Stick With It with Carol McCracken (Re-Air)

In this episode, you’ll also hear:

• The many surprising ways Carol has experienced God’s grace in her life
• Tips on dealing with “analysis paralysis” when you have too many options
• When self-publishing might make more sense than traditional publishing — and how to self-publish a book you can be proud of
• The importance of letting people who don’t love you read your work before it’s published
• Carol’s advice for the writer who’s struggling to finish their book and get it published

Carol’s “Come to Jesus” Moment

Carol McCracken says her life has been anything but “traditional.” Raising a son with four mental health disorders was incredibly challenging, especially since there weren’t many resources available to help her and her husband navigate those challenges. 

Over time, they both turned to alcohol to cope — until one day, Carol was pulled over for driving under the influence. Now, she calls it a “come to Jesus meeting,” because “He loved me enough to get my attention.” 

As a Bible study teacher, Carol was terrified and ashamed. “I’m a rule follower,” she explains. “And I knew I had broken so many rules.” But when she appeared in court, instead of being punished, her slate was wiped clean. The judge warned her not to repeat the mistake, returned her bail money, and no record was left on her insurance. 

“I did not deserve one bit of that,” she says. “But I was like, ‘Lord, I will not mess up again. You literally scared the hell out of me!” Until this experience, Carol hadn’t realized how badly her judgment was being impaired. But now she knew she needed to make some significant changes in her life. 

One of those changes was making the difficult decision to divorce. Though Carol hadn’t believed in divorce up to this point, it was becoming clear that the marriage was not healthy for either of them.

Carol’s story is a powerful reminder that you don’t have to be perfect to be used by God and to serve in ministry — in fact, no one is! But God loves us enough to pursue us, to get our attention, and to set us back on the right track so He can perfect us for His purposes. 

Carol admits that she would have chosen a much more “dignified” path if she could have. “But alas, this is my story, and I’m meant to share it,” she says. 

Journey to Publishing Non-Traditionally

Though Carol considers herself a speaker rather than a writer, God soon started calling her to write. Almost on a whim, she found herself attending a Christian writers conference and meeting agents, one of whom listened to her idea and asked her to submit a book proposal. 

Instead of accepting the proposal, however, the agent advised her to publish independently or through a small press — because that agent believed the book needed to be written to support Carol’s speaking ministry. 

Ultimately, Carol published her book, Wisdom: Where To Find It If You've Lost, Forgotten, Or Never Had It, independently. This was a different publishing path than she’d anticipated — after all, for many people, even getting to talk to an agent and submit a proposal is a dream come true! 

But Carol’s story is a valuable reminder to us that just because the traditional publishing route doesn’t work out, doesn’t mean your story doesn’t have value. It may just mean that God has another plan for you and your book. 

Additionally, Carol’s publishing experience highlights that your book is only a piece of the story. For many people, the real income opportunity — and ministry — comes not through the book itself, but by leveraging your book to give credibility and visibility to the other gifts God has given you. 

Analysis Paralysis

When it came to actually getting her book published, however, Carol says she wrestled with indecision for a while. 

“I did a lot of research, and I had a lot of analysis paralysis,” she explains. “If you have paralys