By Linda Robinson After I joined a large critique group a few years ago, I was terrified to press Send for my first 2,000-word submission. How intimidating to put my work out there, knowing it was open for target practice. I wasn’t worried about grammar and punctuation, but about the story itself. Nail-biting nervous, I waited for the first critique …
Use the …phone
By Shirley Gould In crafting Christian fiction, we, as writers, use twists and turns in our plots to grab the reader’s attention, plunging them into our fictional world. We spice our prose with interesting characters, places and themes carrying them on a roller coaster of emotions with our comedies, mysteries and tragedies. Most of our stories have misunderstandings that cause …
He Gave It a Year
By Christen Civiletto Morris Expectations can be tricky. The wrong word choice can raise or lower them. A skewed perception can twist them. Expectations are especially difficult when it comes to those we create in our family about our writing. I once bungled a conversation along those lines so badly that it would be funny if it weren’t so … …
You Heard Write
by Michelle Arch Last month I attended the Orange County Christian Writers Conference. Having attended the event previously in 2012, I had vacillated before registering earlier this year. My experience three years ago was a high point in my writing life, as an excerpt from my developing novel caught the attention of publishers and editors and won three fiction awards. …
Do Unto Others
By Tamara D. Fickas Do unto others. That was the devotional given by Beth Vogt one Saturday morning in our local ACFW meeting. She talked about what this looks like for writers. How if we want a mentor, we should be open to mentoring someone. And if we want to grow in our writing, we should be willing to help …
Three Writing Challenges That No Longer Scare Me
By Kathleen Y’Barbo This year, I celebrate fifteen years in as a published author and ten years with my fabulous agent, Wendy Lawton of Books & Such Literary Agency. Next year, in 2016, I will celebrate twenty years as a writer. I am closing in on sixty books published and two million books in print, and in a few days …
Daily Dialogue
By Lynn Hobbs Conversations written with emotion are excellent page turners. When the reader is offered an in-depth look into two characters particular situation, I recommend having both characters point of view to consider, instead of skimming over the conflict as in many cookie-cutter novels. Dialogue can hold your attention as you learn both sides of the issue. Example: John …
Called or an Offering?
By Ian Acheson I’ve always found the topic of “one’s calling” fascinating. We all wonder at times in our lives what our specific calling is and it’s a topic that has consumed many pages of books, blog posts, conference notes and so on. It’s often used in discussions around vocations and careers. When I started to meet writers I was …
Who’s Afraid of the Multiverse?
By Bruce Hennigan Recent successful series such as Stephen Lawhead’s “Skin Map” books utilize one of the most common staples of fiction, parallel worlds. The idea is not a new one. George MacDonald in “Phantastes” used such a device in his works. And, his writing influenced C. S. Lewis to develop Narnia. In recent years, there has been an explosion …
ACCEPTED!
By Marilyn Turk As writers, we long to hear or see that word. Our writing has been accepted – by an editor who wants to read it, a publisher who wants to publish it, or a reader who wants to read it. Too often, though, we hear the opposite along this path to publication. “Rejected” is not used so often …