• New Year, Old You: Restarting a Failed Writing Resolution. A few tips to getting back on track with your New Year's resolutions, specifically on writing.

    New Year, Old You: Restarting a Failed Writing Resolution

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      Less than two months ago, many of us took the time to write out long lists of New Year’s resolutions. We dreamed of becoming the next Bob Goff or Shauna Niequist—not only finishing the writing and publishing process, but also seeing our books at the top of bestseller lists. The reality for many, however, is strikingly different: Most New Year’s resolutions fail by the second week of February. If you haven’t touched your computer in a week or the last “date modified” on your work in progress shows you haven’t accessed the file since January—don’t fret. You can still…

  • Multiple Narrators, One Story, No Sweat!

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    You can find it in fiction, non-fiction, even in cookbooks: more than one person narrating different portions of the book to offer various perspectives, beliefs and even manners of speaking (or writing in this case). If an author were interested in utilizing multiple narrators in his/her story, there needs to be considerations made to display the differences between the narrators. You don’t want many people supposedly narrating the story, but it appear only one person is describing the events of the story. As you craft your narration, think about the ages of the narrators. One example I came across while…

  • 5 Apps & Websites That Bestselling Authors Can’t Live Without

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    Do you need help finding that perfect word, simplifying your sentences, or discovering inspiration? There is a website or desktop app to help, and they aren’t just for those tech-savvy friends who are always glued to their e-readers.Website and app developers have built some wonderfully helpful resources for you to be a better, faster, cleaner writer. It’s all the same information & research that an old-school, bestselling author relies on—right at your fingertips, in an instant, via the best apps and websites for writers. Whether you prefer a Ticonderoga or a stylus, you’ll love these new-school writing resources!   1.) Hemingway App  This…

  • True Life: Finding Creative Purpose from Life’s Struggles

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    Xulon Press employee Elizabeth Marrero talks about how God used her biggest struggle to give birth to her creative purpose — and the book she’s publishing because of it. When we moved back to the United States from Puerto Rico, I struggled with English. It was all Chinese to me (though it was English… ::kick drum, snare, high hat::). My 1st grade teacher sent a letter home one day with me – that I couldn’t read – and that night, my mom and brother sat down with me and a book. My brother pointed at one word. “Esto dice Marty.” He pointed…