Saturday, March 31, 2018

Happy Easter!

by Edie Melson @EdieMelson


Praise the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.According to His great mercy, He has given us a new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead and into an inheritance that is imperishable,uncorrupted, and unfading, kept in heaven for you. 1 Peter 1:3-4

Friday, March 30, 2018

4 Tips on the Road to Publication

Edie here. Today I'm excited to introduce you to a debut novelist. Laura Hodges Poole is a good friend, fellow author, and I wanted to make sure you saw her new book, Return to Walhalla. There's a lot to be learned by following her tips on the road to publication!



4 Tips on the Road to Publication
by Laura Hodges Poole @Laura_Poole


“My stories run up and bite me on the leg. I respond by writing down everything that goes on during the bite. When I finish, the idea lets go and runs off.” Ray Bradbury, author

I can’t resist a good Ray Bradbury quote, probably because they’re both creative and true! Writers want to create something so irresistible their reader can’t stop reading. Becoming this sort of writer doesn’t happen overnight. Actually, just becoming a published writer takes a lot of work.

Wednesday, March 28, 2018

Tips on Editing for the Procrastinating Writer

by DiAnn Mills @DiAnnMills

What does the procrastinating writer do when she’s run out of time to edit, and a book is due in twenty-four hours? Ever been there? A sick feeling in the pit of our stomach says we can't hit the snooze button. 

Tuesday, March 27, 2018

First Rules of Critique, "Rule Five" — Know What You're Trying to Say


by Eva Marie Everson @EvaMarieEverson

Over the past few months, we’ve looked at a few ways to be a good critique-giver while serving as a member of a critique group. Now, let’s look at a few ways to be a good critique-receiver.

Monday, March 26, 2018

6 Powerful Steps to Improve Your LinkedIn Profile

by Bethany Jett @BetJett

Marketing and self-promotion can feel like a “gimme game.” As writers, we need to get our name out there into the netherworld of the internet and find ways to have people like us, friend us, and share our work. “Gimme your email.” “Gimme a follow.”

Sunday, March 25, 2018

We All Need More Jesus-Vision


by Rhonda Rhea @RhondaRhea

What would Jesus do? How would Jesus notice?

Five kids in seven years. That’s what I had. People ask what it was like having that many teens/pre-teens all at once. I tell them it was basically a 10-year search for someone’s missing shoe, plus about eight thousand school fundraisers. Plus, plus—a lot of sweeping of various breakfast cereals. Some of them from under the beds.

Saturday, March 24, 2018

Productivity, Happiness, and Authoring


by Cathy Fyock @CathyFyock

I read a great article recently in The Ladders about productivity and happiness and what we’ve learned from neuroscience, and started thinking about how this impacted authors working on their books. Here are four of the key ideas, along with some specific implications I’ve added for authors.

Friday, March 23, 2018

Don’t Be Surprised by Post Writing Conference Let Down


by Lori Hatcher @LoriHatcher2

It’s conference season. All over the country writers flock to writers conferences, hoping to learn secrets of the craft, pitch a new idea, and connect with fellow wordsmiths. Conferences can be both exhilarating and frightening.

Even the best conference experience, however, can leave you feeling let down. Let’s examine a few reasons why you might feel discouraged or depressed in the days following a really good writers conference.

Thursday, March 22, 2018

Leaving a Legacy in Life & in Writing


by Henry McLaughlin @RiverBendSagas

Have you ever wondered about what kind of legacy you’re leaving? I mean more than an estate or an inheritance we bequeath to our children or our church.

I’m thinking more along the lines of how will people remember us. Maybe a better phrasing is how do we want to be remembered? Have you ever thought of that?

Wednesday, March 21, 2018

4 Ways to Start Your Nonfiction Book with Conflict


by Katy Kauffman @KatyKauffman28

We all want a happy ending. But no life reaches a happy ending without some conflict. That’s why we need novels and nonfiction books. We want to see someone overcome the odds and win the victory, find their true love, or solve the crime. We want to find proven answers to real-life problems. And so we read. We investigate. We learn, and we grow.

Tuesday, March 20, 2018

Writers Encourage Other Writers


by Lucinda Secret McDowell @LucindaSMcDowel

“Cindy, God has given you a gift of writing and it is your duty to write for Him!” (Elisabeth Elliot in a personal conversation)

Imagine being only 26-years-old and hearing those words from such a respected mentor, international speaker and author of 30 books. I had already felt a nudging from God on this path, but Elisabeth’s words helped confirm and encourage me further. Needless to say, I was a bit daunted, but also energized to pursue more training and opportunity (this occurred when I was heading off to Wheaton Graduate School of Communication after graduating from Gordon-Conwell Seminary.)

No one is more amazed than I that today—many years later—I can look back at my published work, by God’s grace: 13 books authored, 30+ books as contributing author and articles published in more than 50 magazines.

Monday, March 19, 2018

When & How to use Your Social Media for Marketing


by Molly Jo Realy @RealMoJo68

You’ve heard me say it nine cajillion eight thousand okay, a lot of times: media is not the same as marketing. All the Pros will tell you the same thing: if the only thing you’re doing is pushing your product, just open an online store.

Media is where you connect with your Swarm. It’s the different hives you foster, the communities you help build.

Sunday, March 18, 2018

Your Words Matter


by Andy Lee @WordsByAndyLee

 find one of the hardest parts of being a writer is the silence.

I’m not talking about the silent hours spent with only the tic-tock of the clock on my office wall and the pitter-patter of lap-top keys.  No, I’ve grown to love this silence, days with only my cat to keep me company.

It was not always this way. I’m an extrovert turned introvert by means of calling. When the Lord called me to write a book, I had no idea that it would become my ministry and career. Shifting from educator to full-time mom, to assistant pastor to all day writer, proved a challenge.

Friday, March 16, 2018

How Authors Can Build an Indie Empire—How You Release Books Matters



by Traci Tyne Hilton @TraciTyneHilton

*disclaimer. This series is about following rules. I know that Indies don’t have to follow rules. That’s the whole point of being indie. But indies who pay attention to what rich and famous authors do, have a much better shot at fame and riches.*

Very few authors have a series of reader-satisfying books burning a hole in their pockets. These books have to be written and released successfully for the empire to be built. This is a particularly poignant article for me to write. I need to launch a new series. The series that has formed the foundation of my indie success has been completed. No new books are coming for it, and it has been around long enough now--almost 7 years since book 1 released!—that it has reached market saturation. So everything I write in this post is also for me. A prod to both do the job, and do it right.

Thursday, March 15, 2018

Diversity - The Current State of the Publishing Industry


by Cyle Young @CyleYoung

In the over politicized culture of today, these next few paragraphs will either excite you or frustrate you. And for some of you reading this, you may feel a little bit of both.

Wednesday, March 14, 2018

Writing Articles to Market Your Books

Edie here. I'm super excited about Linda's new book, I wanted to make sure you had a chance to pick up a copy. Articles, Articles, Articles has just released and it's absolutely full of the information writers need. 


Writing Articles to Market Your Books    
by Linda Gilden @LindaGilden

I meet a lot of people who are either writers or want to learn how to write. And the majority of them will quickly start telling me about book they are working on. I don’t recall anyone ever saying, “Let me tell you about this great article I am working on. I am so excited about it!”

But I, for one, love to write articles. 

Tuesday, March 13, 2018

The Lord’s Prayer Rewritten for Writers


by Cindy Sproles @CindyDevoted

“This, then, is how you should pray…” Matthew 6:9-13 (NIV)

I rewrote the Lord’s Prayer and wondered if I’d done something sacrilegious. After all, it was Jesus’ prayer before it was mine, but I needed solstice. Sometimes we simply need to seek peace. Our minds and bodies grow weary.

It’s one year from my first brain surgery. One year ago, when I couldn’t walk a straight line or hear over the internal sounds of my heartbeat, blood pumping, and footsteps. My world was so noisy and I longed for peace and quiet.

Sunday, March 11, 2018

The Blessing of the Book I Never Intended to Write

by Sarah Van Diest @SarahVanDiest

God in the Dark, the little devotional book I wrote, comes out on April 3rd and its launch team has been meeting together on social media for about six weeks already. I had no idea what to expect in launching a book, and I am in awe.

As if a door cracked open just ever so much, I have glimpsed how the Lord has begun using the book in the hearts of those who read it. Like I said, I am in awe.

Saturday, March 10, 2018

Friday, March 9, 2018

DO Sweat the Small Stuff When You Write


by Marcia Moston @MarciaMoston

Even if you’re a southern woman who “glistens” instead of sweats, when it comes to conveying emotion-evoking images, do sweat the small stuff. Like seeds in a shell, it’s the little details and rituals and routines of life that pack the power.

Thursday, March 8, 2018

I've Stepped Outside My Writing Comfort Zone

Taken at Bear Lake, in the Rocky Mountain National Park near Estes Park Colorado.

by Edie Melson @EdieMelson

Publishing, even though it can be a tough dream to follow, is a familiar place for me. I know the lingo the etiquette, and what to expect. 

But God often calls us outside our comfort zone. And He's gifted me with more than just a love for words. He's given me a photographer's eye. 

Wednesday, March 7, 2018

How to Write a Synopsis— Without Turning Homicidal, Part 2


by Sarah Sally Hamer @SarahSallyHamer


Part Two

So, now we take our blueprint from last month.


Wait a minute. Have you bought Gracie O’Neil’s book, How toWrite a Synopsis—Without Turning Homicidal?  Have you written your 50-word high-concept pitch?

If not, go do it now. I’ll wait.

Got them? Good!

The ‘blueprint’ – that 50-word pitch – is the skeleton of both your synopsis AND your story. It gives you a yellow-brick-road to follow, so you won’t get distracted or even - horrors! - get lost.

Tuesday, March 6, 2018

Marketing for Writers—How to Learn from the Masters


by Cynthia Owens @EfficiencyAdict

Art students learn a great deal by studying and duplicating the works of celebrated artists. In class, students are encouraged to learn the techniques of renown creators, mimic their style, and even reproduce their famous works. However, the ultimate goal is not to become a devotee of a particular artist. It’s to tap into the skillsets and vision that made their art exceptional, then use these skills to make new, original creations.

These same methods can be used by writers to learn marketing. We can find people who are exceptional at marketing. Study their techniques. Practice mimicking their systems—and then create our own.

Monday, March 5, 2018

Identify Your Authentic Social Media Voice


by Edie Melson @EdieMelson

As authors we talk a lot about voice. In fiction, and even non-fiction, it’s defined as that certain something that makes an author unique. In everything—from the rhythm, cadence and flow—to the sentence structure. It conveys the author’s personality and attitude.

Although many may not realize it, there’s an advantage to developing a voice for your social media presence. If you think about it, it’s something that those most successful social media folks have done.

Sunday, March 4, 2018

The Write Fight


by Audrey Frank @AudreyCFrank


The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still. (Exodus 14:14, NIV)

It was four a.m. and I could not get comfortable on the narrow, vinyl hospital bench beside my son’s bed. The heart monitors had blared their warnings all night long, doctors rushing in and out, their voices muted as they discussed my son’s life. His life. My mother-heart matched his in its erratic pace, rising and falling with every beep, fear lurching one moment, hope surging the next. I was in the middle of a nightmare no mother ever chooses.

Friday, March 2, 2018

Three Ways to Live Your Best Creative Life, Part 1 + A Journal Giveaway


by Cathy Baker @CathySBaker

Today, I share the first of a three-part series about specific ways to combat resistance and maximize the creative life to its fullest potential.

The word create is defined as bringing something into existence. And where creativity is at work, we usually find resistance.

Thursday, March 1, 2018

Brainstorming Isn't Cheating, It's an Author's Secret Weapon

Edie here. I'm super excited about Lynn's newest series. I had the opportunity to be in on the very beginning of this book and I promise you it is AWESOME! Be sure and follow the links at the end of the post to grab a copy for yourself. 


Brainstorming Isn't Cheating, It's an Author's Secret Weapon!
by Lynn Blackburn @LynnHBlackburn