Ever heard of Heman? He’s one of the key writers of the Psalms. While many Psalms were written by the shepherd king David, eleven psalms were created by the sons of Korah. Korah was actually a bad dude in the Old Testament. He and his buddies decided to rebel against Moses and God’s command not […]
What does it take to run down a dream? The answer to that question became my passion. The dream of a young girl perched inside the barky womb of her favorite elm tree. Adolescent limbs swinging from an upper branch. Book opened. Devouring words and dreaming of becoming an author. The dream nurtured by: The
Gratitude for the Dream Read More »
The entire project took 3.5 years to complete. Most of the 1st draft written in the library where I could be secluded. Away from the distractions of home. Surrounded by the work of other authors. Then each chapter was offered to my critique group for feedback, corrections, polishing and honing as the 2nd draft appeared.
Grateful for a Book Read More »
Believe it or not, we are headed toward Q4 — the last quarter of the year. How quickly the months have passed! So how do writers deal with those annual goals when suddenly faced with October, November, and December? These final months can be the busiest and most stressful of the entire year. Who has
Q4 Goals for the Writer Read More »
As a wordsmith, I am constantly studying the meaning and usage of words. Words matter. Not only in how they are used, but also in our responses to them. How many of us can remember unkind words spoken to us by bullies, siblings, or even the responsible adults around us? Our childhood can be marred
The presenter of the webinar bragged about her use of ChatGPT. “I’ve spent hours teaching this AI tool how to write like me.” She encouraged the rest of us to invest in her program, but I declined. As a writing coach, I wanted to ask, “Instead of spending hours teaching ChatGPT how to sound like
The Problem with AI Read More »
Most of us writers majored in some type of language arts, communications, or just plain English. Even long after we attained our degrees and graduated, we are still attracted to different words, their definitions, and the ways we can construct sentences to convey their meaning. We are wordsmiths who love the written, verbal, and communicative
Language Arts – Past and Present Read More »
Excited squeals came from the south end of Target. Curious, I maneuvered my cart toward the sounds and discovered children in the school supplies aisle. Their mothers held lists which they simultaneously check-marked as the kids shouted, “I want the red one. That’s my favorite.” “Ooh, look at this, Mommy. Can I have this notebook?”
School Supplies Season Read More »
One of the disciplines I teach my clients is to use every bit of their content. And be as creative as possible. Last week, I had the opportunity to follow my own advice. I finished my journal entry on the last page of the entire journal. The new journal was already waiting on my bedroom
Using Your Journal Content Read More »
For writers intent on publishing books, our keywords become a vital part of the process. The setup on Kindle Direct Publishing gives us the choice for 7 keywords. But how do we decide the best words that will attract readers and give a positive result on search engine optimizations? Below is a formula we can
Finding Your Key Words Read More »