ABOUT THE NOVEL — IN VAIN

A Story Still in the Making

I’ve always loved stories.

I’ve always been drawn to quiet, emotional ones that make us pause and see ourselves a little more clearly.

The idea of writing a novel lived in the back of my mind for years, but it always felt too big and too unrealistic to pursue.

Now, by the grace of God, I find myself writing the very story I once thought I never could.

How This Dream Became a Calling

For most of my life the idea of writing a novel felt more like a daydream than something I would actually do.

When I finally worked up the courage to try, the story I imagined then would have looked like any modern novel: dramatic, messy, and wildly inappropriate. And honestly, I doubt I would have finished it.

My “why” wasn’t strong enough.

Then I met Jesus, and everything changed.

He told me to write about Him.


Not a sermon. Not a devotional. A story.

A story about people who feel real, carrying real pain, finding real healing.

A story where God is present long before the characters recognize Him.

A story that could reach both believers and those who might never pick up a Christian book.

A story that reflects how He worked in my own life: quiet at first, then unmistakable.

That was the moment writing stopped being a hobby and became a calling.

I am writing this novel with faith, not because I have all the skill or discipline I wish I had, but because God asked me to.

I write out of obedience and out of a desire to tell a wholesome, meaningful, and entertaining story that God can use however He chooses.

I pray He will use it to draw even one person closer to Him.

Faith has not erased the fear, but it has taught me to take this journey one step at a time.

I want to see the entire path, but most days God only shows me the next step.

So I am learning to trust Him as the lamp to my feet, guiding me forward even when I cannot see far ahead.

Learning As I Go

I’ve never written a novel before.

I don’t know all the rules, and I definitely don’t understand the publishing world yet.

Writing while working full-time and raising my kids means the process is slow and imperfect.

For a while, I tried giving myself deadlines. But life as a wife and mom quickly showed me that speed doesn’t equal obedience.

Now I write in the quiet in-between moments—nap times, late nights, car lines, and the rare pockets of stillness God gives me.

Even though the pace is slow, I trust that this book will be finished in God’s timing. He has never rushed me before.

One of the hardest parts is the ache to read this story.

It’s the kind of book I look for when I want something real and reflective.

A story about hope, purpose, healing, community, and the subtle ways God moves before we even notice.

I only wish it already existed.

The Heart Behind the Story

In Vain follows Laura, an aspiring artist whose life feels like it’s slipping out of her hands.

When she unexpectedly takes a mural job at a homeless shelter, she becomes entangled in the lives of people who challenge her beliefs about identity, success, love, and God.

It is a story about:

  • feeling lost

  • trying to control everything

  • carrying shame from the past

  • longing for meaning

  • resisting help

  • the slow courage it takes to heal

  • and the hope that rises quietly after a long season of ache

It is contemporary, emotional, honest, and spiritually reflective—without announcing itself as a Christian novel.

The threads of faith reveal themselves the way they often do in real life: slowly, quietly, and unmistakably in hindsight.

The Mood + Aesthetic

If you could feel this book, it would feel like:

  • grey mornings in the city

  • quiet worship music in the background

  • coffee shops and late-night doubts

  • paint-stained fingers

  • warm light on old brick buildings

  • journal pages filled with questions

  • slow-burn connection

  • community showing up unexpectedly

  • the whisper of hope after a long season of ache

Tender. Raw. Reflective. Hopeful.

Where I Am in the Process

I am currently writing the first draft.
Some days the words pour out.
Some days they come slowly.
Every day I show up with what I have and trust God with the rest.

This story is still becoming what it’s meant to be, and I am honored that you are here so early in the journey.

Follow the Journey

If you want to walk with me through drafting, editing, breakthroughs, setbacks, and everything in between, I’d love to have you with me.

You can follow updates through:

  • my blog

  • Instagram / TikTok - @setaparttogether

  • my email list

Thank you for being here.
Your presence means more than you know.