by Ami McConnell Thomas Nelson, Inc. John Lennon’s iconic self-portrait hung on my cubical wall for years. His whimsical art was a wink to my arty inner-poet. But I have turned a corner recently. I’m wearing my (virtual) Paul McCartney jersey now. Here’s why. Paul McCartney wrote “Silly Love Songs” in response to critics’ accusation that he wrote lightweight songs-and …
Tackling a Writer’s Fears
by Les Stobbe Leslie H. Stobbe Literary Agency Fear, like a ghostly apparition haunts all of us as writers. For some it is a memory of a parent’s or teachers deprecating comment, like “Don’t ever consider becoming a writer.” For others it’s the ghost of past failures that produced an involuntary response-shelving a project. For some it haunts the writer …
Just Do It
by Daniella Ojo Last Sunday I went to a church I sometimes visit that’s closer to where I live. It’s been a particularly cold winter so far and the night before we had about 3 or 4 inches of snow. That may not be much to people living in other parts of the world, but for London that’s a lot. …
America’s Mythology
By Darlene Franklin I am a New Englander by birth and proud of it. I didn’t make it west of the Mississippi River until I was twenty-two. Nor did I watch many Westerns on television. My heroes were the Minutemen and the leaders of the civil rights movement. Mythology belonged to the Ancient Greeks and Romans; with a healthy dose …
Writers Write!
by Lillian Duncan Writers write! For most of us, we don’t make a living from our writing. For you that do, congratulations. For the rest of us, what happens when a crisis comes? Can we justify the time, money, and emotional effort writing takes away from your family and/or the current crisis? To answer that question, it’s important to remember …
Chapter Ending Hooks
by Mary Connealy End each chapter in a way that hooks the reader and keeps them turning the page, because if someone is going to set a book down it’ll be at the end of a chapter. So how to hook a chapter? This is something I try really hard to do. I use comedy, action, word play or cliffhangers …
Voice
by Michelle Grajkowski 3 Seas Literary Agency Louis Armstrong. Etta James. Toby Keith. Eddie Van Halen’s guitar riffs. What do all these musicians all have in common, besides being the top of their musical genres? Voice. Each one of these artists have a unique style, a certain tone that is all their own. In most cases, a fan can identify …
“Does Anybody In The Group Know…?”
by Dr. Richard Mabry Writers do research. It’s part of the process. We don’t want to write about a car going west on Commerce Street in Dallas when the street is one-way eastbound. So we are careful to check those things out. And when we don’t, believe me, there are readers out there who will let us know about our …
Getting Away from it All…to Write
by Mary Ellis When most people think getaway weekends, or week-long vacations somewhere warm and sunny or even day-trips into the countryside, they want to disconnect from work. But after writing a dozen books, I’ve discovered out-of-office experiences can greatly enrich my stories. As writers, we spend too much time staring at computer monitors, the wall in front of our …
Building a Better Relationship with your Editor
by Melissa Endlich An editor/author relationship can be just like a marriage-to get the most from it, you need to work at it. Here are some hints and tips to help create a great working relationship with your editor! • She likes my book. Now what?: Everyone wants to get off on the right foot with their editor. After you’ve …