Tim Anderson lives in Powderhorn Park with his wife and 3 sons. He leads Ace In the City, a non-profit started 10 years ago that has cultivated community relationships in all kinds of ways over the years. Tim is a pastor, public speaker, and recently broke onto the scene as a self-published author. Keep reading to learn more about his new book In Process: A Zigzag Guide Towards Purpose and Discovery.
What is the book about?
It’s my story over the last 10 years, learning experiences, observations, reflections from along the way. The invitation the book presents is to write a good story with your life.
What inspired you to write a book?
I never was planning to write a book, but have always found writing to be therapeutic. About 3 years ago I found myself writing a lot for no other purpose other than, “it’s therapy so I’m gonna write.” I then paused and looked at what I was writing and realized that, with some work, it could flow together and create a book. I started asking questions and looking into the process. I met with publishers and agents, but that came down to self-promotion and how you build your brand, how you’re going to reach as many people as possible, which didn’t feel authentic to who I was. So I decided to self publish.
What was your biggest challenge in writing the book? How about your biggest success?
The biggest challenge was me. I think the story writing process is an extremely vulnerable one, especially when it’s your own story. Even though Ace in the City and this book are both a product of my own time and energy, if people don’t connect with Ace, it doesn’t bother me that much. But if people don’t connect with the book, it feels like they’re rejecting me. Your story is what people need and it’s unique to you; the book is about getting people to buy into that. That’s what I say, but it has proven to be difficult for me at times.
The biggest success at this point is that it’s done. It’s out. And I feel really great about it. I think I’ve felt a lot of encouragement by the overwhelming strong feedback that I’ve gotten from individuals, people seemingly going out of their way to tell me what was challenging and encouraging in the book. The book is not for everybody, but it’s for somebody, and I think I’ve already seen some individuals for whom the book really spoke to them and that’s encouraging.
Where can you buy the book?
I have a personal website where people can buy it. It is also on Amazon.