by Steven Rogers @SRBooksForHope When you get down to it, there’s no difference between a mad scientist and a fiction writer. First, there are physical similarities. If you believe the movies, a mad scientist sleeps three hours a night, their hair sticks out at all angles, their clothes look slept in, and their eyes are buried in caverns deeper than …
Building Suspense in Any Genre
by Elle E. Kay @ElleEKay777 Some genres lend themselves to suspense more than others, but every fiction genre requires it in one form or another. For those of us who write thrillers and romantic suspense, the concept of danger around the next bend or a ticking clock is an ever-present reality, but even if you write romance or fantasy, suspense …
The Secret to Creating a Story Experience
By Joni M. Fisher @authorjonimfisher Stories, when beautifully written, become experiences. Readers follow along with or become the hero and take in the story world through their senses. As if in a dream, readers suffer, fall in love, doubt, panic, fight, and rejoice as if the struggle is their own. Readers separate themselves from their reality to dive into a …
Questions to Ponder
by Mitchell S. Karnes I grew up loving to read. That love grew into a passion for writing. In the beginning, I was full of questions and voraciously searched for the answers. Thankfully, God placed many great mentors in my life. Without them, I would have given up, for there were just as many critics who discouraged me from using …
A Love Story Worth Reading
by Roxanne Hicks While sitting in church one Sunday morning, I was struck by the profound words of a hymn. I don’t remember the name, but the concept will never leave my thoughts. “No greater love has any man than when he lays down his life for another.” This, of course, is in reference to the love of our Savoir …
Hooks & Cliffhangers Readers Can’t Resist
by Darlene L. Turner “Just one more chapter, Mom.” This is how I responded to my mother when she reminded me I had chores to finish, but Nancy Drew held me in her clutches. I couldn’t put the book down, especially when the chapter ended on a cliffhanger. Ugh! Sound familiar? This is how we want our readers to respond …
Red Ink, Refined Hearts
By Jeffrey Friedel @JeffersonRiede Yesterday my writing coach returned my manuscript with comments and edits, and within five minutes I discovered an exciting new subplot called “Defensiveness.” Then I briefly considered spinning it off into a companion project titled “Avoidance.” But our discipleship group has been reading Counterfeit Gods by Tim Keller, and it’s been exposing the hidden idols I …
Writers, What AI Are You Using?
by Maureen Miller Let me start by saying… I’m the first to ask the Lord to refine my convictions. “Am I lazy?” I’ve inquired. Afraid of unfamiliar territory? Insecure about learning something new? It’s not like that’s never been the case, but this? It’s different. Not laziness. Not fear. Maybe there’s someone who needs to hear it, to know they’re …
Historical Research – How Do You Start?
by Sarah Sundin On a chilly and blustery evening, my husband and I traipsed through a German gun emplacement in Jersey in the Channel Islands. I said to him, “Aren’t you glad I don’t write novels set in fussy tea rooms?” The look of horror on his face was priceless. Aspiring historical novelists often ask for my best tips on …
Waiting With Purpose
by Stephanie Cardel “Be still before the LORD and wait patiently for him…” ~Psalm37:7 (ESV) To me, the most difficult part of being a writer is all the waiting. At least, that’s what drives me mad. Not writer’s block. Not how competitive it is. Not rejection. Waiting. You put yourself out there and wait for critique, then an agent’s response, …