Stating the Obvious

A beagle sits atop his dog house, head tossed back, ears dangling, eyes closed in intense concentration. A burst of inspiration pitches him over his typewriter and he composes the first line of his novel: “It was a dark and stormy night…”

Our comic strip shows him stuffing a padded envelope into the corner mailbox. Soon after, he receives a letter congratulating him on the publication of his novel and containing a fat royalty advance. The next frame shows him atop his dog house again, staring at a blank sheet of paper in his typewriter. Then another surge of inspiration prompts him to write: “It was a dark and stormy night…”

The canine author is Charles Schulz’s Snoopy. He’s using the first line of an 1830 novel by Sir Edward George Bulwer-Lytton, a line notorious for describing the obvious. (What sort of night was it? Dark. What sort of weather suited a mystery? Stormy.) 

Lord Lytton's opener has become such a running joke that an annual Bulwer-Lytton Contest invites authors to create an opening line for the worst of all possible novels. This usually turns out to be an overwrought description of what need not be described at all, such as this:

It was a dark and stormy night, made darker still by the melancholy that gripped the drainpipes of my soul in a plumber's wrench of despair...

Stating the obvious--even stating it elaborately--is what Jerry Jenkins calls "on the nose" writing. It doesn't gain the trust of our readers. In fact, it's laughable. We want a story that hooks our curiosity and teases us with the unexpected.

In fairness to Lord Lytton, he gave us more than a trite opening line. He also originated this one: “The pen is mightier than the sword.” Indeed it can be, especially if we write with insight and originality.

Joe Allison writes both fiction and nonfiction, and has been a member of the Indiana chapter of American Christian Fiction Writers since 2010. He lives in Anderson, IN, with his wife Maribeth.

 

Well Begun

Since the advent of its Nook e-book reader, Barnes & Noble has allowed visitors to read any e-book in its inventory for an hour at no charge while they’re in the store. In fact, one can come back every day to read the book in hour-long installments.

On my most recent visits to B&N, I paid careful attention to people in the coffee shop to see how they sampled new books on their e-readers. None of them spent a whole hour that way. In fact, most came with 3 or 4 print books under arm as well as their Nooks, then sampled all of them as they sipped a cup of Starbucks and munched their Danish. Cups emptied, they bought 1 or 2 books and left the store.

First impressions are quickly made.

When I served as a book-contest judge several years ago, I promised myself to read the first 50 pages as a courtesy, no matter how I felt about an entry. Even that small amount of reading seemed burdensome with certain books. With others, the self-imposed 50-page quota flew past in no time and I was eager to read more. You can guess which books got my vote!

Typical book browsers spend little time sampling a new novel, so the opening pages are critical. If you want to invest extra time polishing a manuscript for submission, your time will be well spent at the beginning. 

Joe Allison writes both fiction and nonfiction, and has been a member of the Indiana chapter of American Christian Fiction Writers since 2010. He lives in Anderson, IN, with his wife Maribeth and daughter Heather.

Welcome to the Store...er, Story!

My wife and I were invited to a movie premiere last month, so she decided to buy a new dress for the occasion. “This won’t take long,” she said. “If I go to ___________ Store, they’re sure to have something I’ll like.”

I had not visited that upscale store, but I decided to tag along and see why Maribeth was so confident of finding what she wanted there. The merchandise was tastefully displayed according to gender and size. Aisles were wide and well-lit. And if the store was playing background music, I didn’t notice it. (That’s the best quality of background music, wouldn’t you agree?)

As soon as I stepped inside, a salesman strolled by and asked if I needed help with anything. I declined. Without skipping a beat, he smiled and invited me to ask anyone on their staff if I did need help. Several salespeople were walking about the store, so I knew I could get a quick answer to any question.

I soon found some clothing items to try on, and that salesman came by again. He showed me a couple of other items and pointed me to the fitting rooms. The fitting rooms were clean and in good order, without stray hangers or other distractions. In half an hour, Maribeth bought two dresses and I bought two sweater vests with shirts. She was right: The store had exactly what we wanted, even though I didn’t know I wanted anything!

A good story is rather like that good store.A good story gives us confidence that it contains what we desire. Its narrator clearly knows where to take us and how to entertain us along the way. Everything that comprises the story’s background (the physical setting, the characters’ eccentricities, their sub-plots and detours) stays in the background so it doesn’t distract us from our quest. Most important, a good story gives us something rewarding and satisfying, even when we don’t know what we’re looking for.

I suppose I’m thinking along this line because November is such a busy shopping month—Black Friday and all that--at any rate, it’s a good time to learn from the best retailers how to welcome readers into our stories. Even casual browsers!

Joe Allison writes both fiction and nonfiction, and has been a member of the Indiana chapter of American Christian Fiction Writers since 2010. He lives in Anderson, IN, with his wife Maribeth and daughter Heather.

Why you shouldn't worry about the publishing industry

A lot of Christian authors are fretting about Family Christian Stores filing Chapter 11 bankruptcy and what it could mean for the Christian publishing industry.

I'll admit it's scary. The store's financial crisis means publishers won't get paid. As a result, publishers will suffer financially and may be reluctant to take a risk on a new author. Exisiting authors may receive less money for contracts than they received in the past because the money isn't there.

 And so, the doors, which may have opened more easily for unpublished authors, could now be slamming shut. 

But that's no reason to stop writing.

Especially if God called you as His scribe.

Many are called to preach, but they don't get paid to do it.

 Many are called to sing, but they don't have contracts, and yet they sing every week in their worship services to the glory of God.

 Many are called to teach, but volunteer their time in Sunday School. 

I'm not saying that all writers should be glad to give their work away. But the reality is, not everyone is chosen to have a full-time paid writing life. Most writers are bi-vocational. And a lot of musicians, preachers and teachers are, too.

We can't peer into the future and know what will happen in the publishing industry. Publishers themselves are a bit in the dark.

There's only one thing I can guarantee: nothing is for certain.

And yet, I don't think there's been a better time to be a writer. A mere 20 years ago, writers couldn't find the audiences that we have access to now via the Internet.  Blogging wasn't a "thing" until the late 90s, and even then, many folks had no clue what it was. (I'm happy to say I did.)

Now, via our blogs and social media, we write and publish our thoughts immediately. I feel giddy thinking about it. What do you suppose Shakespeare or  Hemingway would have blogged about? Just think of the tools we have that they never dreamed of.

As never before, we have a global reach as writers. People in far away countries have read my books. I don't think it would have happened so quickly 10 or 20 years ago.

God placed us in this world for such a time as this. And we can trust Him with our call. We may not get to do the things we want, but we will definitely get to do the things He's created us for if we obey. We may never be interviewed on CNN or have our books listed in Publisher's Weekly, but that's okay. Because what really matters is that we're listed in the Lamb's Book of Life, and that those we write for have the chance to consider their place in its pages, too.

The devil would love nothing more than to silence you. Don't let him win. His voices aren't quitting. They continue to churn out filth and drivel in every language. And they take no shame in spewing their message via self-publishing.

Self-publishing is a viable option. I repeat. Do not be ashamed to self-publish. It's here to stay. It's not going away. It's just too easy now. (Having said that, do NOT publish until your work is pristine. I'll blog more about self-publishing later.)

I predict that traditional publishers will look at those who self-publish successfully, as much as they look at social media credentials and talent, when considering a contract.

Where it used to be considered unprofessional to self-publish, if you do it right and you're successful, it's now considered admirable. It shows you have the stick-to-it-ness and work ethic needed for a good author to be successful.

 However, the irony is this: if you're self-publishing successfully, why would you want to go the traditional route? (More about this later, too.) And herein is why publishing companies are in a bit of a quandary, wanting to play it safe (I don't blame them), and afraid to take risks on new voices.

There is room, nay, a need in this world for the Christian voice. If we quit writing, our voices, which are so often drowned out, will for certain never be heard. God delights in using the small things of this world, and He can use our voices to reach those He longs to draw to Him. Even if only three people read our blog--if they are the people God has brought to us, how exciting is that?

As Christian authors, our art has a different purpose than writing for our own pleasure or the pleasure of our readers. When we write, we also write for HIS pleasure and HIS purpose. What an extraordinary thought. If the only audience we have is the audience of THE ONE, isn't that all that matters?

When I think how our Christian brothers and sisters are struggling, suffering and dying under the oppression of ISIS, the perils of the Christian publishing industry in the United States pale in comparison, do they not?

One day we will face our Lord on the other side of eternity, and He's not going to ask us why we didn't make the best-seller's list. But we will give an account for how we used our gifts to reach a lost and dying world (Matthew 25:14-30).

Just because you're not published with a traditional company doesn't mean your writing doesn't count. If you don't have an agent, that doesn't mean your writing isn't legitimate in God's eyes.

Tweet this: His eyes are the only ones that matter.

Keep writing. Lives are at stake. It's not about ego or pleasure. As a Christian author, it's about redeeming the time we've been given to share the most important message of all: God's grace and His soon and coming return.

What will you do today to fulfill the call?

 Karla Akins is the author of The Pastor's Wife Wears Biker Boots and narrative biographies for children. She currently serves as Vice President of ACFW-Indiana.

When she's not writing you can find her on her motorcycle looking for treasure.

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Breaking the Rules

While waiting at the local CVS for my prescription to be filled, I browsed through a bookrack of current New York Times best-sellers to see how top-flight novelists began their stories. One pattern I noticed: They often broke the rules of fiction writing. Don't believe me? Read this first paragraph from a recent NYT list-topper and imagine what a panel of contest judges would say about it:

Jack Armstrong sat up in the secondhand hospital bed that had been wedged into a corner of the den in his home in Cleveland. A father at nineteen, he and his wife, Lizzie, had conceived their second child when he'd been home on leave from the army. Jack had been in the military for five years when the war in the Middle East started. He'd survived his first tour in Afghanistan and earned a Purple Heart for taking one in the arm. After that he'd weathered several tours of duty in Iraq, one of which included the destruction of his Humvee while he was still inside. That injury had won him his second Purple. And he had a Bronze star on top of that for rescuing three ambushed grunts from his unit and nearly getting killed in the process. After all that, here he was, dying fast in his cheaply paneled den in Ohio's Rust Belt.--David Baldacci, One Summer

I can see the judges' penalty flags flying, can't you? "Don't begin with a flashback." "Too much telling, not showing." "Universal POV doesn't engage the reader." etc. Yet Baldacci's second paragraph hooks us:

His goal was simple: just hang on until Christmas. He sucked greedily on the oxygen coming from the line in his nose. The converter that stayed in the corner of the small room was on maximum production, and Jack knew that one day soon it would be turned off because he'd be dead...

We soon learn that Jack isn't holding on till Christmas just for sentimental reasons, but...well, I'll not spoil the story for you!

My point is, even though Baldacci may have broken some sacrosanct rules for novel beginnings (and you may disagree with me on that point), he drew readers into his story with hints of foreboding in the next few paragraphs. Established best-selling authors may feel more freedom to do this kind of thing, but I believe we newbies need to exercise the same kind of iconoclastic courage if it draws our readers into the world we imagine.

 

So you want to be a writer? Then you better get a thick hide.

Source: Wikimedia Commons

For as long as I can remember I've wanted to be a writer.

And for as long as I can remember I've had issues with rejection.

We all have them, really. But my issue is more pronounced since I was abandoned at birth, and for other reasons I'd rather not share, I feel rejection to the core.

Of all the occupations to long for, I managed to pick the one where rejection is more the norm than the exception. Especially when starting out.

If you want to be a writer, you're going to have to grow a thick hide. You're going to want to be a writer more than you hate the feeling of rejection.

I started submitting stories back in the 1970s (you know, when the ice was just beginning to thaw from the ice age). I received more rejection letters than acceptances. In fact, I'm not sure I received any acceptance letters from any magazines of major importance. But I continued to write. I enrolled in writing courses. I kept practicing the craft. The passion was still there. The rejections hurt, but my unction to write was stronger than that hurt.

I truly believe that it's not the most talented that get published but those that are the most persistent. It's the ones who refuse to give up and who are open to criticism and willing to learn how to master

their craft that make it.

Get yourself in a critique group that will filet you, and you'll learn to write well. It will do you no good to surround yourself with people who pat you on the back. Iron sharpens iron. Pens sharpen pens. Create an environment for yourself that stretches you and demands more from you.

Recently I was asked by a major magazine to do an article. I had longed to be published in such a magazine during the 1990s but my submissions were consistently rejected.

Now the magazine has come to me, not me to them.

I do not boast in myself. I only share this to say that it has nothing to do with my brilliance, but it does have to do with my work ethic and my willingness to learn all I can and to work like a dog. When I'm not doing something else, I'm writing. I'm not kidding. When I'm not writing, I'm usually researching or learning about writing. (I'm also a full-time college student, pastor's wife, Mama, caregiver of a mother-in-law with Alzheimer's...) But when I'm not doing those other things in my "other life," I'm working on my craft. I sacrifice personal free time to do so. (Naturally, in balance with keeping God my God and not putting the writing before Him.)

My point is this: Work Hard. Learn to take it on the chin. Grow a thick hide.

And never, never quit.

This post is cross-posted from Karla's Blog.  

 

Karla Akins is the award-winning author of The Pastor's Wife Wears Biker Books due out August 9, 2013. Her ebook, Jacques Cartier went #1 in its category on Amazon and one of her columns was featured on the CNN homepage.

 

 

Writing on the Run

Gone for me are back to back hours to write. These days I’m learning to write on the run. (I’m pursuing another degree.)

Agatha Christie got her start writing that way. During World War I she worked as a nurse and later at a dispensary. She spent every spare moment during her down time and in between patients writing.

I may be getting a degree, but I find that first and foremost, I’m a writer. There are too many stories in my head that I’ve got to get out, so I plot and write during boring lectures. While I’m waiting in lines or doctor’s offices, I pull out my notebook and begin to write where I left off during a dull class. When I’m in the car and Mr. Himself is driving, I pull out the notebook and take up where I left off while in the doctor’s waiting room.

I’ve found some advantages to these writing spurts:

• When I rewrite it on the computer, I do an immediate rewrite.

• It gives me a new perspective when I’m typing it out – I think of new things to add or delete.

• My brain is able to slow down and think deeper when I’m writing long-hand on paper than when I’m typing a story. (Of course, the flip side to this is that I can’t write as fast as I can think.)

• I’m becoming an expert cryptologist as I work to decipher my scrawl.

I do miss having long delicious hours to languish at the keyboard and write. But to be honest, writing for long blocks of time can sometimes be frustrating. Writing in small spurts is really fun. I never have writer’s block. And when I have to stop, my brain is more free to ponder what I’ll write the next time I get to pull out the notebook.

What about you? How do you write on the run?

Karla Akins is a pastor's wife, mother of five, and grandma to five beautiful little girls. She lives in North Manchester with her husband, twin teenage boys with autism, and three crazy dogs. Her favorite color is purple, favorite hobby is shoes, and favorite food group is cupcakes.

Expecting!

My granddaughter, Maggie Ellen Faith Akins

It took longer than nine months, but my baby is due any day now!

If you're a writer you know I'm referring to a new book release. (As far as I know, angels haven't stopped by to inform my husband of an impending birth. If that happens, unlike Sara, this 50-year-old granny won't laugh. She'll pass out.)

I'm terribly excited about my new baby, er, book and I want to remember this feeling because I think the emotions might be very similar to the first time you deliver a human baby--nothing compares with the awe and wonder of it. I can hardly wait to hold it in my hands and count its fingers and toes, er, its pages. 

I've been published in compilations and magazines, but this is my first true blue book with my name on the front cover. Excuse me while I gush. It's embarrassing, I know, for those of you with million-dollar contracts, to observe my shameless blush of success. But for this girl who dreamed of being a writer from the time she could read, it's rapturous living on that giddy cloud of nine.

My book, O Canada! Her Story: Historical Narratives and Biographies that tell Her Story, is due out sometime this month. It's written for middle grades and the target audience is homeschoolers. But much like a Pringles potato chip, releasing a book is addictive. I'm eager to get to the next one. 


My new website is ready and I've started a mailing list for those interested in writing and history. Writing this book clarified something for me: while I enjoy writing humorous-contemporary fiction, I'm passionate about creating historical faction. That is, stories based on real events and people in history. 

I still write my columns at Examiner  and Mother Nature Network. I recommend column writing for anyone because it teaches you to write succinctly and to "just get 'er done." It does this for me, anyway. If you're not yet published, I encourage you to build your writing resume this way.


I think all projects take you to a new level of skill, or a new perspective of what it is God wants to say through you. One thing I've learned so far in this writing journey is that you've got to write a whole lot of twaddle before you get to the good stuff. So keep writing. Even when you don't feel like it, put your backside in the chair and write. (This is why writing columns is helpful. You've got to write something every day.)


What has God revealed through your writing experiences lately?  In what ways have you grown? I'd love to know. Write on!

Karla Akins is a pastor's wife, mother of five, and grandma to five beautiful little girls. She lives in North Manchester with her husband, twin teenage boys with autism, and three crazy dogs. Her favorite color is purple, favorite hobby is shoes, and favorite  food group is cupcakes.

Beginnings

Photo credit:  Billy Alexander

By: Nikki Studebaker Barcus

"In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth." Don't you just love that? What astounds me and makes my heart pitter-pat at this verse isn't just the fact that it is the beginning of the greatest book of all time, or that it is The Beginning, of well, everything. It is not that these words are centuries old and still carry the power of creation within them. Even the truth that these are God Almighty's very words is not what gets my blood pumping. Nope. What I just adore about this verse is the finality of it.

God didn't just start out creating one day only to let the partially-formed earth linger like my bathroom remodeling project. The Creator God didn't lose interest after the beasts of the field and then run off to another adventure as my kids are wont to do. No way. Within the span of ten words God starts and finishes the entire world--heavens and earth included. The whole creation account--the expanses, the fish, the fowl, the fauna, the man, the Garden--summed up in that amazing sentence. In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.

You see, I can't help but be excited about that verse because I'm a finisher. I enjoy starting things, but what really floats my boat is drawing a thick black mark on an item on my to-do list. (Want to know a secret? If I do something and it's not already on my list, sometimes I write it down just for the satisfaction of crossing it off. Gasp! I know!) So I like the tidy way Genesis records the beginning and the completion of God's most amazing week.

Since the kids rushed off the bus forty-three days ago (but who's counting), chanting that tune about "no more books or teacher's dirty looks" I seem to be in perpetual "start" mode. With the sun barely peeking over the horizon, I start a cup of coffee. Then it's off to break up a fight or enforce chore time. I've started several books that I'd like to read, but someone always needs something--a ride to a friends, more toilet paper, a captive audience. I start cleaning a room and before I can finish I'm called away for one reason or another. When I return, one of the kids has decided to use every VHS tape left to build a fort, another one is fully engaged in an art project in the middle of the floor, and the other decides now is the time for his twice-yearly nap. I've started blogs posts and writing projects inside my head a million times but in the six weeks since summer break started, I've written only twice--this post and the one last month. Now that can really bum a girl out, especially a girl who likes to finish things as much as I do.

As writers, we know the importance of beginnings--the lead, the hook. We spend days, weeks, months, or entire books pondering just the right words to capture our audience. I know that. But God reminded me today of some other things I've started this summer that count for more than any writing project I could ever dream up. I've been privileged to start (and end) nearly every day with my healthy, happy, head-strong kids. I've started conversations with friends that encouraged, bolstered, and renewed both of us for the long days ahead. I spent four days at conference with over 600 middle school students and watched misty-eyed as kids I've taught week after week in Sunday school stood up and declared the beginning of their walk with their Savior.

So, if this summer is all about beginnings, I choose to embrace it. If nothing gets finished, there's always September. Whew! Now I can mark this blog post off my agenda.

How about you? Are you a starter or a finisher? Are there any new beginnings in your summer? Do you have a finished project you'd like to share so we can celebrate with you? Are you writing as much as you planned? If so, congratulations! But if not, take a look around you at what you are investing in with your time. Maybe it's something even more grand.