Taking It All In

It's been said that in order to write life, you must live life. Never were words spoken so truly. And being a teen writer, never will you experience so much that can feed your writing. Each day, you go to school and interact with those you love, hate, admire and envy. Emotion exudes from those interactions and it can flow into your characters easily if you harness it and let it go.

After all, writing is therapeutic, isn't it? As a high school student, I can't even begin to describe the roller coaster I went over. Day to day my friendships were turbulent. Without even realizing, my characters began to have turbulent friendships. Struggles that I faced showed themselves in my protagonists. But how else can a fictional problem begin to feel real unless it is written out of experience?

Don't let life scare you.

Most of us writers are introverts. Life seems easier for us when we are in our comfort zones. Being challenged is a scary thing. But when you become so sedentary and stop moving almost altogether, you'll begin to notice that like a water spigot, your ability to write will turn on and off, and writers' block can set in. Worst nightmare right?

And honestly... God doesn't want us to hide at home either. That's hardly the life He imagined for you. Like me, you can make excuses about how writing CHRISTIAN fiction is fulfilling His calling for you, OR you can realize that our greatest calling is to live heaven here on earth. That means investing and working on those HARD relationships. It means going outside and praising God for the beauty he created all around us. LIVE LIFE. No matter how hard. The creativity and realness will flow from it.

Hugs,

Emily

we're all readers here

We can talk about writing well all we want to, but our desire to write stems from the fact that as children, we fell in love with books. So here's my question to you... what is your favorite book? Of all time? comment with the title and author. Why is it your favorite?

Advertising Christ Through Our Writing

I was at my younger brother’s little league game the other day. His team is sponsored by “Kleenex” and “Kelloggs”—and their uniforms proudly show it off. Why do major businesses often sponsor sports teams? They’re looking for some advertising. Think about it: Every time a little kid walks into a public place with his uniform on, he’s advertising the business that sponsored his team. Not only do people notice the business, they also notice that the business did something good for the community by sponsoring a team. So . . . I got to thinking. As a Christian writer, God is my biggest “sponsor.” All Christians have God’s sponsorship over everything they do. That’s pretty cool if you think about it. I also realized that we writers can learn a thing or two from the little league foundation. When God sponsors us, we need to advertise Him through our writing (forgive my business terms). Our writings (if we choose to show them to other people) are like baseball jerseys—people notice them, and when they “advertise” Christ, people notice that, too. If we are Christians, our writing can be used as an incredible missionary tool!

An Ultimate Love Story

Writing a book or a story is the beginning of a beautiful relationship between you and your imaginary characters. Don’t even try to resist the urges to laugh at your funny one-liners, cry when your favorite character dies, or obsessively hate your villain. And don’t be too embarrassed if you accidentally call your best friend the name of your main character. But keep these things to yourself, because your family will think you are nuts. Writing wasn’t always this way for me. My name is Esther. I’ve been writing fiction since I was six or seven—not that that writing was anything I am proud of. At thirteen, I wrote my first REAL book. It was short—a children’s book about a young girl with a crazy grandma who drives a rocket ship. It’s the first piece of writing I’m not wholeheartedly ashamed of, because it’s technically pretty clean. I started going to Mount Hermon’s writing conference that year, and I got some great editing. But I wasn’t in love with my writing. It was nothing more than a hobby—almost seemed like school to me at times. There were times my mom forced me to go to the computer. I had this unrealistic dream that I was going to get that book published. I went to Mt. Hermon twice. No interest from anyone. Last year after Mt. Hermon, I had this new idea for a book. As soon as I started writing it, I felt something change. What was it? I fell in love with writing. It just sort of happened—I didn’t try. I found myself waking up before school at ridiculously early times to write a scene. I would goof off during school work dreaming up what would happen next. When I was supposed to be online finding scholarships for college, I would be—you guessed it—writing. And my focuses turned from trying to get published for money sake, to just writing because I loved it and couldn’t stop. I still want to be published, believe me. I’ll be going to Mt. Hermon again in two years to try. But even if I don’t, I won’t stop, because writing is a part of me, and I’m never letting go. I hope that this can be of some inspiration to you.

Being a CHRISTIAN Writer

It's been a process... beginning from the moment I created this page until now, and even trailing into the future. We are writers who are Christians, right? Or are we Christian writers? I suppose I'll leave that one up to you. Not all of us want to write for the Christian market. Some of us are called to write for the secular market because that is where we can give God the most glory. That's what important. Where has God called you into His ministry?

Ever thought about it that way before? That writing is your ministry? It took me years to wrap my head around that. I just knew I liked writing. I didn't quite understand God's role in my writing. The two seemed separate, yet inexplicably bound together in a jumbled mess. I'm sure many of you can sympathize.

But this is what I discovered.

God created us. He knows our inmost being. In fact, He even gave us our gifts and talents, he designated them to us. Think back for a moment of the parable of the talents that Jesus told. Each servant was given gifts so that they could take them and make use of them for the benefit of the master, and eventually, themselves. Can't you just imagine God saying, "Well done, good and faithful servant"?

We were gifted with the talent of writing - the joy of writing! So why shouldn't we expect that God wants us to put that talent to use and gain profit from it? It's the whole point of having the talent! What use would it be... what purpose would it have if we just hid it under and rock? God intended for us to use our talent.

But here's the real question... how do we use it? And what is profit?

Those answers will vary from person to person. But when I say profit (this answer will be universally true) I do NOT mean money. It is inevitable that you will reap some financial benefits, BUT IF YOU ARE WRITING, shouldn't your writing serve some purpose? We were created to give glory to God and declare His Holy and Precious Name. This does not necessarily mean you have to write Christian works, but I do think that your works should reflect the values of our Creator and should focus on having an identity founded in Him. What this means will vary depending on your subject matter. Profit will first and foremost mean directing people to look upwards for answers. Use? Well... what story has God laid on your heart to write? Only He can tell you.

Hugs.

Heart Works

Writing is a work of the heart, isn't it? It's one of the most personal careers one can have. I've met so many authors... when I read their novels, I can hear their voices and see their personalities come through so completely.

So how about Christian versus Secular books? The Christian heart comes out in writing. Values and struggles make their way into our stories.

I was marveling over some of my early stories the other day - some of the stories I wrote in late Junior High and early High School. It struck me as I was reading that I could still see myself in those stories, the self I was in those days, anyway. I've changed so much. But as I took a close look at the characters in those stories, the struggled my characters were facing suddenly looked much more like what I worried over while I was writing the story.

There is something to be said for those English teachers who force you to take a closer look at the assigned readings and how they relate to the author who wrote them. Writing IS personal. We bare our souls as we work through the muddled state of our own hearts. As the character finds resolution, so do we.

God is SO involved in our work that it just looks nuts from the outside. How does He do it? I can't exactly explain it. He is wonderful, though. That I can say for certain. He does it on purpose, I think. He corrects and disciplines those He loves... so why not use the process of crafting a story to train up an author?

So the next time you sit down to write, close your eyes and talk to God.

Lord, Everything is from You.
In fact, I'm nothing without You.
Wonderful creator, thank you for loving me so completely
You work through me and change my heart
You inspire the way I craft stories to change the hearts of my characters
As I sit down to tell this story, work through me
Show me exactly what to say.
Even as I hope my readers will learn, please also help me to learn

Amen

Childhood Memories

I remember when I fell in love with books... with stories. Goodness, I remember it like it was yesterday! I started reading in Kindergarten, you know, those books with the same words repeated over and over again that they send home with you to practice? But when I was in first grade, my mom began taking me to the public library all the time - she liked to read to. It was the Paso Robles Public Library across the street from the park with the old library they turned into a museum. This new library had a gift store in it. I remember that too. But towards the back of this library, there were chapter books. I was only in first grade.

I loved books. I could never get enough of them. I used to read all the time. I would bring home armfuls of The Boxcar Children and The Saddle Club. Then at night, my dad would read me the Chronicles of Narnia and my mom would read picture books to me. When we didn't want one of the picture books, she would tell a story. There were two she had made up that she would retell to us.

Books really left their mark on me. I practically drowned myself in them, I suppose. More and More so as I got older. But reading books became the reason that I started writing. After I would finish a story, I liked to dream up in my head what happened to the characters when the story ended. I would make up new adventures for them. Peter Pan was my favorite, but I also used to do this with the Pevency Children from Narnia and the siblings from the Boxcar Children. Sound familiar?

Looking back, it is so easy to see why I love making up my own stories. Stories impact us in powerful ways. Almost every author loves reading or movies or something story related. It all starts somewhere.

I found this out when I started reading with another little first grader I was working with. I was the teacher's aid in her class my senior year of high school. Reagan and I would spend lots of time together after school because her mom was a teacher. In the school's library collection, I found my old favorite - the Boxcar Children. Spotting the first book in the series, I dragged Reagan aside and we began to read the story... then Reagan wanted to read it aloud to me. I saw that spark.

Reagan took those books home and read them through on her own. It made me smile to see those books touch someone else.

Whatever purpose it may serve... think back and try to remember when you fell in love with stories. It'll bring a smile to your face. Then share your love of stories. Stories teach people things - they provide companionship, and they take you on adventures.

Actually... it can also serve an amazing purpose. Reading can fix writer's block. I SWEAR it works. Sometimes, i find I just can't write, but when I go back to the source of what got me writing in the first place, I get excited and the words begin to flow.


Reading is the Beginning of Writing.

Writer Funnies

You know you're a writer when...

1. you hear voices inside your head, but you KNOW you aren't crazy because they happen to be your characters.
2. you are in the middle of doing something important, but you really wish you were staring at your computer screen because a new idea just hit you.
3. someone does something really intriguing and your first thought is to work it into your novel.
4. you stare at people in public places. 
5. a two sided conversation happens, but no one else can see who you're talking to.
6. you feel guilty about harming a fictitious being.
7. you start to tell people that your story "tells itself"
8. instead of counting sheep, you plan your next scene as you fall asleep.
9. each character has a "distinct voice" inside your head as you read.
10. your thoughts always come out better when you are writing than when you try to speak.
11. you get distracted by the internet when you were actually just trying to research something for your novel.
12. someone interrupts you and you have a panic attack because you're afraid the inspiration will leave.
13. you have a list of names that you like just in case you have a character strikes you. 
14. after a while... you become "so immersed" in the world of writing that you get WAY too picky about the books you read. 

we can laugh at ourselves right? we certainly are an odd bunch. That's what makes us so great though. The odd ones have more fun.

Living In My Head

 I would like to introduce you to a pair of characters that have lived in my head for years. They came to take up their residence when I was only a few years old, but they've never seen reason to move out. And so, Peter and Wendy have lived in my head and grown up with me.

I'm sure that I'm not alone when I say most authors start this way... making up stories in their head. Peter and Wendy used to have all kinds of adventures in my head - though not in Neverland - quite sadly, that was never their location. Somehow, they became my own, not the famous pair from the old story.

Let me start by telling you about my Peter. I want you to meet him. My Peter became a boy by the name of Peter Parker (Yes, that I took from spiderman. Forgive me, I was six) who grew up in a hospital because of a rare muscle disease that paralyzed him. Sometimes, depending on my story, he was an orphan, other times his father left him, not knowing what to do with him. Either way, he was always a tragic figure, as well as a hero. In all circumstance, Peter has three things in his favor that keep him going: he is affluent, he is incredibly intelligent, and he is fun-loving. This is my Peter. He lives in my head.

My Wendy, is actaully named Gwendolyn. Wendy is only a short name for her. Sometimes, she was a girl who suffered a slight injury and ended up in the same wing of the hospital as Peter. In other cases, she happened to be a girl who came to visit patients at the hospital as a good-deed-doer and met Peter that way. In both cases, they became friends and partners in Peter's pranks and escapades.

By now, you are wondering why I chose to introduce you to those characters. They are a bit different and will never have their story make it to paper, but nevertheless, they are always in my head and remind me of why I love telling stories. I truly do hope you have someone, or someones, who live in your head too. It's rather amazing to have a fictional someone like that... and no, if you are an author, it is not strange =)

but anyways... having a character live in your head also helps you to write better. It can help you to know them inside and out and keep you from writing clones. CLONES are characters that all act and think the same, and I assure you, clones make for an incredibly dull story. Two characters should never be exactly alike.

Same Story

Copyright issues... hmm. That's something everyone worries about. What if you read a story that you really enjoyed - so much, that it inspired you to write another story. And this other story you wrote now seems to be far too similar to the one you read. Is there a copyright issue? Can you sell this story? And what made that story's plotline so good that you just HAD TO retell it?

Well, don't worry about that for now. Whether or not you can sell YOUR story, what is important, is to think about why that original story was so good and for that answer... please don't groan... let's take a look at the Bible! Now it seems a little tiresome when everyone is always asking for the sunday school answers. But think about it, the fact that so much information can be found in one little book is incredible! To think that a book contains SO much information that it can change the way we look at things is amazing.

Let's start in Genesis... Adam and Eve and in a perfect little world with their perfect little lives... everything seems normal. The story of humanity begins on the day that everything is different. The day that everything changed. Adam and Eve ate the apple and SUDDENLY... their world isn't perfect anymore. Their lives are hard and they have to work for their food, they get hurt, and worst of all, they are cut off form the One who loves them most... OH NO! So now what? Well, like any good hero, the One who loves them most wants to fix it. He tries to help them stay close, but they JUST... KEEP... MESSING... THINGS... UP!

First, everyone is bad... and no one loves him back

Then, they forget about him in Egypt and blame him for everything

Then, they blame him for the dessert

Then, they try and find another to replace him

Goodness... is all hope lost? No! He tells them that He is going to break down the barriers once and for all! He's going to get rid of all the sin that separetes them... He's going to promise them... A Messiah. A Messiah? A SAVIOR! A solution that would cost the One who loved them most very dearly, but nothing was too much for Him to restore the brokenness. So, He sent them a savior... He sent them... Jesus... a little nobody carpenter from little Nazareth. He sent the one person who would seem least likely to be able to fulfill His promise. In fact, because this incredible man wrapped under the appearence of a Nobody, promised to be something great, they decided to kill him.

WHAT? Kill him???? Now who is going to make things right?!?! How is the One who loves them most going to ever be with them again if they killed his solution? Black Moment. Very Black Moment... literally, the sky went black!

But when all hope seemed lost, Jesus ROSE FROM THE DEAD and now... Everyone can be close to the One who loves them most because Jesus death was ALL PART OF THE PLAN, because only the shedding of blood could fix things.

Pretty incredible story huh? Well how about that really good book you read...

1. Does it begin on the day everything is different?
2. Are there key events that drive the hero to need a solution?
3. Does the Hero face the problem?
4. Is there a moment (Black Moment) where all hope seems lost?
5. And does the Hero rise above these doubts to solve the problem?

EVERY GOOD story has these elements, and guess where they came from? Well, I just told you =)


So, as storytellers, we're really all telling the same story. Sure, the characters change and so do the problems, but really, God's story is woven into all of our best ideas. So... yup. All the same story... essentially. Not that you should ever copy someone's characters or problems... that is a copyright issue =)