Back to "normal" (whatever that is)

Now that the Summer Reading Blog Tour is over, I'll return to posting stuff for writers.

Today I'd like to share with you two blogs:

Kristen Lamb's most recent blog,"Reduce Stress, Increase Joy & Productivity- Why Is It So HARD?" hit me where I needed it. I've been feeling stressed lately - a result of a combination of things - and I so needed her words. I find myself thinking about the cabin that was our summer vacation spot when I was growing up. My BFF and her husband own it now, and my husband and I are joining them for a weekend in August. I am looking forward to relaxing, unwinding, recharging, and not having a do list or schedule.

Andy Scheer, an agent for Hartline Literary Agency, wrote a great piece that resonated with me, and I'm sure all you pantsers out there will love: "All Star Jazz." I'm all for letting the muse dance as she will.

HELPING HANDS PRESS NEWS:

HHP has revamped their website and blog, and, added a newsletter to help keep both readers and writers up-to-date. Check them out - the links are in the right margin.

If you're looking for a publisher to submit your work to, check out Helping Hands Press (my publisher). Click here for the submission guidelines.


 

CHRISTIAN WRITERS GUILD

I'm really excited about the way Christian Writers Guild has revamped their courses, making them more doable and affordable.

"If you wish to write professionally, either full- or part-time, these courses will give you a solid foundation. Step-by-step, you’ll learn to produce and polish words that touch lives. Each course prepares you for the next." - CWG website

WEBINARS are one-hour writing classes you take from the comfort of your own home. All you need is a computer and an internet connection. You can tune in live or download them at a time that's most convenient to you. "Offered twice a month, it’s like attending a writers conference in your home." (CWG website)  Click here to see a list of past webinars.

WRITING FOR THE SOUL CONFERENCE has gone on the road, being held in different parts of the country: "Writing for the Soul will now be more accessible in terms of cost, timing, and convenient venues around the country. We’re targeting book authors with classes in three areas: how to write your book, publish your book, and market your book." (CWG website)

The next one is Sept. 19-20 in Murfreesboro, TN. Click here for more information.

That's it for today.

Happy writing,
Michele

Grammar goof: misplaced modifiers

I laughed out loud when I read a local radio station’s online news email:

“Walker was charged with burglary, trespass, and other charges in connection with Walker breaking into his ex-girlfriend’s apartment and videotaping an intimate moment she was having with his cell phone camera.”

My, that must be some cell phone camera! The technology these days . . .

Correcting the goof:

It has to do with the placement of modifiers. A modifier is a word or phrase that describes, or modifies, another word. A modifier that describes, or modifies, a noun is an adjective; a modifier that describes or modifies a verb, adjective, or adverb is an adverb.

Modifiers can be single words or phrases, but they should be placed next to the word they modify. When they aren’t, they are called misplaced modifiers, and can create some pretty hilarious sentences.

In the above gaffe, “with his cell phone camera” is meant to modify the verb “videotaping.” In other words, he was charged with using his cell phone to videotape an intimate moment his girlfriend was having. Placing the phrase at the end of the sentence, next to the verb “having,” makes it modify “having.” You get the gist.

Writing goals: What's your game plan?

From my viewpoint as a spectator who knows little about soccer, the players are all over the field, haphazardly chasing a ball, trying to kick it into a net.

But there’s more to soccer than meets the untrained eye. Pre-designed plays, defensive and offensive maneuvers, skill, and an understanding of the opponent all factor into this grueling sport, as does endurance and training—and a strategic game plan.

Writers need a game plan, too; otherwise, we’re like the clueless soccer player, running randomly around the field, kicking at an elusive object, hoping somehow we’ll connect and make a sale.

Perhaps the most important part of the writer’s game plan is developing writing goals— daily, weekly, monthly, and yearly.


What’s a goal, anyway?
This seems elementary, but unless you understand exactly what a goal is, you’ll be like the clueless soccer player who’s better left on the sidelines.

A goal is the specific end result for which you work. It is measurable and is something over which you have control. For example, my overall goal as a writer is to be published. While that goal is measurable (publication), it’s also vague and not one over which I have control.

How do you write goals that are specific, measurable, and controllable?

Take, for example, this article, which was published in Christian Communicator in January 2009. My goal was to write a well-written article of no more than 650 words on setting writing goals and submit it that week to Christian Communicator.


It’s Specific
Nothing fuzzy about that goal. It’s specific in that I stated the topic, the length, the market, and a definite time I’ll submit the manuscript. Think 5 W’s and H of journalism:

• Who? “I”Me
• What? A 650-word article about setting writing goals
• When? That week
• Where? Christian Communicator
• How? Well-written
• Why? To give writers an understanding of both the importance of goal-setting and how to do it

It’s Measurable
The goal has standards that can be measured: Is the article within the suggested word count? Am I staying on topic? Am I following the editor’s guidelines? Am I on target as far as the deadline?


It’s Something I Can Control
Although I take great pains to submit my best work, I have no control over whether or not manuscript is accepted for publication. So I state the goal in terms of what I can control:

• Quality: ("well-written”). Submit only my best work. Have someone read and critique the manuscript before I submit it. Stay on topic and deliver what I promised, following the publication’s writers’ guidelines, including word count.

• Punctuality: (“this week”). Send the manuscript by the deadline—before, if possible.

• Professionalism: (all of the above). Remember the skilled soccer player? He trains to become the best he can be, so he can build up endurance and persevere. Good writers plan their work and work their plan as they formulate daily, weekly, monthly, and yearly goals, then follow through with them. They are also flexible, adapting and reformulating those goals to fit changing scenarios. They develop a good offense in terms of a submission plan and meet disappointment and rejection (defense) with persistence. They understand—and seek to understand better—the world of publishing as a whole, and the specific publication to which they want to submit their work. And always, always, they strive to learn writing techniques and hone their skills.
  

Share Your Goals

Accountability
I send my weekly goals to my online writing critique group, as well as a brief recap of what I accomplished the previous week. It helps me not only to be accountable, but also to recognize my tendency to over -schedule.

Like soccer, freelance writing can be grueling, with goals just as elusive as kicking that ball in the net. But having a game plan in place helps you—in training, enduring, and reaching those goals.

Firing up the muse with James Scott Bell's Plot & Structure

Of all the books on how to write fiction, I keep returning to James Scott Bell’s Plot & Structure again and again. Why? It motivates me. I can’t sit and read its pages for very long before ideas bombard me, scenes play out in my mind’s eye, and characters hiss their secrets and problems in my ear. Something about the way Bell writes fires up my muse. It’s like he’s sitting and talking to me, tutoring me one-on-one on how to write a novel.

He begins the book with exposing the “Big Lie”—that writing can’t be taught.

“I was so ticked off about the Big Lie that I started teaching others what I’d learned about the craft of writing,” he writes.

What does it take to learn how to plot? Just do it, he says. Sit down and write. Write every day. Set a word goal and write.

“First get it written, then get it right,” he advises. “Don’t spend too much time worrying and fretting and tinkering with your first draft.”

Sound like you? Yeah, me too.

In the fourteen chapters following the exposure of the Big Lie, Bell discusses

* What holds your plot together
* LOCK (Lead, Objective, Confrontation, and Knockout)
* How to explode with ideas
* How to begin strong, muddle the middle, and end well
* Setting up scenes
* Character arc
* Whether or not to outline (There are two types of novel writers, he says: OP people and NOP people—Outline People and No Outline People—I fall into the latter category.)
* Plot patterns
* Plot problems and cures

“A good story is life with the dull parts taken out,” he writes, quoting Alfred Hitchcock.

I tucked a small legal pad (the size of the book) inside the back cover and kept a pencil in hand to jot down the ideas that came to me as I read. Sometimes I had to put the book down and hurry to the computer to record the scene that was swirling around in my head.

I wrote two novels with Plot & Structure within reach. Whenever I’d get stuck, I’d flip through the pages and start reading. Before long, I wasn’t stuck anymore.

In time I learned to trust my muse—to hear, listen to, and follow my characters. That’s when I learned I was a NOP. For me, writing fiction is akin to getting up on a horse, pointing it in the direction I want to go, slapping its behind, and letting it gallop where it will.

I’m getting ready to start my third novel. I’ve already taken down my dog-eared, highlighted, bleeding-with-red-ink copy of Plot & Structure from my bookshelf, bought a new notepad and sharpened my pencils.

For more information on James Scott Bell and how to obtain your copy of Plot & Structure, click here to visit his website. He's got a great page for writers, too.

Grammar gaffe: Are you nauseous or nauseated?

I hear it all the time--even on television: "I'm nauseous."

Tsk, tsk. Are you really?

Nauseous is an adjective that means causing nausea; sickening, disgusting; sickening to contemplate.

Nauseated is a verb that means to feel nausea, become sick; sick at the stomach.

So when you say, "I'm nauseous," you're actually saying, "I'm sickening, disgusting, and sickening to think about. I cause nausea in others."

“Do not, therefore, say ‘I feel nauseous’ unless you are sure you have that effect on others.” (Strunk and White in The Elements of Style, p. 53)

If you're feeling like you want to throw up, you're nauseated. If folks can't stand to be around you, you're nauseous.

Know the difference!

The Lazarus at your gate

“Global” seems to be the latest buzz word. We’ve got to think, speak and act “globally.” No more the small-town mindset.

Global philosophy, unfortunately, has infiltrated the way we writers and speakers approach our work. We seem to think that if we aren’t published or if we don’t speak on a national—or global—level, we aren’t successful.

Too bad. Because opportunities abound close by to use your writing and speaking skills to make a difference in the world around you—in your little corner of the world. This is your “Jerusalem” (Acts 1:8), your immediate environment.

I, too, was once sucked into the global viewpoint. After finding some early success on the national level—I was published in Guideposts, The Upper Room and Teachers in Focus—I thought I was on my way—Not!

It was frustrating to submit a manuscript repeatedly to various appropriate markets and receive more rejections than acceptances. I did my homework and pored over the market guide, followed the guidelines and studied the publication, but still those rejection slips came. Oh, I sold a few poems here and there, but no consistent sales.

Everyone Has a Story

This is the nature of the freelance writing beast. I remember reading or hearing somewhere that it takes at least 10 years to get published consistently. Ten years of frustration and rejection slips? Uh-uh. I’m much too impatient.

While I devoured how-to magazines and books on the craft of writing, attended writers’ conferences to hone my skills and network with publishers, editors and other writers, I yearned for a regular byline—and knowing that my efforts were making a difference in someone’s life. And, at 40-something, I was more sensitive to time slipping by. I didn’t want to wait until I was nearing retirement age before I made an impact on the world.

So when I spied an ad in the local newspaper for a part-time writer, I applied—and, to my surprise, got the job. The publisher wanted three features a week—stories on local people, places and events.

My first feature was about a 90-year-old man that gardened, baked bread and went deep-sea fishing. My second article, which was picked up by the AP, was about a man who defied death a dozen times in his lifetime. Shortly after that, the AP picked up another article I wrote, this one about a Doberman who had a membership in a local gym.

Meeting people and listening to their stories thrilled me. Interviewing was not a chore, it was more like a visit with a friend. I found a purpose, a mission: Through these “good news” stories I could spread hope, encourage others and brighten their days.

The people features evolved into a weekly series, “People Who Make a Difference.” Readers nominated individuals in the community who made a positive difference in the lives of those around them. The series brought the community’s Good Samaritans out of the woodwork and shone a spotlight on those who worked selflessly behind the scenes, rarely receiving accolades and attention.


Devotionals Add Depth

I suggested a devotional column for the weekly religion page. “No.” The publisher was adamant. “I want you to focus on feature stories.”

But I didn’t give up. One day I walked into the publisher’s office where, with the day’s edition spread out on his desk, he was complaining about wasted space. I saw my chance.

“Wasted space? I’ll show you wasted space!” I said, flipping to the religion page and tapping the canned devotional reading. “Let me write something that’s fresh.”

“I won’t pay for it,” he said.

“That’s fine,” I said.

Minute Meditations ran weekly for three years until I left that paper for another, with three times the circulation. And because the publisher never paid for my column, he didn’t own any rights to it. I took it with me to the next newspaper, where it’s run for seven years, winning second place in the 2009 Pennsylvania Newspaper Association's Keystone Press Awards for columns.


Expanding into Radio

This column birthed a daily radio program, God, Me and a Cup of Tea (now also the name of the column), which airs on a local Christian stations two books of meditations, compilations of some of my favorite columns; and three CD recordings of radio programs. Readers order the books for friends and relatives who live out of the area and don’t get the newspaper—books are much more durable than newspaper clippings.
The radio program, by the way, was launched on a local secular station, which broadcast it twice a day. One listener told me he set his alarm five minutes earlier so he could hear it. Three years after it was dropped due to a change in management, I still get comments from former listeners who miss the program.

Speaking Opportunities

The column and the radio program led to opportunities to speak, where I sell books and CDs and interviews with local radio and television stations.

Finding my Purpose in Jerusalem

My articles in Guideposts, Upper Room and Teachers in Focus were one-shot deals. But writing week after week to a local audience gives consistency and continuity to an expanding ministry. I have found purpose, fulfillment and joy—much better than rejection and frustration any day.

In Jesus’ parable of the rich man and Lazarus, the rich man spent a lifetime ignoring the poor man, whom he saw daily at his own gate. Perhaps he had his eyes on the “bigger picture”—which he thought was more important and worthy of his time and effort. But he missed the most important chance of all to meet another’s needs—and it stared him in the face day after day.

My readers and listeners are my Lazaruses.

Who are yours?


Look for local opportunities:
* Newspapers
* Radio stations
* TV stations
* Newsletters (church and business newsletters, Chamber of Commerce)



How to Approach the Publisher, Editor or Station Manager

1. Do your homework. Know the names—correct spelling—and official titles of the publisher, editor, or station manager. Know the circulation of the newspaper and the broadcast range of the radio or television station. Know the number of staff and their positions. Who is their projected audience? What social class? Age range? Take note of who the advertisers are and how frequently their ads are run. Read the newspaper, listen to the radio station or watch the television station to familiarize yourself with its slant, tone and personality. If you’re arch-conservative, a newspaper or station with a liberal slant will not be a good match. Also note any holes that you may be able to fill. What is needed? What do you have to offer that would be better than they have now?

2. Call first and set up an appointment to go in and talk to the person in charge, the one who makes the decisions. Ask to talk to the person directly. Be polite. Tell him or her you’d like to discuss an idea for the newspaper or station. Fit yourself into their schedule.

3. Be prepared. Go in armed with samples of your work, your publishing credits (if you have any), a prototype of the column, series or program you propose—and how it will benefit the newspaper or station. Their first thought will be “what’s in it for me?” In other words, will it sell papers, increase readership or listeners, add advertisers, make more money for them? If you propose an ongoing program, series or column, present enough ideas for several months’ worth. They want to know if you’re good for the long run.

4. Accept whatever is offered. Perhaps the editor needs someone to cover school board or township meetings. Accepting will get your foot in the door and may lead to the opportunity you’ve been waiting and working for.

5. Pray for guidance and wisdom—and an open door to God’s will—not only before you approach the publisher, editor or station manager, but every day of your writing career. Remember, if God calls you, He will enable you, open and close doors to guide you—and give you ideas. That’s how you survive in the long run.

(Published in Christian Communicator, May 2008)

Welcome!

The teacher in me made me do this.

I really don't need two blogs and a website to keep up. But blogging and webbing (maintaining my website) are fun, and I felt neither my God, Me & a Cup of Tea blog nor my website were the right venues for offering information, instruction, inspiration, and insight into writing for the Christian market.

But I confess. My passion isn't writing. It's teaching. And writing, to me, is a way to teach--even writing fiction. I like to say, "I'm a die-hard teacher. Cut me, and I bleed teacher."

So this blog will be my virtual classroom. Every Thursday, I'll offer tips on writing and the writing life. A peek into authors' lives, articles on writing, information about conferences, and other resources for writers.

We'll start Thursday with a peek into the writing life of award-winning author Dianne Neal Matthews, author of One Year Women of the Bible.

See you then!