In July of 2017, I attended a writer’s conference for the first time. Everything about the publishing world was new to me. I brought a book idea to some agents at the conference. Although they liked my writing and my book idea, they also said I needed a platform. I needed my writing to be tried and true before any publisher would take a chance on it. I needed to prove that the topics I would write about were really of interest to people.

“I do have an idea for a platform…Read the Hard Parts,” I said to one of the agents. “It’ll be a blog that helps people understand hard parts of Scripture and teaches how they can dig into the hard parts for themselves.

“That’s good. Do it.” he said.

When I came home from the conference that night, I flopped onto my bed, stared wide-eyed at my ceiling and said to my husband, “This is going to be the start of something life-changing. I just know it!”

By October of 2017, I had developed the website and a couple of blog posts. I emailed the first posts to a couple of friends, got their feedback, and then Read the Hard Parts went public!

It’s amazing to look back at this past year and how the Read the Hard Parts community has grown. Starting from zero followers one year ago, I now have over 5,000 followers on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook combined. I have almost 200 people receiving a weekly email with Bible reading tips and insights into the hard parts. And while the numbers growth looks amazing, I truly understand that it’s not just the numbers. Those numbers are real people who love the Lord and want to understand His word. I am so thankful for all the people that I have met on this writing journey who have challenged me in my faith as well as the people who have shared that they have learned from my writing. I am humbled that He has led me to this ministry.

So what’s in store for Read the Hard Parts in its second year?

Speaking. I have now started to speak to groups of women about the hard parts of Scripture. I already have some weekend retreats, a MOPS group, and church groups on my calendar. Speaking is so wonderful because of being able to talk with women face to face and get to know them in person. If you are in need of a speaker, please let me know!

A publishing contract? At least, I hope so! This summer I signed a contract with literary agent Michelle Lazurek from WordWise Media. My goal is to publish Christian Living and devotional books focusing on particular hard parts of Scripture. There is a lack of resources specifically for Christian women that delve into the hard parts. I want to fill that gap that exists between faith-fluff and heavy Bible teaching that is intimidating to women.

Weekly newsletter. I plan to continue the Monday morning weekly email newsletter. I get great feedback that this short and sweet email is both useful and encouraging. If you aren’t getting the email newsletter, you can sign up for it here.

Regular blog posts. I will also continue to share through this blog about specific hard parts of Scripture and what they mean in addition to resources and tips for how you can dig into the hard parts as well.

Thanks for reading! I am so grateful for you!