Today's Feature: Beth Wiseman and her new book, Seek Me With All Your Heart

Best-selling author Beth Wiseman's Seek Me With All Your Heart, book #1 in her Land of Canaan Series, is due for release in September, but it can be purchased now at ChristianBook.com.

Writing has always been a part of Beth's life. When she was introduced to the Amish, she gained an appreciation for their simpler way of life and began writing novels featuring this endearing group. Her first novel was Plain Perfect.

Beth is a wife, mother of two grown sons, a full-time author, and loves having a life blessed by God. She and her family live in a small town in Texas, in the country—God’s country. Beth says it’s beautiful there. They wake up to their rooster (Rusty!) crowing, and she spends her days writing stories that God puts in her head.

Her favorite verses are: 1 Corinthians 13: "... And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love." and John 14:18: "I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you."

In an interview with Beth, Christianbook.com asked her what inspired her to write Seek Me with All Your Heart. She answered, "This was a joint effort with my editor and publishing team based on an article that detailed how Amish families are migrating to Colorado—from Pennyslvania, Ohio, Indiana, New York, Michigan, and Missouri. Most of them are pursuing less-expensive land and more land for future generations."

When questioned about the location of the book's setting, Beth said, "The fictional town of Canaan is located near Monte Vista, Colorado. Monte Vista is Spanish for ‘mountain view’, and the Sangre de Cristo (which means ‘blood of Christ’) Mountains are to the east and the San Juans are to the west. I’ll be going back to the area in August to do more research. We chose that location because there is an Amish community just outside of Monte Vista."

On the book's back cover, we read:

"Emily Detweiler's family abruptly moved to Colorado after tragedy struck in Ohio. But Emily can't get far enough to escape what happened there.

"David Stoltzfus is not happy when his family relocates from Pennsylvania to Colorado. Never mind that they haven't told him why. David struggles not only with this unwelcome move, but also with the fear that a health condition could keep him from living his life in full.

"Emily and David each come to terms with a past that follows them, testing their faith and resolve. Will they overcome adversity and step onto the path God has chosen for them?"

Hmm ... This raises quite a few questions that scream for answers. I've never read Amish fiction before, but I think I'll start now. This book is a must buy!

The wait begins ...

I've finished Face From the Past, had it professionally edited, attended a writer's conference, and signed with a great agent who is busy promoting it to editors. So, what do I do now?

Hmm. Let's see. I could sit around biting my nails, waiting on that magical email that tells me an editor wants to read more, take a break from writing altogether and work on some of the many unfinished household projects that haunt me every day, or begin my next novel.

I'm sure all you writers know the correct option: Begin my next novel, of course. But suppose the emails finally come and all I get is rejection? What then?

One option comes to mind immediately. I could throw a huge pity-party and invite all my unpublished friends to join me. Fess up - I know a lot of you out there know just what I'm talking about. After all, the Lord has numbered our days and life is short, so why should we waste another minute working so hard at something no one appreciates? Right?

Of course not. We are writers––professionals, and we are compelled to write come what may. So, we grit our teeth and dig in.

Yesterday after church, I took my writing sabbath and read, read, read. I finished The Art of War for Writers by James Scott Bell. In it, Bell states that all writers, published and unpublished, need to continue improving their craft by consistently writing and reading. Writing - set a goal to write a given number of words per week and do it, regardless. Reading - we need to read books on writing as well as other novels in the genre we write. If you haven't read The Art of War for Writers, I strongly recommend it as the next book you read to improve your craft.

Bell's book inspired me, so today I have set (and met) my word-count goal, am starting to read Deliver Us From Evil by Robin Caroll, and am actively exploring ideas for my next novel.

Where are you in your writing journey, what are you working on and reading now, and have you set a word-count goal for yourself?