by Kathi Macias One question I am often asked is, “Why do you write about such dark topics?” My answer? “I don’t write about dark topics; I write about the Light that shines in the darkness.” Now I’ll admit that most of my novels’ subject matter isn’t exactly easy reading; it isn’t easy writing either, as topics like the persecuted …
Stop, Drop and Roll: Adding the Crisis Scene
by Janice Thompson You’re at the 3/4 point in your novel and facing that all-important crisis scene. The Supreme Ordeal. The Black Moment. The Big Gloom. You know it’s critical to the story’s survival, and you want it to be the best it can be. Still, you’re unsure of how to progress. How does one go about writing a crisis …
Who’s in Charge Here?
by Beth Shriver I find my stories taking on a life of their own at times. I think I’m going one way with the plot and it turns a corner without asking me. The same goes for characters. You think you have this imaginary friend all figured out, and then they do something you never thought they would. I don’t …
How Do You Mend a Broken Heart?
by Beth vogt (Dani Pettrey, author of the gripping debut romantic suspense novel, Submerged, blogged yesterday about real issues in Christian fiction. Today I’m continuing the conversation about our characters’ lives before they ever appear in our books.) In every romance I’ve ever read, someone’s heart gets broken. • Charlotte in The Wedding Dress by best-selling author Rachel Hauck? Heart …
Real Issues in Christian Fiction
by Dani Pettrey I often hear people say they don’t read Christian fiction because it doesn’t deal with real issues. I take issue with that. I’ve read phenomenal Christian novels dealing with issues like adultery (Dry as Rain by Gina Holmes), drug addiction (Terri Blackstock’s Intervention series), and most recently, I read a novel dealing with a very prevalent issue …
Where Do Ideas Come From?
by Lisa Lickel The journey of The Map Quilt started when I was in fifth grade, learning about the Underground Railroad, watching my grandmother sew quilts, and discovering the astonishing fact that not all black people in the United States came here on slave ships. That was long before I was silly enough, about the age of forty, to start …
Quick Reference Guide to Research Methods
by Laurie Alice Eakes Recently, I enjoyed the privilege of giving an ACFW chapter a short workshop on research methods. Others have found this helpful, so I am hopeful you all will, too. Although I have more historical romances than Regency romances in print, I am known as a Regency author. And if anyone knows anything about readers of the …
A Writers’ Budget – Surviving on Two Paychecks a Year
by Mary Ellis Ahhh, a writer’s budget…rather sounds like an oxymoron, no? Plenty of writers will tell you they have no budget. Money flies out just as fast as it flies in, and it doesn’t fly in often enough or in sufficient quantity. But readers of this blog are Christians, by and large, and we’ve heard the Scripture that the …
The Green-Eyed Monster
by Lisa Karon Richardson Jealousy is a vicious taskmaster. More tyrannical than poor George III ever dreamed of, it extracts the joy from our days and leaves us only with burning want. What’s worse, outside of romantic attachments we don’t always recognize it. I tend to be competitive. A quality which western society promotes. After all, who likes to lose? …
The Writer’s Tool Chest
by Aaron McCarver What is in your tool chest? Your writer’s tool chest that is. Tools are wonderful things. We are able to accomplish things with them we could not do otherwise. When thinking about it, we have conquered the world through the use of tools. However, tools used incorrectly are very dangerous things. Only when we learn to use …