Some books begin with an idea. Others begin with a journey and a purpose.
For author Sharon Swain, “Walking in Favor, Stepping into Grace” grew from three years of deeply personal experiences: seasons of reflection, faith, struggle, healing, and rediscovery. Written in poetry, the book invites readers to walk alongside her through the highs and lows of learning to see herself through the lens of faith.
As Sharon puts it, simply:
“Pack your bags and come go with me.”
It is an invitation that captures the heart of her book. Rather than presenting faith as a journey without difficulty, Sharon writes openly about the “rough terrain,” the hills and valleys, the moments of rest, and the times when continuing forward can feel uncertain.
Through it all, her message remains grounded in hope.
A Three-Year Journey That Became a Book
Sharon did not initially set out to turn every experience into a collection of poetry. The writing came naturally as she moved through her own spiritual journey.
“I walked this journey for three years and I realized that I had a gift to write poetry,” she shares.
Whenever she found herself going through something meaningful, she would sit down and write. Over time, those poems became a record of transformation—one that eventually developed into “Walking in Favor, Stepping into Grace.”
Behind the poetry was something even more personal.
Sharon speaks candidly about having lived for years with feelings of “shame and condemnation and fear and regret.” Her journey, she explains, gradually became one of understanding her identity in Christ differently and moving away from the thoughts that had held her back.
That experience became the foundation of the book.
Her hope is that readers will not simply read her poems from a distance but recognize parts of their own journey within them.
Finding Grace in the Wobbly Moments
One of the most revealing pieces Sharon shares in her testimonial is a poem titled “Walking All Wobbly.”
Its message is simple but deeply human: growth does not always look graceful.
Sometimes we stumble. Sometimes we make mistakes. Sometimes progress feels uncertain. Yet Sharon’s poem reflects her belief that those moments do not have to mark the end of the journey.
“I’m walking all wobbly and I don’t get it right, but his love keeps me walking,” she reads.
That willingness to acknowledge imperfection gives Sharon’s writing much of its warmth. Her poems do not come from a place of pretending that every struggle has disappeared. Instead, they speak from the perspective of someone who has experienced fear and regret and has chosen to keep walking.
Throughout the book, Sharon encourages readers to move away from what she describes as wrong thinking, noise, and fear and toward freedom, hope, and a deeper understanding of their faith.
“Lean in,” she tells readers, encouraging them to listen closely and personally.
Turning a Personal Message Into a Published Book
A manuscript can hold years of memories, convictions, and personal experiences. Bringing something that meaningful into publication requires more than simply putting words onto pages—it requires a publishing process that respects what the author is trying to communicate.
For Sharon, working with Pen In-Charge became part of that process.
In her testimonial, she proudly holds up the finished editions of “Walking in Favor, Stepping into Grace,” describing both the paperback and hardcover copies as “just beautiful.”
But her appreciation goes beyond the finished book.
“They’ve guided me in the process and they’re a wonderful team,” Sharon shares, offering special thanks to Alexa Garcia and Mandy Grant for their support throughout her publishing experience.
For Pen In-Charge, that guidance is an important part of helping authors move from manuscript to published work. Every author arrives with a different story, purpose, and vision. The goal is not simply to produce a book, but to help authors bring that vision into a form they can confidently share with readers.
Sharon’s journey is one example of what can happen when a personal message finds the support it needs to reach the page.
A Book Written to Walk Beside the Reader
At its heart, “Walking in Favor, Stepping into Grace” is not simply Sharon’s reflection on where she has been.
It is an invitation to others.
She wants readers who have experienced their own difficult seasons to discover what she found throughout hers: the possibility of hope beyond regret, freedom beyond fear, and joy beyond the thoughts that once kept them from moving forward.
In closing her testimonial, Sharon shares the prayer she carries for everyone who opens her book:
“I pray that you will find a new hope, new freedom, new joy.”
And perhaps that is what makes her story especially meaningful.
The book may have begun with one woman writing poems through three years of her own journey, but once those words became a published book, they gained the opportunity to walk alongside someone else.
For Sharon Swain, publishing “Walking in Favor, Stepping into Grace” meant giving that journey somewhere to go next.
And for another writer holding onto a manuscript, a message, or even the beginnings of an idea, Sharon’s story offers a reminder: “your experiences may already contain the words someone else needs to read.”
At Pen In-Charge, we help authors take those words beyond the manuscript and bring their literary vision to life. If you have a story ready to take its next step, Publish with Pen In-Charge and give your message the opportunity to reach the readers it was written for.
Watch the full testimony here: