Today I have the pleasure of interviewing longtime friend Joyce L. Villeneuve. Joyce is a senior marketing and communications consultant and successful entrepreneur in the advertising, photography, and public relations fields.
I knew Joyce long before either of us became published authors. We worked together in Colorado. Joyce is now the author of two books: Courage to Forgive, released in May 2010, and Finding Forgiveness in God’s Word released earlier this year in April.
Joyce played a key part in my healing process some 12 years ago concerning my husband’s abuse of my daughter. I was having a particularly bad morning and God led me to seek her out as soon as I arrived at work. As we spoke, she quickly recognized I had failed to forgive myself. So I’m not at all surprised she’s written about forgiveness.
Joyce, thank you so much for being a willing vessel for God the day I needed your wisdom and advice.
Q: What was the impetus behind your decision to write a book?
A: My mother passed away about seven years ago. As I was with her during her last few days on earth, I asked her if she had any regrets, and she said “no.” I asked her if she had to forgive anyone or needed to ask anyone for forgiveness and she said “no.” I was amazed at the peace in her voice and in her face. She was totally ready to meet God and had no question in her mind that she would be in Heaven soon. She welcomed that with complete peace and freedom.
Our life had not been an easy one, and I knew there were moments in her life that could very well have been moments of regret. The fact that she had made peace with herself and most especially with God over those issues was just an eye opener for me. I thought to myself, “This is how I want to go when it is my time. With absolute peace in who I am, how I have lived and knowing the grace and mercy of God. His absolute forgiveness!”
A few months after Mom’s funeral, I began to feel a tug to write about forgiveness, so that others facing the end of their earthly journey, and preferably before, would know the joy of God’s mercy, grace and redemption. That was the beginning of my journey to author a book.
Q: It’s that passion to reach others and help them through their struggles that drives so many writers. It’s why I started this blog, so those with a story to tell could learn how to tell it. Please share with us about Courage to Forgive and what led you to write it.
A: I wrote The Courage to Forgive a few years after my mother’s passing. I heard God calling me to write this book on forgiveness and would try to write, but the words were just not coming together. I kept saying, “I am not a writer, I have no idea how to go about writing, etc.” I argued with God and went through all the excuses that I could find under the sun to not write.
Then, in 2008, a few years after hearing this call to write, I felt the winds of change coming, and felt that God was calling me to leave the ministry I was working at and to follow in the call to write this book. In obedience, I surrendered to God in September of 2008 and asked only that He make a way for me to leave the ministry. In November, I found out that I was to be laid off along with many other people at the ministry. I was elated! I knew that I had been faithful in the call to work at the ministry, even under very difficult circumstances. God was faithful in allowing me to leave on His terms.
In writing The Courage to Forgive, I wanted anybody who read it to know of God’smercy and grace and that it is available for all who want it. I wanted them to know of His forgiveness so that they could have a fruitful and abundant life and know of His love and His Son, Jesus Christ. I wanted people to know that they didn’t have to suffer from the anger, bitterness, and an empty life that comes from a life filled with unforgiveness.
The book is not a memoir, although I have taken several experiences from my life, traumas that I have suffered to show God’s redeeming mercy and grace, and how through His grace, we can each find the courage to forgive the seemingly unforgivable things that are done to us by others, or to fully embrace God’s forgiveness, grace, and mercy and forgive ourselves for the bad choices we make in life.
Q: How did the Courage to Forgive Conference come about?
A: As I traveled to various states nationwide for book-signing events, I would be asked constantly if I had a conference or workshop on forgiveness. People would go through the Bible study at the back of the book and want more, something deeper. So, I developed The Courage to Forgive Conference for those who really wanted to come to grips with issues of unforgiveness in their lives.
I am so humble at the many lives that have been changed at the Courage to Forgive conferences. I have seen firsthand how God can redeem those who seek Him and seek to forgive those who have hurt them. I have seen people walk into the conference broken and at the end of their rope, only to walk out again after the conference, free and filled with hope, trusting God and believing in His promises.
Q: This past April you released your second book, Finding Forgiveness in God’s Word. What was the driving force behind writing that?
A: Questions. At the events so many people would ask me questions that they struggled with. Questions like, “How can God forgive me? How can I forgive myself? How can I forgive others? Where do I find that grace to forgive? … and so much more.
So I went to the Bible and began to read about different characters from the Bible who had gone through so much and yet, still had the courage to forgive. Characters like Joseph, who had been sold into slavery by his very own brothers and yet, forgave them and saved them from starvation. Peter, who denied Jesus three times, yet believed in who Jesus is and was able to repent and seek forgiveness. Then, there was Judas who betrayed Jesus and took his own life instead of seeking forgiveness.
Through the various stories, I have sought to show God can and will forgive us anything, no matter how heinous the sin.
The book also has a couple of excerpts from The Courage to Forgive, like the Steps to Forgiveness and a couple of my own tragic experiences, as they related to a specific character.
Q: Can you share a bit about your publishing experience with each book?
The Courage to Forgive went relatively smoothly, and I knew God was leading me throughout the book. I finished my last assignment at the ministry on a Friday. I took the weekend off to relax and just come to grips that a new chapter was about to begin. On the following Monday, I sat at the computer at 8 a.m. ready to start working. I prayed as I normally do before starting anything, and wondered how I was to start this project since I had never done anything like this before.
When I opened my email box, I had an email from a friend whom I had not seen or spoken to in years, and in the email, there was an attachment on how to write a winning book proposal.
I started laughing and said, “Ok, Lord, let’s get this show on the road.”
From that book proposal, I had fourteen publishers asking to see the manuscript and from that seven who came forward with a proposed book contract.
It was a little different with Finding Forgiveness in God’s Word. I knew right off the bat I would self-publish this one because of the time line involved. Most books take about a year to be published. I wrote and finished this one in just a few months. Everything flowed. I would be in church praying and whole chapters would write themselves in my mind. Even now, I still read certain chapters and say to myself, “Who wrote this?”
Q: What advice would you give my readers about their writing/publishing journey?
A: The writing/publishing journey is not an easy one. Be realistic. It appears glamorous to have a book in hand and have a book tour, but this is hard work.
If you have been given a dream to write, don’t doubt yourself. God will give you what you need, just when you need it. Believe in yourself.
Writing takes discipline. You must carve out time every day to write. If you are happy with what you have written, keep it. If not, delete and keep going. You can always edit later.
Keep writing even if you have writer’s block. Like I said, you can always edit what you don’t like later. If the writer’s block is bad, step away for a little bit. Take a walk, talk to a friend, have a cup of tea, listen to music, watch a show. Anything that will help you relax. Then, come back and try writing again. Remember, you can always edit.
Do the hard work upfront to develop the proposal for your book. This helps you to stay focused because the proposal forces you to develop the genre, target audience, chapters, etc. properly. The actual writing will go much easier once the proposal is developed, even if you are planning to self-publish.
Not everyone will run to buy your book. You may never get rich with your book. Not all writers are New York Best Sellers. You must be okay with that.
You will have the naysayers, but you will also have those whose life you may possibly change with your book, depending on the genre. So, be happy with why you decided to write the book and remember “why” when the days of no sales or bad reviews show up.
Enjoy and embrace the process!
At the end of the day, when you hold that book in your hand, you will know and enjoy a great sense of accomplishment.
Thank you so much, Joyce, for those wonderful tidbits of advice, and for being here today. I’m in the process of reading Finding Forgiveness and am enjoying your insights on these biblical figures. I pray God’s best for you as you go forward with both your books and the Courage to Forgive conferences.
ABOUT JOYCE L. VILLENEUVE
Joyce L. Villeneuve is a senior marketing and communications consultant and successful entrepreneur in the advertising, photography and public relations fields. She is also a speaker who has encouraged and inspired many audiences with her insight on the topic of forgiveness.
Joyce was inducted as an Honored Member of the Stanford Who’s Who Black Book of Influential Executives, Professionals and Entrepreneurs for 2010 and 2011. In November 2010, she was named “Woman of the Year” in the National Association of Professional and Executive Women registry for “Women of Excellence.” She was inducted as a “Woman of Excellence” into the National Association of Professional and Executive Women in 2009, and also inducted into Who’s Who for Business Executives, Professionals and Entrepreneurs for the 2007-2009 seasons.
She and her husband, Martin, live in Colorado, with their three children and faithful dachshund.
You can learn more about Joyce and her books and events at her website http://www.couragetoforgive.com/index.html