Write what you...?

We’ve all heard, "write what you know" or "write what you love" right? I have always struggled with this concept and how it applies to my writing.


There is several authors I read (and love their work) and they "write what they know". Basically all their story revolves around the same scenario, in an environment they are familiar with. Then there are the multi published authors, who jump from genre to genre and are wildly successful at it, having to draw new knowledge for each piece. They are "writing what they love". Neither way of writing is bad, neither one is better than the other.


What is the best choice for you? What is the best choice for me? It’s a topic I have been contemplating lately. (You get to the point where you like to write and it’s all you think about.:) How do you discover what genre to write in, what subject best fits your "voice"? I believe only God knows. You might be burdened to write in one genre your entire writing career, such as Tamera Alexander, Deborah Raney, Terri Blackstock (who by the way, I adore their work). Or you might be a cross over novelist, such as Cara Putman or Angela Hunt to name only a few. Each of these novelists are doing the passion for a profession God has given them.


God will place that story on your heart that won’t give you any peace until it is on paper and being molded into an exceptional piece. I have so many ideas for stories, and not all of them are in the same genre I am working on right now. But if they are stories God wants told, He will provide the inspiration and the market. Write for Christ and you will never go wrong