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Meet Lindsey P. Brackett

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Today we’d like to introduce you to Lindsey P. Brackett.

Lindsey, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
I have wanted to be an author since I was a little girl. Actually, I wanted to be Laura Ingalls, and my daddy built me a cabin in the woods to support this dream. But I lacked the confidence to fully embrace writing as my first career. Instead, I pursued other avenues of story and earned my BA in theater and education from Berry College, where I also met my husband. As passionate as I was about teaching and developing young readers when I became a mom, I knew I wanted to have more time at home. Because I had started blogging in 2010, finally letting people in to see my words, I had just enough belief in myself to think I could try writing while home full-time. Of course, nothing ever goes according to plan! But finally, after five years at home (and another baby bringing our total to 4), my first novel, Still Waters, was contracted by LPC Books through connections I made at the Blue Ridge Mountain Christian Writers Conference in Asheville, NC. By pursuing this new network, I found my particular niche mentoring other new writers. Today, I teach at writers conferences and groups, speak at schools and libraries, help produce an online flash fiction magazine (Spark Flash Fiction), and am celebrating the release of my second novel, The Bridge Between. Of course, it helps that this stay-at-home-mom has become a work-at-home-mom with kids who all go to school!

Has it been a smooth road?
Publishing is its own set of challenges. These days there are many paths, and I have a tendency to jump without knowing exactly what I’m getting into. I’m so grateful to those who have helped me learn and navigate–and make tough choices about what should come next. The marketing piece is really difficult, I’ve found. I joke that if I went back to college, I’d major in marketing and graphic design because those skills are so helpful to authors these days. It’s a big, noisy world and we’re all trying to be heard. I don’t want to be just another buzz in your feed. I’d like to really contribute something meaningful and thoughtful.

Also, as a working mom again, there are plenty of struggles at home. I find that my time for work often bleeds into our family time. Recently, I realized there really is no perfect daily balance, but what I should strive for is a balanced week and season. There are times, I have to work and travel more than others, but there are times when I tell people they have to wait because it’s summer and my kids are home.

What do you do, what do you specialize in, what are you known for, etc. What are you most proud of as a company? What sets you apart from others?
In my small corner of the writing world, I’m known for connections. I thrive on connecting people with each other and seeing the fruits of that labor. I have writer friends who joke I saved their career by steering them along certain paths, but I’m not sure that’s true! I am simply blessed to know a lot of professionals within the CBA industry specifically, so I have more insight then someone could find just by reading a website. I’m really proud when I see one of my coaching clients win an award or sign a contract because I hope that by being their first guide, they’ve now found the right fit for their own dream. As I writer myself, I understand the challenges of breaking into publishing. I think what sets me apart is also a challenge I have personally–I’ve never been able to fit into a neat genre or branded box. I like a lot of different things, I write both fiction and non-fiction, I read widely, and all this contributes to my own wide net of resources. Which means, there are few aspiring writers, I can’t steer in one direction or the other no matter what they bring to the table.

Let’s touch on your thoughts about our city – what do you like the most and least?
My husband rolls his eyes when I say this, but I grew up in a tiny town in Northeast Georgia, so anything from Buford to the airport is “Atlanta” to me. Basically, if I have to get on the interstate, I’m not happy. He grew up in Clayton County, so we’ve had to blend our differences. The compromise is raising our family in a small town, but we travel into the city for his work and family. As I’ve gotten older, though, I’ve really come to appreciate the vibe our city has–and especially as I get to know the Atlanta literary scene, I’ve realized we are so very unique. Atlanta is all the greatness of Old South–we love our food, our sports teams, our hospitality–but it is also a really vibrant beacon of how the South is changing. I love going into the city and seeing the diversity and the revitalization of neighborhoods. I love listening to the Literary Atlanta podcast and hearing our different voices blend together to make this beautiful harmony. We all have a story to tell, but when we weave these stories together, we’re creating a tapestry of history and culture that can’t be found anywhere else.

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