A Woman’s Worth in Words
I attended the re:Create conference earlier this year and during a lunch conversation with Emily Joy and a few other creatives, I made the remark that as a ghostwriter and editor for the last fifteen years, I’ve noticed a distinct difference in the sexes when it comes to storytelling. My male authors may ask a lot of questions during the process of telling their stories—stories of abandonment, betrayal, divorce, poverty, war—but they’re typically based on marketing ideas and the composition of the overall book. “Can we play up this angle more?” “Can we move this chapter, revise this paragraph, use [...]
Faith of the Fatherless
I had a great talk with a new friend last night, and we both shared that we’d had less-than-stellar male role models. I felt both validated and lacking, happy that I wasn’t alone and sad that so many of us in our twenties and thirties are still dealing with the aftermath of childhood. It made me think of a chapter I contributed to The One: Experience Jesus, by Carlos Darby and Judah Smith. To those who still struggle with self-worth and self-esteem, know that you are never alone. *** Know this: children are a gift from the Eternal; the fruit of the [...]
Blog Tag! (You Are It.)
Last week, fellow writer and editor, Amy Parker, called me out in her blog post for the World Book Blog Tour (WBBT). And well she should; I need to write more. Amy is a fantastic (read: award-winning) writer, mom, and wife. She’s written or co-authored close to 20 books. I’d link to her all of her books but I don’t have an extra 2 hours today. But you’re welcome to look her up and say hello. I’m sure she’d love to hear from you. So, the challenge was to answer some questions about what I do and what I’m working on. [...]
A Quitter’s Guide to Climbing Mt. Hope
On August 3, 2014, I climbed Mt. Hope in Colorado with three friends: Mary, Amy, and Payton. It was the hardest thing I have ever done. And by far the most rewarding. The first night we climbed maybe 30 minutes to low camp, set up tents, experienced the wonder that is camping food out of a bag, and giggled nervously about bears and having to pee in the bushes. We all had heavy packs on, having brought too much, and my feet already hurt. The next morning we hiked several hours up to high camp. It felt like 5 hours [...]
When You’re Overwhelmed
In the wonderful world of book publishing, everything comes in cycles. You push new titles through the spring and summer to meet the often-unreasonable deadline of holiday seasons. And during the beginning of the holiday season, you scramble to meet end-of-year and new-year deadlines. In between those times, there are weeks of no work, which prompt irrational fears of taking a side job at Starbucks, becoming a live-in nanny, or having to sell a kidney. Those lulls are usually followed by weeks of more work than is humanly possible to accomplish in even 80 hours and cause exhaustion, near-fatal levels [...]
30 Things About Me
A friend of mine, Alece Ronzino, posted an article called 100 Things About Me and asked others to do the same. And (so nice of her) she said we could do whatever number we wanted. So I’m doing 30. Because I’m lazy. Er…working.
Proof that STEINBECK was a spy!
Steinbeck: Citizen Spy has been the most exciting project to work on so far in my ten years in publishing (and that’s saying a lot). Author Brian Kannard has discovered proof that Steinbeck worked for the government in several capacities, and the new information now causes us to reevaluate everything we thought we new about John Steinbeck. His son, Thom, has reviewed the book (he loved it) and provided a note in the introduction as well as a quote for the cover. This is a must-read for the literary lover, English teacher, and anyone who loves a good conspiracy story. Plus, [...]
Remember That Time You Said Something Completely Inappropriate?
We all do it. I do it…sometimes more often than I can believe, but it happens to all of us. Sometimes the result is hilarious and leaves you or your friend red-faced and weeping with laughter. But sometimes you really offend someone and want to crawl into a hole and hibernate for a few months. Especially when you’re dealing with topics of grief, sadness, and loss. Well, now there’s a great little guide to help out with those moments when you want to say SOMETHING supportive or helpful or have a genuine conversation during these times but you aren’t quite sure [...]