Today I had the honor of interviewing pastor and author, R.K. Mortenson. R.K. fears the Bible has lost its special place among today's families; therefore, his books are designed to help bring them closer to the Word of God while providing a great form a family-friendly entertainment. Discover how R.K. went from seminary school to published author and find out why he feels it's important to build relationships in the world of publishing...

How did writing become your career? Did it find you or did you find it?

It started with my love for books, my imagination, and a knack for writing. I published my first poem when I was eleven years old, called "At the Doctor's Office." Classmates even requested that I read my stories aloud to the class in 5th grade because they enjoyed them-plus, I included some of them as characters in the stories.

My publishing dream began in 1994 while I was attending seminary. My love for the English language blossomed even more when I studied Greek. Words took on added meaning and history. I attempted my first "long story" that year and called it "Landon's Tale." It was about 70 pages. There was some good stuff there, some that made it into Landon Snow and the Auctor's Riddle, my first published book. But there was a lot of throwaway fluff, too. I had a lot to learn. Still do. Always will.

I kept working on Landon for a couple years, and then set it aside and began writing inspirational and devotional articles along with my sermons. I also started studying writing with the goal to publish more in earnest, reading tons of books both on the craft and the publishing/business aspect of it.

I'd written two adult novels and dozens of starts to stories and novels over the next ten years. I sent off queries to agents and editors and received some positive feedback, eventually; but no offers for publication.

Then in June of 2004 I registered to go to the Christian Writers Guild conference at The Cove in Asheville, North Carolina. I wanted to bring an entire novel to pitch in case I got to meet with editors. Something led me to pull my original "Landon's Tale" out from the closet and rework it yet again. I doubled its length and added new elements to the story. Then I pitched it to three editors as "Alice in Wonderland meets the Book of Ecclesiastes." A tale of whimsy with a touch of wisdom. The editor from Barbour showed interest, and then they asked if I was considering doing a series. I said yes, of course!-even though I had little idea for more stories after the first one.

All that to say, I did a lot of hard work and waited a long time and persevered to eventually land a career of sorts. I don't make my living as a writer; there are very few who do. But I feel extremely grateful and blessed to be published.

What has been your biggest obstacle when it comes to finding the confidence in yourself to reach for those higher paying writing assignments and what did you do to conquer that obstacle?

I've heard that courage is not the absence of fear, but the willingness to take action in the face of fear. Some fear and lack of confidence is healthy, I think. The key is to not become paralyzed by that voice that says you're not good enough. Say, okay, maybe I'm not, but I'm going to try anyway. And then keep on writing and submitting and improving your craft.

What has been your biggest struggle obtaining contracts and how did you overcome that struggle?

So far I've contracted five Landon Snow books with Barbour Publishing. I've also written a Landon Snow short story that will appear in Focus on the Family's magazine for kids, Clubhouse, in December. I'm very excited about this, as the magazine carries a circulation of over 116,000. My goal is to continue publishing books, possibly moving into the mainstream young adult market. We'll see what happens. It still feels like a hobby.

A big key in getting contracts and assignments for any type of writing--whether magazine articles or books--is making and sustaining relationships with others in the business: editors, writers, and publishers. Once you're published keep working on your track record, building your platform, and growing your resume.

Visit him at http://landonsnow.com/

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