How to Write a Detective Team

ACFWAdvice, Authors and writing, Characters, Mystery/Suspense, tips, writing 1 Comment

by JPC Allen I’ll state the obvious: if you want to write a mystery, you must have a detective. But detectives come in all shapes and sizes, so you have a lot of room to develop an interesting main character. As you write, you might find your story is better if you have a duo of detectives. When I began …

Notes from a Newbie

ACFWAuthors and writing, creativity, Encouragement, Faith, writing 14 Comments

By Linda Dindzans @lindadindzans One recent early morning, I was fretting over fine points in the first rework of edits for my debut novel. Each word was critical. Should I change this may to might? Finally satisfied, I hit send. A Certain Man—a novel set in ancient Samaria at the time of Jesus—was on its way back to the editor. …

Just Show Up

ACFWAuthors and writing, creativity, Encouragement, Faith, Perseverance, Procrastination, writing 7 Comments

By JPC Allen I thought nothing could be more difficult than writing a novel during a pandemic. Trying to make sense of the world at that time dried up most of my creative juices. And what little that was left was consumed by becoming a teacher to my children. Was I ever wrong. I began to write my latest cozy …

Blooms and Baggage in “A Year in Flowers”

ACFWEncouragement, Faith Leave a Comment

by Suzanne Woods Fisher @suzannewfisher Picture this: three best friends, teenage girls, elbow-deep in petals and dreams, working alongside their mentor in a cozy flower shop. Then, bam! Something terrible goes down, and they bolt, leaving behind a trail of shame. Shame packs a punch, doesn’t it? Call it what you will—personal insecurities, perceived flaws, secrets, mistakes, unconfessed sins— it …

Be Yourself

ACFWAdvice, Authors and writing, Encouragement, Faith, tips, writing 5 Comments

By Loretta Eidson @lorettajedison Did you ever think you could become an author? I didn’t. Well, not until the tug in my heart pulled me in that direction. Who was I to join the team of such an overwhelming, impressive profession? Who knew the journey would be so challenging? Starting at the bottom forced me to face my fears of …

Stealing the Heart of the Reader

ACFWAdvice, Authors and writing, Characters, creativity, Dialogue, Plots, Story Structure, tips, writing Leave a Comment

By Marie E. Bast @mariebast1 To steal the heart of the reader, a story must have a solid plot line and the protagonist must believe a lie about him or herself, which will cause obstacles and hinder them achieving their plot goal. This problem will become obvious at the inciting incident and first plot point. Each chapter, like a golf …

I love that about you!

ACFWAuthors and writing, Critiques, Encouragement, Faith, Fear/Doubt, tips, writing 6 Comments

by Julia Fenstermacher Growing up without my mother was hard. I did not realize how much I needed affirmation and acknowledgement until it came to me in my teen years. My Dad did his best to raise us three kids single-handedly. He was a purpose driven corporate ex-military man who traveled for work. When he was home, he cooked gourmet …