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8 Books I Want To Read This Fall
It’s hard to believe it’s already fall! I’m more than ready for hot apple cider, sweaters, falling leaves, and all things plaid. (Others in my family are excited about all things pumpkin spice—coffee, popcorn, frosted flakes. 🤢) As the weather gets cooler (or is supposed to, here in Ohio weather gets a little wacky), not much could be better than curling up with a couple good books and a steaming mug of cider. I’ve picked out eight books I want to read before December. The Titanic’s Last Hero by Moody Adams (nonfiction) You might recognize this one from my 2019 TBR. I haven’t read it yet, but now seems…
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Celebrate Small Wins!+A Poet’s Dictionary Release!
context: The good guys (Snyder and co.) just captured one of the villains. “A crooked grin slanted across Snyder’s face. He was having too much fun. But he deserved to celebrate a victory. They all did. It was easy to forget they actually succeeded sometimes.” – Checkmate While I’m no longer working on Checkmate, I still like this quote. Why? Because it reminds me to celebrate small victories. As humans, we get so focused on the destination (getting published, graduating college, etc.), we forget the journey. The individual steps that make the path to the end. We forget the careful outlines, never-ending drafts, A+ assignments. We forget them all…
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Squirrel!–Dealing With Writing Distractions
Our dog Reese has a concentration problem. If food or a toy is involved, she’s all ears. But when it’s time to go outside for you-know-what, every single thing is a distraction. Birds. Bugs. Kids screaming at recess. Power tools. Squirrels. Those furry little creatures have captured her attention for countless hours. We often find her at the patio door, watching them scurry around. We all have our squirrels. Things that might be good, but take our attention from what really matters. Whether that is school work, Bible study, or writing, we need to learn to deal with and eliminate distractions. I get easily distracted by my…
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Windsong: A Poem
The wind makes its music in the trees, Rustling the branches, Rattling the leaves. It brushes its silvery fingers Through the grass, Across the colors, of stained window glass. It whistles its soothing tones Through the fields of green and yellow, Across the shining surface of a pond. Sometimes it turns into a lion, Ripping, roaring, tearing, Snarling, snapping, growling. It bats paper bags, Drives the rain, Snarls the trees. It swats crispy leaves, Snatches hats, Rips away homes. It blows in the storm clouds, Then brings in the sun. The wind plays its music, Sweet, wild tones In the evening. It…
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Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Writer–The Value of Practice
I love writing. I love music. So it only makes sense that I would use them to create an analogy. When someone decides to learn an instrument, say piano, they don’t expect to be as good as this when they first sit down, right? So why do we as writers sit down and expect to write like Tolkien on our third draft? Be Content With Baby Steps One of the first real songs you will play on an instrument is “Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star.” It’s nothing fantastic, but when you manage to play a recognizable tune for the first time, you have a moment of triumph. Writing is the…
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Become an Inspiration Lightning Rod
Output requires intake, and literary output requires literary intake. Wordsmithy, by Douglas Wilson, page 30. I think all of us have experienced creative burnout at some point or another in our writing journey. Whether it’s simply running out of ideas or the inability to write at all, burnout is no fun. When you face this monster, the best way to conquer it is by getting more inspiration. But finding inspiration isn’t just like sitting out in a thunderstorm and hoping to get hit by lightning. It’s more like intentionally tying yourself to a lightning rod in the middle of a storm cell. Though it’s a little less dangerous. 😉…
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Oliver Twist: A Lesson on Satisfying Endings+Meet the New Blog Mascot!
Warning: This post contains spoilers for Oliver Twist and Star Wars: A New Hope. Dickens’ classic, Oliver Twist, is a novel full of darkness and despair. But that evil is lessened by the hope found in little Oliver himself. No matter the tragedy, he maintains his sweet, hopeful innocence. Because of these incredibly dark themes, the ending needs to be bright and happy. Otherwise Dickens’ readers would be depressed for days. While I personally enjoy bittersweet endings the most, I was satisfied by the conclusion of Oliver Twist. How did Dickens pull off this “happily ever after” ending? The Good Guys Win As humans, we have God’s Law written on our…
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Taylor Writing Conference Recap!
Last weekend, my mom and I went to the Taylor University Professional Writing Conference again. We went last time and met DiAnn Mills! And as I usually do, here is a recap post (with pictures). (header image from last year) Day One We left on Friday right after an early breakfast. I drove the whole 3 hours there, including through the maze of construction. Before the first session began, Mom and I perused the book tables. While we were doing so, my friend from the last Taylor conference, Rebecca, found us. We had kept in touch and were excited to meet up again. That’s the second time this year I’ve…
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Writing is Really Hard (but also really fun)
When I was younger, I don’t know where I thought books came from. I remember being frustrated that the next book in a series wasn’t out yet and that I *gasp* had to wait. When I started writing, I was under the impression that real writers sit down at their computer with a cup of coffee, type up a couple chapters of perfect prose, and finish their book in a week or so. It all seemed so simple. I knew how to type. I knew how to construct sentences. I’d read a bunch of books. How hard could it be? Really, really hard. And if you, like me, have believed the…
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Plot Twist! A Writing Update
Good morning, friends! Just like a good book, life has unexpected turns and “plot twists.” And recently, I had one of my own. After much prayer and thought, I have decided to lay off working on Checkmate for a while. Let me explain why: When I first started writing CM, I had very little knowledge of writing. I was arrogant and rejected a lot of the advice that I received. I wanted to do it my way, so I did. They said don’t write fantasy for your first book. I wrote fantasy. They said don’t have more than one POV for your first book. I had four. They said outline,…
