READ WHAT OTHER
FAITHWRITERS 500 MEMBERS SAY:
ATTRACTED TO THE GOLD
By Janice Cartwright
Sometime prior to coming in contact with Faithwriters I had joined a small writing group that met at our neighborhood library. I enjoyed the meetings but I couldn't seem to shake the feeling something was missing.
One day, I mentioned to my husband I wished I could make contact with a group that focused more on Christian writing and less on purely secular. For my web trekker husband that was like a starting gun at a foot race. Unbeknownst to me, finding his wife a Christian writing group on the internet became my dear one's immediate mission in life. Several days later, he surprised me with a list of names and addresses for Christian writing groups on the web. Faithwriters was just one of several, but when I began to investigate, I found a smorgasbord of writing opportunities all in one place. Faithwriters stood above the crowd and I felt no desire to explore further.
Looking back now, I know God had a lot to do with my ultimately being a part of this community of believing writers. Only a few weeks after joining in the fall of 2006, I was still pretty much a greenhorn when it came to finding my way around the maze of neat stuff at Faithwriters. But I wasn't too distracted to notice a little gold rectangle with the number 500 tattooed inside attached to some of the authors' names. This intrigued me, and I think I was also a little awed. Surely these people must have attained to some lofty degree of writing skill to deserve such an official looking and attractive emblem by their name.
Because FW500 has nothing to do with one's writing level, in one way I was wackily off base with that assumption. But in a more obscure sense I was also right. The reason has to do with the kind of accountability that runs both ways at FW. From the first, I had sensed transparency and integrity foundational at Faithwriters. If such is possible, that is even more evident within the FW500 circle.
The perks are solid; and they are well worth the investment, but on a personal level the 500 logo behind my name means more than mere perks. Because iron sharpens iron, it means I am called to the same level of accountability I am shown here at Faithwriters. As they say here in Texas, "that's choppin' in tall cotton."
My affiliation with FW500 is a sticky to remind me how blessed I am to be a part of Faithwriters. It is also a nudge to keep my best foot forward. The stories and articles I write, though they may need a ton of improvement, should represent my best effort. When a newbie sees that little gold box beside my name it should make them want one, too.
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