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Inspired by Life ... and Fiction

Novelists bound by the pen, sisterhood, & more

What To Do After Completing a Book

April 16, 2021 By Jody Hedlund

I recently received an email from a writer named Payton who completed the first draft of her first book. She had a lot of great questions. Here's one: "What does your process intel after finishing that first draft? What should I do?" This is a question I actually get from a lot of new writers completing a book. Let me tackle the question by first sharing what my process is. Second, I'll finish … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Writing Tagged With: First Book, Jody Hedlund, New Writers

When the Headline doesn’t disappear + Giveaway

March 25, 2021 By Cara Putman

One thing that I learned early in my writing process is that I have to find an idea I can fall in love with for two years. Yep, you read that right. Two years. It takes roughly two years to go from building the proposal to writing and editing the book then through marketing the book as it releases. I knew I had to find an idea with Beyond Justice that could carry me through that space of … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Writing Tagged With: giveaway, immigration

Four Tips for Crafting the Mood of a Scene

March 19, 2021 By Jody Hedlund

Over the past decade, my five children have all moved into the teen years. Needless to say, we’ve had drama. And quite a bit of it. Moods swing high. And they swing low. Sometimes in a matter of minutes. All the moodiness in my house reminds me of the need for creating moods in our stories. But all too often, manipulating the mood falls to the bottom of our list of writing to-do's. When … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Writing Tagged With: Jody Hedlund, Story Mood

Comparison Trap

March 10, 2021 By Dani Pettrey

Hi friends, Happy to be back with you this week! Today I’m talking about an area that I’ve struggled with over the years and maybe you have too. As writers it's so easy to fall into the comparison trap. I’m a sloooowww writer, and I have writer friends who can write a book in six weeks. Six weeks! It takes me that long just to get about a fourth of my raw draft done. And, when I say raw, I mean … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Faith, Writing

Editing Until Your Brain Hurts!

March 5, 2021 By Jody Hedlund

Lately I’ve been in editing mode. I just completed rewrites on Never Leave Me, the second Waters of Time book, releasing early next year. (The first book in the series, Come Back to Me, releases in just a few months!) After turning it in, I jumped into a line edit for my second Colorado Cowboys book, The Heart of a Cowboy, releasing in October of this year (which, by the way, you can … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Writing Tagged With: Editing, Editors, Jody Hedlund

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