Writing Prompt Wednesday 6/29/16

I've not posted a writing prompt for the last couple of weeks, so I do apologize if you have been missing it. 

Here’s how it works. Each Wednesday throughout the summer, I will post some sort of writing prompt on this blog. It might be a picture, a word or phrase, or a bit of dialogue. It could even be a feeling or a smell.

Anyone who wishes to play along may write a scene or an entire story using the prompt. You can keep these stories to yourself if you like, using this as an exercise for your writing brain, or you may share with us in the comments below. Occasionally I will share my scene or story as well.

If you choose to share your story in the comments, please keep it clean. I started this series by request of a student, and would like to keep it where people of all ages and backgrounds can participate.

There are no winners and losers here, no prizes or fame to be had. My intent is for everyone who participates to have fun and be encouraged. 

Here is the writing prompt for this week.

To get you started: Who are these people? Do they know each other, or have they just met? Is the little boy coming or going? Answer as many or as few questions as you want in your story.

Share your story with is in the comments.

How NOT to Publish Your First Book



1. Have a great idea/inspiration.

2. Get so excited you write it on your drive home (using talk to text).

3. Talk about it all the time, but don’t actually do anything with it.

4. Finally get around to asking someone to illustrate it, but give them no clear direction except a manuscript.

5. Give page by page illustration breakdown to the illustrator (after realizing he has no direction)

6. Make sure illustrator lives so far away that everything has to be done by email and phone/text.

7. Send manuscript to editor after the illustrator begins work.

8. As you revise, be sure to include pages that you cannot think of any way to illustrate.

9. Make revisions that require illustration changes.

10. Add pages together to eliminate the un-illustratable pages (also eliminate some pages that your illustrator worked really hard on).

11. Now that your illustrations are finished and you realize that you aren’t great at cover design, ask your illustrator to do that too, but don’t give him any direction. It’s just a cover, how hard can it be?

12. Get frustrated because you picked an illustrator that has a life and doesn’t do things on your timetable.

13. Get frustrated because the cover is not what you envisioned (even though you didn’t share your vision with the illustrator).

14. Take time to talk to your illustrator while they are actually at a computer and can send you pictures.

15. Decide you hate the first page of your book (after it has been approved by your editor).

16. Change it—the whole first page.

17. Change stuff on most of the other pages too.

18. Worry that you probably made some grammatical mistakes when you changed all that stuff.

19. Celebrate because your book looks great in Kindle Kid’s Book Creator—you are finally done!

20. Get mad because it doesn’t look right in Preview mode.

21. Delete the whole file and start from scratch because you can’t figure out how to make the changes like you want.

22. Send it to your Beta readers (even though your editor hasn’t seen it after the changes).

23. Wait impatiently for Beta readers to respond.

24. Create a book launch party on Facebook to help spread the word. Request reviews.

25. Get so busy with your “real” job that you don’t have time to make suggested revisions.

26. While on break at said “real” job, use phone as hotspot to get revisions uploaded.

27. Click Publish.

28. Tell friends and family.

How to be a Good Neighbor

I want to take just a minute to talk about the Orlando shooting. First, let's stop arguing about whether the shooter is an American extremist, or a Muslim extremist. The point is, he killed people and their families are hurting.

You know what hurts the families even more? Everyone arguing over whether this guy hated their loved one because they were American or because of their LGTBQ lifestyle. Those people don't care why their loved one was killed, but they might care what we are all going to do about it.

And, before you go there, I am NOT going to say increase gun control. That's not the answer folks, and it never will be. (Unless, of course, guns begin loading, aiming, and firing themselves.)

What I am referring to, is being the change this world needs. If each and every person who reads this post will commit to loving others the way that Jesus loved, it could spark a small movement. If everyone who reads, also shares it, the movement would grow.

As the Lorax said, "Unless someone like you cares a whole awful lot, nothing is going to get better. It's not." So, what about it? Do you care "a whole awful lot?"

Christians these days are being portrayed as haters of Muslims, Gays, Trans, Blacks, Mexicans and so on. Let me ask you, Christian, is that who you are? No?

So tell me how you are showing God's love to those people then? Do you preach at them? (Not love.) Invite them to church so they will see the error of their ways? (Not love.) Boycott their business because of their political affiliation, race, religion, or lifestyle choices? (Also, not love.) Refuse to make their wedding cake because you disagree with their choices? (Still not love.) Maybe you really believe that you have every right to refuse them service, and maybe that's true, but does it further the kingdom of Heaven? Does your refusal to make their cake reflect Christian love and forgiveness? Those people you refused to serve, God loves them too. 

And they aren't the only ones looking at you. The eyes of lost people everywhere are on you too. Are they thinking, "Wow, I want what she has--that kind of conviction about my beliefs--to be able to just turn down that order and their money?" Or are they thinking, "Wow, Christians are bigots and terrible people. How can they be so heartless?"

So, like I asked, are your actions furthering the kingdom of Heaven? Or paving the road to Hell? Personally, I don't believe that God is going to turn me away from heaven for choosing to love others rather than alienate them.

Here are a few ways that you can love your neighbor.

-Invite them to places (not just to church, but to family dinner, BBQs, and hanging out at the pool.

-Accept them where they are--this does not mean you have to agree with their lifestyle, or religious or political views--just that you value them as a person.

-Let your kids play together. (This may necessitate a conversation with your child beforehand about how Jenny has 2 dads, and we should show them love and kindness even though we may not agree with their choices.)

-Stick up for them when you hear others talking down or gossiping. (This may make you unpopular with the modern day Pharisees.)

-Pray for them--not just that they realize their choices are "wrong" but pray that God moves in their life and blesses them abundantly.

Remember Matthew 22:39 "Love your neighbor as yourself." Not, Love your neighbors with similar political views, or love your neighbors if they are straight, or love your neighbors if they are good people. NO! It says Love your neighbor.

Remember the story of the good samaritan? (Luke 10:30-37). The Samaritin was supposed to hate this guy he helped--maybe he was a Trans man or woman who got beat up/robbed/raped because of his/her lifestyle. Maybe he helped a mama that has been shamed about allowing her child to fall into a gorilla pit. Let me ask you, can YOU be the Good Samaritin to THAT man or woman?

Lord, help me to learn to Love like Jesus. Help me to be willing to look past the labels and lifestyles, and to rise above the name-calling, judgemental person I can sometimes be. Help me to be the change that my community needs. Amen.

Writing Prompt Wednesday 6/8/16

Another week; another Writing Prompt Wednesday. 

Here’s how it works. Each Wednesday throughout the summer, I will post some sort of writing prompt on this blog. It might be a picture, a word or phrase, or a bit of dialogue. It could even be a feeling or a smell.

Anyone who wishes to play along may write a scene or an entire story using the prompt. You can keep these stories to yourself if you like, using this as an exercise for your writing brain, or you may share with us in the comments below. Occasionally I will share my scene or story as well.

If you choose to share your story in the comments, please keep it clean. I started this series by request of a student, and would like to keep it where people of all ages and backgrounds can participate.

There are no winners and losers here, no prizes or fame to be had. My intent is for everyone who participates to have fun and be encouraged. 

Here is the writing prompt for this week.

A few questions to get you started. Where are you at? Why is it so foggy? Is the light a beacon of hope or an ominous sign? Are you heading towards the light or running away from it?

Share your story in the comments.

Coming this week: The Littlest Frost Fairy

I cannot tell you how many revisions I have done, or how many hours I have poured into this book. And I thought children's books were supposed to be easier to write! For goodness sake, this is a 30 page picture book, how hard can it be?

Just because it is shorter than a novel, does not mean it is easier to write or that less work goes into it. I made so many changes and revisions, I lost count. Sometimes it was just a word here, and a word there, other times it felt as though I had replaced every other word.

Then, I would look at my revisions, shake my head, and change them all back. Sometimes I'd go back and forth several times.

I read the story to myself, read aloud, read to my kids, read using fairy voices. I changed words, rearranged sentences, combined pages, separated pages, and all around beat myself (and my book) nearly to death.

Finally, it was done. Complete. Perfect! As close to perfect as my feeble brain could get.

Then I waited for the rest of the illustrations to be perfected. While I was waiting, I sent the manuscript to my editor. She didn't tear it to pieces, but did suggest some changes. But it seemed that for everything I changed, something else didn't sound quite right. Together we got it to an even more "perfect" state.

When the illustrations were finally ready and I went to put it all together, my nearly perfect manuscript had big problems. I hated the first page. Something was wrong with it. It was an incoherent jumble of words with no rhythm or pace.

So, after my editor and I had spent weeks perfecting what was there, I changed it...the whole first page. And then I loved it liked it again.

Then I did that for the whole book, except I mostly only changed a word or two here and there.

I was worried that I might have made grammatical errors, since my editors did not see these changes, but I sent it to my beta readers anyway.

And...I had made some grammatical errors and typos. Lucky for me, someone pointed them out, while at the same time complimenting my book. Ok, so the positive here is that a handful of beta readers did not hate it!

I'm busy working on implementing the changes suggested, and plan to publish this week. I'm certain there is such a thing as over-editing, but I want my book to be as good as it possibly can. This time next year, I will hopefully be an even better writer, but for now, it's the best I can make it.

After waiting so long to share it with the world, I'm nervous, but excited that it is finally ready.

Look for the e-book later this week on Amazon.