The Power of Repetition by Emily Babbitt
I hadn’t been to church since February, and I was starting to feel disconnected from God. During my first week back in a sanctuary, God spoke to me through a literary device — repetition. My church stopped hosting in-person services at the beginning of March because of COVID-19, and I’d missed a few weeks before […]
Bird By Bird: A Timeless Writing Resource by Karley Conklin
“‘So why does our writing matter again?’ they ask. Because of the spirit, I say. Because of the heart. Writing and reading decrease our sense of isolation. They deepen and widen and expand our sense of life: they feed the soul.” –Anne Lamott, pp. 237 Bird by Bird by Anne Lamott should be on every […]
Write Through the Pain: The Why, How, and Results
“All the best parts of art come from pain turned to celebration.” -Natalia Kills When life’s circumstances put you in a rut, a hole, or even a deep pit of despair and loss, we have a powerful tool at our disposal: our writing. Pain is a universal aspect of life that visits all who dwell […]
Finding Comfort in our Crisis with Les Misérables by Jarm Del Boccio
Do you hear the people sing? Well, no. But I do hear fears expressed and complaints a-plenty! There was trouble during the French Revolution, and there is trouble today in the form of a virus — the coronavirus. Although many are in dread of the contagious enemy, we as Christians know we have nothing to […]
Barking with The Big Dogs: Hope and Honesty for Children by Karley Conklin
“It is necessary to be hopeful to write successfully for children, yes, because children themselves are generically hopeful, but the quality of hopefulness is not an immature quality.” -Natalie Babbitt ( pp 42) Natalie Babbitt’s book Barking with the Big Dogs is a collection of her essays and speeches written over several years. In all the […]
Researching for Historical Fiction in Bath, UK by Jarm Del Boccio
I had the privilege of visiting England the last week of February — one of my favorite destinations before the coronavirus situation became a deterrent for travel. I am so grateful! Since I am a historical fiction author, researching the location in person is a real treat, as you can imagine! The day […]
Picture-Driven Stories: Learning to Think in Pictures
“A picture book illustrator needs to tell a story with pictures. A picture book author needs to show the same story with words.” –Jean Matthew Hall When I attended last year’s Write2Ignite conference, I went to Jean Matthew Hall’s discussion, What is a Picture Book. One of her main points was that a true picture book tells the […]
Do You Google? by Ava Pennington
When I was 14 years old, I won the grand prize in a contest: a set of encyclopedias. I know—not very exciting, is it? But this was in the ancient days before computers, personal or otherwise. You’d have thought I won London’s crown jewels! I was so proud of that prize. It replaced the 25-year-old […]
Writing Resources: Jumpstart Your Publishing Dreams
“This book is for you–the person who wants to be published or grow in your writing craft . . . My desire is for your writing to thrive and move into a higher gear after you read these pages.” (W. Terry Whalin, pp. 20) Writing for publication is a skill that must be learned, and […]
Find Your Writing Voice Through Guide Poets by Karley Conklin
“Imitation is not just the sincerest form of flattery – it’s the sincerest form of learning.” ― George Bernard Shaw As writers, we tend to strive for originality. We don’t want our work to be a copy of someone else’s; we want to write words that are unique. But what if I was to tell […]