by Sarah Sundin @SarahSundin Chapter four nearly did me in. Chapters one through three flew as planned, and I knew chapters five and six were going to be exciting. But chapter four took me a full week to write. I’m a plotter, an outliner. Before I start my rough draft, I know what needs to happen in each scene. This …
CAN YOU HEAR ME NOW? A Rebel Writer’s Guide to Breaking the Rules of Writing
By Kathleen Y’Barbo Turner @KathleenYBarbo When my daughter was in kindergarten, her teacher asked the children to interview an adult about his or her job and come back to class the next day with a report on what they learned. Hannah grilled me about my job as a writer, and I answered her questions about how I constructed my stories. …
Research Can Teach You a Hard (if Useful) Lesson
by Glynn Young I learned a very hard lesson while writing a historical novel. I learned how hard it can be, and it’s hard for both the research you do and for the research you have to ignore. I’m writing a novel that takes place in two historical periods – the Civil War and its immediate aftermath, and 50 years …
Getting Your Word Count… and Making Your Words Count
by Brandy Heineman @brandyhei Today I’m celebrating the release of my newest novel, Like Honey for the Bones. The title inspiration came from the Proverbs. Pleasant words are a honeycomb, Sweet to the soul and healing to the bones. -Proverbs 16:24 (NASB) This lovely verse gives us an important truth: words matter. Though they can be weapons, they can also …
Writing Celebration into Our Stories
by Susan Lyttek @SusanLyttek Only within the last month, we have celebrated my dad’s birthday, our 40th anniversary, our son’s birthday, Father’s Day, and Independence Day. A lot of rejoicing and honoring has been going on. And that’s a good thing. Our God is a God of the holiday and celebration. As such, we need to weave such days into …
Reach THE END, Press SEND, Repeat
By Kathleen Y’Barbo-Turner @KathleenYBarbo As the author of more than 100 books, I often get asked how I manage to write all those books. My answer? One book at a time! I know, but it’s true. I also get asked for my secret to how I manage to reach THE END and press SEND time after time. Please understand I …
The lesson of all those boxes…
by Allie Pleiter @alliepleiter “We have a lot of books,” I warned the man from the moving company. He smiled and waved a hand in the air in a no big deal gesture. “Oh, don’t worry, we’re used to that.” “No,” I insisted, “We have a LOT of books. Come with me.” He kept chatting in reassuring tones until I …
Tips on Writing a Counseling Scene
by Kathy Maresca @so_tweet Write what you know. Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings took this advice from her agent to heart. She wrote a story set in rural Cross Creek, Florida, where she lived. Soon The Yearling was published, and it won the 1939 Pulitzer Prize. Rawlings’ success encouraged me; I grew up just a few miles from her home. A rehabilitation …
Pitching With Grace and Perseverance
By Barbara M. Britton @BarbaraMBritton My pitching days began in 2008. I have pitched to agents and editors in the General Market and to those in the Christian Fiction publishing world. I’ve pitched in person and over Zoom. My shortest time allotment was three minutes, and my longest pitch session was fifteen minutes. What were some of the craziest things …
The Strength of Waiting
By Tara Johnson @TaraMinistry “A watched pot never boils.” I heard that phrase a hundred times while growing up, and every time I was chided for my impatience, I cringed. I confess, not much has changed over the years. I still pace when sending off a new manuscript to a potential publishing house. I still bite my nails when reviews …