By Kathy Parish “A word aptly spoken is like apples of gold in settings of silver.” (Proverbs 25:11 NIV) When I was growing up a beloved English teacher always had a beautifully leather-bound volume titled Apples of Gold. It was filled with inspirational quotes and verses on glossy pages, and selected students read from it over the school intercom at …
Honoring God’s Calling in Our Lives
By Rondi Bauer Olson A few months ago I was making small talk at a wedding reception when another guest, someone I did not know, asked me what I did for a living. Up to that point in my life, my answer had always been clear. I went to college to be a nurse. My job was as a nurse. …
Tips for Weary Writers in the Christmas Season
By DiAnn Mills No other time of the year can be more difficult to write than at Christmas. We writers are simply distracted with all the fun and preparations. Besides the season involves creativity, and we simply can’t resist the urge to simply BE in the moment. My excuses race from one exciting activity to the next- Time Shopping. Wrapping …
It’s Not Just About Me!
by Lillian Duncan As Christians, life is not supposed to be all about us. And yet as writers, we have to make it all about us-sometimes. OK, a lot of times, especially when we have a new release like I do right now, (No Home for the Holidays). We’re told to do good to others (Hebrews 13:16). Jesus even gave …
Overcoming the Failure Inside
By Elizabeth Ludwig Scarlett O’Hara. Katniss Everdeen. Michael Hosea. Jane Eyre. Do you recognize any of these names? Obviously, they are all characters from books. And yes, they are all heroes. But before they were heroic, they were flawed and fallible. These frail, imperfect, unlikely paragons struggled with weaknesses in their character—failures that sprang from something deep inside, such as …
Hark! Harold the Angel Sings!
By Davalynn Spencer Several years ago some quirky friends sent us a Christmas card with this misaligned phrase, and I’ve not been the same since. I want to hear Harold. I’m sure this guy is one of the many voices of the season, and as authors, we’re all familiar with voices, aren’t we? We ignore them. We argue with them. …
The 80/20 Lifestyle
By Suzanne Woods Fisher A few years ago, I stood in a long snake of a line at the Department of Motor Vehicles with my youngest son, Tad, who was eagerly poised to take the test for his learner’s permit. Unfortunately, we neglected to read the fine print of the permit paperwork. After finally reaching the front desk, the DMV …
Unexpected Reasons to Be Thankful You’re a Writer
By Beth K. Vogt I read somewhere that Thanksgiving has become the holiday Americans skip over, cramming it between Halloween and Christmas. How hollow life becomes when we forget to be thankful. When we don’t stop long enough to consider all the reasons we have to be grateful. So today, I’m offering a few I-never-thought-I’d-be-thankful-for-this reasons that I’m glad I’m …
Blurriness
By Darlene L. Turner “Stay focused; do not lose sight of mercy and truth . . . ” (Proverb 3:3a VOICE) You know what they say . . . “A picture is worth a thousand words.” But what if the picture was blurry and out of focus? It’s worthless. Or is it? Have you noticed when you first press the …
Christian Fiction-No Wimps Allowed
By Cynthia Herron For readers not familiar with Christian fiction there’s the preconceived notion that if it’s Christian it must be wimpy. Or boring. Or something. For example, a friend once asked why I wanted to write for the Christian market and not the secular one. It was actually something I’d thought about a lot. “Well, a Christian is who …