Last Thursday was a bad writing day. After lunch, I threw my hands in the air and suppressed a scream. I knew where the story needed to go, but I wasn't sure how to get there. I had several scenes to write before my next "sure" scene. Everything inside me…
Last weekend I was blessed to speak at Maumee Valley Romance Writers, Inc. Every January we have our annual goals discussion. The first half of my talk was about basic goal-setting: taking time to think about professional, health, emotional and personal goals for the year and deciding how and when…
I'm so pleased to have author Barbara M. Britton as my guest today! Barbara writes Christian fiction, and her new book Jerusalem Rising: Adah's Journey releases December 1! More information is below. :) How a Tech-Challenged Author Navigates a 21st Century Marketing World I’ll be honest. Technology scares me. I grew up…
You're nearing the end of a writing session, and you're in the zone. The words are hopping onto the page--it's as if they're writing themselves. Isn't that the best feeling? Zone writing is fast and delicious. But it often lacks layers, and these layers affect the pace. When I write…
I've read several great blog posts about writing lately. I'm not always great about reading blogs, but when I do, I'm amazed at the timely content. I figured you'd be interested in them, too, so I'm sharing them here! Amy Green, fiction publicist at Bethany House Publishers, was…
Today we're talking about continuous learning. I’ve studied dozens of books on various aspects of writing, and these are the ones I return to again and again. I'm always on the lookout for new books to help my career, and I'm happy to share. If you’re interested in taking your…
I just started writing the second book in the upcoming Wyoming Cowboys series. I had a strong grasp on the general plot before typing the opening line, but there were many things I didn't know (and still don't!) about the story. As I brainstormed possible scenes and reasons for them…
2017 has been a year of changes for me. Most of the changes have been little, but hey, small steps equal steady progress. One of the things I'm doing is tracking my progress in two areas. I created a year-at-a-glance spreadsheet that can be used for any goal. I'm tracking…
Creative Sessions = Dedicated time to problem solve, plot, explore ideas. In the past two weeks I've read two nonfiction books that made a big impact on me. The first was The Wright Brothers by David McCullough and the second was Deep Work: Rules for Focused Success in a Distracted World by Cal…
Today Nicole Deese is graciously answering questions about her writing life. Nicole writes sweet romance novels, and I had the pleasure of meeting her at the ACFW conference this summer. Her new release, The Promise of Rayne, just released! Don't worry--I have all the links and info below. Let's get to it!…