The story of someone’s life can be quite fascinating – and can, like our fictional characters, help us understand how people turned out how they did – why they took certain actions.

My son has developed quite an interest in biographies lately. Currently, he’s reading about both Thomas Edison and Clara Barton. I’d wager one, or both, will inspire him.

May 16 is officially Biographers Day. Two hundred and forty-nine years ago today, James Boswell and Samuel Johnson met in England for the first time, beginning what answers.com calls “history’s most famous biographer-biographee relationship.” Boswell’s Life of Samuel Johnson is considered a model of biographical writing.

So, why not celebrate? No day is better than today to start reading – or writing – a biography.

What is your favorite biography? If you were to write a biography, who would you want to write about? Do you figure out the biographies of your fictional characters?

Related posts:

1. Critique: A Part of Life
2. Four Questions to Ask When Evaluating a Story Idea
3. Starting the Story Too Soon

One of the most popular parts of FaithWriters is the Writing Challenge, and one of the most eagerly awaited days in the FaithWriters’ year is July 1, when the winner of the Writing Challenge Best of the Best is announced.

The first place entry from each of the 36 Writing Challenge topics between July 2011 and June 2012 are all in contention. Only one, however, will be selected as THE Best of the Best, and awarded $300. Second place will receive $100, and third place $75.

Watch this spot on Mondays, when I’ll be sharing a handful of the contenders each week (in alphabetical order by author’s last name) through the end of June.  And, of course, I’ll have the winners here as well, once they’re announced on July 1.

It’s not too late to qualify for this INCREDIBLE award! This week’s challenge topic is FAME – enter by Thursday at 10am ET. And there will be four more topics following this one before we finish for this “Best of the Best” year. You could be declared Best of the Best. (you must be a gold or platinum enter to enter)

And without further ado…

The Gold Hat by Jody Day (topic was RICH)
http://www.faithwriters.com/wc-article-editors-previous.php?id=42450

Caught by Terry RA Eissfeldt (topic was EMBARRASSMENT)
http://www.faithwriters.com/wc-article-editors-previous.php?id=41460

Blood Red Tears by Kelvin Fowler (topic was WAR AND PEACE)
http://www.faithwriters.com/wc-article-level3-previous.php?id=40083

Antimony by Sarah Frase (topic was OUR MUTUAL FRIEND)
http://www.faithwriters.com/wc-article- … p?id=40901

Hope you’ll give these a look/read

Related posts:

1. Best of the Best Contenders – Seven More Weeks to Qualify!
2. 2nd Quarter 2011 Best of the Best Contenders
3. Meet the BoB contenders!

by Mona Hodgson

Many of my closest friends are liars. But they might prefer the title storyteller extraordinaire. Tale-weavers. And whether the literary yarn they spin is set in an actual place or based upon real life events and historical characters, they are authors of fiction. I am too. And as novelists, we have chosen to write fiction, not fact. But even so, is the story we weave truly and completely made up?

Not the best stories. All compelling fiction resonates with readers. Why? Because the best stories are rich in truth.

Why has Gone with the Wind by Margaret Mitchell camped on bestsellers’ lists? Why has it inspired movies and s

pin-offs? Why is Gone with the Wind a classic? Because the story told the truth. Even though Scarlett’s tale wasn’t necessarily formed in actual reality, the setting and characters, action and themes offer a tapestry of honesty that can make a work of fiction feel more real, at times, than life itself.

Using those four central threads of fiction, I try to create an honest story world and premise that will provide a platform for truth and deepen the realness of my fiction.

SETTING

As the backdrop for the action, the setting anchors a story in a specific time and place. How can setting add truth to fiction?

You and I are affected by the location in which we find ourselves. We react to our setting on physical, emotional, mental, and perhaps even spiritual levels. Sometimes we’re aware of our reactions. At other times they take place in our subconscious.

Where is your story set? At a plantation in Georgia?

Tell me more.

Actually, it’s Tara, a cotton plantation Scarlett’s father named after the Hill of Tara, once the capital of the High King of ancient Ireland.

When?

Through the Civil War and into the reconstruction period.

That’s more like it. The time period in which a story unfolds has everything to do with the setting. And that’s true whether it plays out in a historical time and place or if it’s contemporary. Setting isn’t limited to a pin on a map, but also provides a cultural, social, and political context in which the characters act, interact, and react. Consider the West Coast of America in contrast to the South. Ireland in the1600s and the USA in that same time period. What about settings where women are finally able to vote? And post 9/11? These events will be considered and remembered differently, depending upon the setting and situation in which the characters experience them.

That’s something an author has to consider . . . what is the main character’s surface and gut-level reaction to the details and fullness of the setting? A clearly defined setting will impact their characters, and, consequently us as readers because we will recognize honesty in the setting.

My Sinclair Sisters of Cripple Creek Series is set in a mining camp in Colorado in the late 1890s. There are many truths intrinsic to that specific time and place—the culture of the Wild West mining camps. Ore fever, most definitely. Prostitutes, certainly. And hardships in varying sizes and shapes.

CHARACTERS

Scarlett O’Hara was fake only when she chose to be to serve her purposes. Otherwise, she was one of the most “real” characters we’ll find in literature. An individual through and through, Scarlett was bathed in the truth of human nature—replete with strengths and weaknesses, self-centered pursuits and dogged determination in the company of tragedy. A character’s inner conflict is what invokes honesty.

Margaret Mitchell imbued Scarlett, a multi-dimensional character, with a clearly defined goal—to win Ashley’s heart, and then to save Tara and win Rhett Butler back. We watched Scarlett’s desires unfold and change and deepen, along with the setting in which she found herself.

How does an author draw truth out of a character? We saw it with Scarlett. It’s through the fascination and friction inherent in human relationships (fictional ones included) that reveals true character. And that’s true whether those secondary characters are love interests, antagonists, sidekicks, or mentors. They provide a means for readers like you and me to see the main character’s vulnerabilities and strengths.

As I plan a story, I have to determine what it is that my main characters want. What must he or she achieve or overcome? Why? Where lies their motivation? What is at risk if he or she doesn’t meet their goal? What will happen if their objective changes?

Two Brides Too Many tells the story of Kat and Nell, two sisters who came out west from Portland, Maine as mail order brides. What drove them to make that choice? In Too Rich for a Bride, Ida the oldest Sinclair sister arrived in Cripple Creek with the dream of being a businesswoman. What planted that dream in her?

If I “flesh out” the character and her journey and outcome, I find myself writing truth in fiction.

ACTION

The story consists of a series of actions inspired by a character’s goal and motivation, driven by his or her interactions with others, and deepened by the roadblocks they face, which may in part be inherent to the setting they find themselves in.

For instance, Two Brides Too Many is set in a mining camp on the southwestern slopes of Pikes Peak in 1896. In that time period, most of those towns were still made of wood. Those that were went up in flames at least once and, most of them, many times before the town’s people chose to rebuild using brick and stone. Kat Sinclair encounters one of those fires in Cripple Creek, which serves as a key plot point in her journey, fueling action on her part and on the secondary characters with whom she interacts.

Basically, plotting is the action a character takes to overcome the obstacles and work through the conflict that stands in the way of him or her reaching their goal. Gone with the Wind is resplendent with such action.

THEME

I want my readers to discover truth about themselves, the world, God, and others as they relate to and interact with my characters. The theme provides the walk-away value in the story. What central truth do I want my readers to recognize in the setting, the characters, and the action and take with them when they close my book?

My job then is to develop my characters fully and allow them to struggle naturally and passionately, letting my theme emerge out of the “realness” of the characters’ situations.

Margaret Mitchell didn’t break into the story to tell us the themes of Gone with the Wind. Through setting, characters, and action, she showed us triumph over tragedy and strength in love. In Two Brides Too Many, I showed God making a way through the wilderness for those who placed their trust in Him. Ida Sinclair struggles to realize where her true priorities lie in Too Rich for a Bride. In The Bride Wore Blue, shame nearly suffocates Vivian, the youngest of the four sisters, until she learns that God’s grace is all-sufficient.

The message or moral of a story will only ring true when the characters carry the theme with them on their journey from goal through conflict to resolution.

Where is the truth in fiction? Yes, it is in the details. But it is birthed deep within the writer. I’m trying to dig deep to create stories rich in authentic settings, characters, action, and themes. Thanks for reading!

************************************************************************************************

MONA HODGSON is the author of more than thirty-two books for adults and children, including her popular Sinclair Sisters of Cripple Creek Series—Two Brides Too Many, Too Rich for a Bride, The Bride Wore Blue, and Twice a Bride (October 2012). Her children’s book titles include: Bedtime in the Southwest and six princess and desert I Can Read books. For more information about Mona and her books and for Writers Resources, visit her website at www.monahodgson.com. You can connect with Mona on Twitter and Facebook on her Mona Hodgson Author Page, https://www.facebook.com/Author.Mona.

Related posts:

1. Common Mistakes in Writing Fiction
2. Setting:More Than A Place (part 2)
3. Thirsty Thursday – Creating Characters of Faith

Don’t worry—you wouldn’t find me writing the great American novel as I drive along the interstate at 60 plus miles per hour. I don’t even jot down notes as I motor along a heavily trafficked street at a snail’s pace. I am a bad enough driver without distractions like that. No need to endanger the population any more than it already is.

While I will admit to jotting down a few things at the occasional stoplight or stop sign, the majority of my “auto writing” is done with the car off—or at least in park.

You see, I’m a busy mom, and one aspect of being a busy mom that seems unavoidable (and that, by the way, I was not expecting) is “wait time.”

For me, much, though certainly not all, of this time is spent within my vehicle.

When my daughter was in kindergarten a couple years ago, each school day at around 11, I sat in my car in a line in the parking lot of my children’s elementary school, waiting to pick her up from her half-day program. The line of cars isn’t generally very long—though the closer to dismissal time you arrive there, the more likely you’ll actually be on the main street. And, of course, the more cars there are ahead of you, the longer you will be starting and stopping as those in ahead of you receive their precious children. So, I arrived a bit early, allowing me to spend my time in solitude, in my “parked” car, often with a pen and paper in hand. There’s ten to fifteen minutes of good writing time for you!

I had the same routine mid-afternoon on the days I drove carpool for my son and another child. I’d much rather spend my ten minutes writing with the car off than in “stop and go” traffic in a lengthy line. Also not great on the gas mileage, you know?

I’ve also been known to spit out a sentence or two at a railroad crossing, while waiting for the drive-up ATM to be available, or even while waiting for my value meal. In fact, the majority of this piece itself was written while sitting in the driver’s seat of my car.

Is this the ideal method and/or timing for using this literary gift the Lord has given me: composing my thoughts in ten-minute (or less) increments? Probably not. And I must admit that I do, on occasion, get an opportunity to devote some more substantial blocks of time, in a more “writerly” setting, to my craft—though it is not often.

Yet, just because my circumstances are not ideal doesn’t mean I should wait until they are to act.

I shudder to think how much less writing I would have accomplished if I had waited until I had a “good chunk of time” before I put pen to paper (or fingers to keyboard). And if I had waited for complete silence before I started writing (which, by the way, is definitely my preference), my personal canon would be basically nonexistent. So, I do what I feel led to do, whether I feel like the circumstances are just right or not.

Look carefully then how you walk! Live purposefully and worthily and accurately, not as the unwise and witless, but as wise (sensible, intelligent people), making the very most of the time [buying up each opportunity], because the days are evil. Ephesians 5:15-16, Amplified Bible

It is like that with most things—including exercising our gifts from the Lord and doing His will. It’s easy to put off sharing Christ, for instance, because you have an appointment to keep, or to decide you weren’t really supposed to make that meal for your ill neighbor because you’d have to make that extra trip to the store you weren’t planning on. I’m sure you can come up with your own examples.

We need to remember to grab every moment of our days for His glory. We don’t need to wait until “the time is right” to exercise our gifts, or until the circumstances are in our favor. God doesn’t need perfect circumstances—or perfect people—to work through us.

Heavenly Father, I thank You for guiding me to work for You whenever I can, not just when the time seems right. Help me, Lord, to make the use of each moment of time You give me to do things for Your glory, even if it is inconvenient. Help me to use my “wait time,” and the rest of my time, wisely and to not worry about whether the circumstances are ideal. You, Lord, can make any time ideal. In the name of Jesus, your precious Son, I pray. Amen

Related posts:

1. What Do I Do While I Wait?
2. Waiting
3. Wednesday Word: Running with Purpose

The first place entry from each of the 36 Writing Challenge topics between July 2011 and June 2012 are all in contention. Only one, however, will be selected as THE Best of the Best, and awarded $300. Second place will receive $100, and third place $75.

The topic four entries for this last quarter are currently being judged – which means there are seven more opportunities to qualify for Best of the Best. So enter for this week’s topic, Weary - or some time before the tenth topic closes on June 14! You must be a gold or platinum member to enter the Writing Challenge. Click here to upgrade your membership.

As of today, we have 29 entries, from 22 writers, in contention (click here to see a complete-as-of-today list). For the next eight Mondays, I’ll be sharing a handful of contenders. Every one of them is excellent (first place, after all). I hope you’ll check them out over the next couple months and see which one YOU think is the best of the best! And on the NINTH Monday, the winners will be announced here on the blog (and at the FaithWriters site the day before, on July 1)

Here are the first four contenders: I’m starting alphabetically, by the author’s last name.

Just a Little Farther Still by Amanda Brogan (topic was ACHIEVEMENT)
http://www.faithwriters.com/wc-article-level4-previous.php?id=42137

Holy Hair Dressers by Nancy Bucca (topic was APPOINTMENT)
http://www.faithwriters.com/wc-article-editors-previous.php?id=41788

The Reason This Car Has No Rearview Mirrors by Nancy Bucca (topic was DON’T LOOK BACK)
http://www.faithwriters.com/wc-article-editors-previous.php?id=42336

Upload Complete by Allison Egley (topic was DOWNLOAD/UPLOAD)
http://www.faithwriters.com/wc-article-editors-previous.php?id=41237

What do you think of these entries? Are you tempted/encouraged to give the Writing Challenge a try?

Related posts:

1. More Best of the Best contenders!
2. 2nd Quarter 2011 Best of the Best Contenders
3. Final Best of the Best Contenders

By Jennifer Slattery

As an editor-for-hire working under Tiffany Colter, I see a lot of writing—good writing, beginning writing, and all stages in between. I’ve learned, most often, strong books and stories are but a few tweaks away. Today I’ll offer a few freebies—some snippets I share with paying clients—on how to take your writing from good to great.

1. Give your reader credit.

As writers, we want to make sure our reader understands what we’re trying to say, catches the foreshadowing, correctly reads the intended emotion, so we slam them with an abundance of colorless words. Then we repeat the idea again. And again. And again. There’s nothing worse than reading something numerous times, even if it’s presented in a new way. Give your readers credit and expect them to pick up on your message the first time. Most of them will catch the frown, the shift, the narrowed eyes, the chill breeze, and will feel quite proud at having done so.

For non-fiction, keep similar ideas lumped together and present them in a concise and clear manner. After each chapter, ask yourself: “What information or idea does this paragraph provide and have I already presented that in a previous chapter or section?” If so, delete. (Starting with an outline is imperative!) When writing chapter summaries, remember you’ve already sufficiently expanded on the idea. Now’s not the time to rephrase everything, but instead, to briefly recap key points.

2. Be original.

This applies to big-picture content as well as words and phrases. Avoid clichés and find unique ways to phrase things instead. I’ve read about enough stomach flutters and racing pulses to give me a migraine. The occasional stomach upset is okay, but skilled writers go beyond the common descriptions, perusing psychological sites and body language books to find other equally telling, less clichéd physiological responses.

Speaking of originality, take the time to add unexpected twists to your books or novels. Scan your local newspaper, stalk your neighbors—whatever you need to do to move out of the Sunday School classroom into an area not yet explored. And keep me guessing. If I know what you’re going to say or how the conflict will resolve before I finish the book, why do I need to finish it? This can be difficult for novel writers. When crafting a novel, the writer needs to move the story toward an emotionally satisfying ending. But you still need to keep the reader guessing. As your hero and heroine move toward happily-ever-after, throw a few obstacles in their way. Create a reader expectation, then flip things. Give them a reason to turn that next page…otherwise they won’t.

3. Address a felt need.

This is true for novel and non-fiction writing. If you want people to talk about your books, articles, and blog posts (i.e., if you want to generate a book-selling buzz), you need to hit readers where it counts—at their heart. What do people long for and how can you bring that into your writing? For fiction, it’s often best to have one of your main characters struggle with that need. For example, your hero could be nearing a mid-life crisis. What does he need? Purpose? A dream to believe in? Something to live for? Or perhaps your heroine is lonely, or lugging around baggage and longing for freedom.

But again, don’t slam your reader over the head with this. “Jane longed for freedom from the emotional scars plaguing her….” Gag! Instead, weave hints throughout your novel, perhaps a glance toward a fun-loving couple, a tear after reading an emotive poem, a sifting through old mementos. And remember, you’ve got an entire novel to introduce your characters to your readers. By itself, each clue may seem insignificant, but over the course of a story, they paint a vivid picture. Be creative and contemplative, asking yourself what events, scenes, or objects can convey whatever emotion or need you’re trying to express.

For non-fiction writing, there are two ways to address a felt need. You can either tell your story, including your struggles and lessons learned along the way, or you can create a point-by-point informative book that presents a problem (loneliness, fear, anxiety, depression) then provides step-by-step solutions or aids. Regardless, the information presented needs to have value *to the reader*. It needs to move beyond a personal life history essay, because honestly, unless you’re Steven Curtis Chapman or Michael Jordan, no one cares.

4. Connect the dots for your reader.

You’ve got a story to tell, one you believe can inspire and encourage others, one with significant meaning to you. Unless you find ways to connect your readers, to show them how your story relates to their life, your account will be little more than a “What I did last summer” essay. Boring! This points back to that *felt need* and requires a bit of work—of knowing your audience.

5. Make sure every word packs a punch.

The best writing is clear and concise. Why take two paragraphs to state something that can be said in one? Why use ten words when five will do? For example, spoke softly can become whispered. Nodded her head simply nodded. Do we need to know a smile “graced her lips”? Where else would a smile appear? On her foot?

Speaking of clarity, whenever possible, use words that evoke images or stir emotions. For example, don’t tell us he sat in the shade of the tree. Name the tree so we can see it. Don’t tell us her perfume smelled sweet. Describe the scent so we can smell it. The young child you describe resting in his mother’s arms, is he a toddler or an infant?

In a nutshell, great writing takes work, knowledge, and perseverance. Select each word, each plot or idea, carefully, and take the time to get to know your reader. Address a felt need and do so with creativity, immersing your reader in your book and giving them every reason to turn that next page. Doing so will add punch and emotive value to your work which in turn will create a loyal readership.
***********************************************************************************************

Jennifer Slattery lives in the midwest with her husband and their teenage daughter. In 2009 she won the HACWN writing contest in the book category, and placed second in the 2010 Dixie Kane writing contest in the inspirational category. She placed fourth in the 2010 Golden Pen and third in the 2010 Christian Writers Guild Operation First Novel contest.

She writes for Christ to the World Ministries, The ACFW Journal, The Christian Pulse, Internet Cafe Devotions, and Jewels of Encouragement. Working under Tiffany Colter, the Writing Career Coach, Jennifer enjoys helping other writers strengthen their manuscripts through critiques and beta-reads. She also co-hosts Living by Grace, a modern-day “meet at the well” Facebook community. Visit her online athttp://jenniferslatterylivesoutloud.com.

Related posts:

1. Tuesday Tips and Teaching: Building Your Writing Platform
2. Tuesday Tips and Teaching: Insulting the Readers
3. Tuesday Tips and Teaching: Writing Christian Articles – 10 Tips to Get You Started

The Amy Foundation’s purpose is to encourage just this kind of influence in the mainstream media. As FaithWriters explores the possibility of working together with this group, we’d like to share with you FaithWriters a bit more about this organization, and some of the benefits it can have for you.

JOANNE SHER: Tell us about the Amy Foundation.

AMY FOUNDATION: Amy is the daughter of Jim and Phyllis Russell. She was born with Down Syndrome. The Russells dedicated Amy to the Lord when she was born, thanking him for creating her just the way she was. They set up the Foundation for the purpose of sharing the fruits of their growing business with Christian causes, and named it in honor of Amy. It was established in 1976.

JOANNE: Your foundation is best known for the Amy Writing Awards. Can you tell us a bit about that?

TAF: Amy Writing Awards, which first began in 1985, are a call for writers to present biblical truth reinforced with scripture in secular, non religious publications, including traditional print and online media. First prize is $10,000 with a total of $34,000 given annually to authors of 15 award winning articles.

The original and ongoing purpose of the Amy Writing Awards is to disciple by encouraging writers to use scripture in articles relevant to current issues and events. Through articles that appear in the secular media, Biblical truth is presented to millions of readers who might otherwise not be familiar with a Biblical perspective.

For 27 years, thousands of authors have been encouraged by way of more than $800,000 distributed in cash awards to use scripture in their writing. Approximately 20,000 qualified articles have been submitted for the Amy Writing Awards.

JOANNE: What a wonderful opportunity for us to be “rewarded” for spreading the Gospel! What can FaithWriters members do to help?

TAF: Writers at FaithWriters can help in evangelizing and discipling by citing Biblical truth reinforced by at least one passage of scripture in their articles, securing placement of articles in the secular media including online, and submitting published articles for the annual Amy Writing Awards. Guidelines for the Amy Writing Awards can be found at our website.

The Amy Writing Award winners for 2011 were announced just yesterday! Be sure to check them out.

Have YOU had an article published in a secular publication, print or online, this year? Do you have one in the works? Check out the guidelines to see if you could qualify to enter it in the 2012 Amy Writing Awards competition.

Related posts:

1. 8 Simple Steps to Writing a Devotional
2. FaithWriters’ Writing Courses

CRAIG DRESSLER’s short Christian historical novel, Standing Elk, is now available. CONGRATS!

A church in Arizona chose LILLIAN RHODES‘ book, When Youth Fades: Don’t Wither on the Vine – How To Celebrate Life after 60 for a nine week course in their Life and Character Study Curriculum. EXCITING!

NANNETTE TRON’s poem, Matt Like Lightening, was published in the Stars From The Hearts Poetry Book. SUPER!

FRANK CREED just signed with Splashdown Books. His third book in The Underground series, Devil’s Hit List, is slated for an October release. FABULOUS!

WANDA NELSON’s first book, God’s Peace Pact, is officially published and on the market. GREAT!

MARIJO PHELPS’ second book, Journey With Jesus, My Incredible Lord, is scheduled for release in June. WONDERFUL!

JASON PLASSARD’s children’s book, Happypotomus is now available for Kindle and Nook, and should be available in paperback on Amazon in the next few weeks. FABULOUS!

MICHAEL AUBRECHT’s newest book, You Stink!: Major League Baseball’s Terrible Teams and Pathetic Players, coauthored by Eric J. Wittenberg, is now available. AWESOME!

I so love hearing about your accomplishments. Would LOVE for you to share them with me so I can post them here. Either drop me an email at joannesher@faithwriters.net, or post it in the cheering section on the FaithWriters boards – otherwise, I may not find out!

Related posts:

1. Member Shout-Outs for February
2. Member Shout-Outs for January
3. Member Shout-Outs: November

And now, Deb has offered to share some wisdom about her writing process, advice for writers, and more. Read on and learn from this author of almost 20 novels!

JOANNE SHER: Thanks for joining me, Deb. How/where do you get ideas for your books?

DEB RANEY: Everywhere! When I first started writing, I really worried that I’d run out of ideas, but I’ve learned that ideas truly are everywhere. I just needed to discover how to “mine” them. Now every newspaper or magazine article, every movie, every book I read, song I listen to or conversation I overhear sparks an idea.

JOANNE: Those ideas really are everywhere, aren’t they? How did you first get published?

DEB: I finished my first novel, sent it to some friends and readers I respected, did some editing based on their comments, then started sending it out to publishers (this was in the day before publishing houses closed their doors to unagented authors.) Within about five months, I had three different publishers offering me contracts. And two years later––almost to the day I started writing––my first novel was in bookstores. I took for granted how unusual it was for a first-time author to sell a first book. Most of my successful author friends have three or four “practice” novels in their closet. Nowadays, my recommendation to aspiring writers is to finish the book (usually a must for first-time authors to be considered by an agent) and attend as many writers conferences as you can afford to attend.

JOANNE: How do you improve your writing? Do you have a favorite/well-loved writing craft book? Class you’ve taken? Some other method?

DEB: I attend four or five writers conferences each year, usually on faculty, but I do my best to make time to attend several workshops––as a learner, not a teacher––while I’m there. Organizations like ACFW (American Christian Fiction Writers) and the Christian Writers Guild are also great ways to improve your writing skills, through their online interactions and their publications––ACFW Journal and WordSmith.

Probably one of the best ways I’ve grown as a writer is through working with my critique partner, Tamera Alexander. She and I have been critiquing each other’s work for over ten years now and we truly feel like we have an iron-sharpening-iron thing going on. Writers get so close to their own work that it’s virtually impossible to be objective about it. Having another set of skilled eyes on my work makes it exponentially better. As for craft books, Stein on Writing is my all-time favorite, followed by any of James Scott Bell’s book on writing. There is a whole list of great writing craft books on my website in the lefthand sidebar under FOR WRITERS.

JOANNE: What advice do you have for new writers?

DEB: My best advice for aspiring authors is something I wrote a few years ago for a collection one of my writers groups produced called What the Wind Picked Up:
The most valuable lesson I’ve learned about the writer’s life is that it is full of ups and downs. In your own eyes, you will never, ever “arrive.” Some months you’ll be on top and feel wonderful about how things are going; other months you’ll be sure your career is over. The sooner you accept that this is normal––and just show up at your desk anyway, day after day after day––the more likely you are to start having more ups than downs. Besides, it’s not about you anyway. Though the act of writing may be therapeutic for the writer, a book doesn’t really come to life until it’s read by someone else. If God uses your story to bring joy or comfort or reproof or wisdom to even one other life, you are a success in the eyes of the only One who matters.

JOANNE: What is your favorite part of being an author? Your least favorite?

DEB: My favorite part is interacting with readers. I’m an extrovert, so being cooped up in my office alone isn’t always my first choice. I love meeting readers––and fellow writers––at book signings and conferences, on Facebook and Twitter and anywhere else I can connect. I also love that being a writer allows me to set my own hours and take time to have lunch with my sisters or take a day off in the middle of the week (even if I have to make up the time later.)

My least favorite part of being an author is the bookwork and anything involving math. I hate keeping track of all the expenses and sales tax and other not-fun-but-necessary business aspects of writing.

JOANNE: SO glad to hear about your favorite part – I thought I might be the only extroverted writer! How do you handle writer’s block?

DEB: I’ve rarely had what I would truly call writer’s block. Yes, there are times it’s like pulling teeth to get to my desk and start getting words down, but usually once I discipline myself to get there, the words do start to flow. Nothing motivates like a deadline closing in. Making appointments to write and treating them like any other important appointment helps a lot.

When I do sit down and the words just aren’t there, I’ve learned several tricks that work, including writing “gobbledygook” (it’s always easier to edit bad writing than face the blank page) and taking a break to do something mindless like fold laundry or load the dishwasher, letting my mind work on my story all the while.

JOANNE: What does your writing process generally look like?

DEB: I’m mostly a seat-of-the-pants writer, so I don’t do a lot of plotting or planning, but as I’m researching my novel, I’m getting to know my characters and setting, and when I finally start putting words on the page, I’m always surprised how much I know about my story.

I write with a “leapfrog” style, starting each day by editing what I wrote the day before, then moving forward (usually 1000 words a day) and when I’m a third of the way through, I go back to the beginning and read through the manuscript before diving in again. It may not be the most efficient process, but it works for me.

JOANNE: Is there anything in your writing journey you wish you had done differently?

DEB: In one sense, I hate to ever say I’d do anything differently because I’ve learned from even the mistakes and trials along the way. But yes, I do wish I’d been less concerned with success and more concerned with whether I was following God’s path and plan for my life. I’m very grateful that I’ve always written for the Christian market. Researching and writing a Christian novel is a bit like going through a Bible study as I explore whatever topic my characters are dealing with. But early in my career––and even now sometimes––I spent too much time comparing myself to other authors, worrying about my sales figures, wasting time on things that really don’t matter. That’s time I can never get back. But as Paul says, “forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead.”

JOANNE: What role does the Lord play in your writing?

DEB: Because I mostly write about characters who are already Christians and who are going through a growing time, it’s very important to me to have my characters come to biblically sound conclusions. Yes, they are human and will make mistakes, but when the theme of the book reveals itself, I want to be sure my hero won’t lead my reader astray by the conclusions he or she draws (and yes, I DO know my characters aren’t real! But sometimes they feel pretty real to me!).

JOANNE: What is your latest book about? Anything in the works?

DEB: My work in progress (to be published by Howard/Simon & Schuster next spring) is called Face of the Earth, and is an exploration about what commitment in marriage really means. It’s a topic I’ve explored in several of my novels, beginning with my first, A Vow to Cherish. But it’s a topic near and dear to my heart. I’ve been blessed with parents and grandparents, siblings and in-laws who have weathered many trials in marriage and gone the distance. My parents and both sets of my grandparents enjoyed well over 50 years of marriage. My wonderful in-laws were married for over 40 years before my father-in-law’s death, and my husband’s grandparents celebrated their 81st wedding anniversary before they both passed away this past year, both at the age of 101. I have a wonderful legacy of long, happy marriages that is such an inspiration to me, and a goal I want to achieve in my own marriage––till death do us part. Almost 38 years down, but 43 yet to go if we’re to match Grandma and Grampa’s record! (That blows my mind to think about it!)

Thank you so much for inviting me to be a part of your blog today. It’s been a pleasure “chatting” with you! I’d be delighted to hear from your blog readers, and would love for them to find out more about my books on my website, blogs, Facebook and Twitter.
www.deborahraney.com
http://tinyurl.com/raneybooks
https://www.facebook.com/deborah.raney
https://twitter.com/authordebraney
novelgarden.blogspot.com

JOANNE: Thank YOU, Deb. Some wonderful advice!

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By Jeannie Campbell, LMFT

Every novel is a part of you.

No, I don’t mean in some philosophical sense that they each hold a place in your heart. I mean literally. Pieces of you—quirks, pet peeves, life experiences—are in your novels.

An unforgettable cab driver you had while on vacation pops up in a city scene. A teacher you had in junior high reappears in your YA. Your own affinity for caramel popcorn becomes a charming addiction for a main character. Your character gets worked up over the same injustice that lights your fire.

Some say this is simply writing what you know. And yes, of course they’re right. But it goes deeper than that. Writing is a way to make sense of the world you live in, the world you know.

In this way, writing is therapeutic.

In therapy, counselors often assign writing as homework to underscore an important topic from the session. Journaling can get a client to think deeper. You’re unlikely to censor what you write in a diary. Unlike a person, a journal won’t make you feel guilty for what you expressed, try to get you to change your mind or talk back to you. (If the latter happens, email me and I’ll see if I can pencil you in.)

Writing is an unadulterated form of communication to self. You write from the heart, for the heart.

And isn’t that what a book should be?

Donald Maass, in his book Writing the Breakout Novel, wrote, “…Novels change us because their authors are willing to draw upon their deepest selves without flinching. They hold nothing back, making their novels the deepest possible expression of their own experience and beliefs” (p. 39).

When you hold nothing back from your novel, there is no barrier between what is you and what is the book. The book is an extension of you—a part of you. And yes, here I do mean philosophically speaking.

I’m convinced the reasons mentioned above are why it’s so hard to take criticism from others about our “babies.” Just as our child carries our eye color or height, our books bear our likeness, our stamp, our genetics. Even the toughest-skinned parent would feel a twinge (and likely much more!) at some well-meaning, but critical, remark about their offspring.

So are you wondering now how can you write for all you’re worth—without flinching, as Maass wrote—during the editing and revision process?

The answer is YOU CAN’T. Just as severing off your baby’s finger would be painful beyond belief, so would cutting that scene or chapter or backstory dump. Switching points of view might be like swapping your toddler for another on the street because you have such an attachment to the one you gave birth to!

Of course, the analogy can only go so far. A book is NOT a flesh-and-blood child. In learning the craft, we realize a “finger,” “hand,” “torso,” or—gasp—the whole of our electronic baby is completely unusable, unpublishable, and in general, plain rubbish.

If this happens to be the case, archive these sections. Not with the hope of resurrection, but for the sake of posterity. Besides being hard to delete, the writing itself—if written from an honest, vulnerable part of your self—is still valuable therapeutically.

So hold a funeral service for those writing endeavors that didn’t make the grade. Bury them inside a graveyard file on your computer.

Then rename the file Therapeutic Writing.

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Jeannie Campbell is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (MFC # 45366) in the state of California. She is Head of Clinical Services for a large non-profit in Humboldt County, and enjoys working mainly with children and parents. Two of Jeannie’s “therapeutic romance” manuscripts have garnered the high praise of being finalists in the Genesis Contest for unpublished writers, sponsored by the American Christian Fiction Writers (ACFW), of which she is an active member. She writes a popular monthly column for Christian Fiction Online Magazine and has been featured in many other e-zines, newspapers, and blogs.

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