Interview with Becky Kopitzke and Giveaway!!!

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Q&A with Becky Kopitzke, author of The SuperMom Myth: Conquering the Dirty Villains of Motherhood

About the book:

Does your journey through motherhood look different from what you imagined? 

Do you struggle to measure up to your own standards? 

Do you sometimes wish you could be like that other mom who seems to have it all together? 

You are not alone.

The Supermom Myth: Conquering the Dirty Villains of Motherhood, a new book by Christian mom blogger Becky Kopitzke, is designed to encourage imperfect moms to laugh at ourselves, forgive ourselves, and discover the beautiful moms God created within. Delivered with down-to-earth humor and carefully applied biblical insight, The SuperMom Myth explores eight personified “dirty villains” of motherhood, including The Grouch on the Couch (Anger), Worry Woman (Fear), and The Calendar Queen (Busyness). Throughout this delightful read for every mom, Kopitzke offers a gentle reminder to rest in the super power of our grace-filled God. 

Visit www.TheSuperMomMyth.com for more information, including trailer videos, reviews, and details on where to buy copies for yourself and your mom friends. This book makes a wonderful Christmas gift!

About the author:

Becky Kopitzke is the author of The SuperMom Myth: Conquering the Dirty Villains of Motherhood (Shiloh Run Press). As a writer, speaker, singer, dreamer, lunch packer, snowman builder and recovering perfectionist, Becky believes parenting is one of God’s greatest tools for building our faith, character, and strength—and it’s not always pretty. On her devotional blog, beckykopitzke.com, she offers weekly encouragement for fellow imperfect moms, pointing our weaknesses, blessings, and victories to God.

Becky lives messily ever after with her loving husband and their two young daughters in northeast Wisconsin, where a pink indoor trampoline fills half the once formal living room.

Links:

Blog – http://beckykopitzke.com/

Book splash page – www.TheSuperMomMyth.com
(redirects to http://beckykopitzke.com/the-supermom-myth/)

Writing Related Questions

1) Have you always liked to write?

I fell in love with writing in the third grade. Back then I wrote short stories and enjoyed developing interesting characters and plots. I even convinced my teacher to hold a class writing contest just so I could win!

Eventually, though, I chose a college degree in music, not writing. Yet even then I got a kick out of writing term papers—crazy, right? My career path started in music publishing, which led to marketing communications publishing, which led to corporate freelance writing after I left the workplace to stay home with my children. Eventually I sensed God calling me to write for ministry, so I launched my devotional blog, beckykopitzke.com, and I’ve been pursuing that call ever since.

2) What inspired you to write your first book?

Much of what I write on my blog is self-exploratory, meaning, if I struggle with it, there’s a good chance other women do, too—so I dig into the Bible for insight on how to find Jesus in our common struggle. From the start, women have been wonderfully responsive to my devotions, affirming that we are not alone in our parenting and marriage challenges. As I realized that my transparency and encouragement was actually touching lives, God planted in my heart the desire to write a book that would examine parenting from His view, offering validation, grace, and real hope to frazzled moms like me.

3) What writing advice do you have for other aspiring authors?

Trust God’s providence! If He has called you to write, your obedience to that call will be rewarded. You will hear a lot of voices telling you how to do it right—how to write (or how not to write), how to grow your audience, how to promote your work. Some of it will be helpful, some not. Be discerning. Take responsibility for honing your craft, yes, but seek God above all else.

Also? Write what’s in you. We all have a story to tell, and we need to be true to that story. So what if everything has already been said by hundreds of other authors; there’s nothing new under the sun. Yet we haven’t heard it from you. And your voice matters. So don’t let comparison muzzle your offering. God has a purpose for your writing, and “he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion” (from Philippians 1:6).

4) Do you have a favorite writing conference to attend? What is it?

I’m a big fan of She Speaks, a Christian women’s writing and speaking conference put on every year by Proverbs 31. I’ve attended She Speaks twice and plan to return again, hopefully next summer. I credit She Speaks for opening the doors to publishing for me. Prior to attending, they offered a training session on how to write a book proposal. I was able to show up at the conference with a solid proposal in hand, which I presented to a literary agent, Blythe Daniel, and she invited me to sign with her the following week. She was wonderful in guiding me toward my first book contract.

5) What was the hardest part of writing your book?

Finding babysitters! I loved every minute of writing this book—I really mean that—and I could easily get lost in writing for six to eight hours at a time. However, I still have young children at home, so my husband and I worked out some “writing days” in Mommy’s calendar. For some of them, we invited a favorite babysitter to keep the kids occupied. Others were designated Saturdays when Daddy took charge so that I was able to hide behind closed doors and just write.

It worked well for me to block out full days of time rather than a couple hours here and there, because that way I could often flesh out an entire chapter in one day. My kids were very supportive, and surprisingly they enjoyed my writing days just as much as I did. Maybe because the babysitter played games I usually forego in the name of laundry, or because their dad took them to Fleet Farm to buy Nut Rolls. All in all I think my writing process was rewarding for the whole family.

6) Do you read your reviews? Do you respond to them, good or bad? Do you have any advice on how to deal with the bad?

I read my first few reviews on Amazon because it was all very exciting to open the gates and officially usher a book into the market. But after that, I opted not to read any more. I certainly appreciate all honest reviews, especially knowing they’re very helpful for strengthening a book’s position online and spreading the word to potential readers. Yet I am careful not to define myself as a writer according to the praise—or non-constructive criticism—of others.

I do like to get personal feedback face to face, whether positive or critical, because that way it’s a conversation in which I can truly understand the motive behind the review. The way I see it, God asked me to write this book, I wrote it the best I could, and I can’t change it now. My job is to pray for God to reach the women he plans to bless through my work.

As for dealing with bad reviews, my publicist told me a great analogy. She said a negative review is like someone saying your baby is ugly. Oh, so true! It does sting like that. Suddenly you forget the thousand other people who told you how beautiful your child is; you only focus on the one person who said “ugly.” Yet people are granted freedom of speech. They can spout whatever they want in product reviews and social media. Some of their comments you’ll love, while some will disappoint you. But we cannot please everyone. That was never the point. God said “write,” and you obeyed. The rest is out of your hands.

I like to refer to Paul’s perspective in 1 Corinthians 4:3. “I care very little if I am judged by you or by any human court; indeed, I do not even judge myself.” In other words, I don’t care what you think, but I don’t care what I think, either. I only care what God thinks. Wouldn’t it be great to have that kind of self-forgetfulness?

7) What book are you reading now?

I usually have multiple books going at once. For my Bible study, we’re wrapping up Susie Larson’s Your Sacred Yes—excellent book. And I’m reading The Screwtape Letters by C.S. Lewis for my book club. Next month’s pick is Little Women. Fun! Then in my I-dream-of-having spare time, I’m also trying to read The Truth According to Us by Annie Barrows before it’s due back to the library.

8) Do you have anything specific that you want to say to your readers?

THANK YOU! For reading my book, for following my blog, for walking alongside me on this wonderfully beautiful and sometimes maddening trip called family life. I count each of you a blessing.

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