"Sharing Your Story Via the Powerful Tool of Writing"
By Nicole D. Miller
Over a decade ago, I re-discovered my love of reading. I was a sitting duck in cubicle-land and as understimulated as they come. Being the driven, Type-A Aries that I am, I always need a challenge. Two degrees and several businesses can attest to that. So, when I found myself at a quicksand standstill in my career, I sought out other ways to keep my mind invigorated. Reading blogs was one of those ways.
It was while reading said blogs that I was inspired to start my own: Better Than Wine. In this blog, I poured out about my faith journey and my unique experience of waiting on God for a spouse. Little did I know that blog would become a catalyst for a full-blown writing career. Turns out I wasn’t the only one having issues in the romantic department.
When I wrote my blog post “How to Overcome Heartbreak: Recovering From Misguided Love,” people around the world reached out to share their own tragic woes of heartbreak. That meant I now had an audience! I knew God was saying to write the book.
Do you know that your story is someone else’s hope? We all go through hard things in this life. We all have a story. But it’s only when we’re brave enough to tell our story that others can hear it (or read it) and be inspired.
Now, I cannot tell a lie. I was scared to death to tell my story. I sought confirmation after confirmation that I was “hearing” correctly from the Divine. But guess what? Every confirmation was met. Left with no excuse, I moved forward. As afraid as I was, I did what I now tell others to do who are terrified to move forward in purpose.
I did it scared.
How to Overcome Heartbreak is a raw account of my own experience with betrayal and devastation from a broken engagement. It provides tools and resources to others who can relate so that they can receive the healing I did and maybe even avoid some of my pitfalls.
It truly was my thinking about those folks (my future readers) that spurred me to pursue my first book project. As transparent as I am, I was extremely uncomfortable at the thought of being so open about my personal life. Yet, if just one person could be encouraged, it would be worth it.
I believe God honored my heart because not only did more than one person receive encouragement, but that book set the precedence for a whole entire writing career. It, in fact, would be an indication of my ultimate purpose: to tell inspiring stories that infuse faith and Black culture
Is there something stirring in your heart to share that could exemplify that type of foretelling? We have gifts, talents and ingenuity stored inside each of us. It is the step-by-step unfolding that manifests in purpose and destiny. But, we have the responsibility to take the first step.
When I pursued authorship, I didn’t know all the steps involved. I reached out to a friend who was a published author and connected with a self-publishing company. Once I learned the ropes of book publishing, I was able to do it myself for additional book projects. Then, I was able to help others. Ten years after starting that little blog, I became the owner of ND Miller Publishing, where I assist budding authors to manifest their books via my hybrid publishing company.
Storytelling has been woven into the fabric of many indigenous, multicultural people groups. The Black-American community has a unique historical relationship with the gift of storytelling because, for centuries, laws prevented us from reading and writing in this country. Now, I get to read and write in honor of my ancestors. Now, I get to help others do the same.
Do you see how we are all connected and how our ancestors paved the way for us to manifest legacy? Whatever your story is, I’m sure you can look back and recognize how others before you aided you in being in your current position today. You are standing on their shoulders while unleashing those gifts and talents hiding inside of you. Telling, and even writing your story, is your way of paying their gift forward.
It’s your way of hoisting up someone else on your shoulders.
Meet the Author:
Nicole D. Miller is a 4x’s self-published author, blogger, and novelist. She takes immense pleasure in crafting stories that intertwine Black culture and faith and looks forward to producing edifying works that will impact her community. She is a freelance writer for The Cleveland Observer, where she covers positive stories of hope in Cleveland.
Additionally, she owns ND Miller Publishing, a hybrid publishing company where she specializes in assisting debut authors with manifesting their book dreams. In her spare time, she loves shopping, time with friends, anything 90s R&B and a good glass of red wine.
To learn more, you can visit nicoledmiller.com or email her at nicoledmiller1983@gmail.com.
