By Cindy Ervin Huff
We are fiction writers, weavers of stories that share messages of hope with the world. But there are times when our bucket of story ideas goes dry. These are the times we can turn to writing non-fiction using our fiction skills to add interest to those projects.
I’m assuming you are in the Word daily and gleaning insights. Use those insights to create devotions and submit them to various online and print daily devotionals. Use your fiction writing skills to craft those devotions to draw the reader into the scriptures in a new way.
All that research you’ve done for your books could find a place in articles for various magazines. You might find a podcast that focuses on those very things you’ve researched. You could create reels on your social media talking about all those things you’ve researched. A new outlet for your creative nature.
How about applying to teach writing craft at conferences? Or offer to teach a writing class at your church or even to inmates through ministries like Prison Fellowship.
You will find that as you take time to step away from the writing of fiction and focus on any of the areas I’ve suggested, your fiction bucket of ideas will fill again.
Write more than fiction to help keep your creative idea bucket filled. #writerlife #novelwriting #writingcareer #ACFW Share on XCreate a balance between writing your novels and those non-fiction projects and other creative outlets once your bucket is full again. Writing projects not focused on your novels will help you keep ideas flowing because each of those other writing endeavors will open you to new encounters that will have you making notes for future stories. A podcast interview question might send you scurrying to explore something on a deeper level. A question asked from a student during a class you teach or a response from a reader to your devotion might spur you on to write the great American novel that is read long after you’ve gone.
Cindy Ervin Huff is a multi-published award winning author. A 2018 Selah Finalist. She has a passion to encourage other writers on their journey. When she isn’t writing she feeds her addiction to reading and enjoys her retirement with her husband of 50 plus years, Charles. Visit her at www.cindyervinhuff.com.
Comments 3
Thanks for the great reminder. While in the process of crafting a novel, I often let myself get too tired to write a blog or other piece. As you say and as I recall, those times away from the heavy lifting is when the great ideas show up. I need to, and will, get back to that. Your words are much apprecited.
Good post, Cindy! I write a weekly writing/bookish column for our local newspaper. These columns have really helped me not only to stick to deadlines but also to come up with lots of ideas and angles of approach.
This is something I’ve done, writing more than just novels. Your ideas of ways to use that other research were helpful. Thanks.