Writing
from the Middle:
The Inside Story of Writing My Memoir
by
Chris Manion
Before I began writing my memoir, everything was going
great. My marriage was happy; my children were healthy and strong in spirit and
faith; my home-based business continued to outperform its previous year’s
achievements. I had carved out time for Bible study as well as church choir and
teaching Sunday school.
How My Memoir Got Started
Have you noticed how parenting children causes most
people to fall on their knees for one reason or another? I found myself praying
more than usual in the early years of being responsible for our two little
ones. Somewhere in that Bible studying and prayer time, I noticed God wooing me
like a suitor. I found my prayer time changing, deepening in response to what I
only knew as an inner longing. God started to act like an impatient child
attempting to get her mother’s attention as she spoke to someone else.
He got my attention all right with some breath-taking
experiences, what Thomas Keating O.S.C.O. calls “divine intimacy.” I wrote an
article about the first experience, hearing the voice of God. As He tapped me
on the shoulder again and again in my early forties, I received the message He
wanted me to write about the experience, to use one of the talents He gave me.
That’s how the memoir began. A persistent inner
knowing. I understood I had received a
calling to share the experiences because I knew how to write and others needed
the encouragement. Others needed to know it was Him tapping their shoulders.
Too many of us treated Him like spam callers on our phones, resisting answering
the call, unsure who was calling. Too many don’t recognize the Caller.
How My Memoir Got Finished
After I got the experiences written, it occurred to me
I needed to fill in some background story since most readers didn’t know me. I
had to figure out when I first noticed God asking me for a “date,” a little
quiet time together. After that, I realized what I’d written consisted of the
middle of the story. It needed a beginning and end.
I wish I’d known about James Scott Bell, author of
“Writing from the Middle: A New Approach for Plotters, Pantsers and everyone inBetween” while I wrote mine. I discovered him after publication; nevertheless,
it made me feel better knowing others used my seat-of-the-pants approach too. According
to Bell, writing from the middle did not necessarily reflect a novice writer’s
ignorance of the craft. Phew!
After I had everything in chronological order, another
realization hit me. The hook in the memoir came far too late in the book. I
needed to move it from page 150 to page 1. Making that move changed many chapters
and confused me. What did the reader now know by moving two chapters forward
that he didn’t know in the previous draft? To end my confusion, I re-outlined
the 33 chapters. A laborious task, but the chapter shuffle made the book far
more readable and probably contributed to earning its two CPAs (Catholic Press
awards). The turmoil would continue in the process of publishing, but that’s
another story.
The middle can be a great way to start a book or a
sandwich. All that’s left is to choose a great roll, slice it, and fill it up
with the perfect combo of condiments and characters.
Taste the first two chapters free at www/tinyurl.com/Godispatient. God’s
Patient Pursuit of My Soul talks about divine experiences many people have no
words for and therefore cannot talk about. Not talking to one another about
“God-incidences” makes the devil happy. One goal of my book is to disturb his
happiness and increase God’s delight in us.
Before I began writing my memoir, the devil didn’t
bother me much. I understand spiritual warfare better now and I’m okay with
getting that kind of attention. I’m happy to be one of God’s authors and delighted
to be one of the whispers in purple.
Book Blurb
When high achiever, direct-selling superstar, Chris
Manion encountered the idea that Jesus could be her best friend, she sat
stunned. The possibility followed this inspirational leader and award-winning
catechist on a winding path of spiritual discovery that would change her life.
God’s Patient Pursuit of My Soul addresses spiritual
matters common to many of us that we don't talk about publicly; sacred matters
we have no vocabulary for; the importance of sharing moments of divine intimacy.
This vulnerable story of one woman's response to God compels readers not only
through the pages of this book, but their own inner discoveries in their lives
and careers as well.
Chris Manion received her BA in Communication Arts
with honors from the University of Dayton. With her honky laugh, and love for
God and chocolate, Chris delights crowds with faith-filled stories grounded in
authenticity and vulnerability. Known as a leadership expert and mentor, Chris
uses the skills she developed in building her $20 million sales organization to
teach how God calls us. Chris’s writing and speaking focus on her mission to
nurture the tender relationship between God and all souls. Chris lives with her
husband of forty-plus years in Florida ‘s panhandle where she kayaks and
photographs the Gulf coast’s natural beauty. She is a grandmother of five
little angels, an award-winning catechist from Chicago, a stringer and blogger
for Northwest Florida Daily News and her website ChrisManion.com.
It makes her happy to serve and foster the development
of Christian writers. She feels close to the apostles in their early years of
discipleship. Like them, she joins writers who’ve been given a heavenly mission
to go out and use their talents and the art of storytelling/writing. She works
and prays about how to do that, how to please our Lord. It is a holy quest.
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