Category: Guest blog

Accept the NaNoWriMo Challenge

Accept the NaNoWriMo Challenge

My theme this month is National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo), and I’m so pleased to introduce you to author Regina Felty. Not only has she published several books, but NaNoWriMo is how she kicked off her writing career. She explains why you may want to accept the NaNoWriMo challenge. The stage is yours, Regina!

I’m a goal-oriented personality who loves the gold medal–or at least hearty applause–at the end of an achievement, especially for something I’ve worked months on bringing to fruition. I maintain a planner to keep my life in order. Structure and organization are a priority, or I become overwhelmed.

So, when I decided in 2019 to write a book, the first thing I did was purchase a writing program that would keep my characters, scenes, settings, and plethora of notes in an organized layout. I outlined and presented the story in great detail to my faithful sounding board: my husband. But as is common with dreamers–who have lofty ideas and strategies–the motivation to tap out words on a screen was lacking. At the rate I was going, my novel wouldn’t be published for another decade! And since I hadn’t gotten serious about writing until I was fifty, I wanted this book done before I collected social security.

My research for writing motivation led me to an event called National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo), where ambitious writers set out to write 50,000 words of a novel in thirty days. Yes, that’s over 1,600 words a day for a month. Looking back, I remember thinking that NaNoWriMo sounded more like a Double Dutch jump rope song than the writing cult movement that it is. But I was all in. I created a profile on the website, set up my book project, and was poised to hit the floor (keyboard?) running. I hadn’t factored in that Thanksgiving is also in November, and I host the annual holiday at my house.

What was I thinking?

However, I was determined to do this thing and needed a plan (have I mentioned how much I love a plan?). I decided to wake up an hour earlier and write before work every day and extra on weekends. Most days, it felt like I was just vomiting words on the page. Plots and scenes resembled a 5,000-piece puzzle tossed off a twenty-story building more than a novel-in-the-making. For the challenge, it was all about the word count and I reasoned I would sort it all out later. My daily mantra was, “You can’t edit an empty page, right?”

Whew! I did it. Those coveted 50,000 words in thirty days! Yay me!

But … was the book done? Did it resemble something that would later be wrapped in a cover and displayed on a shelf? Not even close. But it was all about the challenge, and the hope that my words could be shaped into a novel. I mean, who wants to give up after making it to 50,000 words?

I still had a lot of work to do before I could line up beta readers and an editor. But NaNoWriMo was my catalyst. My shot in the arm that this old gal could be an author. Seriously. Of an actual book.

Four months later, my debut novel, While You Walked By, was released. And, let me tell you, March 2020 was not the best time to launch a book from a new author.

But the novel has received almost 6,000 reviews on Amazon, and I’ve since launched four more novels and am working on another to be released in 2025. I no longer participate in NaNoWriMo because I’m more realistic about what I can achieve in thirty days (Remember, I’m over fifty now!). However, NaNoWriMo was the motivation that sparked my writing career.

And, who knows, maybe NaNoWriMo is just the challenge you need to get started writing too!

For more posts on NaNoWriMo, click here.

*****

A young homeless boy.

An old man who has lost everything.

An unlikely friendship that brought healing to both.

Ben doesn’t know what to think when a homeless boy shows up late one night behind Angelo’s Bakery where he works as a handyman. He’d seen his share of suffering humanity on the streets of Philadelphia, but this boy is so young…so vulnerable.

Pushing sixty and feeling as if his life has no purpose, Ben wrestles with his own demons. A recovering alcoholic, he is gripped with remorse over the loss of his wife and son, but determined to stay sober.

Twelve-year-old Aden starts to run when an old man comes out of Angelo’s Bakery and catches him hiding, but something about the man draws Aden to him. Terrified and naive to life on the streets, Aden is forced to forge his survival in the face of dangerous predators and violence after his mother abandoned him.

Can Aden trust the gentle old man who offers him food and a hand of friendship? Will Ben be able to forgive himself and search for his son?

While You Walked By delivers a heartfelt, coming-of-age story about the hope that can be found even in the most desperate circumstances.

Buy at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Target and Walmart

*****

REGINA FELTY lives in Arizona with her husband, Andrew, and their energetic rat terrier, Rocco. She spends way too much of her free time listening to Crime Junkie episodes and scrolling through social media when she should be writing.

Although she has always written to entertain others, it was during her dicult teen years that Regina turned to writing as a source of personal therapy. Besides dividing her time between being an author and her career as an American Sign Language Interpreter, Regina also manages her blog, It’s a Felty Thing, and has a special place in her heart for troubled youth. You can follow her on Facebook, Instagram, and Goodreads.

1

Invisible Details Can Be the Most Important Ones

Invisible details can be the most important ones

Author and editor Michelle L. Levigne has come back for a return engagement. Michelle writes in many genres and has recently added cozy mysteries to her long list. Glad to have you back, Michelle, telling us how invisible details can be the most important ones!

In the movie, Ready Player One, the hero, Wade, plays a very early video game. He knows enough about James Halliday, who created his virtual reality world, to know the goal isn’t to win the game, but to “wander around in the dark” and find a tiny, invisible dot. 

At some time in my process of writing cozies, I need to trip over those invisible dots or puzzle pieces. Well, they don’t stay invisible, of course, but I didn’t see them, didn’t know they were necessary, when I started writing the book. If I don’t find them, tiny gaps threaten the cohesion of the story. The invisible pieces slap me with those incredible “Oh, yeah!” moments between finishing the first draft and revising. During the “back burner” time, when I’m not actively thinking about the story, something I see or hear or am thinking about suddenly flips a switch and “Ah hah!”

For example, in my upcoming Book & Mug mystery, Skeletons in the Cellar (April 2025, Mt. Zion Ridge Press), I realized I needed to introduce the dead body, in this case a history student named Lyndsy, as a living person. What better way than to have her walk into Book & Mug and ask Kai about the tunnels the cousins found during their renovation of the building? This is important to the story and ultimately the motivation of the killer. Lyndsy is investigating stories about Underground Railroad safe houses with tunnels leading to Cadburn Creek.

Those invisible dots, those tiny details don’t seem so important on their own, but their absence could lead to logic holes big enough to fly the Enterprise through. (For instance, where did the watch come from in the movie Somewhere in Time? Old Elise gives it to college student Richard, and adult Richard leaves it with young Elise when he goes back in time. The book has a logical explanation, but not the movie! But I digress…)

When I sit down to write a cozy, I create a calendar. Sometimes it’s a pretty bare calendar. But you have to start somewhere, right?

First I put in the dates, and line it up with the previous book in the series, so I can have stories overlap by a few days. I like this for a sense of continuity. (My editor hates this – she’s afraid I’ll give away too much and readers won’t read the previous story. I hope I tantalize readers to read the other books, y’know?)  Then I pick the day when the big inciting incident occurs. In the case of Skeletons, finding a skeleton in the cellar of a house.

Then I need to figure out the events leading up to that important plot moment. In this case, what brings my main POV character into the cellar and what reveals a fake wall?

By then, my brain is dealing with other story events that need to happen to give clues as to who put the body there. I plot out the progression of clues, and incidents where the different POV characters run into the various possible guilty parties and notice little details that they eventually share with each other. At some crucial point in the story, these details connect like a handful of magnets and lead to a satisfying ending, carefully poised between “I did not see that coming” and “Of course, the killer could only be him!”

Funny thing: in Skeletons I knew the guilty party, but as I created more characters and events/clues, I suspected my original villain was being framed. Maybe…

That calendar is important, because during the resting time between first draft and first revisions, when those invisible dots show up, I need to know what sequence of events have to be rearranged or removed, and where to insert those new details. Carefully balanced between being invisible and jumping up and down, shrieking, “Notice me! I’m important!”

Obvious is never good. The goal is for readers to slap their foreheads and groan, “Of course! How did I miss that? It was right there.” Or maybe it was invisible until readers needed to remember it was there …

Writing a cozy can be just as entertaining for the writer as we hope it is for our readers, so they keep coming back for more, and we can say like James Halliday, “Thanks for playing my game.”

To read other guest blogs by Michelle, click here.

*****

BRIGHTEN YOUR CORNER

When the Tweed cousins, Melba and Cilla, set out to open their candle shop, Brighten Your Corner, obstacles pop out of the woodwork. And from out of the walls and under the floor. Starting with an overbearing cousin who wants to take over, insisting the shop was her idea, a nasty former tenant with shady business associates, who insists the shop they now lease still belongs to him, and a family mystery tangled with rumors of a treasure hunt.

The cousins at Book & Mug consider the Tweeds family. Eden, Kai and Troy, with the help of Saundra and Rufus are determined to help them through the threats and contradictions and increasingly odd and frightening incidents that just don’t make sense. The situation gets serious enough that even the help of mysterious, cynical Nick West, with his powerful connections, is more than welcome.

*****

Michelle L. Levigne

On the road to publication, Michelle fell into fandom in college and has 40+ stories in various SF and fantasy universes. She has a bunch of useless degrees in theater, English, film/communication, and writing. Even worse, she has over 100 books and novellas with multiple small presses, in science fiction and fantasy, YA, suspense, women’s fiction, and sub-genres of romance. 

Her training includes the Institute for Children’s Literature; proofreading at an advertising agency; and working at a community newspaper. She is a tea snob and freelance edits for a living (MichelleLevigne@gmail.com for info/rates), but only enough to give her time to write. Want to learn about upcoming books, book launch parties, inside information, and cover reveals? Go to Michelle’s website or blog to sign up. You can also find her at  www.YeOldeDragonBooks.com,  www.MtZionRidgePress.com, Facebook, and Instagram.

1

The Generosity Mindset

The generosity mindset

A lot of new faces this month on JPC Allen Writes, and today YA Christian author Stephanie Daniels is here to talk about the generosity mindset and a spiritual approach to marketing books. Welcome, Stephanie!

It’s never too soon for writers to develop a marketing strategy. What’s the best way to get eyeballs on your Magnum Opus? Amazon, Bookbub, Meta ads. Blog tours, book clubs, reader groups. Each of these things may have measurable success with experts teaching classes that can help you navigate them. Here though, consider some spiritual principles which might give you a new perspective.

I’m always impressed with the passages in Scripture about God exalting us, esteeming others better than ourselves, and putting the last first. God’s emphasis is always on others. Giving His own Son to purchase our salvation was the ultimate example of selflessness. We know this, but we seem to get anxious about whether our message is getting out there.

God is the One who put the idea/plot/character on our heart, so can’t He also get that book to the right readers? Without our help? We trust Him to supply finances, healing, and wisdom, but not those meant to read our book?  Does that mean we shouldn’t ever tell anyone about the works of our heart? No, but we can become too focused on salesmanship, instead of allowing Him to show us how able He is. Some authors spend money on advertising only to be frustrated and discouraged by dismal results. God wants to show us His greatness, but too often we don’t let Him. 

Does that mean we shouldn’t have a strategy? After all, if you don’t have a goal, you’ll hit it every time. Not at all. Learn the things, if you’re able. Take the ad classes. Join the reader groups. Post on your socials. But consider adding something I’m calling The Generosity Mindset to your marketing toolbox. 

First, pray for the results. When I was close to publishing, I told my husband that I didn’t want to use our regular household budget for my writing endeavors. We’ve mostly been able to stick to that. It’s something with which I wanted to trust God. Two years later, and God still gives me a certain number of sales on my first and thus far only published book. Is it because I’m a big name? I’m an indie published author writing in a teeny tiny Christian genre for teens, so no, it’s not because people know me. Is it because I’m such a talented writer? If I am, to God be the glory, but doubtful. The feedback is mostly good, but unlike most YA authors, I’ve not even reached fifty reviews. What I have done is asked God for a certain amount each month–granted, a very small amount–and He has been faithful to give that to me. He’s also given me opportunities. Opportunities I never sought. Those aren’t things I specifically prayed for, but I believe trusting Him with the rest of it has opened other doors. 

Second, put others before yourself. Read books by other authors in your genre so you can give good suggestions. I’d advise even reading books outside your genre. Besides the obvious benefits of improving your craft and helping you stay current in the market, readers love recommendations. And guess what? They notice when authors are generous by mentioning other people’s books. It might even make them curious about yours. Don’t do this to expect something in return. Being generous means no expectations. 

I’m sure this advice seems contrary to everything you’ve heard. It certainly wouldn’t make a good workshop of tried-and-true guaranteed results. We serve a big God though and He’s more than able to sell our books for us. Try Him and see.

Read guest blogs by YA authors Melissa Knight and V. Romas Burton.

*****

What price will she pay for following her heart?

Chicago, 1871. Sixteen-year-old Whimsy Greathart would rather fight against Chicago’s child labor practices than attend her privileged family’s high society events. And a very public social blunder only strengthens her resolve to use her influence for good.

On the night of the Great Chicago Fire, her tenderhearted choice leads her into danger and results in life-changing consequences.

With her world turned to ash, she must rely on the mercy of poor relations to rebuild her future and is forced into the very labor system she wished to fight against. As Whimsy staggers under the weight of street gang violence and hazardous working conditions, a chance at deliverance persuades her to make a promise. One she intends to keep. But now she must determine whether it’s God’s heart she’s following or her own.

A Top Faved Christian story on Amazon’s Kindle Vella. Now available in paperback and e-book.

*****

Author Bio: Stephanie Daniels writes Christian historical fiction for young adults and the young at heart. She lives in southwest Missouri with her husband and three sons. She is also the treasurer and active member in her MozArks ACFW chapter and helps administrate the Teen/YA Christian Fiction Bookshelf Facebook Group. Her debut novel in her Uncertain Riches series (The Uncertainty of Fire) first published on Amazon’s Kindle Vellaas an episodic story in 2021. A year later she released it in paperback and e-book. Currently she is releasing the second book in the series, An Unconfirmed Report on Kindle Vella with plans to publish it in traditional formats in late fall 2024. You can sign up for her monthly Pastports newsletter for reading recommendations and writing updates.

9

Three Rules for Writing YA Fiction

Three Rules for Writing YA Fiction

Give a warm welcome to author Melissa Knight, who writes YA Christian contemporary fiction. Today she’s writing about her three rules for writing YA fiction. And check out her latest novel, You Were There, releasing tomorrow!

Is writing fiction for a teen audience any different than writing for adults? Perhaps a better question for authors is, what will make a teen audience want to read your book?

Prior to writing my first YA novel, I taught English, among other things.  I attempted to match up students with books which interested them, allowing the books themselves, and by default the authors, to captivate and entice the students into becoming lifelong readers. One of my biggest triumphs was watching a fourth grader, below grade level in reading and with precious little interest in books up to that point, almost walk into a wall because he was so engrossed in a Magic Tree House book and wouldn’t put it down!  In my second gig now as an author, I have heard from a teacher working at a juvenile detention center that her incarcerated students enjoy my YA Christian romance books- even the guys. I’m delighted by this but don’t pretend to completely understand what the secret sauce is.

Here’s what I do know, and the convictions by which I abide.

Keep it real but honor the reader’s innocence. Yes, there are YA books out there with obscenities and suggestive, if not explicit, sexual encounters, and they sell. An argument for this is “realism”, meeting the readers in the everyday worlds in which they live.  My counter to this as an author is that we can do better. We can depict gritty circumstances and convey the pressures teens face with solid, well-chosen words that resonate with our readers, without cheapening the reading experience with vulgarity.  Maybe it’s the teacher in me, but I used to tell my own kids that cussing only reveals a poor vocabulary!  Let’s honor our teen audience with solid, thoughtful writing, not sensationalism.

Keep it snappy. It helps me to imagine each chapter, or section within a chapter, as a scene from a movie.  If it doesn’t have movement or conversations to carry the plot forward, does it need to be in the book?. Teens today have grown up with memes and brief social media posts. Involved descriptions of the way the sunlight shines on the water may be beautiful and seem necessary to set a scene, but make sure it’s downright magical or a lot of young adult readers are simply going to skip it. Even I do that! (And I’ll bet you do, too.)  Great dialogue and strategic action will keep me, and those teen readers, wanting to turn to the next page.

Read what other YA authors are writing.  I’m a firm believer that the more you read, the better a writer you become. If I want to perfect my peach cobbler, I’m for sure hanging out with the legendary cook at the church potluck or examining that southern chef’s cookbook recipe! I read YA romance all the time, as well as other YA genres, and have often been stopped in my tracks by a great line or a plot twist I did not see coming. I cheer for those authors, and also learn from them. How did that writer pace the story?  How did she freshen up a tired trope?  What made the flashbacks effective?

Bottom line? Solid writing is solid writing, regardless of a reader’s age. 

Call me biased, however, but in my opinion our young adult readers, for a variety of reasons, deserve – and have- the cream of the crop.

*****

True love? What a fantasy!

Reese has plenty of reasons for being a skeptic. The Owens women, despite their thriving wedding planner business, have a sad history when it comes to matters of the heart!

And yet, there’s this guy…

Tall, athletic Daniel Dixon is full of contradictions. Super-competitive yet gentle, his bold stance on what love really means affects Reese deeply.

Complications arise when she discovers a not-so-secret figure from her past. Add a troubled ex-friend to the mix, and Reese questions not just her judgment, but her physical safety.

Reese’s journey to faith, and to a love that is joyful and enduring, is told with humor, honesty and a healthy dose of grandma advice!

You Were There is a Christian YA Romance, Book One in The Rayburn High Romance Series. Find it here on Amazon!

*****

A graduate of the University of Oklahoma, Melissa Knight and her husband live in west Texas. They enjoy exploring state and national parks, eating good food and hanging out whenever they can with their two grown-up kids. A former high school and special education teacher, Melissa writes YA Christian contemporary fiction and adult Christian nonfiction which entertains, encourages and challenges readers to deepen their relationships with God.  

Follow her on Amazon, Facebook, BookBub, and Goodreads!

7

How to Patchwork the Middle of a Novel

How to patchwork the middle of your novel

I’m reposting Bettie Boswell’s article on how to patchwork the middle of a novel because she offers such good advice. I’ve used this technique in the past and almost employed it while working on my current mystery because I got stuck in a scene and spent way too much time mulling over a single plot point. I was just about to skip ahead to another scene when I had a breakthrough. But I’m keeping this tool in my writer’s toolbox.

One method that recently worked well for me is to patch that muddled manuscript middle together like a quilt. This was a strategy I used when writing my novel, Free to Love. 

Warning:

You need to kind of know where you’re going before you start working on your patchwork blocks. When I reached the point where I struggled to keep things moving, I sometimes skipped ahead to an idea that I thought would eventually be a scene in my story. 

I would jump into that scene and fill in the conversations, stitching them together with setting, tags, the five senses, conflict or tension, an arc, and any other good writing tactics needed to complete the scene. The work went faster because I had skipped the hurdle holding me back. With less effort, because I felt free to move on, I soon had a nice block of story for my quilt. I jumped around and created several blocks. Before long, I was even able to go back and take on the scene making the hurdle that held me back in the first place.

When I exhausted my creation of blocks, I then figured out the placement of each scene and what might be a good binding strip to attach each blocked scene to another. At this point I printed out what I had written in small print, with two pages on one piece of paper (a function on most printers.) I cut scenes out and put the blocks in an order that made sense for the story. Some of the blocks had changed my story but they still met the goals and themes I set at the beginning. 

After I figured out the order that each block would fall in my quilted story, it was time to put the patchwork together. I did that by binding each block into the story by using transitions, adjusting wording to make things fit, figuring out where to leave the reader hanging between chapters and scenes, and sometimes throwing a scene back into the rag bin for another quilted story.

This type of organization worked for me. It might not work for anyone else but you never know until you try. I am not as good at quilting as my grandmother but her beautiful bed coverings provided inspiration for this type of writing. If nothing else works, snuggle under or relax on top of your favorite quilt and brainstorm what might happen next in your story. Happy writing!

For more of Bettie’s posts, click here.

*****

Hidden names

BUY AT AMAZON

Amber’s father, Max, betrayed her and her mom when she was sixteen. Determined to make it on her own she refused all contact with the man and paid her way through college by making jewelry. Now, she finds it hard to let any man get close to her heart.

Months ago, he asked her to make some jewelry. She reluctantly agreed, needing the money he offered to set up her new venture, a studio for artists. Then he died, leaving a jeweled trail of trouble connected to a ring of cybercriminals. 

Against her will, Amber must team up with Federal Agent Graham to gather up clues and stay one step ahead of people who don’t care who they hurt to protect their secrets. 

The wounds of Graham’s past complicate their cross-country race as he becomes attracted to Amber. As they uncover the secrets her father left behind, they must learn to trust each other, before time runs out to defeat their nameless enemies, and find long-delayed healing.

*****

Author Bettie Boswell

Bettie Boswell always loved to read and create stories for family and friends. In 2016 she began writing and illustrating stories to share with the world. She is now an author/illustrator of both children and Christian adult fiction and non-fiction books. Her efforts include contributions to educational works, leveled readers, magazine articles, and devotional and short story anthologies. Bettie has two grown sons, one daughter-in-law, three grandchildren, and a busy minister husband.  Follow Bettie on her website, Bettie Boswell Author/Illustrator.

0

Powered by WordPress.com.

Up ↑