Tag: James Prescott

How finding my authentic self transformed my writing – and my life

 

Today I welcome my good friend James Prescott to the Unmasked: stories of authenticity blog series. He is incredibly honest about his own journey, which also gives real insight into the struggle with authenticity that writers can have, especially when chasing after recognition. Thank you James for your honesty!

Authentic.

It’s a word which gets banded around a lot nowadays. Indeed, it’s been used so much that now it’s become a word associated with jargon, with anyone using it in relation to themselves, often being labelled as inauthentic.

But authenticity is needed more than ever.

LOSING INTEGRITY

As a writer, with the saturation of platform building, the urgent need for all authors to ‘brand’, and build a following, and marketing intruding into the writing world more and more, a writer I need to keep my eyes open to any lack of integrity and honesty in my work.

But there was a time when I lost my authenticity – as a writer, and as a result, as a person. And it came from this need to please, this desperation for success, for followers.

I had been writing for a while, and enjoyed blogging. I toyed with wanting more, but had never pushed for it. Then I did a writing course which challenged me to step up, be more professional, and to write an e-book, a manifesto, and make it public.

 

The promise, the guarantee which was dangled out in front of me, was lots of people subscribing to my blog, and ultimately a book contract. Given I had no followers at the time, it was beyond anything I could imagine.

And it triggered my then fragile ego, and gave it life. In time, I began to lose my soul. My writing lost focus, lost its truth. I was more focused on good graphics, comments and titles than great blog posts – and I didn’t even know what my voice really was.

I look back at that time disappointed in myself. I was more concerned with numbers, with stats, than creating great, honest work. And I’d lost myself in the process too. The whole image I was giving to the world, I knew wasn’t true. This impacted every single area of my life.

When I lost my authenticity, I almost didn’t know who I was anymore.

I was wearing a mask, not even knowing who I was underneath.

TAKING ACTION

And once good friends confirmed this to me, I had to take action. It couldn’t go on this way. So I made an ultimately life-changing decision.

I decided to stop writing publicly. For as long as it took for me to find my voice.

For as long as it took to find my integrity.

For as long as it took to find myself again.

So I wrote for myself on a private blog, every day for 15 minutes. Free-writing. No agenda, no plan, no structure, no editing. As time went on, it was something I began to look forward to. It saved me so much energy I’d used worrying about promoting work, or publishing blog posts.

Slowly, but surely, I began to notice many of these posts were all pointing to a particular direction. Similar themes were emerging. Themes around creativity, identity, calling, and being true to yourself. What it meant to be an authentic writer.

Suddenly, words were pouring out of me. I wrote about 10 ‘proper’ blog posts in a short space of time, all unpublished of course. It became the most creative, most enjoyable period I’ve had as a writer.

And I felt more alive, more myself than I’d ever felt in my life.

I felt like me again. In fact, I knew I’d connected with my true self.

RECONNECTED

When the time came to publish publicly again, I was reluctant. But I now knew I had something worthwhile to share. And I was going to share it, not for anyone else, but for me. Because it was who I was.

This material poured out into an e-book. I launched and promoted it, not expecting anything back and not even needing any major response anymore. I didn’t care. And strangely, it ended up being my most successful piece of work.

But the point of it all was – I was myself again. I’d connected with my true self. I’d taken off the mask and found who I really was.

And that’s what being authentic is all about. It’s about connecting with your truest self. Having integrity in how you live your life.

When you find that, it impacts every area of your life. Work. Faith. Relationships. Health.

So today, have the courage to take off your masks and be who you truly are. Tell the truth of your story.

From my experience, you’ll never have any cause to regret it.

James Prescott is a writer, podcaster and writing coach from Sutton, near London. He is the author of numerous books including Dance Of The Writer – The Beginners Guide To Authentic Writing, and Mosaic Of Grace. He has written for the Huffington Post and is a ‘Top Writer’ on creativity and writing on Medium, as well as hosting the weekly Poema Podcast. You can access all his work at jamesprescott.co.uk and follow him on Twitter at @JamesPrescott77

What I have been reading: Spring

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I know that we are well into summertime now, but I hope you will forgive the lateness of this post. I have been working hard on two books (both of which will be published in November – more details to follow). But, although I have had a little less time than usual, I have been delving into my pile of unread books and have a great selection for you below. I have the pleasure of knowing a few of the authors and it is great to be able to celebrate their amazing achievements with them (and to actually really like their books! 😉 ) I will also be posting up interviews with a couple of the authors featured here in the coming weeks so do look out for those…

Mosaic Of Grace New Cover Black EdgeMosaic of Grace
by James Prescott

This book oozes authenticity. James has obviously been on a huge journey into understanding more about God’s grace, and he shares beautifully and honestly with the reader. There are also stories from others that back up what he’s saying. I was so encouraged by this book, as God has been saying such similar things to me – isn’t it great when that happens? If you want to understand more about the precious grace of God, and be drawn in by an engaging writer, then look no further.

THroughmartha'seyesThrough Martha’s Eyes
by Corinne Brixton

I have recently discovered that I enjoy biblical fiction and I was intrigued to read this particular title, as I have read a few books based around Martha’s story in the last year or so. This one was definitely more scholarly in approach to begin with – the author is keen to capture 1st century Judea, with all its traditions and customs, well – which she does. I found I was a bit impatient in the first part of the book, eager to get to the action, but I was totally gripped partway through and thoroughly enjoyed the rest of the book.

InkcoverInk
by Alice Broadway

I had heard a lot about this novel, and knew its first print run had sold out extremely quickly. Some are hailing it the new Hunger Games; others told me it was suitable for my 11-year-old daughter. So I picked it up with great curiosity. Alice is a wonderful writer and I was drawn into the dystopian world she has created immediately. The premise of the story is fascinating, as every significant event in a person’s life is tattooed on their skin and, at their death, they are skinned (descriptions not for the faint hearted) and then weighed to see if they are deemed worthy of being made into a book of remembrance. This novel tackles big issues such as love, loyalty, trust and immortality, and there are biblical stories and ideas woven into it too. I will be interested to read the next book in the trilogy – the jury is still out as to whether my squeamish daughter will be reading this one!

whatfallsfromtheskycoverWhat Falls From the Sky
by Esther Emery

When most of us face a life-changing crisis in our lives we can have a tendency to hide ourselves away or rant a lot online. Not Esther – she gave up the internet for a year and then wrote about it! I love her honesty and the wrestling within her journey. The book is full of struggle and yet contains a huge amount of hope too. She doesn’t shy away from discussing the difficult relationships in her life – and the things she doesn’t like about herself. She had walked away from faith in the past, and it was beautiful to read how the silence drew her back to God. If you know you are too dependent on technology or are experiencing a crisis then I would thoroughly recommend you read this book. For anyone else I would say – read it too!

therunawayThe Runaway
by Claire Wong

This book is about a close-knit Welsh community and what happens when a teenager runs away from home. Then two strangers enter her village not long after she leaves it and old secrets begin to be discovered… The story is centred around the teenager Rhiannon, hence the title, but there is great treatment of each character. I warmed to many of them – mainly the strong, positive female characters such as Maebh and Grace. I love the way storytelling is given such prominence in the book too.

This is Claire’s first novel (she has written a lot of poetry) and it shows great promise and skill – I’ll be looking out for her next book.

annabelleeAnnabel Lee
by Mike Nappa

This thriller is not the usual type of book I read – and it wasn’t a clear cut story either, which kept me guessing for a long time. Annabel Lee is the main subject of the story, a young girl who is hidden in a bunker near the start of the book. The secrets surrounding her are eventually discovered by private investigators Coffey and Hill, although they are complicated figures too. In fact each character is unusual, and the novel twists and turns throughout. I found the author’s treatment of ‘the Mute’ particularly fascinating. I wasn’t sure how to engage with the book to begin with, but found I began turning the pages more and more quickly as I wanted to discover all the links. If you like thrillers then I would definitely suggest you try this book out.

thelivingcrossThe Living Cross
by Amy Boucher Pye

This is a devotional for Lent, which I used this year. Utilising daily reflections and prayers I found it a really helpful and thought-provoking book. The theme Amy focuses on throughout is forgiveness and the scriptures and stories she shares from others really gets the reader to dig deep into the subject – such a skill when there is only limited space each day. There are also creative ideas to interact with, which means the book would lend itself well to a group as well as for individual study. I’ve never been through a Lent devotional before but I was glad I started with this one!

thesecondbride


The Second Bride
by Katharine Swartz

This was my chosen fiction book to take away during half term break. I was away with my extended family so I thought I would simply be dipping in and out of it when I had a spare moment. However I read the book in one straight sitting because I was completely hooked (and it happened to be the one rainy day and everyone else was occupied with games or their own books – phew!).

The Second Bride is about a family in which the parents have each been married before. It is when the mum’s (Ellen’s) stepdaughter Annabelle moves in that the tension levels hit the roof. Alongside their difficult story is one from the 1870s – connected to theirs from the outset when Ellen finds a death certificate hidden under their floorboards. To begin with, I found the way that the book hops from one story to the other quite tricky (as I wanted to find out what was happening to the characters and didn’t like the interruption). However, I got used to the rhythm and found myself reading faster and faster as the emotions and stories heightened. When the rain stopped and I was invited to go on a walk I commented to my family that I couldn’t believe how many emotions I had been through while reading this book, and I couldn’t possibly stop until I got to the very end! It is certainly a gripping page turner…

 

 

How I found my voice

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Today I am delighted to welcome James Prescott to my blog. I have known James for quite a while; we conversed on social media for months before discovering that we live in the same town! We are also both part of the Association of Christian Writers, which provides great support.

 I was privileged to be a part of James’ book launch group and can honestly say I have found his new book invaluable; challenging yet full of grace. So many of the lessons God had been teaching him were ones that He had been speaking to me about too, so the book resonated with me a lot. So I was keen to get James to write a guest blog for me. Here he describes the process of writing his book, and how it helped him to find his voice…

For most writers, the writing of their first book is the culmination of them finding their voice. It comes at the end of that process. But for me, it was completely the opposite.

My first trade book Mosaic Of Grace: God’s Beautiful Reshaping Of Our Broken Lives was published in February. But the first draft was written in the summer of 2013. At that point I’d been writing for a long time – but I’d still not found my own unique creative voice. The idea for a book about grace had come along in the previous nine months, from reading, reflecting, listening to sermons and talking with friends.

In the process I realised there was a message about grace that hadn’t been shared. A new perspective that needed to be given voice. I’d written two e-books by then, so was ready to explore writing a book.

Starting the journey
I had no idea about how to plan, structure or write a book. I had no idea about the publishing world whatsoever. I wrote the book, not expecting it to ever be published. I had no reputation, no following and had no chance of a book contract. Self-publishing wasn’t an option financially. So I was writing merely for myself.

By complete chance, I connected with a book editor on social media. They offered to read my book, initially offering advice. This quickly evolved into them editing the whole book. They’d do private edits on their own time, then we’d do Skype calls working through the text together, editing, rewriting, improving.

Learning along the way
Because it was a very rough draft, with no plan, and I’d got no experience, the book needed a lot of work. There were a lot of rewrites and additions to be made. There were large sections to take out. And this all took time.

Even during this process, I had no idea if or how the book would be published. It was still just an idea, a promise, a dream. But the book was taking shape. And, in the meantime, I was getting a masterclass in how to write a book, and indeed, on writing itself, from my editor.

It took time, but, by mid 2016, we had a final draft to work from. And we were talking about her small publishing company putting the book out.

Finally, this thing was going to happen. And, ironically, I was still learning about grace. The truth of the book was being exposed to me all the time. I began seeing it in every area of my life. I came up with ideas for coaching, for other books, all of which began, in some way, with the simple idea that we’re enough, we belong, we’re loved. We’re accepted as we are, for who we are, not for what we do, what we own, our relationship status or social status.

Taking time out
It soon became clear that writing the book was just the beginning of the process. In 2014, about eight months after I wrote the first draft, I got to a point where I needed a break. My blogging had lost focus, direction and joy. I couldn’t go on. So I stopped public writing. I decided I would simply write privately, for myself, every day – for as long as it took. As long as it took to find my voice, to connect again with my true creative spirit.

It was liberating. I felt alive for the first time. And it was the most creative, fresh period of my life. New material and ideas were pouring out of me. It took time to get there, but, once I did, it was like a new spring of water bursting out of the ground…you couldn’t stop it.

And the irony I didn’t see at the time, was that it was by returning to myself, to my true self – the self which grace said was enough – that I found my voice.

I had written this book, and lived it, and, in the process, had found my authentic, honest writing voice. Grace had literally brought me (in particular my creative side) to life.

An increase of momentum
I wrote a short e-book, which is currently available on my blog for free, about this season of my creative journey, and some lessons I learned. This really launched my blog, and my subscriber list and following grew. Suddenly, I had people interested in my work, people who might buy a book I wrote. And I still had the book I was working on, which I really wanted to share with people.

Grace had helped me find my voice.

Mosaic Of Grace New Cover Black EdgeMeasuring success
When Mosaic Of Grace was finally published earlier this year, there was, naturally, a focus on numbers, on sales, on marketing and promoting the book and its ideas. But when I got people’s e-mails and messages with stories about how the book had changed their lives, how it had been healing and life-giving to them that reminded me again of where this all began. With grace. Those stories mattered, and still matter, way more than the sales figures.

The book’s success wasn’t dependent on sales figures – with just one message like that, I knew all those years of work were worth it.

From start to finish, this book, and everything about it – the writing, editing, publishing, promotion – had all been a process, teaching me about grace. It was a process that changed me, before it changed anyone else. A process that helped me find my voice.

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James Prescott is a writer, blogger, podcaster, writing coach and bestselling author of Mosaic Of Grace: God’s Beautiful Reshaping Of Our Broken Lives, available on Amazon here. He hosts the weekly ‘Poema Podcast’, and you can read his blog, get free e-books and find out more about his books and coaching at www.jamesprescott.co.uk. You can find him on Facebook and also follow him on Twitter & Instagram.

Guest post: the Monday blog tour

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I am delighted to be hosting Katherine Baldwin’s post for the continuing Monday blog tour:

Thank you so much to Claire Musters for tagging me in the Monday blog tour (you can read her post here) and for accommodating this post on her site. Here are my answers to the blog tour’s questions:

What am I working on?

I am researching and writing a work of non-fiction called The Baby Gap: What to Expect When You’re Not Expecting. The book is about and for women of my generation who – by circumstance rather than choice – are childless, thinking they would like to be mothers, nearing the end of their fertile years and wondering what on earth to do about it. I am 43, I’ve had an incredible career in journalism that has taken me all over the world (you can read highlights on my website) and I’ve had many relationships of various lengths and levels of seriousness. But today I am single, without children and I’m wondering if I will ever have them. Increasingly too, I’m asking myself if motherhood is what I really want and if I could cope with it at this age. These are very big questions that take some figuring out.

Many women who grew up in the late 60s and 70s have found themselves in a similar position due to a combination of factors: the post-feminism context we grew up in; encouragement from family members, teachers and our peers to achieve our potential, focus on our careers, find personal fulfilment and attain financial security; and personal circumstances (in my case, an eating disorder and other compulsive and addictive behaviours that made it difficult to love myself for many years and therefore to love another). One in five women currently reaches menopause without children and it’s estimated this figure will rise to one in four for my generation.

My book looks at how we got here, what it feels like and what we can do about it. It tackles questions such as: how to date when you’re struggling with baby angst; whether to stay in a relationship with a man who’s a reluctant father or go in search of a more willing mate; whether to freeze your eggs; go it alone with donor sperm, co-parent or adopt on your own; and how to live a fulfilling life if it turns out you don’t have children. It combines my own story with the stories of other women and expert opinion and I hope it will be a lifeline to women who are struggling through this difficult phase and perhaps feeling lost and alone.

You can read more about the book at Baby Gap Blog, although I haven’t posted too often on that site. Separately, I write regularly about my personal journey through this stage of life on my blog, From Forty With Love.

How does my work differ from others in its genre?

I like to think no other work of non-fiction, at least not in the UK, has tackled this life stage in the same way I am trying to do. A number of women have chronicled their struggles with infertility and IVF or have written about choosing to be childfree or coming to terms with childlessness and finding a Plan B. A few writers in the United States have examined the social context in a similar way to me and traced their personal journeys, but the reality of their lives and their writing styles are quite different to mine. I believe the strength of my book lies in my personal story that seems to be representative, in some ways, of other women of my generation – in Britain and other parts of the world – and in my writing style, which is honest and straight from the heart. I’m also a seasoned journalist – of 19 years – who has collected friends all over the world and I bring those skills and those contacts to my research and writing.

Why do I write what to do?

I feel compelled to write, both my personal blog From Forty With Love and the book. Posts often come to me when I’m out and about, or when I’m struggling through a particularly difficult time. It’s the same for the book. I feel compelled to chronicle this age and stage of a woman’s life because it can be so tricky – trying to date, begin and end relationships, switch careers or think about one’s future can be incredibly hard when you’re struggling with baby angst and uncertainty about whether you’ll ever become a mum. This topic comes up all the time, in my friendship circles and with women I come across. How did we end up here? Should we relax and trust or try to take motherhood into our own hands? It’s an issue I can’t ignore. Whenever I think it’s too hard to write this book – I’ve had a number of rejections from top publishers – I’ll meet someone else who says she really wants to read it and that I have to carry on. It seems I have no choice.

How does my writing process work?

Unfortunately, it’s quite erratic. I juggle writing the book and my blogs with trying to make a living. Without a book deal or any guarantee of getting the book published, I find it hard to give it the time it deserves because I have lots of other work to do to pay the rent. Some weeks, by the time I’ve cleared the decks of other work and am ready to write the book, it’s Thursday or Friday and I’m running out of steam. That said, I can also be my own worst enemy – finding lots of other things to do (not work) when I could be writing or allowing my perfectionism to get in the way so I end up going around in circles. I know there’s a better way of working, however, and perhaps I’ll use this blog post to commit to dedicating my best working hours (first thing in the morning) to getting on with the book, at least twice a week. I hope I can stick to that!

To continue this blog tour, I’d like to tag Naomi Arabella Aidoo, whose blog is called Authentic Heart, and James Prescott to blog next Monday, May 19th. Thanks again, Claire!