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Writing While Parenting: Balancing It All

Writing, it seems, has historically been at odds with parenthood. The two tend to want to take over their hosts, consuming all of their time, energy, and creativity. Being a full-time parent means putting yourself on hold, answering to tiny voices and listening to their stories. Their whims become your quests, and the pebbles in […]

Lent for Christian Writers

Filed in Ask the Editor, Writing Tips by Amy Sleper on March 6, 2017 • 2 Comments

The season of Lent has a rich history in the Christian tradition, calling for believers to prepare for Easter and meditate on Christ’s sacrifice on the cross. As writers, our work always calls for observation and reflection of the events, emotions, people, and scenes around us. So how can we allow this rich period of […]

How To Write Romantic Relationships (Without Getting Cheesy)

Filed in Ask the Editor, Writing Tips by Elaine Retty on March 1, 2017 • 0 Comments

I love a good story with some romantic element. It has a way of sweeping me into the characters’ lives and drawing me deeply into their trials and triumphs. Of course there are books that focus on romance as their main genre, but a solid romantic relationship can add dimension to almost any story. The […]

Describing Characters: What You Are Doing Wrong?

Filed in Ask the Editor, Writing Tips by Elaine Retty on January 20, 2017 • 0 Comments

Everyone wants to write characters who feel like living, breathing people. After all, that is how readers connect with them, feel for them, and eventually love or hate them—our ultimate goal. Whether you are trying to adequately describe real people, like your parents in your autobiography, or you are creating characters from scratch, such as […]

New Year’s Resolution: Tackling the Blank Page

Filed in Author Inspirations, Writing Tips by Elaine Retty on December 30, 2016 • 4 Comments

We have all been there: that white document glowing in your face, only marked with a flashing cursor simply ticking off the seconds that you aren’t writing—that you are allowing your idea to tuck further inside of you, away from the fate that waits on the page. You have your idea, that little seed of […]