Author of ‘Fired Up Fulfilled and Free’
Kingdom Business Network & Beyond The Book Media had the pleasure to interview Juli Wenger as our very first Kingdom Scribes featured Author. Juli Wenger recently published her first book “Fired-Up, Fulfilled & Free”, and we got the chance to sit with her and ask a few questions about her new book, the writing and publishing process, and why she chose Beyond The Book Media to help her along the journey. Beyond The Book Media transforms faith-based business owners into becoming the AUTHORITY in their niche and Juli is the perfect example of what that looks like. Please find the full interview below.
BTBM: Please tell us about yourself.
Juli: I am love, joy, strength, light, and grace. And God has given me the assignments of mom, wife, entrepreneur of 12 years, coach, speaker, podcaster, singer-songwriter, and now author. I’m passionate about helping Jesus-followers and the Christianity-curious understand who and whose they are, what God has called them to, and how to get there.
BTBM: Tell us about your book and who your book is for?
Juli: The book is a journey from fear to freedom. Over the last number of years, the Lord led me through a journey of transformation. I had to come back to an understanding of who I am and why He put me on this earth, and then learn to get out of my own way so that I could move and create momentum around what He called me to with bold faith, unapologetic authenticity and fearless confidence. This book is for all the people that have asked “is this it?” It’s for all the people who have reached “success” but not fulfillment. It’s for the overwhelmed, those who are plagued by “not enoughness” and believe they’re too much. And it’s a book for those who are ready to change and step into God’s call for their life that is SO much bigger than they can imagine.
BTBM: What are the top three takeaways you would like your readers to walk away with?
Juli: #1 – an understanding of who they are. I call this the first lens. When we get clarity about who we are, beyond our titles, our roles, our tasks, and the boxes society tries to put us in, we experience both a freedom to be us, and an ability to further discern how God wants to use us. That’s where I am love, joy, strength, light, and grace comes from – it’s how God is reflected through me.
#2 – clarity on what their purpose is. This is the second lens and it helps us to see what the contribution we are here to make looks like at a high level. Who are we here to serve? What kind of impact are we here to make? This isn’t about a job – a job isn’t a purpose. My purpose isn’t to be an author or coach or mom. It’s to empower people to live in their God-calling.
#3 – that their value, their “enoughness,” and their worth is settled. So much of what holds us back is fear of social rejection and the stories society feeds us about what success and being enough looks like. We’re ditching all of that and learning to get out of our own way in this book.
BTBM: What inspired you to write your book?
I burnt out. I spent 10 years building a half-million-dollar-per-year business and when I reached “success” I didn’t feel happy or fulfilled. I felt anxious, overwhelmed, and disappointed. I had spent that entire time trying to measure up to other people’s expectations and prove my enoughness, and I lost myself in the process. I couldn’t keep it up, so instead of the “I’ll call you later” faith that I’d been living in, I decided to let God lead. As he took me through this journey of understanding who I was, what He was calling me to, and some major transitions (like walking away from my real estate business abruptly), I started to see that I wasn’t the only one. He led me into coaching and walking clients through the same journey, refining it along the way, and the clarity came that a lot of people need this. A lot of His people need this. The book is a way to reach more people than I can serve 1-on-1, to equip them, and to shake them out of their patterns so they can live Fired-up, Fulfilled, and Free
BTBM: Tell us a little bit about your writing process? Do you use a unique method? What did the beginning stages entail for you?
Juli: Honestly, it was a challenge. I am not a linear thinker, so turning this process (which looked more like a number of components that didn’t exactly go in any order) was a feat I couldn’t accomplish on my own. I ended up in the Map Your Book out challenge because one of my friends was speaking and I wanted to support him. And I thought, I could do this book outline thing… I looked through old content – social posts, masterclasses, speeches, and journal entries to see what I could gather for themes. And I brainstormed with sticky notes every idea that showed up or popped into my head. And then I tried to organize them into categories. I had to ask God for a LOT of help. Ultimately, I ended up downloading this system called Scrivener that is specifically for book writing and it allowed me to sort and move ideas as chapters and sections until I had something that made sense.
And then I put myself in boot camp because I know I’m externally motivated. That accountability was key. I mostly wrote in order of the chapters, but as I felt pulled I would sometimes jump into another section.
BTBM: In terms of publishing, what was that process like for you? And why did you choose BTBM?
Juli: I chose BTBM because it came as a recommendation from someone I trust who had also published with BTBM. That and the bootcamp was really supportive for me.
Publishing is a whole thing – the writing process takes a lot, but I had no idea what I was headed into. There’s the logistical side and timing, and I’m an achiever that moves fast so I had expectations that I needed to revise. But the more difficult thing was the imposter syndrome and the triggers that came up for me. I believe it’s a combination of my ego wanting to keep me safe from potential rejection and enemy attacks. This is an important book that will change people, so however the enemy could weaponize my ego he did. I talk about that a lot in the book – how the enemy leverages our self-protective patterns and habits. I had a lot of healing happen in the months following the initial writing of the book, and I believe God has been using it to prepare me for what’s next.
BTBM: What advice would you give to authors or even entrepreneurs wanting to start or those in the process of writing a book?
Juli: Give thought and prayer to why you want to do it. What is the purpose and the impact that you’re called to create? Also, consider the time requirement and impact of writing the book.
BTBM: What products/services do you want to offer alongside your book for promoting purposes?
Juli: A waitlist for my course “The Fear to Freedom Playbook” and beyond that, free clarity calls for anyone who is ready to ditch fear and step into their calling now – I only have 2 spots headed into the fall for 1:1 coaching.
BTBM: Where can people find your book and support you?
Juli: Amazon. And they can support on instagram, tiktok, and by signing up for “Fired-up” my newsletter.
BTBM: What is next for you and your brand? What can we look forward to in the coming months or years?
Juli: The audio book is coming soon, the course is coming soon, and longer term God is planting the seeds of a network of Jesus-followers to equip and support the walking out of our callings together.
