By Sarah Hamaker The idea comes to you in a flash of brilliance. The plot, the setting, the characters all jumble together like a kaleidoscope of words just waiting to be brought into focus by you. You eagerly sit down in front of the computer, fingers poised over the keyboard and a fresh, blank document open on the screen. Is …
Ten Writing Productivity Mistakes Every Writer Should Watch Out For
By Edie Melson There are a lot of tasks we must master as we make writing a priority. But with these additional tasks, our productivity may drop. Learning how to juggle this multi-tasking is part of becoming a professional writer. Today I’d like to share 9 Productivity Mistakes to Avoid. 1. Multi-tasking. This one is a biggie. Yes, we have …
Keeping It All in Perspective
By C. Kevin Thompson Among the many hats I wear, I am a Gospel for Asia Blogger. Started by K. P. Yohannon years ago, Gospel For Asia has been a stalwart missionary agency for Asia, bringing the gospel to a region of the world many of us just wouldn’t understand. When Dalits (otherwise known as “Untouchables”) rummage through garbage, looking …
Three Tips for Writing a Book Blurb
By Melissa Tagg First of all, can we talk about how the word “blurb” is kinda funny? I mean, say it enough times and it sounds like you’re trying to mimic an animal. What animal, I don’t know. Nor do I know why a person would sit around saying “blurb” over and over. But still. Recently several friends and I …
So What’s the Payoff?
by Kathy Harris “You could make a lot more money in a different career.” Those were the words of the industry professional who recently spoke at a local writers conference I attended. Everyone in the audience laughed and nodded knowingly. I suspect there were no millionaires in the room. If there were, it would be safe to say they hadn’t …
ACFW New Releases: April 2015
April 2015 New Releases More in-depth descriptions of these books can be found on the ACFW Fiction Finder website. Amish Romance: The Postcard by Laura V. Hilton — David Lapp moves to Jamesport for a fresh start after surviving a “code blue” when he was in a buggy/semi truck accident. His new call to the ministry is complicated by his …
Tips to Supercharge Your Story
By DiAnn Mills When our stories lack a certain edge, we’re back to the drawing board looking for what we’ve missed. Our novels are like well-oiled machines, each part has to be fine-tuned to work effectively. When are skills, methods, and storytelling abilities creak and moan, the whole novel comes to a grinding halt. Sometimes we’re able to reach into …
A Life of Writing
By Ramona Richards One of my favorite authors will turn 82 at the end of May 2015. He’s suffered a lot of illnesses lately, including a stroke. Yet he’s still writing and selling his work, marketing it on social media and YouTube. In October, another favorite will turn 77, and she still writes three books a year, doing so by …
Switching it Up
By Carolyne Aarsen I am a self-confessed, unabashed outliner. I need to figure out my characters, fill in my character charts, use a beat sheet to lay out the story outline. I need to know where my story is going every step of the way. I discovered this over a forty some book career that if I let myself ‘write …
Writing Prompts Prompt Good Writing!
By Bruce Hennigan There once was a website called Storypraxis. Perhaps you remember it with fondness. If you subscribed to the site, you would receive a “writing prompt” every 3 days. Your job was simple. Write quickly for 20 to 30 minutes using the word or phrase as stimulus for a short, short story or a poem. No editing. No …