By Glynn Young Editing has been much on mind lately, and I’m learning that editing requires more of my time and focus than drafting the original manuscript. I’m working on the fifth, and final, novel in a five-book series. This one has taken more time to write; I’m aiming for something more ambitious than its four predecessors. I’ve been through …
What if We Could Start Over?
by Frank DiBianca Are you a relatively new writer? What most new writers need isn’t learning to write perfect prose. Line or copy editors can easily fix those errors unless the language has been murdered. The problem is writing prose that’s stylistically appropriate for the modern reader, which editors can’t fix unless they rewrite large portions of the manuscript. My …
Write What You Know
By Lynn Hobbs Have you ever read a book that kept your attention? Was it informative? I have been fortunate enough to read many and I can assure you, they will remain in my library to be shared and reread later. What are the writers secret to writing such terrific books? Simple. They are writing what they know. They may …
Going For It
by JPC Allen I couldn’t have heard that right. Last December I was talking to author and editor Michelle L. Levigne at the Faith and Fellowship Book Festival in Etna, Ohio. Michelle is also the co-founder of Mt. Zion Ridge Press. That afternoon, she said the deadline for submitting short stories for the press’s Christmas anthology was December 15. I’d …
The Doctor Is … In
by Jamie Chavez You’ve been there, I know. Those moments of extreme manuscript fatigue. You just want to walk away. I get these emails. Stop me if you’ve heard this one. You: I will never finish this book. And it doesn’t matter, because it’s no good! The writing’s crap! The plot’s crap! The dialogue’s crap! I think I’m just gonna …
Nine Things You Learn when You Write (That You May Not Learn if You Don’t)
by Kathy Harris If we study the craft of fiction, we can learn a lot of important things, from how to write proper point-of-view to how to format a manuscript. And, while each of these skills is vital to becoming a great writer, there are other important lessons we can learn only through writing, i.e. putting words on paper and …
Why Do Imperfect Characters and Story Worlds Resonate with Readers?
By Cynthia Herron You might think because I write Heartfelt, Homespun Fiction my story worlds are a delightful Sunday-Go-to-Meeting escape. Well, I can’t fib. That’s somewhat true…to a point. However— As a conscientious writer whose goal is to share a great story, I strive to balance the delightful with reality-based conflict in a heartfelt, homespun way. Today’s readers want meat-and-potatoes stories that resonate. …
All Things through Christ—Even Write
By Suzanne Bratcher Most of the writers I know personally are, like me, newly published. Almost all of us write in spite of daunting life challenges. One friend home schools her four small children. Another one works forty hours a week. A third friend provides full-time care for a grandmother suffering from dementia. My life challenge is medical: I live …
The Amish and Foster Care
By Suzanne Woods Fisher As I was researching the foster care system for a book called Stitches in Time, I came across all kinds of troubling statistics. Some you’d expect: In recent years, a surge of children in the foster care system that state officials attribute to the opioid crisis in our country. The average age of a child in …
Insert With Caution
By Lynn Hobbs A quote from Herbert Hoover: “The whole of the inspirations of our civilization springs from the teachings of Christ and the lessons of the prophets. To read the Bible for these fundamentals is a necessity of American life.” Wouldn’t it be wonderful if his quote were shared in today’s public school system? No chance that quote will …