Lynne Collier, Tell us a little bit about yourself.
I’m a lay pastoral counselor and Kingdom Purpose coach. That is – I coach believers about their purpose for God. I live in the country with my husband, Stephen, and our cat, Smokey, surrounded by a forest with a river running through it. I was born in England and spent my first fourteen years there before coming to Canada. I love to take walks in the forest here and sit and watch the creatures scurrying and flitting by.
Have you always wanted to write?
Actually, my passion as a child was to draw more than write, but I always loved to read about fantasy places. My favourite books as a child were The Secret Garden and The Magic Faraway Tree. In school I enjoyed writing poetry most and got into trouble when I wrote a poem from the point of view of someone who had taken mind-altering drugs. I was fourteen at the time, living in a small town, and writing purely from my imagination. I didn’t know anyone who’d taken a drug, but I’d seen the portrayal on TV and drew on that. I caused quite a stir!
So, what made you decide to sit down and write a book?
I wrote my first book on the encouragement of friends who saw I had a story to tell about raising my autistic son. When a friend who’s a clinical psychologist told me the same thing I agreed to give it a shot. So that was my first book.
What have you written so far?
My first published book in 2013 was called Raising Benjamin Frog – A Mother’s Journey with her Autistic Son. My next published book was in 2014 and called Hosting a Shire Party and included ideas for food, games and costumes. It’s something we do annually at our home, being huge fans of Lord of The Rings and The Hobbit. Our home made for a great backdrop for the pictures. Last year I wrote an online course for novice writers, Your Write Voice for His Kingdom, to help new writers discover if and how God has called them to write, which incorporates coaching and beginners’ writing in one easy course.
What was or continues to be your biggest obstacle in writing?
Definitely trying to multi-task! I find it difficult to focus. I need to unplug, switch off and otherwise disappear into my own world while I write. Then, of course, I find it difficult to break away and I lose track of time and forget to eat and do housework. I recently bought a huge wall-mounted day planner for my office to keep me organized.
What advice do you have for aspiring authors?
WRITE! Just get those thoughts on paper, get them on the keyboard, dictate, do whatever you need to do, but get those amazing thoughts out of your head and start to share them. Especially if you’re a believer in Christ. He didn’t put those spectacular words on your heart to keep them hidden. Share them with the world!
[Tweet “WRITE! Get those amazing thoughts out of your head and start to share them. – @LynneCollierAu1”]
What is your mission in life?
My mission has changed over the years – yes, I’ve had a few – but a constant has always been, no matter what stage of life I was at or the circumstances I was in, I always and continue to be driven by the needs of others who don’t have what I am blessed to have. My heart breaks for the starving and homeless, the abused and neglected. I have been richly blessed and search for ways to make a difference where I live and where I can. Through my work right now I have to say my mission statement would be ‘To help the hopeless find hope in Christ, and the believer find their purpose for His Kingdom’.
How did you arrive at your current mission?
As a child I wanted to make people feel happy, as a teen I felt compelled to study as a psychiatric nurse (but we emigrated, so I had to leave the program), as a young adult I volunteered at my children’s school and taught Sunday School, then trained as a Lay Pastoral Counselor with a view to opening my own business. As I realized my son needed more care, I home schooled him through the early grades and set aside my other goals. Now he’s an independent and successful adult, so I’ve returned to where I left off. I added coaching to my career path and had two offices until recently. Now I’m excited to write about what God has put on my heart to share, and to be part of the writing community. I can reach more people with a single book than I could ever help one-on-one in an office. Plus, that imagination that got me into trouble as a fourteen-year-old is quite acceptable now at this stage of life for writing fantasy – which is a lovely segue into the next question…
What are you working on now?
I’m excited to be collaborating with my son, Benjamin, to write my first fantasy book! I’m also in the final stage of my first draft of a book about realizing God’s place for us in His Kingdom on Earth. Both books should be in print by the end of this year.
If want to learn more about Lynne Collier’s books or purchase them, you can find them below:
[products ids=”170,40″]
DISCLOSURE: SOME OF THE LINKS IN THE PAGE ABOVE MAY BE “AFFILIATE LINKS.” THIS MEANS IF YOU CLICK ON THE LINK AND PURCHASE THE ITEM, WE WILL RECEIVE AN AFFILIATE COMMISSION. WE ARE DISCLOSING THIS IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION’S 16 CFR, PART 255: “GUIDES CONCERNING THE USE OF ENDORSEMENTS AND TESTIMONIALS IN ADVERTISING.”
