By Ane Mulligan My first novel was a Biblical fiction in which I strung together a bunch of scenes from Jesus’ life, interspersed with the fictional characters. There was no conflict, other than the Pharisees wanting to crucify Jesus. I figured that was enough. Uh, no. Not for a novel. Sigh. I had a lot to learn. I slid that …
Bum Glue
By Janice Cantore What do you do when you’re stuck at a spot in your manuscript? As you sit in front of the computer you seem to be hitting delete more than anything else, or worse, you’re staring at a blank page. Does that make you get up and find something else to do? When I get the urge to …
A Shy Girl at a Writers Conference
By Tamara D. Fickas Conference season is winding down, but the ACFW conference will be happening next month in Dallas. This time of year, posts about what to do at a writers conference abound. We spend a lot of money to attend the big ones, so it’s natural that we want to get our money’s worth. Experienced attendees are a …
Setting…perhaps more important than you think!
By Roxanne Rustand Where do you start, on your journey toward a cohesive and sellable story? There is no single right or wrong way. Ask most writers, and they will say they use a consistent starting point each time they start a book. Some to start with a general plot idea, as in “I want to write a book about …
No Time? No Money? Throw a Party!
By Sarah Sundin With a brand-new series launching August 4, I wanted to throw a launch party. Then my daughter chose July 18 as her wedding day. I knew I’d have no time or energy for another big event. I knew my sweet husband would grumble about spending more money-and rightly so. How could I throw a party-and survive to …
Being Equipped
By Henry McLaughlin God has a will, or a plan for each of us. Psalm 139:16 (NLT) tells us, You saw me before I was born. Every day of my life was recorded in your book. Every moment was laid out before a single day had passed. Each of us is on this earth for a specific reason. We may …
Nuggets of Ideas
By Donna Schlachter We recently returned from a research trip to California, where we stayed in a bed-and-breakfast situation, sharing meals with our host family. They were a delightful couple, and during one of our conversations, she mentioned she’d been working on a short story for a number of years. I asked some questions, and finally she admitted it was …
Writing like David
By Melissa Tagg So…King David. I kinda love him. I’m talking about David in the Old Testament. The one who took down Goliath. I love the guy and it’s not so much his giant-slaying ability that warms my heart as much as his vulnerability and brutal honesty. He has big ups and big, big downs (and yeah, some not-so-shining moments, …
Creating Characters: Who Will You Be?
By Johnnie Alexander I rested in a vinyl chair, weary and in pain, pensive and in love. My day-old daughter nestled in my arms, her thick black hair brushing against her shoulders. “Who will you be?” I whispered. In that moment, I couldn’t even imagine a toddler “her,” let alone a grown-up “her,” and yet I was so curious. Would …
Are You a Marlin or a Dory?
By Allie Pleiter Hand any writer multiple tasks, and you will find out a lot about their personalities very quickly. Some of us tend to be the kind of people who determinedly hammer at a single, linear task batch until it surrenders. Others of us nimbly shift from one task to another depending on where we see possible progress. How …