My friend Tracy Higley asked me to join her in the Writing Process Blog Tour. What a fun way to learn how different writers work! 1) What am I currently working on? I’m currently working on page proofs for my novella in Where Treetops Glisten. It’s a WWII Christmas novella collection that Tricia Goyer, Sarah Sundin and I wrote together. …
70th Anniversary of Monte Cassino
On February 11, 1944, Monte Cassino, a historic abbey in Italy, was bombed by the Allies. It was a move that was taken with reluctance because of the history and significance of the abbey. It was also used by the Germans as propaganda in Italy. “The Allies will destroy all of your great building and monuments. They find no value …
Dreaming God-Sized Dreams
Last night, God answered one of my oh so silly little dreams. As I watched Amazon numbers for Shadowed by Grace over the weekend, I’d asked Him if it was possible for the Kindle version and the paperback to get on one of the top 100 lists at the same time. Now I can almost see the smile He must …
Marketing 101: What Matters to You?
This month I’m working on some of the marketing pieces for Shadowed by Grace, elements you’ll start seeing in the next weeks as we race toward the December 15th early release date. Next week we’ll shoot a couple of behind the scenes videos. I’ll be uploading all kinds of supporting images to Pinterest. I’ll write lots of blog posts that …
Why I love Christian Publishing
As you read this, I’m preparing for the ACFW national conference and board meetings. In honor of it here’s a post I wrote last year that is still very true and appropriate! Eric and me at the 2010 ACFW Gala This is truly one of the highlights of my year. And Tuesday I was reminded why I can’t imagine missing ACFW. …
3 Tips for Creating Quirky Characters
I don’t know about you, but characters often make or break a story for me. As a writer, I try to remember what makes some characters and their stories more compelling for me than others. Here are a few tips I try to keep in mind as I write based on the characters that I love to read about again …
Why Mackinac Island?
Mackinac Island. It’s a magical place that allows you to step back in time from the moment you first step off the ferry. That’s what attracted me to the island as a visitor and then as an author looking for a new setting for a book. A Wedding Transpires on Mackinac Island is being sold as a package in Waterfront Weddings, …
Writing Book Reviews: Post Two
Writing reviews — even short ones! — are a great way to help your favorite authors. Research continues to show that word of mouth is a huge way that people discover books and authors. So as requested, here is a second post on how I write reviews. Here’s also a short list of the places I routinely try to post …
Writing Book Reviews: Post One
Earlier this week, some folks on Facebook asked me to give tips on writing reviews. I’m always glad to help people feel more comfortable spreading the word about books they love. Even better, I have a couple of posts from gulp 2008 that are exactly on that. So here you go! It really is easy to write reviews! I’ve never …