by Gail Gaymer Martin A number of years ago, I connected with a family member from England who had spent years locating members of the Gaymer family as part of her genealogy research. The connection provided me with history going back to the 1600s with the family tree as well as true stories about the Gaymer family history. I learned …
Journal: A Writer’s Tool Everyone Can Have and Six Ways to Achieve It
by Rebecca DeMarino If a journal is not in your writer’s tool kit, it should be. Proven to be a stress reliever and healthy for mind and body, it can also unleash the creative juices in each of us. While it can serve as a diary by simply recording your daily deeds and innermost thoughts, a journal is much more. …
Sometimes Things Change
by Deborah Lynne Hello fellow members of ACFW. Today I thought a good subject matter for my blog would be change. Change happens, even to the best of us, and sometimes it is a good thing-Sometimes it makes your story even better. I don’t know about you, but when I write a book, in my heart I know how it …
Writer Candy
by DiAnn Mills This blog is not about your favorite treat, although a bowl of M&Ms does seem to make the creativity flow at rocket speed. I want to talk about the kind of candy that sweetens our writing, the books that take our craft to the next level. I have personal favorites, and these are the ones I want …
What To Do About Slime
By Sarah Hamaker Remember that old Nickelodeon TV show for kids where someone got slime poured over his head? That image of the green, gooey stuff cascading out of a giant bucket onto someone’s head came to mind when I read a snarky online comment about me. The person knew nothing about me. But the anonymousness of the Internet has …
Suffering Grace-fully
by Christine Sunderland I’m writing my next novel (working title, The Fire Trail), a story about the “medication generation,” hooking up, love and marriage, sexuality today, jungle culture versus civilization. I collected a thick file of news clippings, Internet printouts, and quotations from relevant reading. I revisited my first books on craft – creating characters, plotting plot. To develop my …
So You Think You Want to be a Writer?
by Casey Herringshaw Writing a novel is certainly not for the faint of heart. The weak in limbs or the feeble of mind. Writing is for the passionate and driven, those willing to fight the battle against the piles of laundry and undusted home surfaces. Those willing to spend hours glued to one’s desk chair and foregoing much in the …
Why I Write for Boys
by Eddie Jones Why do I write for boys? First I are one. Have been for as long as I can remember. Given the advancements in modern science and the cultural acceptance of transgender persons, a day may come when I am something different. But for now I’m a boy – albeit an older, smelly one. Here’s another reason I …
Learn from a Pro
by Deborah Lynne Today I wanted to do something a little different than my normal blog for ACFW. Don’t get me wrong; it still shares valuable insight into writing like all of the ACFW blogs posted. For my blog I had an idea and emailed one of my favorite authors of inspirational romantic suspense requesting to interview her. I am …
The Enemy-enemy
by Beth Shriver The cursor blinks and still nothing. The hours tick by and you’ve written two sentences. You take a break to check your email. The phone rings. Now its lunch time. You sit down to write and see the blinking cursor again. We’ve all had those days when procrastination sets in, and the harder you push, the further …