All right, I admit it. This page is from way back when I used to write on the typewriter. Pre-computer days. The dark ages. But I kept this and used to carry it with me when I did school talks to demonstrate to the kids that editing is vital to making your story readable. I never did the cut and …
On my Facebook author’s page last week I mentioned I would be editing my galleys for my next Shaker book this weekend. Someone asked me what exactly that meant. What did I have to do when I edited a book. So I told her I’d post a blog about editing. Of course we all know about editing our work, our …
Do you ever have trouble taking too much out on your plate? You know you’ll never be able to eat it all or you know you shouldn’t eat it all if you ever want to be happy again reading the numbers on your bathroom scales. I don’t have too much trouble with dipping out too much food on my plate …
When I first started writing back in the dark ages – well, maybe not that long ago but well before the electonic age – I typed my first stories on a manual typewriter with carbon copies. I had strong fingers and correcting mistakes on those carbon copies developed my patience or drove me completely bananas. There was no e-mail or …
“An expert is someone who tells you why you can’t do something.” Alec IssigonisOne afternoon last week I was working away in my office with everything humming along. Then I went for a walk and when I got back the electricity to my office and all that part of the house was off. We tripped all the breakers in the …
My grandkids love stories. They like to have them read to them. As soon as they start learning the words, they like to read stories. And they like to be told stories. It doesn’t matter how impromptu the story is or whether it has plot holes. They just love to hear somebody tell them a story. ~~ And everybody has …
One of the best things about writing for the inspirational market is the other writers I’ve met and how they always seem to be smiling and glad to hear about your successes. Or if things aren’t going so well for you, to offer a sympathetic ear and a caring offer to pray about whatever problem might be bothering you. Here …
“Today is the first day of the rest of your life.” That quote is on a refrigerator magnet my daughter brought home years ago. We’ve had a lot of new years and new days since then, but that doesn’t make the saying any less true. There’s also the saying about yesterday being gone, tomorrow is not here and all we …
Everybody likes getting gifts and most people do a lot of gift giving and getting at Christmas time. I hope your gifts this year all made you smile, but what was your best gift ever? Just for fun that’s what I asked readers to tell me when they entered my last giveaway. Sometimes it’s good to remember Christmases past to …
“What we are is God’s gift to us. What we become is our gift to God.” (Eleanor Powell) ~~ Are you a good gift getter? This little granddaughter of mine is. She was happy over every gift – even a toothbrush and a stocking stuffer box of character inspired band-aids. Here she’s happy about some princess pjs. And how about …