Please welcome this week's guest Stephanie Prichard for The Journey. She answers the question: How have you seen God work in your writing journey? Riding the Emotional Roller Coaster When my love of writing became an earnest intent to publish, I had no idea I was mounting a twisting, looping roller coaster. Please note that from my perspective a roller coaster is NOT an instrument of fun and delight. Chugging to a peak is no problem, but the other side of that peak? Uh-uhhhh. Not a matter of … [Read more...]
Going through Mari’s stuff
Over the last couple of weeks I’ve started going through Mari’s stuff. I still remember the day we went into the house we’d been renting and sat there packing up every single item that either was Mari’s or we needed for her. Nothing got thrown away. Even her juice cups and light switch covers all got saved. At that point, Mari may have been gone about two to two-and-a-half months. I felt like if I threw something away belonging to her, somehow it’s like I was throwing her away. My grief wouldn’t … [Read more...]
The Journey with Jaime Wright
Please welcome this week's guest Jaime Wright for The Journey. She answers the question: How have you seen God work in your writing journey? I quit writing for two years. Those were the months I agonized as I lost three babies, underwent three surgeries, and spent weeks with nails bit to the quick wondering if my current pregnancy would last to fruition. My fourth pregnancy landed me in the ER with a pre-confirmed miscarriage only to result in a miraculous heartbeat that went on to be an … [Read more...]
2014 ACFW Pre-Conference Mix and Mingle #acfw
My plan this morning had been to get back to writing my 365 day journey. However, I came across something in my email this morning that I'm quite excited about. It's the ACFW Pre-Conference Mix and Mingle. Laurie Tomlinson has been gracious enough to start this and I'm excited to participate. All you have to do is answer a few questions, which I've put below. If you'd like to join in the fun and add yourself to the list, please click this link: laurietomlinson.com and if you don't have a … [Read more...]
Sorry it took so long… #acfw
I sit here this morning thinking back on the last couple of months, and the time seems to have flown by. Only eight months ago I sat up in my room with my husband discussing with him why I felt I needed to go to the ACFW writers conference in September. Besides that awesome friends I'll finally get to meet in person (Joy Avery Melville, Julie Lessman, Dineen Miller, just to name a few :) ) and the fantastic workshops I'll get to go to, I'll have that rare opportunity to pitch both my fiction … [Read more...]
Seeing the Gift
Wow, it's hard to believe that Mari's book is done. I entered the last of the edits to part 2 and sent it off to my editor (my dear sweet friend Deirdre). This day has been almost six years in the making. A week from tonight I will be on a plane heading toward Chicago as I go visit family. But even bigger than this is the reason I'm heading out that way to begin with. ACFW (American Christian Fiction Writers) is having their annual writing conference September 25-27 in St. Louis, MO. I'm … [Read more...]
The Journey with Fay Lamb #acfw
Please welcome this weeks guest Fay Lamb for The Journey. She answers the question: How have you seen God work in your writing journey? God Is Always in the Details … and the Herbs of Life God is always in the details. I believe that’s what God, through Paul, is telling us when it is declared in Romans 8:28, “And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to His purpose.” God proved the depth of that scripture by the sacrifice … [Read more...]
The Journey with Melissa Finnegan #acfw
Please welcome this week's guest Melissa Finnegan for The Journey. She answers the question: How have you seen God work in your writing journey? As probably is the case with most writers the dream to write was planted in my heart at a young age, but for me it would be over thirty years before I heard God instruct me to write. That call couldn’t happen until I died to self and dealt with long hidden wounds from my childhood. I can’t remember a time I wasn’t writing a story or making plays … [Read more...]
Was or Is?
I sit here thinking of Mari today. Time is moving one step at a time closer to the six year mark for Mari being gone. Can you believe it’s been six years already? I think back on all the times I wrote about time after she passed, especially that first year or so. The fact is that time continued its ever present trek forward no matter how much we’d rather have had it go backward for either more time with our little girl or for us to somehow change the outcome. Yet, we all know that’s not … [Read more...]
U is for Unsolicited Manuscript #atozchallenge
Have you ever gone to a literary agency's website or to a traditional publisher's website and looked up their guidelines to find out how you could send a query or proposal for your work only to find out it says something like this: We do not take unsolicited manuscripts. So exactly what is an unsolicited manuscript? It's one that is not represented currently by an agent or for a writer who has never been published before. In other words, agents and publishing houses don't want anyone to just … [Read more...]