By Nancy Ellen Hird The Bible calls Satan the accuser of the brethren. And it is true. I’ve heard that sly, nasty voice—many, many times. I’m sure you have too. He wants to throw us off our game. He wants to convince us to leave the field—sit on the bench with our hands folded and our mouths shut. Well, I …
The Benefits of Going Bold (And Putting Fear Behind You)
By Kathy Harris I’m extremely blessed as a writer. There is only one finished manuscript collecting dust under my bed. I wrote it, to the best of my recollection, in about six months. After submitting it—and attending my first ACFW conference—I quickly found out that I had a lot to learn. My second manuscript took six years to complete. Ditto …
God Whispers: From Inspiration to Story
By Patti Richards When someone asks me what inspires me as a children’s author, I think about what pushes me to spend the majority of each day writing. I’ve been a writer for so long now that it really is who I am rather than just what I do; and it is intrinsically woven into my faith. So much so …
It’s All About the Shoes
By Gina Detwiler When I was a kid, The Wizard of Oz played once a year on television, an event my family never missed. I could recite every line: “Toto, I’ve got a feeling we’re not in Kansas anymore.” “Are you a good witch or a bad witch?” “I’ll get you, my pretty, and your little dog too!” “Lions and …
Change My Words, Change My Attitude
By Henry McLaughlin I’m a writer. Been at it for a while now. And I’m still amazed at the power of words. Words make us laugh and cry. They make us feel emotions we may not experience in our normal life. Words introduce us to new worlds and new people. They inspire us to seek more of who we are …
What It Takes to be An Author in The 21st Century
By Rachel Hauck On a plane ride from Kansas City to Atlanta, I watched a film called “Best Sellers,” a comedy-drama starring Aubrey Plaza and Michael Caine. The premise caught my eye. It was Old World, harkening to another age in book publishing. The time of the big-name author, book tours, peer and literary reviews, the literati, even where a …
Prioritizing the Important Things
By Donna Wichelman Authors know the business of writing takes hard work and consistency. Though we love wordsmithing, it still requires a commitment to the daily task—whether it’s ten minutes or ten hours—to achieve the word count or get out the next email or marketing material to our audience. Whether you are a traditionally published or an indie-published author, you …
How to Become an Overnight Success
By Ginny L. Yttrup When my debut novel, Words, won the Christy Award for Best First Novel, my agent joked that I’d become an “overnight success.” Before the award, few had read my writing. After the award, Words sold well, and the novel consistently sells well eleven years later. But an overnight success? Not exactly. The road that led to the publication of that first …
Whose Words
By Angela D. Shelton Well Done! I’ve heard it said many times. It’s even crossed my own lips. Perhaps these words have slipped off your tongue as well. If I can help only one person with my writing, it will be worth it. There it is—the ultimate selfless act. We struggle through the outline, the muddle in the middle, the …
Love Bomb
By Angela D. Shelton The past month has been disheartening. Multiple problems have snarled up my idyllic life. My first ever published books had anemic sales, even though I invested in advertisements. A drought is decimating the pastures on our ranch, forcing us to buy hay in the spring, a first for us. The trifecta is that my husband now …