My local writers group, East Metro Atlanta Christian Writers, hosted Tammy B. Melton as our speaker on June 12 and had a blast together! I think part of the reason we enjoyed her so much was because she touched on a couple of different topics and was so very real and humble that we couldn’t help but love her and relate to her.
First, she told us about her book, Loving God With All Five Senses, which she published through Xulon last year. She shared the story of how God helped her through the writing process, how she searched for a publisher, and why she decided to self-publish. Then she was brutally honest about what self-publishing was like and what kinds of challenges she’s faced.
Loving God With All Five Senses is a 6-week Bible study that begins with a week of understanding how wonderfully God made us. Then each of the following weeks looks at the different senses and how they relate to our spiritual lives. Each week studies how God created the sense to work, how misuse of it can hinder our relationship with God and how it can help deepen our relationship with God. I’ve worked part of the way through my book and it’s a great wake-up call to help you be more in tune with yourself and with God.
And if that weren’t enough … then she got to our ‘real’ talk — getting past that fear of being a speaker. Many of us think that we can’t be speakers because we’re writers, but Tammy pointed out quite a few things that speakers and writers have in common. Things like being passionate about what we communicate, needing to organize our thoughts in a logical manner, crafting good openings and closings, and needing to spend time in prayer and with God before we begin. Hmmmm … maybe that shift from writer to speaker doesn’t have to be as scary as some think.
Tammy also heads up a non-profit organization called Legacy Ministries (www.legacyministries.info), which helps encourage and train people for ministry opportunities. It’s a really neat organization, so check out their site. And if you’re looking for a women’s Bible study book or a speaker for your group, I’m sure Tammy would love to talk with you about those things too!
