By Shirley Gould This year is finally coming to a close. Can you say Praise the Lord? With Christmas behind us and a new year around the corner, it is a good time to reassess where we’ve been and make goals for the future. 2020 has numbed us into a stagnant state with its quarantines, mask-wearing, and social distancing. As …
The Wait
by Loretta Eidson The moment months of character building, plotting, and creativity end, anticipation builds. The novel is complete. With outstretched arms, take in a deep breath, shout for joy, and celebrate the success of a long writing journey. The sense of accomplishment feels grand. The next step is writing a lengthy synopsis and proposal. You tap away at the …
Beauty and Beholders
by Linda Brooks Davis Beauty is as subjective as beholders themselves. As writers, we’re tasked with showing, not telling, our characters’ traits—what we consider the good, the bad, and the ugly—-by how they speak, behave, interact with others, etc. But as readers, we may not determine what’s good, bad, and ugly. But the same images rarely emerge for both writers …
Diving into Writing
By Bettie Boswell My birthday is today and it’s a big one. I’ll be officially diving into the senior category as I turn sixty-five and look forward to retirement from teaching. As an educator of over thirty two years I’ve also learned to be a student, since keeping ahead of the changing tide of education can often be like trying …
In Everything Give Thanks—Even in “Plot Twists”
by Linda Thompson As authors, we love to hand our characters plot twists. And we expect them to face them with resilience and fortitude. But what about those times when life hands us our own wild cards? Something we expected doesn’t turn out like…we expected. 2020 has dished out plenty of those. Amen? For many, this past Thanksgiving weekend epitomized …
2020 Vision
By Shirley Gould I don’t know about you, but I’m ready to put the year 2020 behind me. I want to decorate the Christmas tree and cook a turkey and call it done! Do you feel the same way? As a writer of Christian Fiction, I’m trying to do NaNoWriMo as a good ACFW member should, but things keep getting …
You’re Never Too Old
by Henry McLaughlin “You are never too old to set another goal or to dream a new dream.” C. S. Lewis Many times, I’ve met someone who has retired, and they sit like a gnome in the garden, gathering dirt and bugs and mold. They’re not thrilled, but don’t seem to have a clue what to do about it. That isn’t …
Bonita
By Renee Hodges Our friends, Wendy and Eric, sold most of their possessions and moved to Nicaragua eight years ago because they felt God calling them to be missionaries there. They immersed themselves into the culture knowing only basic Spanish and started serving in several towns and villages. Their experiences have ranged from sublime to hysterical over these years. My …
Declutter Your Mind – What Do you Need to Purge to Write Better?
By Tammie Fickas With the pandemic and people spending more time at home, decluttering seems to be a hot topic. Going from working too many hours to a forty hour a week job to working from home, I’m surrounded by my stuff, and I’ve realized there’s way too much of it. So, I jumped on the bandwagon and as my …
Remembering to Remember
By Christine Sunderland History is important. True history is lifesaving. We must never forget our past, the good and the bad. Today is Veterans Day, also known as Armistice Day or Remembrance Day. Americans remember those who fought in World War I and the Armistice signed the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month, 1918. We also …