Most writers are aware of the axiom – write what you know. That certainly is the case for character development. When we start out, we tend to create characters that are like us. That might work for the first or second book, but eventually it gets to be boring and repetitious. We need to create […]
Read More
Writing a journal is generally recognized as a helpful, healing, process. This can take many forms from a daily diary, a dream journal, a gratitude journal, a travel journal or an artistic journal. However, what is the difference between these journals and a spiritual journal? And what are the benefits of writing a spiritual journal? […]
Read More
When I started in ministry, over forty years ago, I decided I was in it for the long haul. I watched others more talented than I, burn through and burn out. They gave non-stop, never bothering to recognize their own needs or set boundaries against the ever-present demands of ministry. They usually left after three […]
Read More
As a life-long learner, I love the research involved with writing a book, whether fiction or non-fiction. Some books require more research than others. That was the case with my latest book, Amazing. Or, as I wrote in my blog post about the research I did for An Irish Slip Step, 1000 Pages of Research […]
Read More Was I a better writer in high school than I am now? I know it may seem like the answer should be obvious. Of course I’m a better writer now than I was in high school. I’ve been at it for so long, have learned so much over the course of the years, not just […]
Read More
In November of 2013, I wrote the first book in what was to become my Dancing Through Life Series. I had no idea at the time that this book would lead to eleven other books. Here I am, seven years later with nine books published and three more in various stages of the writing process. […]
Read More
Hemingway is reputed to have said, write drunk, edit sober. From my experience with NaNoWriMo the past eight years, I’ve got a different take on this. Writing provides its own type of high, with unexpected dangers – hence, driving under the influence of writing! Driving Under the Influence of Writing I thought of this while […]
Read More The most wonderful time of the year is near. No, not Christmas, but November–National Novel Writing Month. A time when writers throughout the world attempt to write 50,000 words. What’s even better, there is no failing NaNoWriMo. My Experience with NaNoWriMo I was first introduced to NaNoWriMo seven years ago. At the time I had […]
Read More
Dying is easy, comedy is hard – or, in my case, writing comedy is hard. The quote, first found in the 1982 movie featuring Peter O’Toole, “My Favorite Year,” is attributed to both Edmund Kean, a Shakespearean actor, and Edmund Gwenn, known for his role as Santa Claus in “A Miracle on Thirty-Fourth Street.” (for […]
Read More
Don’t you love it when writing takes you to unexpected places? This is certainly the case for the novel I started for NaNoWriMo 2019. Josie It started several years back when I went to the library for a writers’ round-table, expecting, duh, a round-table discussion. The previous month had been a presentation by a local […]
Read More
