Many novel writers create mini-biographies (or longer than that) of their characters. We should at least know the background of our characters, to help give them depth and to understand why they act the way they do (it doesn’t necessarily need to be in the book, of course).

The story of someone’s life can be quite fascinating – and can, like our fictional characters, help us understand how people turned out how they did – why they took certain actions.

My son has developed quite an interest in biographies lately. Currently, he’s reading about both Thomas Edison and Clara Barton. I’d wager one, or both, will inspire him.

May 16 is officially Biographers Day. Two hundred and forty-nine years ago today, James Boswell and Samuel Johnson met in England for the first time, beginning what answers.com calls “history’s most famous biographer-biographee relationship.” Boswell’s Life of Samuel Johnson is considered a model of biographical writing.

So, why not celebrate? No day is better than today to start reading – or writing – a biography.

What is your favorite biography? If you were to write a biography, who would you want to write about? Do you figure out the biographies of your fictional characters?

Click here for the first four contenders

One of the most popular parts of FaithWriters is the Writing Challenge, and one of the most eagerly awaited days in the FaithWriters’ year is July 1, when the winner of the Writing Challenge Best of the Best is announced.

The first place entry from each of the 36 Writing Challenge topics between July 2011 and June 2012 are all in contention. Only one, however, will be selected as THE Best of the Best, and awarded $300. Second place will receive $100, and third place $75.

Watch this spot on Mondays, when I’ll be sharing a handful of the contenders each week (in alphabetical order by author’s last name) through the end of June.  And, of course, I’ll have the winners here as well, once they’re announced on July 1.

It’s not too late to qualify for this INCREDIBLE award! This week’s challenge topic is FAME – enter by Thursday at 10am ET. And there will be four more topics following this one before we finish for this “Best of the Best” year. You could be declared Best of the Best. (you must be a gold or platinum enter to enter)

Continue Reading…

The Truth in Fiction

by Mona Hodgson

Many of my closest friends are liars. But they might prefer the title storyteller extraordinaire. Tale-weavers. And whether the literary yarn they spin is set in an actual place or based upon real life events and historical characters, they are authors of fiction. I am too. And as novelists, we have chosen to write fiction, not fact. But even so, is the story we weave truly and completely made up?

Not the best stories. All compelling fiction resonates with readers. Why? Because the best stories are rich in truth.

Why has Gone with the Wind by Margaret Mitchell camped on bestsellers’ lists? Why has it inspired movies and s

pin-offs? Why is Gone with the Wind a classic? Because the story told the truth. Even though Scarlett’s tale wasn’t necessarily formed in actual reality, the setting and characters, action and themes offer a tapestry of honesty that can make a work of fiction feel more real, at times, than life itself.

Using those four central threads of fiction, I try to create an honest story world and premise that will provide a platform for truth and deepen the realness of my fiction.

Continue Reading…

A steering wheel is certainly not my favorite writing desk, but a couple years ago, it seemed to be my most common one.

Don’t worry—you wouldn’t find me writing the great American novel as I drive along the interstate at 60 plus miles per hour. I don’t even jot down notes as I motor along a heavily trafficked street at a snail’s pace. I am a bad enough driver without distractions like that. No need to endanger the population any more than it already is.

While I will admit to jotting down a few things at the occasional stoplight or stop sign, the majority of my “auto writing” is done with the car off—or at least in park.

You see, I’m a busy mom, and one aspect of being a busy mom that seems unavoidable (and that, by the way, I was not expecting) is “wait time.”

For me, much, though certainly not all, of this time is spent within my vehicle.

Continue Reading…

One of the most popular parts of FaithWriters is the Writing Challenge, and one of the most eagerly awaited days in the FaithWriters’ year is July 1, when the winner of the Writing Challenge Best of the Best is announced.

The first place entry from each of the 36 Writing Challenge topics between July 2011 and June 2012 are all in contention. Only one, however, will be selected as THE Best of the Best, and awarded $300. Second place will receive $100, and third place $75.

The topic four entries for this last quarter are currently being judged – which means there are seven more opportunities to qualify for Best of the Best. So enter for this week’s topic, Weary - or some time before the tenth topic closes on June 14! You must be a gold or platinum member to enter the Writing Challenge. Click here to upgrade your membership.

As of today, we have 29 entries, from 22 writers, in contention (click here to see a complete-as-of-today list). For the next eight Mondays, I’ll be sharing a handful of contenders. Every one of them is excellent (first place, after all). I hope you’ll check them out over the next couple months and see which one YOU think is the best of the best! And on the NINTH Monday, the winners will be announced here on the blog (and at the FaithWriters site the day before, on July 1)

Here are the first four contenders: I’m starting alphabetically, by the author’s last name.

Just a Little Farther Still by Amanda Brogan (topic was ACHIEVEMENT)
http://www.faithwriters.com/wc-article-level4-previous.php?id=42137

Holy Hair Dressers by Nancy Bucca (topic was APPOINTMENT)
http://www.faithwriters.com/wc-article-editors-previous.php?id=41788

The Reason This Car Has No Rearview Mirrors by Nancy Bucca (topic was DON’T LOOK BACK)
http://www.faithwriters.com/wc-article-editors-previous.php?id=42336

Upload Complete by Allison Egley (topic was DOWNLOAD/UPLOAD)
http://www.faithwriters.com/wc-article-editors-previous.php?id=41237

What do you think of these entries? Are you tempted/encouraged to give the Writing Challenge a try?

Five Tips for Stronger Writing

By Jennifer Slattery

As an editor-for-hire working under Tiffany Colter, I see a lot of writing—good writing, beginning writing, and all stages in between. I’ve learned, most often, strong books and stories are but a few tweaks away. Today I’ll offer a few freebies—some snippets I share with paying clients—on how to take your writing from good to great.

1. Give your reader credit.

As writers, we want to make sure our reader understands what we’re trying to say, catches the foreshadowing, correctly reads the intended emotion, so we slam them with an abundance of colorless words. Then we repeat the idea again. And again. And again. There’s nothing worse than reading something numerous times, even if it’s presented in a new way. Give your readers credit and expect them to pick up on your message the first time. Most of them will catch the frown, the shift, the narrowed eyes, the chill breeze, and will feel quite proud at having done so.

Continue Reading…

As we write as Christians, some of our efforts often involve spreading God’s Word, and the Christian worldview, to the secular world. One way of doing this is to write articles with a biblical perspective and submit them to secular publications.

The Amy Foundation’s purpose is to encourage just this kind of influence in the mainstream media. As FaithWriters explores the possibility of working together with this group, we’d like to share with you FaithWriters a bit more about this organization, and some of the benefits it can have for you.

JOANNE SHER: Tell us about the Amy Foundation.

AMY FOUNDATION: Amy is the daughter of Jim and Phyllis Russell. She was born with Down Syndrome. The Russells dedicated Amy to the Lord when she was born, thanking him for creating her just the way she was. They set up the Foundation for the purpose of sharing the fruits of their growing business with Christian causes, and named it in honor of Amy. It was established in 1976.

JOANNE: Your foundation is best known for the Amy Writing Awards. Can you tell us a bit about that?

TAF: Amy Writing Awards, which first began in 1985, are a call for writers to present biblical truth reinforced with scripture in secular, non religious publications, including traditional print and online media. First prize is $10,000 with a total of $34,000 given annually to authors of 15 award winning articles.

Continue Reading…

It’s time to give a cheer for these awesome FaithWriters’ members and their writing accomplishments!

CRAIG DRESSLER’s short Christian historical novel, Standing Elk, is now available. CONGRATS!

A church in Arizona chose LILLIAN RHODES‘ book, When Youth Fades: Don’t Wither on the Vine – How To Celebrate Life after 60 for a nine week course in their Life and Character Study Curriculum. EXCITING!

NANNETTE TRON’s poem, Matt Like Lightening, was published in the Stars From The Hearts Poetry Book. SUPER!

FRANK CREED just signed with Splashdown Books. His third book in The Underground series, Devil’s Hit List, is slated for an October release. FABULOUS!

WANDA NELSON’s first book, God’s Peace Pact, is officially published and on the market. GREAT!

MARIJO PHELPS’ second book, Journey With Jesus, My Incredible Lord, is scheduled for release in June. WONDERFUL!

JASON PLASSARD’s children’s book, Happypotomus is now available for Kindle and Nook, and should be available in paperback on Amazon in the next few weeks. FABULOUS!

MICHAEL AUBRECHT’s newest book, You Stink!: Major League Baseball’s Terrible Teams and Pathetic Players, coauthored by Eric J. Wittenberg, is now available. AWESOME!

I so love hearing about your accomplishments. Would LOVE for you to share them with me so I can post them here. Either drop me an email at joannesher@faithwriters.net, or post it in the cheering section on the FaithWriters boards – otherwise, I may not find out!

DEBORAH RANEY’s first novel, A Vow to Cherish, inspired the World Wide Pictures film of the same title. Her books have since won the RITA Award, ACFW Carol Award, HOLT Medallion, National Readers’ Choice Award, Silver Angel, and have twice been Christy Award finalists. After All, the newest book in her Hanover Falls Novels series, releases in May from Howard/Simon & Schuster. Deb and her husband, Ken Raney, enjoy small-town life in Kansas. They have four children and four grandchildren, all of whom live much too far away.

And now, Deb has offered to share some wisdom about her writing process, advice for writers, and more. Read on and learn from this author of almost 20 novels!

JOANNE SHER: Thanks for joining me, Deb. How/where do you get ideas for your books?

DEB RANEY: Everywhere! When I first started writing, I really worried that I’d run out of ideas, but I’ve learned that ideas truly are everywhere. I just needed to discover how to “mine” them. Now every newspaper or magazine article, every movie, every book I read, song I listen to or conversation I overhear sparks an idea.

JOANNE: Those ideas really are everywhere, aren’t they? How did you first get published?

DEB: I finished my first novel, sent it to some friends and readers I respected, did some editing based on their comments, then started sending it out to publishers (this was in the day before publishing houses closed their doors to unagented authors.) Within about five months, I had three different publishers offering me contracts. And two years later––almost to the day I started writing––my first novel was in bookstores. I took for granted how unusual it was for a first-time author to sell a first book. Most of my successful author friends have three or four “practice” novels in their closet. Nowadays, my recommendation to aspiring writers is to finish the book (usually a must for first-time authors to be considered by an agent) and attend as many writers conferences as you can afford to attend.

Continue Reading…

Therapeutic Writing

By Jeannie Campbell, LMFT

Every novel is a part of you.

No, I don’t mean in some philosophical sense that they each hold a place in your heart. I mean literally. Pieces of you—quirks, pet peeves, life experiences—are in your novels.

An unforgettable cab driver you had while on vacation pops up in a city scene. A teacher you had in junior high reappears in your YA. Your own affinity for caramel popcorn becomes a charming addiction for a main character. Your character gets worked up over the same injustice that lights your fire.

Some say this is simply writing what you know. And yes, of course they’re right. But it goes deeper than that. Writing is a way to make sense of the world you live in, the world you know.

In this way, writing is therapeutic.

In therapy, counselors often assign writing as homework to underscore an important topic from the session. Journaling can get a client to think deeper. You’re unlikely to censor what you write in a diary. Unlike a person, a journal won’t make you feel guilty for what you expressed, try to get you to change your mind or talk back to you. (If the latter happens, email me and I’ll see if I can pencil you in.)

Continue Reading…