Of Lies & Truth

I don't know about the rest of you, but every moment of my day is a roller coaster.

Not every minute. Every moment. And it's all inside my head.

My book. My book is coming out in twenty-four days. What if everyone hates it? What if my Christian friends are disappointed in its lack of...Christianity? What if the secular readers feel like they just got preached at? What if it's actually a terrible book? What if I have delusions of grandeur?

Stop it. Just stop it. Your book is fine. Your Christian friends will get over it, and you can put a fancy disclaimer on the description for the secular readers. It is not a terrible book. Remember what the beta reader said. Remember what the critique partner said. Remember what the agents said, for goodness' sake! Remember that Publisher's Weekly review!

But, what if they were all wrong? What if those people are the only people in the universe that will like it?

Don't be ridiculous.

It's possible! Don't tell me it's not possible!

Stop it. Your book is fine.

But...! And what about my cover? It's not as sharp as I wanted...

Your cover is great. Stop this. Stop it. Stop it. Think about something else.

And it doesn't stop there. Thinking about something else tends to bring me to a different--just as stressful--dialogue. Those people don't like me. How am I going to pay for the fall semester? And there it goes again, 'round and 'round.

I don't know how I would survive if I didn't know how to manage my thoughts. {Meaning how doesn't mean I'm all that good at it.} Because most of those thoughts aren't even true. My book is good. Those people do like me. I am going to be able to pay for the fall semester {I think}.

Managing your thoughts isn't only about dismissing that picture of the cute guy next door with his shirt off. It's also about standing strong on the defensive to the doubts that come into your head and saying, "No! That's not true! That's a lie! This is the truth: _____________." It's about standing there on the bridge and shouting, "You! Shall! Not! Pass!"

Because you have a choice. Every single one of those lying thoughts is an absolute choice. You can choose to believe them and let them run rampant inside your head if you want to. I don't recommend it. They don't bear you any goodwill.

Or you can banish them. Oh, yeah, they'll try to come back. But they don't belong in your head, and you can tell them so. Remind them--and yourself--that they're not true. And go on with your life. Don't allow those thieving, lying b******s to run your life. If you're a Christian, those thoughts no longer have any right to your brain. {If you're not...this is just one of the many perks associated with being best friends with the King of the universe.} You have complete and total authority to tell them, in no uncertain terms, to leave.

on Kindle in 24 days!

Don't stop listening to critique. Continue to be honest with yourself. But also be able to recognize the difference between the truth and a lie. Truths are there to build you up and make you a better person. Lies leave a trail of fear and nausea, regret and pain, doubt and cowardice. Lies tell you that you're not good enough; truth tells you that you are good enough to do better.

Hate the lies. Believe the truth.

What about you? What lies have you believed? Now's the time to show them to the door. :)

{My cover can't be too bad. As I inserted it into this post, I glanced over the picture. These were my thoughts: Oh, look at that! The gal who wrote this book is named Melody. Always cool to meet another Melody. What's her last name? Oh... Oh, wait. That's. Yeah. I knew that. *awkward cough*}