Inspiring Quote of the Day

I love this quote: "You will make all kinds of mistakes: but as long as you are generous and true and also fierce, you cannot hurt the world or even seriously distress her."

-Winston Churchill

Speaking and Book Signings

I just returned from Indiana, where I was blessed to have a fantastic time visiting with my parents, family and friends. I had the opportunity to visit several of my teachers from my high school, Terre Haute South. That meant so much to me! Isn't it remarkable the influence that a teacher can have in a student's life? I doubt if I would even be a writer today if it hadn't been for the powerful encouragement of several of my teachers. And God's grace, of course!

 

 

Recently, I've had the opportunity to speak in several different venues on the topics that Dillon Burroughs and I researched for our new book, Generation Hex, which will be released by Harvest House publishers in August. We're thrilled about the interest in this book! Our goal for the book was to create open dialogue with Wiccans and others of Pagan faiths in order to discover what they really believe. In the book, we share our findings and shed light on Wicca's past, its beliefs, its influence, and the rise of interest in New Age and Pagan spirituality. We include many stories and the fascinating results from hundreds of personal interviews.

 

 

Please e-mail Marla at marla_alupoaicei@yahoo.com if you would like to receive more information about having Marla speak at your church, school, women's group, book club, or writer's group. Thank you!

 

 

We're also excited about our upcoming BOOK SIGNINGS! Our next one will be held on SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 6 from 2-4 p.m. at THE OPEN DOOR CHRISTIAN BOOKSTORE IN TERRE HAUTE, INDIANA. We also plan to hold additional book signings at Books-A-Million, Barnes & Noble, Waldenbooks, Mardel, and Family Christian Stores. We will keep you posted!

Want Your Editors to LOVE You?

I'm working on a few book editing projects and thought that I'd share some editing tips for all of you authors out there. If you REALLY want to sharpen your writing, try incorporating the following elements: 

       


 






Focus on using more strong verbs and eliminating the use of "is," "are," "be," etc. This is vital to the "hook" and readability (as well as the sales!) of your book. People want to read vivid, exciting action words. They want to be entertained and to have lots of stories/description in a book. Get a thesaurus, read through your manuscript, and replace every boring verb with a powerful one. 
 

 







Eliminate the construction of "There are/there is" as the subject and verb of a sentence. Ask yourself what the REAL subject should be. There's always a way to fix this. :) Or, I should say, you can always find a way to fix this. :)   

 
 
 




Remember to add lots of sensory/emotion words to draw in your audience. Ask yourself: What did it look like? What did it sound like? What did it taste like? What did it smell like? What did it feel like? What color was it? How did the person feel? Most book buyers are women, so work hard to make that emotional connection in every paragraph. 
      
 
 





Use more stories/illustrations if possible - at least one per page. People like to read about other people. 
      
 
 





Cut down on the number of endnotes. Most publishers are leaning toward including as much info in the text as possible to make it more reader-friendly. (Most of your readers won't take the time to turn to the back of the book to look at the endnotes, anyway.) Also, include all Bible references in the text itself rather than using footnotes or endnotes for the Scripture references. 
      


 


 



       I promise that integrating these elements into your writing will make your editors fantastically happy!

Inspiring Quotations

I just received the fabulously helpful marketing book From Book to Bestseller in the mail today. It contains some great quotes for those of us of the writerly persuasion! Here are just a few of my faves:

 

       There is no elevator to success. You have to take the stairs. -Author unknown 

 

       Be yourself! Everyone else is already taken. -Author unknown

 

       If the doctor told me I had six minutes to live, I'd type a little faster. -Isaac Asimov

 

       When something can be read without effort, great effort has gone into its writing. -Enrique Jardiel Poncela

 

What do you think? Have you heard or read any other inspiring writing quotes lately? If so, please share them by posting a comment here! Thanks!

April Book Giveaway-Sign Up Now!

I've decided to offer a book this month for the guys to sign up for, too. Since MARRIAGE AND ROMANCE are our themes for this month, I will give away a new hardcover copy of the classic Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus by Dr. John Gray. Please sign up - your wife or girlfriend will thank you for it! :) 

 

The two women's books that are being offered in the drawing this month are:

       -From Blushing Bride to Wedded Wife

       -Is That All He Thinks About?

 

Both are fantastic new Christian books by Harvest House author Marla Taviano. Please post a comment here or e-mail me privately at marla_alupoaicei@yahoo.com if you want to enter the drawing for one of these three books! Thank you.

Poetry Quote of the Day

William Carlos Williams is one of my favorite contemporary poets. In addition to his exceptional giftedness as a writer and author, he excelled as a medical doctor and possessed special skill at discerning the needs of people and writing about the human condition. In one of his poems, he wrote: 

  





                   "It is difficult 

     to get the news from poems

             yet men die miserably every day 

                   for lack

         of what is found there."

                             

 

Just let that sink in for a moment. Isn't it so compelling? What are your thoughts? Please post a comment here.

Want to Win $3000?

Well, friends, it's here: the 77th Annual Writer's Digest Writing Competition, offering a grand prize of $3000 and a trip to New York to meet agents and publishers. You can enter in one or more of the following ten categories:

 

Inspirational Writing (Spiritual/Religious)
Memoirs/Personal Essay
Magazine Feature Article
Genre Short Story (Mystery, Romance, etc.)
Mainstream/Literary Short Story
Rhyming Poetry
Non-rhyming Poetry
Stage Play (*submission by mail only)
Television/Movie Script (*submission by mail only)
Children's/Young Adult Fiction

 

I hope you will take this opportunity to enter! For more information, guidelines, and a printable entry form, see the Writer's Digest website at writersdigest.com/annual. Blessings!

Hook, Grab & Pull

Hook, grab & pull - that’s how we reel in our readers and keep them engaged in our stories. Of course, like many things in life, doing this sounds easier than it actually is! The August 2007 issue of Writer’s Digest magazine contains an excellent article on this topic by Les Edgerton. He writes:

 

“The opening of your story carries an awesome responsibility. Consider this: The goals of your opening scene are:

 

     1. To successfully introduce the story-worthy problem.

     2. To hook the readers.

     3. To establish the rules of the story.

     4. To forecast the ending of the story.

 

If your opening fails to accomplish any one of these elements, then guess what - your opening will fail.”

 

Wow! If you sit there and ponder these four points for a moment, you will realize just how much skill is required to write a compelling story opening. These four points were especially enlightening to me because I’ve just begun plotting out two novels. I went back and read the opening lines of several of my favorite novels to see how each author accomplishes these four objectives in his or her writing. Try it; it’s fascinating!

 

Questions? Comments? Tips for other fiction writers? If so, please post them here. Thank you!

Fab Poetry Quote of the Day

"-this is freedom. This is the force of faith. Nobody gets
what they want. Never again are you the same. The longing
is to be pure. What you get is to be changed."

 

                              -Pulitzer Prize-winning poet Jorie Graham, from "Prayer"

Radical Gratitude

Today's post is from Mary DeMuth's blog. Mary is a gifted author and a dear friend who has encouraged me so much in my writing journey. She discusses gratitude today. By the way, one of the best books on gratitude that I've ever read (and one of my favorite books ever - and that's saying a LOT) is Ellen Vaughn's Radical Gratitude. Vaughn's compelling voice and expert storytelling will captivate your heart!

 

Now, for Mary's thoughts on gratitude:

 

"I want you to remember back when we met," my friend said to me. "Our daughters were in second grade, and you were just starting to write a column in your local paper." She smiled. "Now, in your wildest dreams, would you have guessed that in seven years, you'd be where you are today? Five books? Four more on the way? An agent? A speaker?

 

My friend confirmed something God had been juggling inside my heart. I'd taken to complaining a lot, whining about the writer's paycheck, letting that small, petty thing color the beauty of what God had done. "You're right," I told her. "I wouldn't have guessed it."

 

My friend Hud says that the greatest measure of the Christian life within us is our gratitude quotient. How thankful are we? Do we whine and complain through life, forgetting the many, many, many blessings of God? Do we grumble? I do.

 

I nearly missed out on the surprising, amazing journey God had brought me on by focusing on such a small, silly thing. When I stopped and looked over the past seven years, I realized how very blessed I am. I write. I write for a living. I have the privilege of turning phrases for the Kingdom of God's sake. When I speak and write, there are times folks write to me, or pull me aside, and tell me how those words have changed their lives. Others read blogs and are changed.

 

I morphed from bookless to bookful. From being unagented and unknown to being agented and relatively known. The dream I had from my elementary years to write a novel was realized. And that I was a finalist for a Christy on my first book just shakes me up inside (in a good way). What a privilege. What a surprise!

 

Eugene Peterson renders Psalm 116:5—8 this way: “God is gracious—it is He who makes things right, our most compassionate God. God takes the side of the helpless; when I was at the end of my rope, He saved me. I said to myself, ‘Relax and rest. God has showered you with blessings. Soul, you've been rescued from death; Eye, you've been rescued from tears; and you, Foot, were kept from stumbling.’”

 

My writing journey has been full of the compassionate footprints of God. I simply have to remind myself. Because, really, I want to be a grateful girl.

 

How about you? In terms of your own writing journey, how can you count your blessings today? How has God orchestrated circumstances beyond your wildest dreams? I'm all ears."

 

Thanks for sharing, Mary!

The Power of Encouragement

I love this story from Scott Adams, the creator of the hilarious Dilbert cartoon:

 

“You don’t have to be a ‘person of influence’ to be influential. In fact, the most influential people in my life are probably not even aware of the things they’ve taught me.

 

When I was trying to become a syndicated cartoonist, I sent my portfolio to one cartoon editor after another—and received one rejection after another. One editor even called to suggest that I take art classes. Then Sarah Gillespie, an editor at United Media and one of the real experts in the field, called to offer me a contract. At first, I didn’t believe her. I asked if I’d have to change my style, get a partner—or learn how to draw. But she believed that I was already good enough to be a nationally syndicated cartoonist.

 

Her confidence in me completely changed my frame of reference: It altered how I thought about my own abilities. This may sound bizarre, but from the minute I got off the phone with her, I could draw better. You can see a marked improvement in the quality of the cartoons I drew after that conversation.”*

 

One positive person who believes in us, one visionary, a spouse who speaks a kind word at just the right time, a wise teacher, one soul who has the ability to see into OUR souls and validate who we are and the giftedness that we have - that person can change our lives forever.

 

Seize the opportunity to be that person for someone else today!

 

*Source: Scott Adams, Fast Company Magazine online

We CAN Promote Our Books

For all of you writers out there, the website "We CAN Promote Our Books" offers a variety of informative articles plus a list of must-have marketing resources for use in publicizing your book. Check out Karen Whiting's April 2nd article on the topic of "Investing in People Who Make a Difference." It can be viewed at this link: canblog.typepad.com

Enjoy!

Generation Hex

Well, Generation Hex is off to Harvest House for editing and printing. Now I am ramping up my speaking on the topic. Dillon and I learned so much from the research and writing of this book, from meeting and interviewing people involved in Wicca to reading widely on the subject and then shaping all of the material into a fascinating and cohesive whole! :) We hope, anyway.

 

I'd love to speak to your school, MOPS group, youth group, Bible study, writer's group, women's ministry or other group about the rise of interest in Pagan spirituality, what we as Christians can do about it, and how we can best respond to it. {Note: The presentation does not necessarily have to be for a Christian audience. I can adjust it accordingly to focus on simply the facts/principles of Wicca, Wicca's growth, Wicca in the media, what Wicca is all about, and so forth.} Some of the questions I can answer for you include:

 

-What is Wicca, anyway?
-What do Wiccans, New-Agers, and those of other Pagan faiths actually believe?
-Is there a way to tell if a person is a witch?
-What types of stereotypes do most people have about Wiccans?
-Why should I be concerned about the rise of interest in Wicca and Pagan spirituality?
-Are Harry Potter books/movies and shows like Charmed and Buffy the Vampire Slayer really harmless for children and teens?
-How many people are involved in Pagan faiths in the U.S. and around the world?
-Why is Wicca's popularity skyrocketing?
-What percentage of today's youth is involved in Wicca or other Pagan faiths?
-What types of spells and rituals do Pagans perform?
-How can I create open dialogue with a person of a Pagan faith?
-How can I share the gospel with a Wiccan? AND MUCH MORE.

 

Being informed about this popular new movement is so important! Are you adequately equipped to answer these questions for yourself and your children? If not, please consider asking either Dillon or Marla to speak to your church group (e-mail Marla at marla_alupoaicei@yahoo.com). The book will be released in August. You may preorder it now online from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Borders, or Christianbook.com. Thanks!

March FICTION FEST Book Winners!

Hello, All! Congratulations to Leap of Faith's March book winners. They are:

 

KATE D. - One True Thing by Anna Quindlen
ELENA A. - Where the Heart Is by Billie Letts
KATIE - The Pilot’s Wife by Anita Shreve
COLLEEN R. - The Hours by Michael Cunningham
JIM L. - Snow Falling on Cedars by David Guterson

Thanks so much to all who entered! It looks like the competition is already heating up for the two autographed books by Marla Taviano that I will be giving away in the April drawing! Marla is a fantastic author and speaker. If you want to enter the drawing to win one of her books, just post a comment below. Also, be sure to send your friends and family members our way! Thank you!