyone feel bad. It’s a record of your results, not so you can compare with everyone else but so you can compare yourself with yourself.  So you can see YOUR progress on YOUR journey. Of course there’s room for some friendly competition, and that’s fine and healthy. But ultimately, when I walk into the gym, the only person I’m in competition with is myself.

Despite my ranking when compared to everyone else, I had left it all in the gym that morning. I went hard. I pushed myself. I had nothing to be ashamed of because I did the best workout I could do. 

The more I thought about it, the more I realized how much I do this in other areas of my life. Maybe you do to?

  • We are pretty happy with the exercise we got this week until we see *that* mom at the pool. You know the one? Yeah, you do. We eye her from behind our sunglasses and determine to drink more water, eat less chocolate, and workout EVERY DAY.
  • We are thrilled with the one baby carrot our picky eaters consumed with supper until we show up for lunch relief and see the kid eating an arugula salad with beets. Beets? Suddenly, our kids are the least healthy on the planet and they will be stunted for life if we don’t expand their culinary horizons. 
  • We had a great time on vacation until we open Facebook and see the family of five on a plane to some tropical location. We fight off the jealousy by assuming that they must be in debt up to their eyeballs to be able to afford that and at least we are better stewards of our money.
  • We are proud of our kids’ A/B honor roll until we go to awards day and watch that one kid walk across the stage to receive every.single.award and then, because she’s so awesome, she gets one they had to make up just for her. 
  • We think we married a pretty good guy until we find out our neighbor’s husband comes home every day by five. Or he just got another promotion. Or he brings her flowers every week.
I’m not saying all comparison is a bad thing. I love to read blogs on healthy eating, parenting, education, and exercise. I’m always interested in how other people do things because I might discover a new way to approach something that we struggle with in our home.

The problem comes when we start comparing what someone else has (the perfect body, the perfect kid, the perfect home, the perfect job, the perfect spouse) without keeping a few key things in mind.

First, we need to remember that what we see as “perfect” might not seem so perfect if we knew all the details. But even if it is. Even if that woman you think has it ALL together really does, we must remember this:

It’s not a competition.

Who knows? That kid who won all the awards? That may be the very kid who is going to cure ALS. Her path will be hard. She will struggle. But she’s brilliant and talented and God has an extraordinary purpose for her.  

You don’t have to try to turn your kids into her because you can rest in the certainty that God’s purpose for your child may not be as flashy, but for the Kingdom, that doesn’t mean it is any less valuable.

One of my favorite verses is Colossians 4:17. As Paul is wrapping up his epistle he has this to say, “And say to Archippus, Take heed to the ministry which you have received in the Lord, that you fulfill it.”

Do you see it? Do you see the freedom here?

Take heed to the ministry which YOU have received. Do that.

Your story will not read like anyone else’s. It’s uniquely yours.

That competition you think you’re in? It’s not with anyone else. It’s not even a competition.

It’s a calling.
Your calling.
All you need to do is that.
Filter everything through that.

When God leads you to eat healthier or watch less TV or stick to a budget or write a book, do it because HE IS CALLING YOU TO. Not for ANY OTHER REASON. Trust me, He’s going to call you to enough without you adding a whole bunch of other stuff to the list.

Pursue YOUR ministry with everything you have and encourage others as they pursue theirs.

Goodness knows the whiteboards in life are everywhere but we can train our mind to see them, not as a record of a competition, but as proof that we are showing up for the ministry we’ve been called to.

So friends, this week my prayer for you and for myself is that we will take heed to the ministry which we have received in the Lord, that we fulfill it. 

Grace and peace,
Lynn
My readers are awesome!

First, I have to say a huge THANK YOU!

I’ve been blown away by the enthusiasm and excitement about Covert Justice. It’s been so fun to see pictures of Covert Justice in the wild and I’m thrilled with the response to this first (and hopefully not last!) story.

The book signing/launch party for Covert Justice takes place on Saturday, June 13th from 11:30-1:30 at Five Forks CrossFit in Simpsonville, SC.


Many of you have asked me lots of different questions about Saturday’s event, so I’m going to try to answer all of them in this post.
Where is this place?

The address for Five Forks CrossFit is 2613 Woodruff Rd, Simpsonville, SC 29681. It is at the corner of Woodruff Road and Scuffletown Road.

Why are you having your book signing at a gym?

Because I love my gym, because they love me, and because they are letting me use the space for free. Authors don’t make much money, so I’m all about free!

Will there be a workout?

Despite some people requesting to see me do burpees…NO.

Can I bring my kids?

Yes. Mine will be there. 

Do I need to dress up?

No. Feel free to come in your bathing suit and flip flops. Or pearls and high heels. Whatever floats your boat.

I’ve never been to a book signing. What should I expect?

I’ve only been to a few myself, and none have been in a gym, so I’m going to go out on a limb and say that this one won’t be a typical book signing. 

Normally, you walk into a bookstore and you see a sign that says an author is signing books. You find the line (or lack, thereof), you buy the book, the author and you make small talk as he or she writes something adorable on the title page, you grab some chocolate or a slice of cake and make small talk with the other readers, then you go home.

This will not happen on Saturday.

Mine won’t be quite like that. 

When you come in on Saturday be sure to see my helper, Emily Mages. Emily is a rising 8th grader at Langston Middle school and an excellent writer. She will be helping me with door prizes and you’ll want to be sure to get your tickets so you don’t miss out on any of that action.

After that, PLEASE have some snacks. Eat some cake. Drink some Mountain Dew. Or water. Whatever. 

If you’ve already purchased your copy of Covert Justice, bring it with you. I’d love to sign it. If you don’t have a copy, no worries. I’ll have books for sale. I’m selling them for $6.

I’ll be walking around, or maybe standing somewhere signing a book. I don’t know what I’ll be doing. If I’m talking to someone for more than a few minutes and you need me to hurry up, by all means throw something at me. If you don’t want to be rude, find my sister. Her name is Jennifer. She does not look like me. She’s tall and has red hair. She will have no problem at all with helping you interrupt me. In fact, she’ll probably enjoy it. 🙂

We have door prizes that will be given away approximately every 15 minutes. I don’t know. The door prizes have taken over my table. It might be every 10 minutes. 

Prizes include books for your summer reading from my sister Killer Voices as well as from my mentor, Lynette Eason. There are movie night packs, note cards (handmade by mom – they are awesome), Covert Justice one-of-a-kind memorabilia pieces, and a few other things I’ve forgotten about. It will be fun!

Drop-in any time between 11:30-1:30. Stay for a minute or stay the whole time. Whatever you’d like. 

At 1:30, we’ll be drawing for two prize packs. You do NOT have to be present to win!

Your chances of winning something are quite good!

One is a s’mores gift pack. (There’s a fun scene in Covert Justice where Maggie Harrison explains the fine art of marshmallow toasting to Heidi Zimmerman). 

The other is a movie night bag filled with popcorn, candy, and two movie tickets to Regal Cinemas. (The movie night bag is based on the exclusive deleted scene that you can read when you sign up for my newsletter – yes, that is a hint – the link to the newsletter is at the bottom of this post). 

Why are you donating some of the proceeds to Miracle Hill Children’s Fund?

In my mind, when Heidi retires from the FBI, she and Blake will open their hearts and home to many teenage foster children. Someday, I may even get to write that part of their story, but until then I’m thrilled to share any benefits I receive from Covert Justice with such a worthy organization. If you’d like to make an additional contribution, there will be a donation jar and 100% of those contributions will go to Miracle Hill Children’s Home.

I think I’ve answered everything. If not, leave your questions in the comments or shoot me a message on Facebook or Twitter. Hope to see you on Saturday!

(Don’t forget to sign up for my newsletter!) 

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Covert Justice on the shelf in Wal-mart!
When the idea of trying to sell my book started floating around in my brain, I always pictured it in Barnes & Noble. It would be on an upper shelf on the inspirational aisle.
It would fit right in with books from my favorite romantic suspense authors—Eason, Mills, Hannon, Pettrey, Henderson—and, of course, it would sell a million copies in the first week. I’m kidding. Kinda.
Here’s what I did not picture.

I did not picture my first book not being much bigger than an iPhone 6. (I recently handed it to a friend who turned it over a few times and exclaimed, “It’s so dainty!”)
I did not picture it under the Harlequin banner at Wal-mart. (Did you catch my post about this yesterday? Spoiler: Harlequin does not equal smut.)
The truth is that category romance wasn’t even on my radar. Then I learned a thing or two about publishing and a whole lot about category romance.

AAAHH –  I’m guest posting today at The Write Conversation. Click on over to read the rest of the story!

Those of you looking for Covert Justice in your
local Wal-mart may be wondering where to find it.
Look for the big
“HARLEQUIN” banner at the top of the book aisle.
Then look for books with the label “Love Inspired Suspense”
across the top of the book.
Covert Justice should be there.
Wait…did you get stuck on something?
It’s not a typo.
I write for
Harlequin.
Now be honest. What are you thinking?
Are you thinking I’ve crossed over into erotica?
Are you wondering if you really know me?
Are you praying for me to come to my senses and return to
the narrow way?
If you automatically
equate Harlequin with “bodice-rippers” you’re not alone, but you are way off
base.
In order to explain, let me cover a few things that most
people outside of the industry don’t know about Christian publishing.
1.   
In
most cases Christian publishing is a business, not a ministry.
For many Christian authors, writing is absolutely a
ministry. A calling. An act of worship. An act of obedience to the will of God
for their lives.

Publication, however, is business. Publishers have
employees, shareholders, and creditors, all of whom expect to get paid. In the
economy in which we live and with the ever-changing face of publishing this
leads us to my next point.
2.   
Many
Christian publishers are owned by secular publishing houses.
Once
upon a time, there were quite a few Christian publishing houses, but many of
them have been bought by larger secular publishers. That doesn’t mean they’ve
suddenly stopped producing Christian books. Because again, publishing is a
business, and anyone who knows anything about business knows that the best way
to stay in business is to give the customers what they want.
Which
brings me to point #3.
3.   
Harlequin
knows their customers better than just about anyone.
Yes, Harlequin does sell books that might give your grandma
a heart attack.
But they also sell some of the sweetest, cleanest, most
wholesome romances you can find anywhere.
The Love Inspired
guidelines guarantee that the romance you read will be edifying, enriching, and
enjoyable. 
You can let your Granny read it (mine really enjoyed Covert
Justice!) and you can also let your teenage daughter read it.  There’s no inappropriate behavior. There’s no
foul language. The romance leans heavily toward an emotional attachment, rather
than a sensual attraction.
(That’s not to say there’s no attraction! Characters will
hold hands, hug, even…dare I say it…Kiss! (gasp!) It is a romance novel, folks.)
There are three “Love
Inspired” lines.
Love Inspired books are contemporary stories.
Love Inspired Historical books are, obviously, historical
romances.
Love Inspired Suspense books are contemporary stories where
the hero and heroine are in danger and will spend most of the book trying to
stay alive. I’m biased, of course, but these are my favorite!
So don’t let the
Harlequin banner scare you off. Use it to help you find some great reads
that will encourage you in your faith …. And maybe make for a great
conversation starter when you read them on a plane or at the beach or in the
doctor’s office.
****
There’s another Goodreads Giveaway this week. You could win a free, autographed copy of Covert Justice! Check it out!

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Goodreads Book Giveaway

Covert Justice by Lynn Huggins Blackburn

Covert Justice

by Lynn Huggins Blackburn

Giveaway ends June 07, 2015.

See the giveaway details
at Goodreads.

Enter to Win

It’s here! 

Covert Justice is officially available for purchase! 

I found Covert Justice a few days early at our local Wal-mart. 🙂 And it was on sale. 🙂 I do love a good sale!
If you spot it at your local Wal-mart, please post a picture on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram and be sure to tag me! I’d love to see it!
A friend of mine just got the notice from Amazon that her pre-ordered copy will arrive on her doorstep between June 9-13 so if you’ve pre-ordered, look for it in about a week and a half.

For those of you who prefer e-books, you should be able to download the Kindle/Nook/iBook version today! 

I’ll be doing many Covert Justice related posts this month to celebrate the release. It’s going to be a great month and I’m looking forward to sharing it with you!
If you’re in Greenville, South Carolina, don’t forget about the book signing event on June 13th! I’ll have plenty of copies of Covert Justice to sell that day. We’ll have door prizes, gift baskets, and fun!
Thank you for sharing this experience with me!
Grace and peace,
Lynn

Ah! It totally snuck up on me!

I’m in North Carolina, soaking up all sorts of writerly awesomeness at the Blue Ridge Mountains Christian Writers Conference. 
But I wanted to pop in and let you know that I am offering a FREE copy of Covert Justice on Goodreads. The giveaway ends tonight, so head over there and sign up!

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Goodreads Book Giveaway

Covert Justice by Lynn Huggins Blackburn

Covert Justice

by Lynn Huggins Blackburn

Giveaway ends May 19, 2015.

See the giveaway details
at Goodreads.

Enter to Win

Stay in the Writing Game
by Lynn H Blackburn @LynnHBlackburn

I’d like to tell you a little story . . . I promise it is relevant . . . 
Over the past few months, my family has had an unprecedented amount of illness and minor injuries. So much so that I’ve missed an insane amount of time in the gym. Where I had been consistent, I found myself struggling to make it even once a week, and often missed a couple of weeks in a row. 
Then last Thursday happened.

I was cleared to go back to the gym, but when I looked at the workout I cringed.
A 1-mile row followed by a 1-mile run followed by 4 minutes of weighted plank.
Shoot.Me.Now.

I went anyway. My plan was to row slow and to walk if I needed to.
I didn’t need to.
Don’t get me wrong, my running would be more accurately described as a slow slog, but I ran that mile. Every step of it. 
When I got home, I realized how remarkable it was. Not because I’m fast or because that workout was a super challenging one. (In fact, it was what we call an “active recovery” day).
But …

I’m guest posting today over at The Write Conversation. Hop on over there to read the rest of the story…
Covert Justice

Covert Justice goes on sale in just six weeks!

Members of Harlequin’s Readers Service have already received their copy, and Covert Justice is starting to get some love. 
My dear friend and mentor, Lynette Eason, has given Covert Justice a fabulous endorsement.
And Leslie R. McKee reviewed it for Romantic Times and gave Covert Justice 4 stars. Here’s what she had to say…
Isn’t that lovely! 
I’m working on my Fiction Newsletter that will go out to my newsletter subscribers next week. Newsletter subscribers get behind-the-scenes info on my writing, including an exclusive deleted scene from Covert Justice. If you haven’t signed up yet, the signup form is in the sidebar. Or you can go here…

Yes, I want to signup for your newsletter!

I’m also hard at work on a new book. I’d so appreciate your prayers for this story. Writing a book while preparing for the release of another book is challenging. It’s a little bit (a very little bit!) like having your second child. 
When you had your first baby, you could put all your energy into that little bundle of joy. But when the second one comes along, you need to nurture and feed and stay up late with this new creation, while still giving your firstborn lots of time and attention as well. 
It’s a challenge to adjust to the new demands, but eventually, you find your rhythm.
With my books, I’m still in the “challenging” stage, but every now and then I get hints and glimmers of a manageable rhythm, so I’m pressing on.
For your weekend…here are a few finds from the internet that caught my eye!

Faith
My friend, Lori Roeleveld, has been writing some powerful posts about love. Start with this one, What Hope When Murderers Reign, and then be sure to read the next severals posts and allow these truths about LOVE to sink deep.

Fiction and Fun (well, fun might not be the right word…) 
I was so sad to hear about Jonathan Crombie’s passing. (I may have watched all of Anne of Green Gables and Anne of Green Gables, the Sequel…in one day…) From Buzzfeed, here are 25 Times Gilbert Blythe from “Anne of Green Gables” Melted Your Heart. 
Family
Loved this perspective from Modern Mrs. Darcy – Balance Isn’t a See-Saw. It’s a game of Twister.

Food
And another one from Modern Mrs. Darcy – My Favorite Things to Buy at Trader Joe’s. 

Fitness
Fitness is more than just hitting the gym. Hitting your pillow and getting a full night of sleep is crucial. I enjoyed this post from Michael Hyatt on Sleep and Your Productivity. 

Grace & peace,
Lynn

MagnaTiles
My kids love Magna-Tiles. Have you seen them? Each square and triangle is embedded with magnets, allowing the kids to build all sorts of creations. 
A few weeks ago, my four-year-old came to me, beaming with pride as he showed me the “rocket ship” he’d built. He carried it around the house for a while as I worked on the laundry. I heard his cry of dismay when an unfortunate bump flattened his rocket ship, but he’s a trooper and he immediately set to work rebuilding.
Then things got tricky.

The “wings” on his rocket ship wouldn’t stay in place. No matter how hard he tried, they kept clinging to the sides or flipping in the opposite direction than the one he desired. His frustration grew and he went from a few grunts to loud sighs and then moved into full-on wailing. “I can’t get it to work!” 
I encouraged him to keep at it. He did, but the longer he spent trying to fix it, the more frustrated he became, and the louder he voiced his disapproval with the entire situation. He eventually brought the rocket ship to me and asked for my help. 
As it turned out, he wasn’t doing anything wrong. 
But…
Unseen forces were at work.

My little guy has no understanding of electromagnetic fields or polarity. As far as he was concerned, his rocket ship had turned against him. He was baffled by the challenge of putting it together. It had been so easy before!
It only took a few minutes for me to find the exact combination of tiles that had the right polarity to allow the wings to behave the way he wanted them to. My little guy thought I was a miracle worker and went on his way happy. The next time the rocket ship crashed, he came running to me because he knew I understood what was going on, even though he didn’t. He knew that somehow, I knew how to make it all work.

A few days later, as my own world refused to cooperate with me, I found myself complaining loudly and frequently to anyone who happened to get within earshot. 
Then I felt guilty about whining so I tried to convince myself that these issues were “first world” problems. I have a lot to be thankful for, and these annoyances and inconveniences would surely seem ludicrous to people with real problems.
Then…I took my broken, uncooperative “rocket ship” to God.

Yes, I realize I have this all out of order. 
Yes, I know I do this a lot.
Yes, you would think I would have learned by now that starting with prayer is a much better method. All.The.Time.

Thankfully, my Abba doesn’t get annoyed when I finally stop bellyaching and start talking to Him about it. When I did, He reminded me of the magna-tiles and the “unseen forces” that prevented my little guy from accomplishing what he’d set out to do.
“Unseen forces.” 
Really?
I hadn’t accounted for the possibility that the drama in my life could be a spiritual battle. It’s not like I’m dealing with addictions or blatant sin. 
I’m dealing with a hectic schedule and the need to be in four places at the EXACT.SAME.TIME. 

I’m aggravated by the need to make tough decisions and I’m anxious about upcoming changes to my world and annoyed that all of this “stuff” is making it very difficult for me to do things I feel called to do.
But sometimes I forget that these roles of mine…wife, mother, writer, friend, daughter, sister, room mom, Bible study leader, CrossFitter…they actually matter. I may not be able to see how it all fits together, but these areas of responsibility and calling have been entrusted to me by the God who created me and knows me best.
The same God who never intended for me to do it all on my own. The same Abba who can see all the forces around me and who is the only One who knows exactly how to make it all work. 
I don’t have everything figured out, but I do know that I get to choose how the magnets line up. 
I can insist on doing it my way and find myself pulled further away from my Father. Or I can get in line with Him and stick tight to His will. 
Next time you find yourself battling those unseen forces that threaten to derail you, remember the magna-tiles.
Choose to stick close.

It’s the difference between whether or not you’ll fly your rocket ship…or crash and burn.

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