Craft, Cost & Call, by Patricia Paddey and Karen Stiller (Friesen Press, 2019)
Two award-winning Canadian Christian
freelance writers, Patricia Paddey and Karen Stiller, have teamed up to share
what they describe as “our conversation with you about what we have learned
through success and failure.” [Kindle location 98]
The book feels very much like a
conversation, candidly sharing experience and advice. Beginning and
intermediate writers will gain the most, but even seasoned pros will likely
pick up a thing or two.
The “craft” section deals mainly with
nonfiction, mostly articles, yet I’ve gleaned inspiration and encouragement I
can apply to my fiction. The “cost” section includes practical business tips
relevant to all, and “call” addresses the spiritual side of writing. What
struck me most in that part was this quote:
View your platform as the place from which you live out your calling to be a writer and to serve your readers. [Kindle location 1865]
Reading this book made me want to go write
something.
Writers are invited to visit CraftCostCall.com for “more writing
exercises, resources, and conversation about building a life as a Christian
writer.” [Kindle location 2129] This virtual watercooler could become a very
good place to hang out.
Patricia Paddey and Karen Stiller have
solid backgrounds in writing and editing, with articles and books and awards to
their names. These two authors illustrate the truth that while writing is often
a solitary activity, it requires community. Having benefited from other writers
along the way, they’ve prepared this book to mentor others. And they’re
donating a portion of proceeds from Craft, Cost & Call to The Word Guild, an association of writers
and editors who are Christian.
At the risk of sounding cliché, the possibilities really are
endless.
How should I pursue publication?
Should I look for an agent and try to get a traditional
deal?
Should I self-publish my work?
Should I do both and become a hybrid author?
If I choose to self-publish, what will I do myself?
Format my manuscript? Create a book cover? Edit my book?
And if we’re Christian, we likely want to be certain that we’re
fulfilling God’s call on our life—and going about it as He would want us to.
But how can we know that we’re following the path He has set out for us?
Writer or not, there are a number of ways to do so—and
they’re not as mysterious as we may think.
Study God’s Word.
The Scriptures are the Lord’s primary means of communicating
with us. It’s important to become familiar with what they say and what they
mean in context.
In God’s Word we find specific instructions and principles
that apply to every area of life.
Seek to obey His commands and directives.
Are we seeking, in God’s strength, to walk in obedience to
Him? As we do, He sheds light on the path before us and enables us to take the
next step on the journey.
Spend time in prayer.
Sometimes, it’s as we pray for guidance that He gives it. At
other times, it’s as we’re praying for others that the Lord nudges us in the
direction He wants us to take.
Seek godly counsel.
Wise counsellors may be members of our family or fellow
members of our church. They may be friends, neighbours, or even those we’ve
developed relationships with online.
Wise counsel, direction that honours the Lord, points us in
the right direction—even if it’s not what we want to hear.
And we can rest assured that it will never contradict the
clear commands in God’s Word.
Use your talents and abilities as you have opportunity.
While we are responsible to develop them, God gave us our
talents and abilities. They are often a good indicator of the route we should
pursue.
Pursue that passion that just won’t go away.
We can’t do everything we’d like to do in this life. (Ask me
how I know this. <grin>)
Still, if there is a God-honouring passion that never leaves
us, no matter what our circumstances and season of life, it’s likely something
the Lord wants us to investigate—and possibly, pursue.
Persevere.
I recently heard that there are writers who give up because
the words just aren’t flowing. These individuals figure if God wants them to
write, He will give them the words and it will be easy.
Any of us who have written anything from a Facebook status
to a full-length novel know there are times it’s far from easy. The right words
seem as elusive as the bat my hubby can’t find in our house (but that’s another
story).
Still, the Scriptures have much to say about perseverance.
And if God has put it on your heart to write, I encourage you to persevere.
Develop your skills. And continue to seek Him for guidance and direction.
Tweetables
Wise counsel, direction that honours the Lord, points us in the right direction—even if it’s not what we want to hear. (click to tweet)
If there is a God-honouring passion that never leaves us, it’s likely something the Lord wants us to investigate. (click to tweet)
Any of us who have written anything from a Facebook status to a full-length novel know there are times it’s far from easy. (click to tweet)
Steph Beth Nickel
Photo credit: Jaime Mellor Photography
Steph Beth Nickel is a freelance editor and writer and an author. If you would like more information about her services, you can contact her at stephbethnickelediting@gmail.com.
Are you looking forward to the journey or only arriving at
the destination?
How is vacationing like the writing journey?
We aren’t planning any big trips this year, but I realized
on our way to Frankenmuth for a couple of days that I had a choice. I could
enjoy the journey or merely endure it.
Writing is a little like planning and executing a vacation.
Decide on a Destination
Unless you’re hopping in the car and seeing where the road
takes you, you likely have a destination in mind.
The same should be true when writing. Are you planning to
write a book? An article for Medium? A blog post?
Set a Timeline for Each Leg of the Journey
Life happens. Something may come up to deter you from your
schedule. However, it’s important to at least have a schedule to keep you on
track. (You don’t want to find out the day before you leave for the airport
that you should have renewed your passport.)
It’s important to be kind to yourself. Set an achievable
pre-journey itinerary, but don’t be so “kind” that you leave everything to the
last minute and consider giving up on the idea altogether.
This year I signed up for Camp NaNoWriMo—and, shock of
shocks, I edited my manuscript well ahead of schedule. There are several more
steps to take before the book is available, but now I know I can actually git
’er done. Now to set a timeline for the next steps.
Gathering what you need for your writing journey can simply
mean grabbing a pen and notepad or your phone with its note-taking app, finding
an inspiring location to write, and getting at it. Or it may need a reliable
internet connection and months of research.
Whichever it is, commit to it and get started.
Start Out
You won’t get any closer to your destination if you gather
what you need, pack it in the car, and sit in the driveway.
It may be exciting—or a little scary—to start out on a new journey.
But the only way to reach your destination is to set off.
Put pen to paper or fingers to keyboard (thumbs to phone
screen?) and begin.
“Once upon a time …”
Recalculate When Necessary
You may find you made a wrong turn or missed the cut-off.
But just like the old GPS units used to say, “Recalculating.”
You wouldn’t abandon your idea for a vacation because you
had to do some backtracking and recalculating to find your way.
Don’t abandon your idea if the road to publication gets a
little bumpy or if you have to find your way through unfamiliar territory.
Ask for Help
When planning your trip, you may hop online to get
inspiration or check out customer reviews of accommodations and tourist
attractions.
If you get lost (on the road or in the airport), you may
have to check with someone in the know.
Even after you reach your destination, you will likely count
on dozens of other people to make the trip a success.
Granted, writing is, in many ways, a solitary endeavour, but
“no [writer] is an island.”
Writers rely on countless others on the journey from the
first spark of an idea to published work—and beyond. Those people may include
beta readers, editors, proofreaders, marketing pros, web designers, and many
others.
Celebrate Your Arrival
“We’re here!” to a traveler is as amazing as “The End” is to
a writer.
Touching down on the tarmac or penning those satisfying
words isn’t really the end of the journey. But it is well worth taking at least
a few minutes to do a happy dance—literal or figurative.
Finalize Plans
You may have a detailed itinerary in hand, but it’s good to
check on reservations and make sure everything is in order. On most trips,
adjustments have to be made.
When it comes to releasing a book or publishing a blog post,
adjustments may be in order. Or, possibly, if you’re new to the process—or have
just been too busy with other things, you may have to create that website,
research traditional and indie publishing options, find out how to get your
work in front of readers.
Begin Planning for the Next Journey
It took about five minutes before I started planning our
next trip to Newfoundland when we were there last summer. Since our son and
daughter-in-law live in Scotland, I thought it would be a wonderful location
for a family gathering. They wouldn’t feel like they’d left home—except, of
course, for the hours of travel and the money spent.
Even if you’ve arrived at your writing destination, you
likely have plans for several other projects. While you want to relax for a
while and enjoy the moment, you just may want to grab that note-taking device
and outline the next journey.
Wherever you are along the way, take a deep breath, and
marvel at the fact that yes, you are a writer. And it’s one of the most
exciting journeys you’ll ever take!
Tweetables:
How is vacationing like the writing journey? [click to tweet]
9 ways travelling is like the writing journey. [click to tweet]
“We’re here!” to a traveler is as amazing as “The End” is to a writer. [click to tweet]
Take a deep breath, and marvel at the fact that yes, you are a writer. And it’s one of the most exciting journeys you’ll ever take! [click to tweet]
Steph Beth Nickel
(Photo by Stephen G. Woo Photography)
Photo credit: Jaime Mellor Photography
Steph Beth Nickel is a freelance editor and writer and an author. If you would like more information about her services, you can contact her at stephbethnickelediting@gmail.com.
A four-letter word. And we writers utter it
in all its forms: noun, adjective, verb. However, this dirty little word is
most vital to our work.
My latest book A New York Yankee on Stinking Creek was heading to IngramSpark. I
knew it shone with my authorial brilliance. After all, my two critique partners
tore it apart, and I rewrote it according to their suggestions.
I have subscriptions to Grammarly and to my
favorite editing software, ProWritingAid. I ran the manuscript through them and
dutifully made corrections.
As a final polish, another software program
read the work to me.
It wasn’t enough, and I knew it.
The book would be self-published, the
reasons would make another blog post. I wanted this book to rise to the top of
Amazon and Barnes and Noble’s lists. Millions of other works competed against
it. Again and again I read that in order for your book to make it into the ten
percent of new releases, a professional editor had to correct its issues.
Breezy. Right?
You read all I did to make this work shine.
My editor, true to my predictions, claimed
my work was clean. She found it easy to edit. Then she sent me my edited copy.
Page after page after never-ending page,
she marked-up my work like an English teacher on Adderall.
And what did she find? A smattering of
examples follow:
MINI Cooper not Mini Cooper
LEGOS not Legos
My ‘ was supposed to go the other way ’ (Can you see the difference? I couldn’t).
I spelled Emmett’s name (a
minor character appearing seldom) Emmet on one random page somewhere in the
middle of the manuscript.
Kincade not Kincaid
Random single spaces at the end
of paragraphs
And I could go on and on and on. Why bore
you with my boo-boos?
So many small mistakes all my early editing
didn’t catch. So many of my favorite weasel words I never saw. So much.
I almost think I took longer to correct my
mistakes than it took to write the story.
However, the result is a professional novel.
I know most of you use traditional
publishers and using ProWritingAid sends off a polished manuscript for their
editors to critique.
For those who must self-publish, find a
trustworthy editor. Check his/her credentials. Send her a few pages for a
sample of her work.
How do you find one? Ask your writing
groups. Get recommendations from other writers. Mine is a member of ACFW and
used to work for the agent Les Stobbe.
Will A
New York Yankee on Stinking Creek rise to the top of the NYT Best Seller
List? An introductory read of the novel will prove it should.
If it doesn’t, it won’t be because of poor
editing.
Check out A New York Yankee on Stinking Creek. You’ll see the above is true.
NOTHING GOOD COMES FROM
STINKING CREEK
Alone, again, after the death of her
fiancé, abstract artist Kiara Rafferty finds herself on Stinking Creek,
Tennessee. She wants out of this hillbilly backwater, where hicks speak an
unknown language masquerading as English. Isolated, if she doesn’t count the
snakes and termites infesting her cabin, only a one-way ticket home to
Manhattan would solve her problems.
Alone in a demanding crowd, Delia Mae
McGuffrey lives for God, her husband, her family, and the congregation of her
husband’s church. Stifled by rules, this pastor’s wife walks a fine line of
perfection, trying to please them all. Now an atheist Yankee, who moved in
across the road, needs her, too.
Two women. Two problems. Each holds the key to the other’s freedom.
Author Carol McClain is an eclectic artist and author. Her interests vary as much as the Tennessee weather—running, bassoons, jazz, stained glass and, of course, writing. She’s a transplant from New York who now lives in the hills of East Tennessee with her husband and overactive Springer spaniel.
She is the president of ACFW Knoxville and
the secretary of the Authors’ Guild of Tennessee.
The world in East Tennessee intrigues her
from the friendly neighbors to the beautiful hiking trails and the myriad
wildlife.
The ladies I’ve met with over the past decade are diverse, as is their writing. But we’ve learned much during our time together, including what we want to write and why—for now at least.
Memoir
Barbara is working on a talk she will be giving to the ladies at her church in December. Her husband passed away from ALS, and she will be sharing some of that journey. This is a highly emotional topic, but one she feels ready to dig into now that some time has passed. Barbara has come to realize there may, indeed, be enough material to write a book, something she has been encouraged to do.
Even though there may be no one in the audience who has lost someone to ALS, Barbara’s listeners will be able to relate to the depth of emotion, the sense of loss, the challenge of believing in God’s goodness and love even when the darkness threatens to engulf you.
Do you have a personal story to tell? Have you struggled with pain, illness, broken relationships? Do you wonder if anyone could relate, if sharing your story would be more than simply a cathartic experience for you?
You might be surprised what a blessing you can be to others.
Romantic Suspense
In the past, Darlene has blogged about some of the most painful and challenging times in her past, but currently, she is focused on fiction. She likes to read—and write—romantic suspense. She enjoyed Nancy Drew as a girl, as many of us did. And this serves as inspiration for her award-winning stories. She and her agent are hunting for the right publishing home for her work.
Which books fostered your love of reading? What do you enjoy reading today? Have you considered writing in the same genre? Perhaps you should.
The journey to publication can be long and filled with a string of highs and lows. But if this is where your heart is, take courses, attend conferences, read skills development books, and write, write, write … and then write some more. Perseverance is key—to this and most any form of writing.
Eclectic Writing
Lisa writes nonfiction to share what she has learned, to encourage others, and to enable them to write more skillfully. She writes fiction to tell the whole truth. There is a depth to the human condition that is sometimes best examined in a story.
Lisa is an expert in writing in deep point of view, and her new book Method Acting for Writers: Learn Deep Point of View Using Emotional Layers teaches others how to draw in readers and keep them engaged from page 1.
Do you have a wide variety of interests? While there is a time to focus on a single project or a single genre, you may want to explore a number of the many options available to today’s creative.
Our group members are also writing poetry, devotionals, and book reviews, as well as other things.
If you’re not sure what you’d like to write, connect with other writers, in person or online, and ask what they write and why. Your conversations may spark your creativity and lead you to write something you hadn’t before imagined.
Steph Beth Nickel (Photo by Stephen G. Woo Photography)
Stephanie (Steph Beth) Nickel is an award-winning co-author, a freelance editor and writer, a labour doula, and a former personal trainer. She also loves to speak, teach, and take slice-of-life photos. She would love to connect with you on Facebook or Twitter.
Writers… are you sometimes tempted to quit? I’ll never forget lamenting to a friend and fellow-writer that I wanted to give up. She shot back, “Go ahead and quit. See how long it lasts.”
Because we’d both been there, done that. And we both knew why it wouldn’t last. Writers are wired to write.
Recently, I had the opportunity to share a guest post, “Quitting Time?” at the Seriously Write blog. You’re invited to pop over and join the conversation.
Ten busy authors have banded together to create a how-to for writers at all stages on the writerly journey. Writing from the Trenches released Sept. 1, and I caught up with one of the authors, Michelle Griep, to learn more about the book.
Janet: Welcome, Michelle, and thanks for taking time to join us. Love the title! It tells me you’ve all been there, you’ve served your apprenticeships, and you have stories to tell and wisdom to share. What excites you most about this project?
Michelle: I love that the reader will get to hear from not just one author, but 10 veterans who’ve been around the writerly block—many times. I learned a lot just by reading what the other writers said!
Janet: I love a book that offers something for every stage of writer, because we can keep going back to it as we grow. What are some of the topics covered?
Michelle:
Plotting Techniques
Research
Characterization
Villains We Love to Hate
Dynamic Dialogue
Sigh-Worthy Heroes
The Right Heroine for the Job
Hooking Your Reader in the First Chapter
Scene Endings to Lead Your Readers On
Creating a Movie Set
Making your Readers Cry
Deep POV
Copyediting your Manuscript
Indie Publishing vs. Traditional Publishing
Marketing for Those Who Hate Marketing
Janet: Where did the book idea come from?
Michelle: MaryLu Tyndall was really the driving force behind this book. I’ll let her answer.
“I’ve read many writing instruction books over the years from many different authors, and I’ve learned a great deal. But I noticed that everyone’s advice, style, and instruction was different. Sometimes they even contradicted each other. So, I thought, why not get a bunch of fabulous authors together to give their own advice on a variety of writing topics and put it in one book? A one-stop shop for the best advice out there on writing!”
Janet: Great idea. Beginning writers sometimes try to take everyone’s advice, even when it doesn’t work for them. Ten authors… how did you connect for this project?
Michelle: Once again, MaryLu to the rescue. . .
“Gathering up authors was much like herding and leading cats, but so worth the effort. I wanted to get a variety of authors—some successfully published in the traditional market, some who’d made a success as Independent authors, some who did both, some with name-recognition, some without a whole lot, but ALL great writers who had won awards or been on best-selling lists. Those were my criteria, so I went about sending out recruitment emails! Surprisingly nearly everyone I contacted was excited to be a part of this book.”
Janet: You’re from different locations (all US?) and you write in various genres. How did that shape and enrich the project? Did it add any challenges? And do you have any funny, or maybe frustrating, stories of working together? Something other writers considering collaborations might need to know?
Michelle: Yet again, I defer to the wonderful MaryLu . . .
“Working with nine other people is never easy, but I was fairly surprised at how great this group got along, how quickly we came up with the topics we wanted to cover and who wanted to write which ones. We divided up the tasks we needed to accomplish—writing, editing, formatting, printing, cover design, marketing, etc—and then set a timeline. I have to say, everyone has been wonderful to work with, everyone got their chapters done on time, and everyone is contributing to the final product. Truly a miracle has occurred!”
Janet: You’re all Christian writers. Is Writing from the Trenches exclusively for Christians, or would a non-Christian writer find good take-away too?
Michelle: There’s honestly no way to extract who we are from what we write. But that being said, this is not an overtly Christian book. It’s a how-to, nuts and bolts sort of book. Any writer will benefit from all the collected wisdom, no matter their religion.
Janet: Before Writing from the Trenches, what book(s) on the craft most impacted you?
Michelle: Yikes! That’s a tough one because there are so many good ones out there. I’d have to say Self-Editing For Fiction Writers by Renni Brown & Dave King made a big impact on my writing, really explaining the difference between showing and telling. Also, Bird by Bird by Anne Lamott really spoke to my angst as a writer and freed me from a lot of writerly fears.
Janet: Classic books for writers! Thanks for chatting, Michelle. All the best with the new book, and with your fiction as well. How can we find copies of Writing from the Trenches?
Michelle: You can snatch up your copy HERE AT AMAZON. And here’s a blurb about the book:
TEN-HUT! Gear up for your writing with tried-and-true tips from the trenches. Ten award-winning authors share invaluable tips and secrets they’ve gleaned the hard way, offering a broad range of insights and opinions on the best way to tackle tricky subjects on everything from characterization to plotting to marketing.
At last … a writer’s tool that provides the experience and expertise of ten authors who’ve been on the front lines of publishing and lived to teach about it: Connie Almony, Lynnette Bonner, Hallee Bridgeman, Louise Gouge, Michelle Griep, Julie Lessman, Elizabeth Ludwig, Ane Mulligan, MaryLu Tyndall, and Erica Vetsch.
If you’re a writer—and even if you’re not—you’ve probably seen posts about the GDPR, the General Data Protection Regulation. It makes sense to be concerned about how our personal data is collected, stored, and used, but the GDPR has caused a lot of trouble for many authors, bloggers, and other writers.
While this post isn’t about rules and regulations, all the talk about the GDPR did lead to the thought … why can’t writers just write?
If money were no object, perhaps, a writer could outsource everything except the writing itself. But are there really any writers who do that? Highly unlikely.
Authors and other writers are expected to do so much more than write.
Develop and maintain a website and possibly, a blog.
While creating content is a big part of this, there are domain names to be purchased, website themes to be chosen, and “branding” to be considered … among many, many other things.
Develop a social media presence.
In this, the cyber age, readers want to feel connected to the authors and writers whose posts and books they read. They want to know they’re real people with real lives. They also want to know that their favourite writers are willing to give them a glimpse into their life and that they care about more than simply selling their next book.
Find one’s tribe and connect with them regularly.
People can smell a sales pitch from a mile (or 1.61 kilometres) away—and many will run in the opposite direction. However, if an author is willing to truly connect with their readers and potential readers and offer them something of value without asking for the sale at every turn, those individuals may rise to the level of “super fan.”
Continue to develop and hone writing skills.
No matter how experienced a writer, there are always more skills development books to read and courses to take.
Authors seeking to go the traditional publishing route are familiar with writing and rewriting, query letters and proposals, pitching to agents and editors, and on and on.
Much of what it takes to become a traditionally published author has little to do with writing the books themselves.
Those seeking to self-publish have to write and rewrite, decide what to do on their own and what to outsource, oversee all aspects of their writing business even if they are working with a team.
While some people hate the word, authorpreneur hints at the fact that self-publishing writers are doing more than writing. They are small business owners and must see themselves this way and take responsibility for their business.
And when all is said and done, a writer must …
Continue to create content.
And while writers must juggle their schedules to include all of these pursuits and more, they must also continue to create content—or the rest of the process will be meaningless.
This is only the tip of the proverbial iceberg. So, the answer to the question is no, writers can’t just write. But, at the end of the day—GDPR or no GDPR—writers can’t not write.
Tweetables:
Writers are expected to do so much more than write. (Click to tweet this)
At the end of the day writers can’t not write. (Click to tweet this)
~~~
Steph Beth Nickel (Photo by Stephen G. Woo Photography)
Stephanie (Steph Beth) Nickel is an award-winning co-author, a freelance editor and writer, a labour doula, and a former personal trainer. She also loves to speak, teach, and take slice-of-life photos. She would love to connect with you on Facebook or Twitter, on her website or blog.
As Christians who write books and pursue other creative endeavours, we all run up against the issue of marketing. Smacks of self-promotion, doesn’t it? And self-promotion doesn’t sit well with us when we consider the high premium God puts on humility and placing other people’s needs ahead of our own.
The very word sales brings to mind a pushy individual pressuring us to buy something we don’t really want or can’t afford. As Kirsten Oliphant of Create If Writing says, her books, courses, and other resources are for creatives who want to learn to market their products without being smarmy.
While we still come across smarmy salespeople, more and more creatives are practicing excessive generosity, “overdelivering” as it were. From those whose first book in a series is permafree to those who offer information-packed training online that is of great value, both to those who purchase their product—and those who do not. These are only two of the countless ways to market our work in a way we can feel good about.
Another way to make a connection with our fans and potential fans is to spend time with them. More and more readers want to feel as if they can develop a genuine relationship with their favourite authors. While not all creatives spend time interacting with their fans online, those who do can develop communities where members end up befriending one another as well as the creative who started it all.
Many creatives are introverts and developing a community in cyberspace is often far more appealing than seeking to do so in person. Still, doing book signings, speaking at conferences, and leading workshops are other good ways to connect with our audience. And even when not doing so in person, there are many online opportunities: participating in a virtual summit, developing a course and including regular “live” events where we spend time with those taking the course, periodically going live on YouTube or Facebook …
As Christians, we were made for relationship. As we seek to market our products by developing Facebook groups and other social media communities, we may find ourselves developing deeper authentic friendships and speaking into the lives of others in ways we never imagined. These relationships may lead to sales. But even if they don’t, we can have a positive impact on others’ lives, something we should all desire.
And when it comes to making the sale …
An insightful fellow author once said if he didn’t feel his book had value to potential readers, wasn’t worth the asking price to them, he had no business selling it. Wise words!
Let’s remember that our creativity is a gift from God. Let’s develop our abilities and endeavour to bless others. As we seek to effectively market our work, let’s remember that there is nothing wrong with doing so if we exercise honesty, integrity, and a desire to improve lives.
Tweetables
#Marketing for #Christian creatives: Make authentic connections and overdeliver on promised content. (Click to tweet)
Steph Beth Nickel (Photo by Stephen G. Woo Photography)
Stephanie (Steph Beth) Nickel is an award-winning co-author, a freelance editor and writer, a labour doula, and a former personal trainer. She also loves to speak, teach, and take slice-of-life photos. She would love to connect with you on Facebook or Twitter, on her website or blog.
