Tips to Write Christian Fiction

by Adrienne Carlson

It’s a wonderful feeling when you’re a writer and you’re able to give vent to your creativity and let the words fly as faster than your fingers can move over the keyboard. And when you’re writing Christian fiction, you feel a greater sense of achievement because you know you’re doing your readers a world of good. It’s a little different from writing regular fiction, so if you’re looking for tips on how to attract a larger target audience, read on:
Know Christian values: The very purpose of writing Christian fiction is to imbue in your readers a sense of Christian values. And only when you know and practice these values yourself will you be able to include them in your writing and pass them on to your target audience. Read the Bible and learn all you can about Christian values before you begin to write.

Offer advice subtly instead of preaching: Most people are put off by attempts to preach, even if they are meant to instill good values in them. It’s best to offer advice subtly, through the story rather than directly. It takes all your skill as a writer to be able to do this, to make readers realize the importance of values even as they are engrossed in your story.
Mix values into the story: Your story may be great, but when you’re trying to attract Christian readers, you must be able to mix values seamlessly into the story. This allows them to connect to both your story and you on different levels and provides you with a regular readership.

Provide a great story: Most important of all, your story must be able to captive readers, even those who are not interested in Christian values. When you’re able to weave a compelling yarn, you can use it as a foundation to spread Christian values and rope in more people into the fold. Your books and stories serve as a platform to spread Christianity and Christian values.

Christian fiction must be engrossing and filled with values that both the young and the old can enjoy. Only then are you doing your job as a good Christian writer.

This guest article was written by Adrienne Carlson, who regularly writes on the topic of online bible colleges . Adrienne welcomes your comments and questions at her email address: adrienne.carlson1 at gmail.com

The Ethics of Being a Good Writer

The Ethics of Being a Good Writer

by Holly McCarthy, guest blogger

There are various aspects to being a writer, and you wouldn’t think ethics played any kind of role in any of them, but it’s a major part of any good writer’s repertoire. Besides the fact that you’re a master story teller who can weave magic with words and create the most interesting characters, you also need to have basic moral values if you need to be able to take pride in yourself and your work. Ethics may not contribute to making your book a bestseller, but they sure do matter when it comes to making a better person out of you.

• Plagiarism is an absolute no-no: There’s no use in copying someone else’s work or idea and passing it off as your own. For one, you’re likely to face legal action; and for another, you’re not being true to yourself. Think about it – if you steal one idea or plot, you’re likely to keep doing so all through your extremely short career (believe me, it is going to be short if you’re short on originality).

• According credit where it’s due takes you a long way: As a writer, you’re bound to be indebted to people who help you in your research, your ground work, and in many other aspects. And if you’re not going to acknowledge their efforts in making you who you are today, you’re making a big ethical mistake.

• Don’t get ahead at the cost of someone else: If you have to push someone over and step on them to become a success, that success is definitely not worth it. It may not mean as much as it should because you’re bound to feel guilty about using underhand tactics to get what you wanted.

• Meet deadlines: When you’re a writer, deadlines are a large part of your schedule; you’re always scrambling to meet them no matter how much time you think you have left. Make sure you honor your commitments, no matter how sought-after you are, because a man of his word is a man of good faith.

• Remain humble: No matter how big a success you become, remember your humble beginnings and stay true to them. If you let victory go to your head, you’re in danger of losing sense of who you really are and believing the hype that’s built up about you.

Holly McCarthy writes on the subject of the online colleges. She invites your feedback at hollymccarthy12 at gmail dot com

Guestpost: Ella Curry Interviews Maya Angelou

Ella Curry of EDC Creations Interviews Dr. Maya Angelou

This morning I had the honor to interview Dr. Maya Angelou! I was crying and so nervous during the entire interview. It was all I could do to open my mouth and talk! This is the greatest thing to happen in my business life!

Her publicist called me and gave me 45 minutes to prepare. Listen to the interview and help support our Give the Gift of Knowledge program. Purchase her book Letter to My Daughter and give it as a gift this holiday season. She speaks directly to the adults of the world about taking care of our children.

More about the campaign: EDC Creations, The Sankofa Literary Society and The Black Authors Network announce the launch of their 2009 "Give the Gift of Knowledge Campaign," bringing readers and authors together to help improve literacy. In 2004, during the Christmas holidays, Ella Curry, the founder of EDC Creations, reached out to women's groups and literary organizations to help promote early literacy by giving new books to children from low income homes.

Guestblog: The Secret for Going Solo (Freelance Writing)

"THE WRITING LIFE

The Secret of Going Solo

by Guest Blogger, Pam Perry, CEO of Ministry Marketing Solutions, Inc.

More and more writers striking out on their own for an array of compelling reasons.


• Some have no choice: they have been downsized, laid off, reorganized, or even fired,.


• Others are “following their bliss,” either by taking the plunge with little forethought and less money or by having stashed away just enough to take a calculated risk for as long as their savings hold out.


• Some brave souls dive in with no other source of income, no prospects on the horizon, and only idealism to keep them afloat.


• Those who are less gutsy, or perhaps more pragmatic, keep their jobs and cautiously stick a toe in the water, writing on the side to see how it feels and if it might some day actually pay the rent.


• A limited number think it through, plan, and get all their ducks in a row, before they launch.


• But, by far, the vast majority of would-be freelancers leap first and contemplate later.


I have been a freelancer on and off for 40 years and working at it full time for almost half that time. Here is what I know about "going solo.
"

It's growth promoting, satisfy­ing, and irresistibly freeing. But it's also a tough way to make a living. The market is built on shifting sands. Whatever is hot one day, is ice cold (read, gone) the next. Clients dry up, staff up, or are bought out. Editors move on. Skills so painstakingly acquired become obsolete.


The name of the game is change. You must continue to adapt, learn, audition, and reinvent yourself. If you don't, you become as outdated and unmarketable as your self-cor­recting Selectric.


Nothing stays the same. The economy, technology, and the business world are changing every moment. You can't afford to be left behind. Read the signs; anticipate market needs, and prepare to meet them. That's the secret of going solo.
"

Guestblog: Seeing Christ through The Olympic Opening Ceremonies

Though the races, the competitions, the tournaments had not yet begun, it was a moment of triumph. It was the parade of nations.

As the citizens from countries from around the world lapped the stadium of the Olympic Opening Ceremony, I was reminded of this moment in our future:

“The nations will walk by its light [the light of the glory of God] and the kings of the earth will bring their grandeur into it. Its gates will never be closed during the day (and there will be no night there). They will bring the grandeur and the wealth of the nations into it” (Revelation 21:24-26).

Nation by nation represented by its finest athletes, by the dedicated few, strolled by. I turned to my husband. “How much greater will this be when it’s for the glory of Christ!” Every knee will bow and every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord. Representatives from every nation and culture and people group will join together bound by Christ’s love.

Then China entered. Leading the way was a nine-year-old boy. This boy had not only survived the Sichuan earthquake. He had gone back to save two of his classmates. I was the hall monitor, he said. It was my job to take care of the others.

What a beautiful picture of the cloud of witnesses that will lead the way as we celebrate God’s faithfulness in the eschaton. The martyrs, old and young, will march joyfully, basking in Christ’s glory. They had not just survived. They went back to save the others because of their responsibility to all of humanity.

The Opening Ceremony gave me a glimpse into the future resurrection of God’s good creation. It will be a time of rejoicing, celebration, and triumph. While the artistry of the night stressed harmony between the nations, it is tenuous at best. This harmony won’t stop wars, child slavery, famine. As Christians, we look toward (and indeed work toward) a true harmony that not only sees the cessation of all evil but actively re-creates in love, truth, and beauty.

Heather A. Goodman is a speaker on art and Christianity, living creatively, the adventure of the Christian life, and spiritual formation of the artist. She writes both fiction and nonfiction and blogs at L'Chaim and Tapestry: A Christian Women's Collective. She loves wiggling her toes through the sand, torturing herself through Pilates, and breaking into song and dance. And she's addicted to books. You can find Heather at www.heathergoodman.com .For more information on Heather's speaking, call 469-766-2157 or email heatheragoodman@yahoo.com

Guestpost: Marina Woods of Good Girl BookClub

G-CAFECONNECT a goodgirls read together by Emma Dash Summer Spa, Retreat, Reads & Rocco Treats So sorry, Diva Chicas for sending my letter to you so late. See. I'm on a retreat -- a spiritual spa for Queens if you will at a hidden destination in the mountains on the East Coast. I had been invited to so many cruises and festivals and conferences, but my soul needed to take a pause and reflect on what is real and right in this world. Jesus Christ. So I left all the men in my life (including my young honey dip) and my laptop. But I didn't leave my stationary and a pack of stamps. No, chicas -- That's my lifeline. Keeps me connected to you, you Good Gorgeous Girls. So what can a Gospel Diva possibly do to occupy her time without men and media? Oh, sweethearts, let me tell you. Great Books!! I have a great Book Diva friend who respected my wish to be sight unseen, but knew I heart books. Everyday she has sent me some choice reads. Today I want to share them with you. When you don't have a television or an internet connection you want to read stories that are visual and that have some substance. Now's not the time to be reading dumb mess at a spiritual retreat. Nor is it a time to read lusty dramas that would make me want to run home to my honey dip, my guilty pleasure -- Pray for me. Now back to Good Reads for a Good Girl- I am holding in my hand Rebeca Seitz' Coming Unglued. For those of you scrapbook divas this book is the second of her a Sisters, Ink series. It is about Kendra, a woman after my own heart. She shares my dilemma, loving the wrong man, while a good one is within arms reach. If she were a real woman I would have invited her to this retreat. In fact, there are a few other ladies who need to be here with me. Jasmine Larson Bush of Victoria Christopher Murray's Too Little Too Late and a Sin and a Shame needs to pack her bags tonight! Judge Vanessa Colton-Kirk of Reshonda Tate Billingsley's Can I Get a Witness needs to get a plane ticket and come on. Gretchen Hanover of Melody Carlson's A Mile in my Flip Flops needs to pack some more sandals and meet me here. All these women got man issues and can't seem to understand their destinies. Thank goodness Sherri Lewis's Keeva Banks and Shara Anderson (Dance into Destiny) carpooled with me here. While here we've been rejuvenated. We learned how to Be Last for God (Jeremy Kingsley,) How to Make Love as a Way of Life (Gary Chapman) and once or if we ever marry, How to Keep His Pants on Until He Gets Home (Joyce Oglesby.) We've ministered to some teenagers in the area. I shared with them Claudia Burney's The Exorsistah and Robert Liparulo's "Watcher in the Woods" for Teen Fright Night, Melody Carlson's Mixed Bags, Lisa Samson's Finding Hollywood Nobody and Debbie Vigule "The Summer of Cotton Candy" for the Teen Angst Books and Brunch. Sounds delicious- Speaking of eating -- If you live in the New York Area cutie chef, Rosco Dispirito wants you to invite him to your home. Yes, Ma'am!! "New Cooking Show on A&E with Celebrity Chef Rocco DiSpirito. Rocco is looking for people with unique and compelling stories who need Rocco's help in the kitchen to share these significant moments over an intimate and sumptuous meal. He will teach you what to cook, where to find the ingredients and how to prepare the ideal meal for your extra special occasion. To apply for the show please email Kris @ krisr@pilgrimfilms.tv, please include your name, age, phone number, a recent photo and tell them why you need Rocco's help! I am learning so much about the woman I am to be and can't wait to see how these books transform you. Since I am still away, please email my dear friend, Marina Woods and have her own pass on any emails to me. I will be refreshed and back on the scene in August. And I would love to meet you. Yes, ladies, this Diva will be attending the Faith and Fiction Lovers Retreat in Destin , FL. If you see me there, come eat at my table. I might have a treat for you, those of you who think you know my true identity. No, I'm not Marina Woods. Until fall, Emma (c) 2008-2010 GoodGirlBookClubOnline.com, Good Girl Book Club Worldwide, Good Girl Magazine and Good Girl iMedia. All rights reserved. Words, image and concept, Anonymous Gospel Diva, may not be used, reproduced, copied or altered without express written permission. Inspire, empower or entertain when you let thousands of people know your book, product, CD, event or ministry exists. Limited space. Get the scoop on rates and placement opportunities. Know authors? Forward promotion info to them today! editorinchief@goodgirlbookclubonline.com

Forward email This email was sent to vidae_99@yahoo.com by editorinchief@goodgirlbookclubonline.com. Update Profile/Email Address | Instant removal with SafeUnsubscribe™ | Privacy Policy. Email Marketing by Good Girl OmniMedia | www.GoodGirlBookClubOnline.com | The Good Girl Book Club WorldWide | Good Girl Bible Study | Good Girl Magazine | Promote With Us Today! | http://www.goodgirlbookclubonline.com/promo/index.html | IL | Happy reading!

Guestpost: Win 18500 Entrecard Independence Day Contest

Since my birthday is today, (July 4th) I’m holding a contest where you can win over 18500 Entrecard Credits and over $50 dollars in prizes. The best part of the contest is that it’s very easy to win as only one person will get the prizes to get them a boost in their blog traffic, with over 18,000 Entrecard credits you can get more traffic in a day than most bloggers get in a month.

Here are the list of prizes.

Novice Affiliate- 2500 Entrecard Credits.

Earn Blogger- 2000 Entrecard Credits.

Article Specialist- 2000 Entrecard Credits.

Blog Marketing and SEO Training- 1500 Entrecard Credits.

TheGermz.com-1500 Entrecard Credits.

Entreblast- 1000 Entrecard Credits.

Marc Dionisio- 1000 Entrecard Credits.

The Capitalist Guide- 1000 Entrecard Credits & a free blog review.

1 Million in 365 Days- 1000 Entrecard Credits & a free blog review.

Rumbling Lankan 1000 Entrecard Credits & a free blog review.

ulupongdotcom- 1000 Entrecard Credits.

Michael Aulia- 750 Entrecard Credits.

TheUniversitykid.com- 500 Entrecard Credits.

Video Blogging Tips- 500 Entrecard Credits.

Advertising for Success-500 Entrecard Credits.

Income Alternatives- 250 Entrecard Credits.

WinEntrecardCredits- 125 x 125 Advertising.

Teasa’s Blog Marketing Tips- 1 Month 125×125 Ad.

More merchant- 1 Month 125 x 125.

Wahb- 1 Month 125 x 125 Ad spot and a free site review.

AJN1- 1 Month 125 x 125 Ad Spot.

TheUniversitykid.com- 1 Free blog consultation.

Rockfuse- 1 Free blog consultation.

Here is how you can win!

1.Required Subscribe to my blog’s feed If you are already subscribed then just skip this part. (1 Ticket)

2.Post a comment on articles found on TheGermz.com including this one. (1 Ticket for each comment)

3.Submit any page from thegermz.com to any Social bookmarking site, such as Digg/Stumbleupon etc. (2 Tickets for each submission)

4.Write about the contest (15 tickets)

-Germz, guestpost blogger

Guestblog: Nora St. Laurent on Chris Coppernoll

Dear Dee;
A while back you had mentioned that you wanted pictures from my book club meetings. I wasn’t sure what address I should send this to you. I had two book club meetings last week. It was great fun. This is one that I have completed for my blog.

CHRIS COPPERNOLL SPEAKS TO BOOK CLUB AT LIFE WAY 3-24-08

Chris called before out meeting started to let us know that he was stuck in traffic on 285 (welcome to Atlanta). He sure looks good after being stuck in the traffic of Atlanta for so long. The first thing we asked him to do was take pictures with us. "Hi, Chris. Lets get together and take a few picturese before you speak to the group." He was glad to do it.We had just finished discussing Chris's book "Providence" before he walked up. So after the group shot I asked his help in picking the winners of the books that I gave away that night. I'm sure that he was glad to be out of the car and out of that Atlanta traffic. Look at that smile.This is the Monday night book club meeting...Chris was a delight to have speak to the group. At times he was so funny; he made us all laugh. He told us of how he got started writing fiction books. The book that we read "Providence" is his fourth published book todate. He has written non-fiction books until this point. We are all glad that he has ventured out into fiction. He has a new book coming out this year "BEAUTIFUL FALL". We can't wait to read it.

Sincerely,

Nora St.Laurent

Book Club Servant Leader

http://www.psalm516.blogspot.com/

Psalm 34:18 The Lord is close to the broken hearted; He rescues those whose spirits are crushed. John 8:32 You will know the Truth and the Truth will set you" FREE".

Thanks, Nora. You can read her blog to learn more about that book club meeting.

Guestblog: The Power of Christian Fiction

The Power of Christian Fiction

By Guestblogger, Wanza Leftwich

Christian Fiction has the ability to reach millions of people for an unlimited number of years. Words in print do not die, but continue to live each time it is read.Jesus, the man himself, spoke in parables and illustrated pertinent principles of living through stories. Christian Fiction is our modern day parable. Authors conjured up stories that are real, honest and filled with God’s grace. It is in these stories where the author has the power to effect change in the lives of the readers.Who would have thought that I would find my answer in a novel? Reading Christian Fiction gives you the opportunity to know Jesus in a way you’ve never seen him before.

Yes, the protagonist may be experiencing some level of difficulty, but don’t we all. Did your latest CF novel give you a solution you never thought of before? Perhaps your favorite heroine spoke to God on a level that you didn’t know existed. And let us not forget, our Urban Christian Fiction novels that give you all the drama and laughs, but vividly show you how Christians may mess up, but God is always there for us.Whether you’re the author or the reader of Christian Fiction, know that this genre has more power than you assumed or even imagined. As pages turn, lives are changed, people are set free and hearts are drawn closer to our loving God.

Wanza Leftwich, The Gospel Writer is a missionary, freelance writer, speaker and author of Sunday Morning. She is married to the love of her life and best friend, Arthur, III. Log on and visit her inspiring blog, The Gospel Writer.