We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Becca Ramirez a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Becca, thanks for joining us today. Let’s kick things off with your mission – what is it and what’s the story behind why it’s your mission?
The current climate for “Christian writers and speakers” is inundated with a myriad of voices. When I felt called to step into this world, I wanted to be sure of what my voice would bring to the conversation. God gave me the directive to encourage women in their identities as daughters of God and empower to live their life in a way that shows it to the world. My book, Skull Crushers, isn’t just some thoughts I put down on a page. It’s a call to women to stand firm in who God made them to be. People want authenticity. They want genuineness. And they want truth. That’s why I write. That’s why I speak and teach. It all comes back to that foundation.
Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.
I have always been a strong personality. When growing up in a conservative church environment, that can be confusing in that half of the time I was encouraged to be strong and confident, then the other half I was told all the roles I couldn’t do. For the longest time it felt like I was out of place. I was in my mid twenties when I felt called into speaking and writing. I a toddler and a newborn, working with the student ministry at our church, and we were on the cusp of some big changes for our family. It honestly wasn’t an ideal time. But I began pursuing it a little at a time. Things like getting opportunities to speak to our students, teach some of the pull out sessions during the student camp we held, and quietly writing on the side.
We moved halfway across the country around that same time and I felt God telling me to find a way to publish the book I had written. I had no idea what I was doing, but we did it. My first book published in the fall of 2015 and it was a complete flop. The book didn’t sell and I only booked two speaking gigs. I was heartbroken and mad. It felt like a complete miss. But what I didn’t know was that God was still refining me and teaching me how to tell my story.
Now, I have been regularly teaching classes at my church for the last few years, I’ve helped write some of the curriculum we use for those classes, and my book Skull Crushers was a #1 new release in multiple categories.
Everything comes back to that mission: to encourage women in their identity as daughters of God and empower them to live a life that shows it to the world. I do this by combining Biblical truth with my own story. I’m honest in where I’ve been, knowing that there is still so far to go.
How about pivoting – can you share the story of a time you’ve had to pivot?
I mentioned the first book came out in fall of 2015. That next year, I truly believed was going to be the launching point of my career. However, I continued to get no responses to come and speak and the book sales were abysmal. Then, August of 2016, my three kids and I were in a terrible car crash. My youngest two thankfully walked away with minimal injuries, but my oldest daughter, who was 5 at the time, sustained an alto-occipital dislocation—an internal decapitation. By the grace of God, she survived but was in a halo vest for the next 6 months to a year. Over the course of the next few months, despite my own anxiety and fears, I saw God show up in ways I could have never imagined. He healed the bones in my daughter’s neck so she didn’t have to have additional surgery. He provided us with the exact vehicle we needed to replace the one that was totaled. He even provided a way for both insurance companies to come together and simply do what was best for the child (something even the judge presiding over our case was astonished by). I saw my relationship with God grow and deepen and it was on the other side of that season that He brought me to the inspiration for what became Skull Crushers.
What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?
Being a creative is so often misunderstood. I feel like people often assume it’s just what comes naturally and so it requires little effort—which is not even remotely true! When I write or speak, I pour out my heart. I lay it on the line—those most vulnerable pieces of me—and essentially give readers and listeners permission to judge. It’s heartache and euphoria. It’s joy and sorrow. But it brings me life and so my prayer is that it brings life to others as well.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: Instagram.com/Beccasramirez
- Facebook: Facebook.com/beccasramirez
- Linkedin: http://linkedin.com/in/beccaramirez
- Other: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0B9QTTHVP/ref=cm_sw_r_apa_i_E06EF440YNFVXQHNEEM1_0?fbclid=PAAaaCIDiW66X82Uk1wolrAu8EbG3SB_qOmwd_w3NWlC6J0WdDDkhb_9s9jeo_aem_AfxttbZyvEPA66a8YJVJoQYA8XbomHxKhLWbwsFepKfvnUEbgjZJTF2HOzSbu0jacmU