Tricia Goyer—Author of
My Life Unscripted

Man, am I enjoying this book! Tricia wrote it for teens, but there are lessons to be learned in its pages for us all. Here’s an excerpt from chapter two, titled Dialogue—The Way You Talk To Yourself—

What do you say when you talk to yourself? No, I’m serious, What do you say?

Whether we know it or not, there is a continual dialogue going through our minds. The dialogue occurs in two ways:

1. Unscripted: Out-of-control, spontaneous, unanachored. It’s when your social calendar, the people around you, and whatever emotion of the day or hour takes over and rules your life.

2. Scripted: A solid plan. It’s something YOU create after thinking through situation, considering your plans and what you want, talking to God about your worries, cares, and hopes. Then you actively determine how to handle life (with God’s help and strength). So even when everythng feels whacked out, you have something solid to hold on to.

That’s just a tiny sample of the nuggets of truth you’ll find in My Life Unscripted, by Tricia Goyer. Consider purchasing it for yourself, your teen or your youth group leader at church!

Tricia’s running a contest right now, and you can find the details on my ShoutLife blog…go to my most recent post at http://www.miraleeferrell.shoutlife.com/ and enter to win some great prizes. I don’t want to take the time or space to repeat it here, as I think the book stands on its own merit and is a MUST buy for every parent of teens.

Please take a look at the first chapter, by visiting Tricia’s web site at:

http://triciagoyer.blogspot.com/2007/06/my-life-unscripted.html

Here’s a few words from Tricia:

An interview with Tricia Goyer!

Q: Tell me about My Life, Unscripted

Sure! With real-life scripts, screenwriting terms, and timely topics, My Life, Unscripted helps teen girls explore their own inner struggles and outward relationships. It’s my hope they’ll learn the importance of “scripting” their own responses BEFORE challenging life-situations arise.

By contrasting real-life with TV/movies, it’s my hope that teen girls will understand they don’t have to get caught up in the drama. They don’t have to face situations as they arise, but rather they can think about, pray about, and consider how to face these situations before they hit the big screen of their lives.

Q: Is it true that much of YOUR story shows up in these pages?

Gulp. Yes, I’m afraid so. In fact, I shared parts of my story that I SWORE I’d never tell a soul.

My teenage script (portrayed in the book as Trish Valley) wasn’t one I’d suggest my daughter, nor my readers to copy.

Q: Tell me about these scripts.

The introductory script of Trish Valley shows a scene where Trish urges her mom to follow Trish’s boyfriend into the McDonald’s parking lot so she can “spill her news.” The other girl in the car and her boyfriend’s response to Trish’s pregnancy are unfortunately not fiction. I wrote out the scenes as they would appear in an actual script. I even use all the correct terms and layout.

Q: In addition to teen pregnancy, what are some of the other “scripts”?

Do I have to tell? Well, I guess it’s in print now! Let me see: fists fights with a rival, sneaking out of my parents’ house, getting caught by my boyfriend kissing his best friend–does that give you an idea? Do I have to go on?

Q: No, you can stop there. But WHY? Why did you decide to share these stories?

First, because I want girls to understand the heartache of unwise decisions. I want to them to be able to relate to me, rather than feeling preached at. Also, I wanted to share my stories because many young women have faced the same type of situations, or they know friends who have. And finally because they are great object lessons for the importance of following biblical truth. That is something I did learn!

Q: What does your teenage daughter think about this book?

Leslie thinks it’s great I’m able to connect with other teens. She’s heard these stories for a while! She was 11-years-old when we first started volunteering together at a support group for teenage mothers together. As I taught the young moms things like nutrition and potty training, Leslie assisted adults in babysitting the toddlers. And while we loved giving and serving, it was the ride home that soon became the most meaningful part. As Leslie sat in the passenger’s seat, I could see her mind considering my life as a teen mom, and she started asking questions.

Although it was hard to talk about my past mistakes, I knew this was an ideal opportunity to share real-life truths with my daughter. Each person walking this earth has regrets. Our talks showed me that instead of hiding my past troubles (and hoping my kids didn’t find out) sharing my mistakes could actually give my daughter a better understanding to why values and wise decision-making skills are important.

You can find My Life Unscripted at Amazon.com….click on the following link…Buy the book

CBD… http://www.christianbook.com/

Or

It’s in Barnes and Noble as part of their back-to-school endcap promotion!