Promo

Prelude to Praise: A Word of Testimony is a fictionalized autobiography. This tale of inspirational fiction chronicles the life of the author through her natural and spiritual transformations, exposing the life of a Christian for what it is: a veritable roller coaster ride with valuable lessons embedded in every twist. This story confirms for every believer that "a bend in the road is not the end of the road . . . unless you fail to make the turn." (Anonymous)

Available for sale: Spring 2008

A Guide to Getting Started

This checklist of basic advice – and tips for translating the advice into action – will help you keep your newborn writing career moving in the right direction during its critical early years. As you progress, you will discover what works for you and what tips you’ll want to pass on to future new writers. Until then, post this page in your permanent writing area. Which brings us to Tip #1 . . .

SET ASIDE AN AREA WHERE YOU WRITE
If space is cramped, a card table in the corner of a bedroom is okay. Separate the space from the rest of the room with a folding screen. The best desk may still be a door laid over a pair of sawhorses.

INVOLVE YOURSELF WITH WRITING
To locate a writing class, contact a local university’s continuing education office. To locate a local writer’s group, check with a university’s English or journalism departments, or check with area libraries. To locate writers’ conferences in the U.S. and Canada, try searching online or take a look at some of the links on this page. If you have friends that are interested in writing, you may also want to come together to form your own support group, just be sure that it includes critique.

EQUIP YOURSELF WITH THE TOOLS OF A WRITER
Use a keyboard that produces clean, readable type. Even if you choose to write freehand initially, you will need a laptop or desktop and a decent printer to produce a manuscript that will not end up in a publishers trash can. An excellent set of reference books comes from Merriam-Webster: Webster’s 9th New Collegiate Dictionary, Collegiate Thesaurus, Dictionary of English Usage and Standard American Style Manual.

READ
Read general books critically: study characterizations, plotting, tension, and use of detail. Begin your writing library with these six books: On Writing Well, by William Zinnser (HarperCollins); Storycrafting, by Paul Darcy Boles (WD Books); Working Days: The Journals of “The Grapes of Wrath”, by John Steinbeck, edited by Robert DeMott (Viking); On Becoming a Novelist, by John Gardner (HarperPerennial); The Elements of Style by William Strunk, Jr., E.B. White, and Roger Angell (Allyn & Bacon); and The Art and Craft of Feature Writing, by William E. Blundell (NAL).

PUT WORDS ON PAPER
Loosen up by beginning each writing session with five minutes of freewriting. Write whatever comes into your head; don’t stop writing until the five minutes pass. Don’t revise while you write. Complete the work first; then revise. This is best done freehand, but could work on a computer as well.

WRITE EVERY DAY
Writing is more than just a hobby. If you desire it to be a discipline, you must exercise discipline in honing your craft. Wake yourself up an hour early and spend the time writing. Many writers find the early morning hours the most productive. Carry a notepad. Jot down ideas while stuck in traffic, in line, or on hold. A small tape recorder may also serve this purpose well. Most recently, digital voice recorders have become a valuable tool for writers.

DECIDE WHAT TYPE OF WRITER YOU WANT TO BE
The type of writing that you like to read is probably the type of work you’re best prepared to write. Write about what you know. Use your profession, family, hobbies, family activities and experiences to suggest writing topics.

THINK SMALL
Hone your fiction-writing talent with short stories before attempting a novel; write articles before trying a book. Build your confidence by submitting to local or regional publications. The competition is usually less fierce than at national publications.

PUT YOUR WORK IN THE MAIL
Always include a self-addressed, stamped envelope (SASE) with your manuscripts and correspondence. Keep several pieces in the mail and a new work on your hard drive or disk at all times.

EXPECT TO BE REJECTED
Remember: A rejection is nothing more than one person’s opinion of one piece of writing. Examine returned manuscripts from the editor’s viewpoint: Look for the problems that the editor saw.