Novel Rocket
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This may seem counter-intuitive, but here it is: You can improve your writing by taking time off to not write. Those of you who are jumping up and down right now because you think you’ve just found a new excuse for your lack of writing this week, this month, this year—“Hey! I’m on a writing
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Facing a crossroads at the moment—what step to take next and all that. I’m not all angsty over it, but I have been thinking a lot about the late Donna Summer lately, as a result. Donna Summer? The Queen of Disco? First of all, thinking about Donna Summer is not new for me. I’ve had
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Sometimes I think my idea well has run dry. The plots I dredge up are so spare they couldn’t even flesh out a flash fiction story. Can you relate? Usually what this means is I need to switch from “creative” mode to “ingestion” mode—I need more raw material to draw from. Some writers can create
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Sometimes when I’m goofing with my two dogs, Baxter and Taffy, God will snap his fingers, hold his hand over my nose, and tell me to “Sit. Stay. Listen.” And when I do, I learn valuable lessons. Almost every morning I have the same breakfast—two slices of peanut butter toast. I love peanut butter. At
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I have failed many times. Still do. In fact, I may be in the middle of one of the biggest failures of my life. And what am I facing? A lack of belief that I can succeed. What I’m doing I believe (today anyway) is what God has called me to do. But it doesn’t
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Alice in Wonderland, by Lewis Carroll, is one of my favorite books. An exchange between Alice and the Cheshire Cat perfectly illustrates the importance of goal setting. Alice asks: “Would you tell me please, which way I ought to go from here?” The cat replies, “That depends a good deal on where you want to
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I’m somewhat of a revision monkey. I love sculpting words! Which likely explains why I prefer editing to writing. So, I’m revising—again—and that means I’m reading through James Scott Bell’s excellent Revision & Self-editing—again. This is not a commercial, this is a strongly held opinion: If you don’t own this book you may not be
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This may seem counter-intuitive, but here it is: You can improve your writing by taking time off to not write. Those of you who are jumping up and down right now because you think you’ve just found a new excuse for your lack of writing this week, this month, this year—“Hey! I’m on a writing
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A couple of days ago, I reviewed Peter Leavell’s novel Gideon’s Call (Worthy Publishing). See that review. Today, over on Novel Rocket, I talk with Peter about his love for history and how it impacted not only the way he wrote the book, but also his relationship with his family. Come and visit me there–and
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I’ve been in waiting mode for years with this novel I’m writing. Waiting for me to commit the time to it (note I didn’t say find the time). Waiting for inspiration to strike. Waiting for God to extend His finger from the sky and emblazon my manuscript with the perfect words. Waiting. Yes, for these
Writing On The Fine Line 