Have you ever read a story that made you feel like you were experiencing it right alongside the characters? Or maybe you’ve noticed that some authors show you the thoughts of multiple characters, while others don’t let you into any of their thoughts. And some books purposefully leave you knowing less than the main characters, […]

You want your stories to matter, but you have the nagging sensation that they don’t. You know that you have a great message to share, but in the back of your head, you’re pretty sure that you come across as preachy instead of meaningful.  You may have heard before that the theme of your novel […]

You crack up at the dialogue on the page, and your siblings stare at you like you’re crazy. You can’t even stop to blink because you need to read what the protagonist says to the villain. You gasp. You shake your head. You miss the call to set the table. I wish I could write […]

You have always loved fantasy.  J.R.R. Tolkien, Andrew Peterson, J.K. Rowling, N.D. Wilson, C.S. Lewis, Jill Williamson, and S.D. Smith all have prominent places on your bookshelf and in your heart. You could talk about their stories for hours. And in your heart of hearts, when you first realized that you were a writer, you […]

The Difference Between Storytelling And Telling A Story Take a minute to just stop and imagine your favorite book in the entire world.  If you’re as avid a reader as I am, you probably won’t be able to pick just one favorite book. . . but try to just focus on a favorite book of […]

Writing style. The mystical key that most young writers feel like they need to discover—to understand, to master, to help make their words come alive. But when you sit down to find it, all you end up with is a blank page. A frustrated stare. A thousand questions with no answers whatsoever. How exactly do […]