by Mary Ellis Soon after I began researching my stories, I realized many historians take a dim view of fiction, and the idea of historical romance makes their left eyes twitch. When historians sit down to read about their favorite period, they choose scholarly works such as biographies or firsthand battlefield accounts complied from soldiers’ diaries and letters home. I …
Three Questions Every Author Must Answer
By Suzanne Kuhn In one of our early coaching sessions, we ask our authors to answer three questions about themselves and their book(s); so what, who cares and why you? Many authors fail to take this self-evaluative journey. As we lead them towards answering these questions, they find their audience, purpose and direction in the marketing of their books. So …
A Season for Every Activity
By Jennifer Sienes Ecclesiastes 3:1 tells us that there is a season for every activity under heaven. I believe season is the key word in this passage. As writers, we go through seasons – seasons of struggle to find just the right words to create story, carving out the necessary time to do so, and, God willing, those moments when …
The Purpose of Fictional Sidekicks
By Lisa Jordan Lone Ranger & Tonto. LaVerne & Shirley. Lucy & Ethel. Sherlock Holmes & Dr. Watson. Batman & Robin. Shaggy & Scooby. Frodo & Samwise. Lorelei & Sookie. These names may sound familiar, but what do they have in common? They’re all fictional main characters with their sidekicks, or close companions. Just as real people have sidekicks-friendships with …
10 Tips for Feeding Your Writer’s Soul
by Edie Melson Writing is hard work, physically, emotionally and spiritually. We spend hours at a computer, neglecting exercise and proper posture. Beyond that, we pour our hearts and souls into the words we arrange into stories, articles, even blog posts. We spend time and money learning how to write, constantly improving our skills. Then, when it seems like it …
Don’t Forget the Old Goals in the New 2015
By Casey Herringshaw Happy New Year! It’s filling all the corners of the internet. Greetings from friends and people you bump into at the grocery store. It’s clogging our social media and reminding us that this is truly a new year. I can’t believe how fast 2014 has gone. Those who said that the older you get the faster time …
It’s Not Always What You Think
by Stan Crader As a consequence of writing several novels and posting a regular bog, I get the chance to speak about, you guessed it, writing. After a few speaking engagements I’ve developed a sense on how best to adapt my talk on writing to specific audiences. I begin with a short introduction and jump immediately into answering follow up …
Writing Lessons from the Master Author
By Marilyn Turk The more I study the craft of writing, the more I read like a writer. I look at how the author tells the story – word choice, POV, structure, and how many “rules” are broken. I also consider ways the story could be better – what could be left out or added to make it stronger. So …
Make Friends with your Deadline
By Denise Hunter They don’t call ’em deadlines for nothing. I’m pretty sure it’s because most of us feel half dead when we get there. Add a hectic holiday or an unexpected illness, and you may not be the only one ready to tear out your hair. But if you plan ahead and work steadily, you can reach your deadline …
Outlining – Step By Step
By Gail Gaymer Martin Though I use a brief synopsis to set up my storyline, I sometimes outline parts such as a suspense novel. Once the character is developed, the beginning and ending of the book and the black moment, begin to build the plot, scene by scene no matter if it’s a novel, novella, and even a short story. …