Chat Try

by Edie Melson @EdieMelson It's October and in honor of Halloween, I just couldn't resist a tongue-in-cheek post about something scary. After spending the year traveling and teaching writers about blogging, I have plenty of fears to share. Lest you think this is me pointing fingers, let me reassure you. EVERY single one of the things listed has been something I've done/struggled with at some point.  Remember, none of us is born knowing how to do this stuff. So lets laugh at our phobias together! 9 Scariest Things About Blogging 1. Trying to come up with a title. I know that the title of a blog post has a huge impact on whether someone can find it in a Google search. Truthfully, I spend as much time coming up with a title as I do writing a post.  2. Search Engine Optimization. Once I figured out how to do it, it was easy. But it just sounds super technical and super scary.  3. Worrying that no one will see my post. Growing a blog audience does take time. But when we take tim

by Edie Melson @EdieMelson �The Lord your God is in your midst, A victorious warrior. He will exult over you with joy, He will be quiet in His love, He will rejoice over you with shouts of joy. Zephaniah 3:17 For many years, I prayed and spoke to God from behind a wall of misapprehension. I used to categorize my requests to God into two lists. Those that were big things and those that were small things. I tried to only bother Him with the big things. When I shared my prayer requests with others, I was careful not to bring up requests that I�d decided were minor. I knew that nothing was too big for God, and I�d even share that thought with others who were struggling. And while this is an absolute truth, it leaves out so much. Then one day I had an epiphany. With God, no matter how big the request, it�s still small to Him.  That bit of revelation took me a few days to process. But as the truth of it permeated, so did the freedom that came with it. My attempt to differentiate between big

by Edie Melson @EdieMelson There are a lot of ways to promote our books:  Launch teams (sometimes known as street teams) Paid ads (like BookBub or other outlets) Facebook parties Launch events and signings Interviews Blog posts The list goes on and on. The question tends to be less about what we CAN do than what we SHOULD do.  This isn't a post that claims to have all the answers. I just want you to be aware of another way to promote your book�Facebook groups. I found out about the value of this through my friend, Cynthia Cavanaugh . Cynthia has an active Facebook group�Live Bold. She asked if she could use my newest book, Soul Care When You're Weary, as a group study during the month of August.  Of course I didn't even hesitate to say yes. But I had no idea what a boost that would give my book as it launched.  The image I shared on social media about my event. Did it Help? It catapulted the book to the top of its Amazon lists, where it stayed for several weeks. So yes, it

by Lori Hatcher @LoriHatcher2 I hope by now you�ve watched the movie  I Can Only Imagine , which tells the story of Bart Millard, MercyMe�s lead singer�s relationship with his father. A hauntingly beautiful tale about pain and forgiveness, the film�s central message displays God�s ability to redeem the most broken situation and soften the hardest hearts.  Screenwriters used the history of the now wildly-successful Christian band as a backdrop for the primary theme. Since its inception, MercyMe has produced six gold albums and 13 consecutive top 5 singles on the Billboard Christian Songs chart, with seven of them reaching No. 1. The band has won 8 Dove Awards and many Grammy Award nominations.   But MercyMe hasn�t always been successful. And while success finally did come, it didn�t come overnight. Or easily. These truths combine to produce the secondary ribbon woven through the story�perseverance.  When Bart Millard felt God call him to use his musical gifts and talents for the Lord, h

by Henry McLaughlin @RiverBendSagas As you know from previous posts, I have a heart condition. A serious one. And sometimes it�s tempting to give in to it, to pamper myself, to let it limit my experiences and enjoyment of life. But I don�t. I want to live to the fullest, to enjoy all God has for me. I take care of myself and listen to my wife and the medical team around me so I don�t do stupid. But I won�t let the condition hamper me. Sometimes, I�ve been tempted to give up on writing because of what seems to be insurmountable obstacles and limitations. Building a platform, maintaining a presence on social media, being an active marketer seem beyond my reach at times. Poor sales of my indie books drags at me. Finding an agent seems to have more hoops than a Hula Hoop factory and they all have to be jumped through just right. And they keep moving the hoops. Focusing on the writing itself can overwhelm some of us. Limitations on our time, family responsibilities, health concerns, and our

by DiAnn Mills @DiAnnMills Our characters are plunged into an unsteady world brimming with high stakes and a strong potential for failure. The character chooses to go after a goal or solve a problem and is determined to do whatever it takes to succeed. But does the character understand that determination and commitment mean sacrifices? How far will a hero go to ensure what he/she treasures is happy and safe? One of the definitions of sacrifice according to the   New Oxford American Dictionary: � an act of giving up something valued for the sake of something else regarded as more important or worthy.� We writers understand our heroes and heroines must be prepared to give everything they have unselfishly, even their lives. But how do we show a sacrifice without telling the reader what is happening? I�ve heard that stories are what happened, and the plot is how it happened. Sacrifices must weave story and plot through detailed characterization. Only  your hero can make the needed sacrific

by Eva Marie Everson @EvaMarieEverson In his book,  Unless It Moves the Human Heart,  Roger Rosenblatt makes a thought-provoking statement:  Writing is the cure for the disease of living. The book is an exploration into the journey of a class Rosenblatt taught titled �Writing Everything� and these are among the words he spoke to his students. He went on to say, �Doing it may sometimes feel like an escape from the world, but at its best moments it is an act of rescue.� How true �  Just recently, as I spoke with a fellow writer/author-person, we commiserated on how, with the ink dried on our literary contracts, we are often forced to work in spite of wanting to do nothing but crawl into the bed, draw the covers over our heads, and sleep the days away.  �But,� I said, �In a way, when I am writing fiction, I get to live out someone else�s life. Their misery. Their joy. I cannot control the rudder of my own boat at times, but I am always in control of my characters�.�  Yes, there is that  t

by Ane Mulligan @AneMulligan Let�s face it, pictures are worth ... yeah, yeah, a lot. There are many kinds of memes: funny ones, political ones, life commentaries, inspirational ones, and more. But for this post, I�m focusing on book promotion and author promo. I love to use memes to promote my books. I�ve learned a lot about them over the last few years.  Five Tips about Making Memes 1. Software You don�t have to have high-priced software. If you use a Mac, Swift Publisher 5 is a $40 program. I love this program. I even make the banners we use in our Community Theatre with this program. Other good resources are PicMonkey or Canva. There are free versions and paid versions. There are other online resources as well as other software like Adobe photoshop.  If you have a favorite, share it in the comments! 2. Free Photos Be sure you use photos that are not copyrighted. Some resources are pixabay.com, pexels.com, morguefile.com. There are others. Be sure to check them carefully. I use Pixa

by Rhonda Rhea @RhondaRhea For me, coffee isn�t quite strong enough until it holds the spoon up by itself. I like it when it�s somewhere close to chewy. Coffee you can sink your teeth into. That�s perfection. I�ve heard you can tell a lot about people by the way they take their coffee. Me? I�m all in. Full strength with everything added. A lot of everything. When I order coffee at a restaurant and the waitress asks if I would like cream, I usually tell her yes and that she should bring enough for my four or five friends that I�m not expecting to show up. So if it�s true that you can tell a lot about people by their coffee, one of the things mine says about me is that it�s unlikely I�ll ever have to worry about osteoporosis. When it comes time to add the sweeteners, I ask my friends, real and imaginary, to look away so I�m sure no one will see how many packet tops I�m tearing off. I confess, I drink it crazy-sweet. Coffee with dessert? How about coffee FOR dessert! Keep giving me sweete

by Cathy Fyock @CathyFyock My mother taught me that when you receive a gift, you must write a thank you note. In fact, I was not being allowed to play or even leave the writing table until my thank you notes were written. Mother�s advice still holds true: it�s important to say �thank you,� especially once your book is written. You needed the help of others during this experience, and your �Acknowledgements� page should honor all those who supported you in this journey. Who should you thank? Consider these who may have contributed to your book. Possible Acknowledgement List Work colleagues and staff.  Did you have members of your staff conducting research, re-reading your manuscript, or providing valuable feedback?  Clients.  Did you learn invaluable lessons from your clients? Did you use some of their experiences in your book to illustrate key points? Mastermind groups.  Did your peers cheer you on and encourage you during this process?  Editor.  Writers are never able to edit their ow