Put Your Blog on a Diet

We’re nearing the end of the year, and if you’re like me, your blog may have put on a little extra weight. But unlike us, slimming down your blog takes only a couple of hours.

This is a good time to whip it back into shape, before the insanity of the holidays descends. So today I’m going to help you put your blog on a diet.

Click on your own site and look at it with these thoughts in mind. Here’s the checklist I use to evaluate my sites. Don’t hesitate to tweak it to fit your needs.

Social Media Monday—Build a Strong Platform by Protecting Your Audience

Did you know it’s your job to protect your social media audience?

I’m not talking about guarding them physically and/or from harmful (and often questionable) content. I’m referring to the job you have of guarding their time.

Weekend Worship—Entangled or Established?

Do not be conformed to this age, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may discern what is the good, pleasing, and perfect will of God. Romans 12:2

I tend to be just a bit ADD when it comes to life. (I'm like the dog in the movie UP..."Squirrel!") The problem with me isn't just purely distraction. Instead it stems from several things, not the least of which is the fact that I enjoy doing a lot of things.

I love to write, read, hang out with friends, knit, craft—the list goes on and on and on.

But the fact that I love so many things has often led me astray. I’m easily distracted and confused.

Writing Prompt Image—Open Doors

A few weeks ago, Mary Denman and I had the opportunity to travel by plane together to a conference. Both coming and going, our flights left before dawn so we were able to capture some amazing photos. This one in particular, a river seen from 40,000 feet, resonated with me.

What are you doing to walk through the 

open doors in your journey?

"Life is a Journey. Time is a River. The door is ajar." - Jim Butcher, Dead Beat

Share your answers in the comment section below. 

I also invite you to use this image any way you like online. Post it to your blog, share it on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, anywhere you'd like. All I ask is that you keep it intact, with my website watermark visible.

Don't forget to join the conversation!

Blessings,

Edie

Thursday Review—The Dance of Character and Plot

by Lynn H. Blackburn

Plenty of people know that DiAnn Mills is a fantastic novelist, but they may not realize that she is also a wonderful mentor to new writers.

I’ve had the privilege of attending her classes at the Blue Ridge Mountains Christian Writers Conference, sitting in on webinars she’s taught through the Christian Writers Guild, and having her critique my writing.

So when I learned that she had taken time from her fiction schedule to write a book on the craft of writing, I knew I had to get my hands on it.

Reading TheDance of Character and Plot is like having DiAnn in your home for a writing seminar.

Genre Talk—Explaining the Cozy Mystery

Many of you know how much I love science fiction, but you may not know what my other favorite genre is. Actually, I’m a HUGE cozy mystery fan.

I had the opportunity to share this little known fact with some writer friends a few weeks ago and was shocked to learn that not everyone knows what a cozy mystery is. But this is understandable when I think about it. The publishing heyday of cozies was back in the 80s and 90s.

I grew up reading classic cozies from Agatha Christie. But I cut my teeth on some of the masters like Elizabeth Peters (Amelia Peabody, Jacqueline Kirby, and Vicky Bliss), Alisa Craig—writing as Charlotte MacLeod (Grub-and-Stakers, Peter Shandy, and Sarah Kelling & Max Bittersohn), Carolyn Hart (Death on Demand, and Henri O), and Ellis Peters (Brother Cadfael).

Forbidden Phrases When a Writer is in Residence or Top 20 Things to NEVER Say to a Writer

Below is my list of comments I’ve received over the past years since I’ve come out as a writer. Following each is what I wanted to say. I’m happy to report that I’ve never (at least until now) given in to the temptation.

Top 20 Things to NEVER Say to a Writer!