Inspired by Life ... and Fiction

Novelists bound by the pen, sisterhood, & more

Memories of Israel & an encouraging event!

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Israel is heavy on my heart, same as yours, I know. Heart-wrenching doesn't even come close, does it? My prayers are rising with yours for Israel and all the innocent Palestinians caught in this horrific conflict. Joe and I were supposed to leave this Friday for Israel, my second pilgrimage to "the land" as they say. But, of course, the trip was cancelled (same trip Robin was on) due to the … [Read more...]

58 Actual Newspaper Headlines

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You may have seen these, but they're worth a repeat.  A simple reminder of why it's important to have someone proof your work before publication . . . ==========================1. Something Went Wrong in Jet Crash, Expert Says2. Police Begin Campaign to Run Down Jaywalkers3. Safety Experts Say School Bus Passengers Should Be Belted4. Drunk Gets Nine Months in Violin Case5. Survivor of … [Read more...]

Pray for Peace

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Saturdays are usually silent here on Inspired by Life and Fiction. But I thought I would take a moment to share that I (along with Tammy and her husband) had not departed the US for our scheduled biblical studies trip to Israel before the terrorists attacked last Saturday. I was due to fly out of Boise on the 21st, a trip that has understandably been cancelled. Because I had shared in blog … [Read more...]

Thanksgiving (No, Not That Thanksgiving)

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Please extend a warm welcome to author Alyssa Schwarz! I'm on trip to New York with my daughters at the moment. :) Alyssa is graciously filling in for me AND giving away a copy of her new book to one of you. Leave a comment on this post for a chance to win! Happy weekend, Becky Thanksgiving. No, I’m not talking about the holiday coming up in a month and a half. I’m talking about the act … [Read more...]

A New Approach

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Hi friends and happy Wednesday!  I have been an avid pantser. Meaning, that I don’t plot, don’t plan my story out, don’t do character worksheets or interviews, or anything of the sort. I just have a “what if” scenario or question in my mind and I’d sit at the computer to write—just letting the story unravel and the characters come to life.  However, I should change “don’t’” to … [Read more...]

WOW: Weird Old Words

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A few months ago, our own Karen Witemeyer wrote a great post called Word Nerd about the enjoyment she takes in learning the history behind some of the words she comes across while researching and writing her novels. I too, consider myself a word nerd, and the one tab I almost always have open when I’m writing and editing is the Online Etymology Dictionary, so I can check to see if words I want to … [Read more...]

Paris est la ville la plus belle du monde

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We’ve been home from our European adventure for more than a week now and while I can truly say, there is no place like home, it’s been such fun going back through our photos and deciding what bits to share with you of the firehose we drank from during two weeks of traveling through France, England, Wales, Ireland, and Scotland with all of Ken's siblings and their spouses.  I thought I … [Read more...]

Survey Results

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In my last post, I asked readers if they purchased books from author websites (ebooks and/or print books and/or audiobooks. In addition to comments on the post, I invited readers to answer a survey. So for this post, I thought I would share the results. And if you participated, thanks so much. My first question was to see if readers are taking advantage of these offerings. I know it is … [Read more...]

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