Lauren Crews and Leslie DeVooght were strangers when they registered for the 2017 Florida Christian Writers Conference in Leesburg, FL. They were assigned as roommates and became quick friends.
Both are from northeastern Florida. Both love the Lord and write from a Biblical worldview. Both brought manuscripts to pitch to the editors and agents at the conference and by the end of the weekend, both were members of Word Weavers of Clay County, a writers’ critique group.
However, their writings are very different. Lauren brought a Bible study and Leslie brought a contemporary romance novel.
I wanted to teach the Word of God and wanted to put validity to my speaking and teaching. ~Lauren Crews
Lauren’s study is written about Proverbs 31. “In the original Hebrew, verses 10 through 31 is an acrostic poem,” she explained. “The Hebrew language stresses memorization. The letters aren’t just sounds; they also hold word pictures.”
The editors and agents were interested, but questioned Lauren’s background. How did she know these things to be true? Did she study Hebrew?
Yes, she did. Lauren holds a Masters of Divinity from New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary. “I wanted to teach the Word of God and wanted to put validity to my speaking and teaching,” she said.
Lauren first earned a BS in marketing from Jacksonville University and worked as a pharmacy sales and marketing coordinator. After seminary, she chose to rest. Fifteen years later she began to substitute teach at Lake Asbury Jr. High, where she now works full time as a language arts teacher.
Her love of Hebrew grew as she researched deeper at NOBTS. Lauren’s manuscript was born out of her studies. “It looks at how Christ fulfills the letters and how it applies to us.”
“The verses use military references and word play. The secondary theme is priestly duties. Proverbs 31 is a heroic hymn. Jewish men sing it over their women on Friday nights at the beginning of Shabbat.”
“The verses use military references and word play. The secondary theme is priestly duties. Proverbs 31 is a heroic hymn. Jewish men sing it over their women on Friday nights at the beginning of Shabbat. ~Lauren Crews
Lauren’s study was well received at the Florida CWC. Editors and agents offered suggestions from making it into a non-fiction book with a study guide to leaving it as a Bible study. Her additional presentation of an adult coloring book/devotional hit the nail on the head. Everyone loved it and had marketing ideas for a package deal.
The images to color were designed by friend and Lake Asbury Jr. High art teacher, Cindy Smith. “I commissioned Cindy to create images from the Hebrew letters I gave her,” Lauren said.
Friends and co-workers meet at Lauren’s house weekly to actively study her creation. Her Bible Study is already at work teaching and bringing women closer to God.
At the conference, Lauren won first place in the Bible Study category and first place in overall non-fiction, with a contract offer from Elk Lake Publishing. Now the hard work begins. Lauren will tighten her writing, resubmit proposals, and decide which agent to represent her and/or which publishing house to accept.
Her advice for aspiring writers is, “Play with ideas. Be flexible. Seek guidance from God and others. Pick a group of people you value and trust and ask them to pray for you. Have them pray for you because it’s a battle.”
To follow Lauren’s success, visit her blog, “Letters of Love” found via her website LaurenCrews.com.