Genesis Competition

On Monday afternoon I picked my girls up from school and was driving in the mini-van with my mom and kids when I received a text from my friend Lindsay Harrel. She wrote to congratulate me on being a semi-finalist in the American Christian Fiction Writers Genesis Competition for unpublished authors.

I immediately pulled into a parking lot to read the text, and as I absorbed the information, my phone started going wild with email notifications! My phone was dinging so much, my mom and I had a good laugh about it. I received over two hundred emails in two hours after the announcement.

What better way to hear that you're a semi-finalist in one of the industry's leading contests? I wasn't home to receive the phone call from my category coordinator--but listened to the message as soon as I walked in the door.

I'm honored and blessed to be one of the ten semi-finalists in the Historical Romance Category, and one of eighty-five semi-finalists in all categories. For an entire list of semi-finalists, go here.

The semi-finalist entries will go on to a second round of judges, and the finalists will be notified after June 15th. The winner from each category will be announced at the ACFW Conference in Indianapolis, Indiana during the Gala Awards Dinner in September. Last year there were over seven hundred people in attendance. It's a beautiful awards dinner, honoring the best in Christian Fiction.

I'm still in awe to be named one of the semi-finalists. I'm especially thankful to see so many of my friends on this same list. I'm praying for each of them, and the judges who have a lot of hard work ahead!

This past year has been one of the most remarkable years of my life. I'm humbled by the journey God has brought me on. When I was a little girl, I asked Him to place His desires in my heart so that I would pursue His will and please Him. Among my desires to be a wife and mother, He gave me the desire to write, and so it has become one of my greatest pleasures.

Every blessing, gift and talent I possess is all His. He gave me the desire and He has equipped me for the job. He gets the credit for every milestone I achieve on this journey. When I receive a compliment, I know people are only complimenting God in me. On my own, I am nothing. It's only His grace that has brought me this far.

I don't know what the future will bring, but for now, I'm thanking God for this amazing honor. I will be cheering for the winner of the Historical Romance Category regardless of who wins, because I know God has placed the same desire into the hearts of each woman listed. It's a joy to see God at work in our lives, and it's amazing to watch the Christian community work together to bring the Gospel of Jesus Christ to the world through our stories.

Congratulations to the 2013 Genesis Semi-Finalists! God's best is still to come!