Happy Holidays
We feel it is important to say Happy Holidays this time of year to include people of all faiths and cultures that enjoy celebrations as the year closes. We wish you and yours a special time of togetherness and shared joy. In your spare time, perhaps you will start writing your own novel.
ERNEST HEMINGWAY ON WRITING
A recent contact said he was a good writer but lacked the skills for developing plots and characters. For anyone of our readers facing the same dilemma, we thought Ernest Hemingway’s tips might help any aspiring author get started or proceed to the finish line.
Start with one true sentence. When starting a new story and struggling to get it going, remind yourself, ‘Don’t worry. You’ve written before, and you’ll write now.’ That one simple, true sentence could break through writer’s block.
Stop writing for the day while you still know what’s coming next. Always stop when you’re going well and know what will happen next. That way, you’ll avoid getting stuck. Leaving a little momentum helps you start strong the next day.
Don’t think about the story when you’re not working. Never empty the well of your writing; stop with something left. Let it refill naturally at night. Giving your mind space to rest helps you avoid burnout.
Begin each writing session by reading what you’ve written so far. When it gets too long to read it all, go back a couple of chapters each day. Then each week, read from the beginning.
This practice helps you to reconnect with your story’s flow and keep continuity.
Don’t describe emotions—create them. Real writing conveys the emotion as truthfully as possible. Instead of explaining feelings, let readers feel through the action and dialogue.
Write with a pencil. Writing with a pencil gives you three chances to revise: first when reading over, then when typing, and finally in the proof. Hemingway found the physical act of writing by hand helpful for getting ideas down and refining them later. [NOTE: Elio would never do this!]
Be brief. The Gettysburg Address was brief by design. The rules of prose are as unchanging as those of physics. Concise, powerful prose are valuable in making every word count.
GUEST AUTHORS – JOHN GRISHAM & JIM McCLOSKEY
FRAMED
It was not by coincidence that upon hearing of sudden death of Susan’s good friend, Charles Lockert (The Kokomo Railroad), she came across John Grisham’s latest book, Framed.
In his first work of nonfiction since The Innocent Man, #1 bestselling author John Grisham and Centurion Ministries Founder Jim McCloskey share ten harrowing true stories of wrongful convictions. Impeccably researched and grippingly told, Framed offers an inside look at the injustice faced by the victims of the United States criminal justice system.
A fundamental principle of our legal system is a presumption of innocence, but once someone has been found guilty there is very little room to prove doubt. Framed shares ten true stories of men who were innocent but found guilty and forced to sacrifice friends, families, wives, and decades of their lives to prison while the guilty parties remained free. Framed is the story of overcoming adversity when the battle already seems lost, and the deck is stacked against you.
GUEST AUTHOR – ROBERT HARRIS
CONCLAVE
Elio and Susan agree that Conclave is a page turner. For Elio, that was after he saw the film by the same title. For Susan, it was before she saw the film.
The pope is dead. Behind the locked doors of the Sistine Chapel, one hundred and eighteen cardinals from all over the globe will gather to cast their votes in the world’s most secretive election. They are holy men. But they are not immune to the human temptations of power and glory. And they are not above the tribalism and factionalism that consumes humanity. When all is said and done, one of them will become the most powerful spiritual figure on Earth.
