Posts
Audience of One
I am worn out from groaning; all night long I flood my bed with weeping and drench my couch with tears. My eyes grow weak with sorrow; they fail because of all my foes. Away from me all who do evil, for the Lord has heard my weeping. The Lord has heard my cry for…
Writing Action vs. Summary
When it comes to writing fiction there are two ways to write scenes. One is to “show” the action. The other is to “summarize,” which is called narrative. How do you pick which to do when? Consider the importance of the scene. I’ve been working with some new writers and one common mistake is that…
Notes from a Newbie
I remember the day I started seriously writing. It came at the hand of a hard critique. But not just any hard critique, the careful critique of a true mentor and friend. She graciously agreed to take a look at my writing project and give me her thoughts. I’d started writing a testimony of sorts,…
Writing After a Medical Crisis Hits Your Loved One
Last month’s article, How Do You Write When a Medical Crisis Hits, discussed how to keep on writing in the midst of dealing with an elderly parent being hospitalized. Once your beloved senior has been released from the hospital though, your interrupted writing should be back on course, right? Not necessarily. Even though they are…
You Are Not Insignificant!
It happens every ACFW conference. The excitement and utter terror of stepping into the hotel, perusing the lobby while people huddle in groups exchanging hugs and greetings, and trying to figure out where they fit in. Others like me, feeling out of place. Thankfully, this year when I arrived at ACFW I had a scheduled…
Write Like an Eagle
What are your writing habits like? Do you wait for a break in your schedule before you sit down at your computer? Does the mood need to hit you? Do you only write when the moon is in the Seventh House and Jupiter aligns with Mars? (If you’re too young to get the reference, Google.)…
Writing for God’s Glory vs. Writing for Publication
Like many writers in the early stages of their careers, I can be found spending some portion of most workdays soaking in advice and information from websites like this one. As I gather perspectives, dichotomies from which I’m sure you know well. The passion of art versus the realities of business. Writing what’s in your…
Balancing School with Writing
Writing fiction is, for most of us, rarely a full-time job; it’s a labor of love. And for most of us, finding the time to devote to our craft is a struggle between family and other responsibilities both inside and outside the home. It’s hard to create a balance between the life we love and…
Dropping the Mice In: Ridding Ourselves of Critical Voices
Anne Lamott says that what often gets in the way of our writing is all the critical voices we hear each time our fingers touch the keyboards. What I’ve come to learn as a writer-person is that I first have to quiet my brain enough to even hear the voices. I’m not sure if the…
ACFW: My Conferene Journey in a Word or Two
I don’t know when I began the tradition of summing up my ACFW conference experience in a word, but looking back over the years God seemed to be speaking one or two words specifically for me concerning each conference. Maybe with all the excitement and conference overload one or two simple words was all I…