Today we’d like to introduce you to Cindi McMenamin.
Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
Writing has always been a love of mine, as well as a hobby, and what I did for fun when I was a a child. I remember writing stories, at just 6 years old, for my dolls and my stuffed animals and anyone who would “listen” to them. I originally wanted to be a librarian when I grew up because of my love for books, and my husband laughs at that today because he jokingly says I could never stop talking long enough to work in a library!
Because I’ve always loved to write (and speak publicly), I was told very early on that one can’t write books and make a living so I became interested in journalism, because it was a way I could make a career of writing. I edited my high school newspaper, and while majoring in journalism at CSU Fresno, edited my college newspaper, as well. I moved to Southern California just after graduating from college and marrying my husband, who was attending Biola University in La Mirada, studying for the ministry. I put my husband through Bible College by working as a reporter for a chain of community newspapers owned by the Orange County Register. During my four years with the South Orange County News, I was promoted from county/transportation reporter to bureau chief, to editor of the company’s flag paper, before giving up my job to stay home full time with my newborn daughter, a decision I’ll never regret as she was the only baby I was ever able to have. My husband pastored his first church in Riverside County and, at that time, I began to freelance for the San Gabriel Valley Newspapers and the Pasadena Star News and teach Bible studies at our church in Riverside County where he pastored.
Once I became a mom, I revisited the dream of writing books with all the “extra time” I’d have at home with a new baby (yeah right!) . My first book, I thought, would be a nonfiction book all about me and how I found my husband (as if anyone would even want to read that!). But instead of writing about my triumphs and high points in life, I ended up writing about my heartaches and where God met me in them, as I soon discovered — after becoming a stay-at-home mom– that my husband couldn’t meet all my emotional needs. I learned I had to find my personal affirmation and so0much more from God and who I was in His eyes, and His purpose for me. It was then, that I started learning how a personal relationship with God can meet our emotional needs for security, significance, a sense of purpose, and so on. I began to speak on that topic for women’s groups, letting them know that no man or career or hobby can fulfill us, only God can. Soon after, I received my first book contract to write “Letting God Meet Your Emotional Needs” (Harvest House Publishers) which released in 2000.
My second book, “When Women Walk Alone,” was about the many ways women feel alone and how they can grow closer to God and stronger spiritually through their alone times. That became my breakout book and soon resulted in my being asked to speak for churches and women’s conferences and retreats all over the country. I also began doing national and international radio and TV programs on that topic. That breakout book led to several spinoff books, including “When Women Long for Rest,” “When a Woman Discovers Her Dream,” and “When You’re Running on Empty.” Eventually, my husband and I wrote a book together for married women who felt alone, called “When Couples Walk Together,”in which we lay out practical ways for husbands and wives to grow closer to one another. When my daughter, Dana, entered college, I had her help me write a book for moms called “When a Mom Inspires Her Daughter,” and more recently, after 30 years of marriage, my husband helped me write another book called “12 Ways to Experience More with Your Husband,” about how to break out of the rut and routine of several years of marriage and rekindle the romance.
I write what I learn through my own struggles, what other women and couples I’ve interviewed have learned through the years, and what I glean from studying relationship principles in the Bible.
I’m particularly excited about the next book of mine that will release in January 2025—”The New Loneliness: Nurturing Meaningful Connections When You Feel Isolated” (also from Harvest House Publishers).
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Making a living as a writer is not an easy road. Some people believe all you have to do is write a book and it will sell and you’ll make millions. So untrue. Today, one has to have a catalog of books that continue to build over time, as well as speak nationally on their material and have quite a following online in order to sustain writing full time. I was fortunate, however, that my husband encouraged me to stay home with our daughter when she was born and pursue my craft of writing because he believed in my dream and calling to write and publish books, and my talent to achieve it. For many years, I cost us more money than I brought in. But eventually, as I stuck to it, and continued to pursue writing opportunities, and continued to speak and write more books and have them “grow an audience” for me over time, his patience and belief in me paid off. My husband, who has been a pastor most of his life (another “industry” where it’s difficult to make a living) is now able to pursue one of his dreams, and that is working as the head parks and trails ranger for the City of San Marcos.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
I have 17 nonfiction books published from Harvest House Publishers and two more releasing in 2025. All of my books are geared toward helping women strengthen their relationship with God and others. My second book, titled, “When Women Walk Alone,” was my breakout book, releasing in 2002 and selling more than 160,000 copies to date. It is still in print and in several different formats (print, ebook, mass paperback, audio book, and in a few different languages). Because that book did so well, early on in my publishing career, my publisher continued to work with me, hoping for another book which would have sales numbers that would come close to that one. So far, none have been as popular as “When Women Walk Alone,” until hopefully now. After seven years without releasing a book, my next one to release is a type of When Women Walk Alone 2.0, called “The New Loneliness: Nurturing Meaningful Connections When You Feel Isolated.” It will release 25 years after my very first book released. In many ways, this new book is symbolic of my coming full-circle from discovering two decades ago that only God can fill us up spiritually and emotionally, to now realizing we also very much we need one another—a community of support and encouragement from other like-minded believers who can pour into our lives, as well. This book focuses on the classic ways women still feel alone, but takes into account “the new loneliness” which is a result of our reliance on high tech, our preference for screens over faces, and our post-COVID isolation habits that can tend to make us feel lonelier than ever, even though we’re more digitally connected than ever. This book is a response to the U.S. Surgeon General’s report in May 2023 of a new epidemic of loneliness, which states that increased isolation and failure to connect more deeply through in-person relationships is resulting in a 50 percent greater chance of dementia and a 60 percent greater chance of premature death. Back when I wrote When Women Walk Alone there was no social media, no ultra reliance on our cell phones, no consulting Google or Siri instead of someone else when we wanted advice or wisdom. It’s a different world we’re living in today and although people are more digitally connected than ever before, we also tend to be more lonely than we ever have been. The New Loneliness aims to help women develop a closer connection with God to where they don’t feel so anxious, insignificant, or depressed; and helps them become more vulnerable with and connect with and trust others, as well. It’s a process for many, and I aim to guide them through that process in this newest book. A devotional book on the same subject will release in July of 2025, to help women continue to battle the loneliness problem by connecting with God, connecting with others, and connecting with their purpose.
Here’s the link to the Amazon presales page that my publisher just posted for The New Loneliness:
Let’s talk about our city – what do you love? What do you not love?
Living in North County, I love that downtown San Diego (Balboa Park, the San Diego Zoo, Seaport Harbor, and so on) are just a 40-minute drive at most. People all over the nation, whom I meet when I travel and speak, talk longingly of San Diego as the place where they’d love to live or at least visit. I love our weather, our many cultural offerings and things to do, our beaches, our airport (well, once all the construction is completed!@), and won’t hesitate to make the drive just to eat lunch or dinner downtown at Rockin’ Baja Lobster or The Old Spaghetti Factory, I often don’t love the traffic getting in and out of the city or even across the city. But it’s definitely worth it to experience what the city has to offer.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://strengthforthesoul.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/strengthforthesoul/
- Facebook: : https://www.facebook.com/strengthforthesoul
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@cindimcmenamin3040
- Other: https://www.amazon.com/New-Loneliness-Nurturing-Meaningful-Connections/dp/0736989641?maas=maas_adg_6138A2992F8F11100C220F9C267DC82C_afap_abs&ref_=aa_maas&tag=maas
