Month: August 2020

5 Tips for Using and Understanding Literal and Metaphorical Language, Part III by Deborah DeCiantis

August 31, 2020

  TIP #3 Don’t avoid tough literal situations by referring to them only as metaphors. Taking literal language metaphorically is equally problematic.                         Kids can be masters of metaphor. Ask “Didn’t I tell you not to play in the mud?” and they answer, “We weren’t playing, we were making a snack for the frogs.” One child, … More 5 Tips for Using and Understanding Literal and Metaphorical Language, Part III by Deborah DeCiantis

Jarm Del Boccio's Children's Lit Bookshelf

Have You Found Your Writer’s Voice? by Jarm Del Boccio

August 27, 2020

On one of my blog posts, where I shared a “Flash Fiction” piece, a commenter had mentioned that I had “a voice”.  I can’t tell you how thrilled I was with that revelation! I kept saying to myself, over and over: “I have a voice!  I have a voice!” as if I had received the … More Have You Found Your Writer’s Voice? by Jarm Del Boccio

5 Tips for Using and Understanding Literal and Figurative Language Part II by Deborah DeCiantis

August 24, 2020

  TIP #2 Don’t interpret literally what is supposed to be understood metaphorically. Taking figurative language literally is a problem that leads to misunderstanding and misinterpretation. Does the photo above depict sunshine or shadow? A literal book title based on this image might be Sunshine on the Pages or Shadows on the Pages [When Grandpa Reads]. A nonfiction … More 5 Tips for Using and Understanding Literal and Figurative Language Part II by Deborah DeCiantis

Life's Traffic Lights

Life’s Traffic Lights

August 20, 2020

This month marks the 106th anniversary of the first electric traffic system installed in Cleveland, Ohio in 1914. Four sets of red and green lights told drivers when to stop and go. The Cleveland Automobile Club praised the system, saying they expected that it was “destined to revolutionize the handling of traffic in congested city … More Life’s Traffic Lights

COMFORT: A Book Review by Kathryn Dover (and a Giveaway!)

August 17, 2020

Comfort, the third book in Joyce Moyer Hostetter’s Bakers Mountain series, picks up almost exactly where the previous novel, Blue, left off. Ann Fay Honeycutt narrates this novel as well. The polio epidemic and World War II have left her family shattered, and Ann Fay must pick up the pieces. The beginning is intriguing, but … More COMFORT: A Book Review by Kathryn Dover (and a Giveaway!)

Pebbles and the Importance of Illustrations

August 13, 2020

How would you explain the love of God? Or the grace of a savior? How would you describe life as a Christian to a believer vs. a non-believer? I typically revert to storytelling. Why? Because of illustrations. That’s what I set out to do with my new book, Pebbles: 31 days of faith enriching parables. … More Pebbles and the Importance of Illustrations

ON WRITING PLOT: What’s the Problem? by Joyce Moyer Hostetter

August 10, 2020

  One of the most boring books I ever read was about Jesus.  Okay – to be honest, I mostly said that to get your attention – please don’t get mad and click over to Facebook! But, the truth is, I never actually finished reading Joshua by Joseph Girzone because this modern-day portrayal of Jesus … More ON WRITING PLOT: What’s the Problem? by Joyce Moyer Hostetter

Reading With My Mom by Emily Babbitt

August 6, 2020

I’ve been working from home for 21 weeks. This prolonged period of isolation has given me time to reflect on happier times in life: adventures and excitement in college, friendships forged in high school, and time spent reading with my mom as a child. Those were the good days — Mom reading to me and … More Reading With My Mom by Emily Babbitt

self-editing for fiction writers

3 Tips from “Self-Editing for Fiction Writers” by Karley Conklin

August 3, 2020

“The secret to editing your work is simple: you need to become its reader instead of its writer.”–Zadie Smith Write2Ignite’s  2020 Master class with  Joyce Moyer Hostetter is only a month away. The Write2Ignite team has suggested checking out several chapters of Self-Editing for Fiction Writers by Renni Browne and Dave King as a way … More 3 Tips from “Self-Editing for Fiction Writers” by Karley Conklin