Leaving That Legacy

Chris Pepple

My children have their own careers now. Oh, how time flies. I remember holding them as babies when they couldn’t sleep. We rocked for hours, and I read books to them at bedtime even before they could understand what I was reading to them. I enjoy the pictures that remind me of all of our many adventures together and of their moments to shine in plays and concerts or sporting events. I’m so proud of the young adults they have become.



When they were younger, I started thinking about the legacy I wanted to leave my children. We often spend a lot of time thinking about the financial and legal aspects of what we need to leave behind for those we love. It’s critical that we make wills and leave written, legal documents so that our wishes will be fulfilled. What else are we writing for our children or our nieces and nephews or grandchildren, though? Are we spending time leaving a written legacy?



Hopefully our actions speak volumes about what we believe, and we model for our children the type of life we hope they lead. Often, though, our children don’t know much about our actions. They are too young to remember or are in school when we are volunteering. They are at swim practice while we are sitting with an elderly relative. They may not know the details about what we do, much less why we do it. That’s where our writing comes in.



Fiction writing is a great place to create characters that model for others what we would like to see in life. Through the characters and the plot, we can show others what we would like to see in the world. We can have characters discuss integrity and hope and kindness. Characters can struggle with issues that we struggled with and resolve those issues in ways our children may have never realized could be possible. They may not have realized our struggles or may not have seen how we overcame them (or wished we had because we realized later that we made the wrong choice). Our stories can leave a written legacy for the next generation.



Our nonfiction writing has the same potential. We can leave behind a written legacy that details what we believe and why we believe it. It’s there whenever the next generation needs a word from us even if we are living in different cities or time zones or even if we are ill and no longer able to communicate well.



I wish I had more written words from my grandmother. I know she faced many challenges in her life, and I know that her faith and her strength helped her overcome those challenges. I don’t know, however, what her words would be about all that she faced. What advice would she give me? What would she tell me about her faith? What would her written legacy to me have been if she had been a writer? I found poems by my great-grandmother that give me insight into her faith and her decisions when life was hard. I cherish those poems scribbled out on yellowed paper.



Our faith and life legacy can be published or unpublished, but it needs to be written. We can all share our voices and tell our stories so that the next generation can hear from us firsthand what we hope for them. What written legacy—fiction or nonfiction—are you leaving for others?

Chris Pepple is an award-winning author and a freelance writer, manuscript consultant, and editor living in Germantown, Tenn. As a published author, her works include Looking, Seeing (2018), Without a Voice (2017), Two Frontiers (2016), Writing Your Faith Journey (2016), Look to See Me: A Collection of Reflections (2006) and Reflections on Suffering: Defining Our Crosses and Letting Go of Pain (2012). Her first novel, Two Frontiers, was a 2017 Next Generation Indie Book Awards Finalist.

She was a long-time writer-at-large for Southern Writers Magazine, interviewing national authors for each issue. My articles have appeared in many other local and national publications, including Delta Magazine.

She speaks to writing groups on topics such as self-publishing, how to find your own creative voice and how to break writer's block. Along with speaking to writing groups, she also speaks nationally to churches and nonprofit organizations on a variety of motivational and spiritual topics.

Visit at https://www.chrispepple.com/

Reassessing My Process

Chris Pepple

A few years back, I felt as if my writing and marketing projects weren’t headed in the right direction. Time to reassess my work! That thought made me shudder. In the past, I considered reassessing something to be a negative process. In my mind, it meant I needed to revise my plan, seeking out my mistakes. I turned this procedure into a time of extreme self-criticism, looking for faults in my work and blaming myself for errors and oversights.


This negative attitude towards reassessing projects usually slowed my work more than it helped. After any reassessment, I had to find exercises to build my confidence before I could fully dive back into my work.


Reassessments left me feeling deflated rather than feeling ready to take on the next project. But if things weren’t working well, I couldn’t avoid reassessing my current work. Before I started, however, I spent time working on schoolwork with one of my daughters. She had to look up vocabulary words in her dictionary. When she stepped away for a moment, I flipped through the pages and landed on the entry for reassess. There was that first definition: to revise. I slipped into my negative frame of mind which said revising meant changing the plan because of my failures.


Then I saw the next two definitions listed: to renew one’s assessment, to get a feel for again. Renewal? Get a feel for again? This sounded like a wonderful challenge. I could bring new life back into my projects. I could get a feel for them again and revitalize the works and myself. Why had I never looked at reassessment in such a positive light before?


The work began. How could I renew my marketing plan? I had to get a feel for my audience again. In crunching numbers and plotting strategies, I lost touch with the people I had written my e-book for. I got online to see what other books were popular with my intended audience. I searched for advertising targeting this age group. Where were they traveling and shopping? What were their hobbies? This helped me redesign my ads and overall marketing strategies. I was pleased that I had gotten a feel for my audience again.


Then I moved to my writing. I was more than one-third of the way through my next book, but the life had gone out of it. The timeframe wasn’t working, and the characters had become dull as I tried to force them into the plot. I went back to my original notes and character sketches. I got back in touch with my book and breathed new life into the characters as I made small changes to the dates and the setting.


I’m so glad I reassessed my process of reassessment! It gave me a chance to get back in touch with my projects and renew them and me along the way.

I am an award-winning author and a freelance writer, manuscript consultant, and editor living in Germantown, Tenn. As a published author, my works include Looking, Seeing (2018), Without a Voice (2017), Two Frontiers (2016), Writing Your Faith Journey (2016), Look to See Me: A Collection of Reflections (2006) and Reflections on Suffering: Defining Our Crosses and Letting Go of Pain (2012). My first novel, Two Frontiers, was a 2017 Next Generation Indie Book Awards Finalist.

I was a long-time writer-at-large for Southern Writers Magazine, interviewing national authors for each issue. My articles have appeared in many other local and national publications, including Delta Magazine.

I speak to writing groups on topics such as self-publishing, how to find your own creative voice and how to break writer's block. Along with speaking to writing groups, I also speak nationally to churches and nonprofit organizations on a variety of motivational and spiritual topics.

Visit at https://www.chrispepple.com/

When I Held It

Chris Pepple

I remember the day that I held my first published book. It seemed like a dream come true. When I was growing up, my grandmother would buy me spiral notebooks and pencils any time I asked for them. I would hide in a secret corner in her house and write every chance I got. I even loved my writing assignments in school and never could understand why other classmates dreaded them. I always wanted to be a writer, but I didn’t pursue that dream in college, however. Well, I did in a way, but I also listened to people who said that writing wasn’t a “real career.” I always heard people say, “That’s only a dream that will disappoint you if you try to follow it. Hard-working people need to find real jobs.” So instead of majoring in creative writing, I majored in technical writing. It sounded more impressive to my critics, and I convinced myself I could take on the business world with my writing skills.

My first dream never died, however. The voice inside of me kept calling me to pen and paper…kept creating characters in my head…kept telling me to listen to the stories around me. When I entered Emory University to work on my Master of Divinity degree, I knew I had to find a way to write. I took every course that gave me opportunities to write sermons or liturgy. I sought out volunteer opportunities to write for local organizations. I even took occasional writing courses at other universities even though the credits didn’t go toward my degree.

I wrote everywhere I went. I carried paper with me long before laptops existed. I wrote on every hike. I wrote late at night after other jobs were completed. Writing made me feel alive and connected to my community and my faith. I never gave up the dream even when I had to set it aside while raising my children. Finally, though, I came back to my dream and learned that I loved to interview people and tell their stories. I wrote for several magazines and eventually took a job as a staff writer for a university. But that voice inside kept calling me to write more. I listened.

In 2012, I published a book of short stories titled Look to See Me: A Collection of Reflections. When I held that book, I felt a rush of joy that I had never experienced before. That writer inside of me felt alive. I had followed my dream and succeeded. It didn’t matter to me in that moment if the book sold or became a bestseller. That first book was for me. I had to believe in myself, and I finally did. It was a bonus that people did read the book and talked with me about it and invited me to read a few stories to their book clubs or writing groups.

My last two books fulfilled two other dreams—I published a book of poetry and a book about the craft of writing. I teach my writing students to never give up on their dreams. We each have a voice inside that helps us discover our gifts and talents. We have a voice that calls us to use those gifts and talents to bring good into the world—to make us a better person and bring love and light to others. So, I write and also edit and consult with others as they work to follow their dreams. I don’t pretend that I have to change my dream to please others.

I am a writer. I am a poet. I am a storyteller. I knew my dream was real the moment I held my first book. I’ve learned a lot about writing and publishing since that day, but more than anything, I learned to follow my dream and listen to that guiding voice that tells me to never give up.

I am an award-winning author and a freelance writer, manuscript consultant, and editor living in Germantown, Tenn. As a published author, my works include Looking, Seeing (2018), Without a Voice (2017), Two Frontiers (2016), Writing Your Faith Journey (2016), Look to See Me: A Collection of Reflections (2006) and Reflections on Suffering: Defining Our Crosses and Letting Go of Pain (2012). My first novel, Two Frontiers, was a 2017 Next Generation Indie Book Awards Finalist.

I was a long-time writer-at-large for Southern Writers Magazine, interviewing national authors for each issue. My articles have appeared in many other local and national publications, including Delta Magazine.

I speak to writing groups on topics such as self-publishing, how to find your own creative voice and how to break writer's block. Along with speaking to writing groups, I also speak nationally to churches and nonprofit organizations on a variety of motivational and spiritual topics.

Visit at https://www.chrispepple.com/