DRIVE: A Book Review by Kathryn Dover (and a Giveaway!)
When I first heard about the Baker Mountain series by Joyce Moyer Hostetter, Drive, the fourth book in the series, sounded the most interesting. Drive occurs several years after the previous novel, Comfort, and follows the story of Ida and Ellie Honeycutt, Ann Fay’s younger twin sisters. REVIEW The cover of Drive is stunning; the […]
Elements of Parable Writing
Whenever I come up with an idea, I immediately start planning my next novel. With my latest project however, I have learned to practice the art of shorter stories, or in my case, parables. A parable is “a simple story used to illustrate a moral or religious lesson.” As you know, the Bible is full […]
Writing Resources: Before and After the Book Deal by Karley Conklin
“Remember that ‘author’ is always a temporary job description . . . Your permanent job description is ‘writer’ and that’s what you are even when no one else is looking.” —Author Kristoper Jansma (quoted in Before and After the Book Deal, pp. 333) Today’s publishing world offers a plethora of writing resources. A simple search […]
Why I’m excited for the Writing Fiction Master Class (and why you should be too)! by Jean Hall
Write2Ignite’s Writing Fiction Master Class is coming up Sept. 19! In just two weeks, author Joyce Moyer Hostetter will be presenting three sessions to help attendees learn more about fiction writing. Plus, the Write2Ignite team will be leading three workshops to help you apply the skills you learn during Hostetter’s sessions. Last year, I had […]
5 Tips for Using and Understanding Literal and Metaphorical Language, Part III by Deborah DeCiantis
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, […]
Have You Found Your Writer’s Voice? by Jarm Del Boccio
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 […]
5 Tips for Using and Understanding Literal and Figurative Language Part II by Deborah DeCiantis
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 […]
Life’s Traffic Lights
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 […]
COMFORT: A Book Review by Kathryn Dover (and a Giveaway!)
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 […]
Pebbles and the Importance of Illustrations
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. […]