By Patricia Bradley “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” Jeremiah 29:11 God has a plan for each of us, a pathway for us to walk, and it doesn’t always include what we think it should. That thought …
Who Needs You Today?
By Molly Jebber In “Two Suitors for Anna,” I show an Amish woman, Anna, who loves God and has a good life, until her world turns upside down when the love of her life, Noah, leaves their community instead of marrying her. She meets a newcomer, Daniel, who sparks her interest. Anna’s life changed in an instant. Noah broke her …
Don’t Quit Your Day Job: 3 Things to Help you Navigate Working and Writing
By Tamara D. Fickas Writing is such a glamorous life. Writers get to sleep in, play all day, write amazing pieces, and bring in the big bucks. Or not. If you, like me, are one of the those writers who has to work a day job to keep the cat fed and the mortgage paid, writing is not all glitz …
Is Today Really Necessary?
By Mary Manners My dad’s birthday is today. He would be turning eighty. It’s amazing, looking back over the memories, how quickly the time has passed since he first encouraged me to pursue my love of writing. Dad has always been my hugest inspiration. Long ago, when I was barely a teenager in the early days of my middle school …
What Is Given Him From Heaven
by Elizabeth Musser Recently, the Lord whispered encouragement (and conviction) to me through a verse from the third chapter of the Gospel of John. We all know that chapter and that verse. But actually it’s not the one to which I’m referring. As I read the scene after Jesus with Nicodemus, so many things jumped out at me. First, the …
What to Do with a Negative Review
By Liz Curtis Higgs I’ve never been voted off the island, named the weakest link, or told what not to wear, but as a novelist I’ve weathered my share of criticism—constructive, destructive, and otherwise. A sharply-worded email from a disgruntled reader makes me question my calling. A scathing review on Amazon sends me back to my w-i-p with a heavy …
First Chapters Syndrome
By Rondi Bauer Olson Last year my nebulous-but-fantastic-sounding goal was to “write every day.” I did a pretty good job. Five or six days a week I opened my laptop and typed a few hundred to a few thousand words. After twelve months, my word count was pretty impressive. Unfortunately, my useful output wasn’t. The first project I started working …
Combating the Doldrums
By Linda Brooks Davis Ever find your enthusiasm for a writing project flagging? I have. Have you figured out what to do about it? I pull out this photo of Ella, my granddaughter. And remember. My daughter called me in the fall of 2004 with news that rocked our family. After years of failure and disappointment, she was pregnant with …
Take the Stage
By Shirley E. Gould I’ve heard it said that “Life is what happens when you have other plans.” I totally agree. Interruptions and distractions plague the writer’s life. When you mix in events such as weddings, birthdays and anniversaries and blend those with holiday celebrations, the opportunities to write a novel dwindles. This is true no matter where you find …
SMART Goals for Writers
By Preslaysa Williams I always get excited about a new year. I have a chance to start fresh and do something new. I’ve set goals, met goals, and left others unmet. Every new year, my goal setting skills have improved. Some may ask: Why set a goal if you won’t meet it? Here are a few benefits of setting goals: …