Resources for Young Writers

A teen writer e-mailed me after she read my post about the EPIC New Voices writing contest for middle school and high school students.

She asked about resources for young writers. So I’ve been on the lookout but only recently came up with some good ones.

Georganna Hancock at A Writer’s Edge introduced me to Writing magazine from Weekly Reader, a favorite school days memory for many of us. Students can submit their writing to the Word: the Official Blog of Read and Writing Magazines, which also offers writing advice.

A recent post on Becoming a Writer Seriously suggested Fictional Worlds as a blog that is inspiring and informative for young writers. Posts include writing advice, experiences, and sample work.

I’d like to offer more resources for teen writers. Please share any Web sites, blogs, or other resources to motivate and educate aspiring young writers. Thank you!

[tags]teen writers[/tags]

What I Learned From … The World of Sports

As I said in the only other post I’ve ever written about sports, I am not a sports fan. I never intended to write about sports again, but Robert Hruzek at Middle Zone Musings is very persuasive when it comes to getting entries in his What I Learned From … group writing projects. So here’s another post on sports, an entry in What I Learned From … the World of Sports.

I certainly can’t write about my own experience playing sports. The only lesson I learned from PE classes in swimming, tennis, and bowling is that I’m no good at anything athletic.

So I’ll turn back to the San Antonio Spurs, our beloved hometown basketball team. I don’t remember exactly what year the franchise started in San Antonio, but I do recall that it held a contest to name the team. The teenage son of our next-door neighbor won with the name Spurs.

When the team won its fourth NBA championship in nine years last summer, I paid enough attention to learn some valuable lessons.

• Talent is important, but so is experience. The Spurs team has lots of talent, but having been in the championships before gave them an edge. Even imaginary experience can be helpful. Many successful people in sports, business, and just about any area of life have practiced and studied and visualized success for many years before achieving their goal.
• Teamwork is critical to success. None of us achieve success without lots of help. Every “self-made man” has someone who has helped him: a teacher who motivated him, family and friends who supported him, mentors who guided him. Although the Spurs have “The Big Three” star players, they would not have won with championship without the rest of the team doing their jobs effectively.
• Perseverance overcomes obstacles. We all face obstacles in life, and last year started off badly for the Spurs. However, they kept working and improving with every game until they won the championship. Many people want to give up when things aren’t going well, but often they would reach their goal if they didn’t quit.
• Nice guys don’t always finish last. The Spurs players are known for supporting the community and for avoiding the bad behavior that unfortunately is all too common among sports and entertainment stars. Nice matters, and we can be both successful and nice.

One more lesson: if I, a non-sports-fan, can learn these lessons from the world of sports, we can all learn from the world around us. We just have to pay attention.

[tags]What I Learned From, group writing project, sports, San Antonio Spurs[/tags]

Nice Matters

Diana Brandmeyer at Next in Dianaland honored me with the Nice Matters Award.

This award is for those bloggers who are nice people, good blog friends and those who inspire good feelings and inspiration. Also for those who are a positive influence on our blogging world.

Diana certainly deserves recognition for being nice, and I really appreciate the award. I have found that most bloggers ARE extremely nice and very helpful.

That makes it difficult to narrow down the list of nice people to recognize with the award. There are so many others I would like to include, but to keep the list short, I’m selecting bloggers who have consistently helped me over an extended period of time. Many other blog friends have been incredibly helpful, but our blogging friendship is newer.

Thank you to each of you (listed in alphabetical order by first name) for being my nice blogging friend.

Jeanne Dininni at A Writer’s Notes welcomes readers warmly in her blog and encourages her blogging friends in her comments on our blogs.

Joanna Young at Confident Writing creates community by encouraging comments and reaching out to other bloggers on her own blog and by making insightful comments on other blogs.

Laura Spencer at Writing Thoughts comments thoughtfully on other blogs and recognizes other bloggers that provide good value to readers.

Manchild at When Least Expected shares his Christian faith and his motivational writings with a diverse community.

Matt Keegan at The Article Writer, one of the first bloggers I met, networks generously, stumbling blogs with no expectation of reciprocation.

Mihaela Lica at Pamil Visions’ eWritings stands up for people and justice and generously shares her knowledge, talents, and giving spirit.

Misti Sandefur at Life of a Writer shares her writing expertise and her Christian faith on her inspiring blog.

Yvonne Russell at Grow Your Writing Business gives a lot of time and expertise to host the Weekend Writers Cafe, offering writers a great place to network and share experiences, knowledge, and resources.

Thank you, also, to each one of who read and comment on my blog, who generously share yourself in your own blogs, and who inspire and motivate others through your words.

[tags]Nice Matters[/tags]

Reading the Bible: Part 2 – Reading to Learn and Understand

Although I hadn’t planned the last post on Bible reading plans to be part of a series, I woke up with an idea for a follow-on post. I believe those ideas that come during sleep are from the Holy Spirit so here’s the post.

The collect (collective prayer) for the Second Sunday in Advent (which is this coming Sunday) from the 1928 Book of Common Prayer is one of my favorites:

BLESSED Lord, who hast caused all holy Scriptures to be written for our learning; Grant that we may in such wise hear them, read, mark, learn, and inwardly digest them, that by patience and comfort of thy holy Word, we may embrace, and ever hold fast, the blessed hope of everlasting life, which thou hast given us in our Saviour Jesus Christ. Amen.

The first step in developing a regular habit of Bible reading is to choose a plan. I pointed out a number of different plans in the previous post. If you’re new to Bible reading, you may want to start with a plan to read a verse or a short passage each day or to follow a reading plan for a short period of time. You can grow into longer readings or a more ambitious plan. In addition to the plans mentioned in the last post, you can find a Bible reading plan and extensive free Bible study resources at Christianity.com, which I learned about through a comment on the last post. YouVersion, a fairly new site that I also learned about through a comment, offers community and collaboration features for Bible study.

The second step is to “hear …, read, mark, learn, and inwardly digest them.” Just going through the motions of reading the words isn’t enough. The prayer above describes what we need to do:

1. Hear: Sometimes we absorb the words better if we hear them audibly than if we just read them in print. You can hear the Word read in audio Bibles online.
2. Read: As helpful as it can be to hear the Word, you have to make the effort to read for yourself as well. Early Christians didn’t have Bibles to read, and even today Christians in many parts of the world don’t own Bibles. We often take the Bible for granted and don’t realize what a blessing it is to be able to own the Bible and to read it ourselves rather than depending on someone else to tell us what it says.
3. Mark: When we’re trying to understand and learn anything, highlighting text and making notes helps us to understand what we’re reading and to remember important points. You can make notes and highlights if you register as a user at Christianity.com as well as in your print Bible.
4. Learn: Use the Bible study tools I’ve listed to gain insights, learn, and understand. The JesusWalk Bible Study Series includes several questions in each lesson to lead students to a deeper understanding of the Scripture. I find it helpful to write the questions and answers in a journal. Even if you’re reading on your own, you can keep a journal to write how the passage affected you and what it means to you. Memorizing verses is also a good way to learn.
5. Inwardly digest: I love this phrase. When we digest our food, it nourishes our body to keep us physically healthy. When we digest God’s Word, it nourishes our soul to keep us spiritually healthy. I want God’s Word to be a part of me.

I hope these suggestions inspire you to study the Bible to make God’s Word part of you.

Reading the Bible: Part 1 – Bible Reading Plans

My post on Advent Bible study generated the following comment:

i sometimes have free time at my work and sometimes i try reading the bible but a lot of it is hard to understand and follow. Maybe i should just skip the old testament… you have any tips for reading the bible effectively?

Although I answered the question in comments, I thought it worthwhile to create a post for others who might have a similar question and who might not read comments.

If you’re just starting to read the Bible regularly, you may want to start with the New Testament. The Old Testament has fascinating stories that help us understand where man came from and incredible prophecies as well as beautiful poetry. However, there are also lots of things that are hard to understand … and some – like So-and-So was the father of Such-and-Such – that can be boring to read.

You may also want to try a Bible reading plan that includes different parts of the Bible on a regular basis rather than reading straight through. I read the Bible readings from the Book of Common Prayer, which includes a Psalm, an Old Testament lesson, and a New Testament lesson for each day. I read the lessons from Morning Prayer one year, then the lessons from Evening Prayer the next year. The lessons can be found at Daily Offices. Click on the link to Ordo Calendar with links to Morning & Evening Propers to go to the current month’s calendar with links to the readings.

I also read one chapter a day in order from the beginning of the Bible. When I finish the Bible this time, I’ll start on a chronological plan to read the Bible in chronological order rather than the order the books were written. I find it fascinating, for example, to read Psalms along with the historical events, especially in King David’s life. You can find a schedule to read the Bible chronologically at ChristianBeliefs.org.

If you would rather read more randomly, you can find a 52-week Bible reading plan at BibleReading.com. The readings are selected for variety from day to day so you read the entire Bible in a year. You can spend more time on each reading if you want to take longer than a year. Meditating and understanding the Word is more important than reading on a specific timetable.

Heartlight offers a variety of Bible reading plans. A plan at Christian Answers breaks down the reading by type of writing. You can choose a 1 year plan or a 3 year. Suggestions for a variety of plans can be found at All About God. Bible Gateway offers several different reading plans. Some are for as short a time period as 61 days, which may be the way to start if trying to read the whole Bible seems overwhelming. About.com Christianity lists links to a variety of reading plans.

Try different versions of the Bible to see which you like best. I love to read the King James Version because it is so beautiful, but I usually read the New International Version because it’s easier to understand. A paraphrase such as The Message can be helpful for understanding, but a paraphrase is just that – different wording on the original text – so I prefer to read translations rather than paraphrases.

You may also find it helpful to read commentaries to help you understand specific passages. At Crosswalk.com, you can “include study tools” when you look up verses and choose among a number of different commentaries and study tools.

Look at these different options and experiment to see what works for you. The main thing is to make a commitment to read something – even if only a few verses – every day. As you grow in your knowledge of the Bible, you will find it easier to read and understand and will want to learn more.

In addition to reading the Bible on your own, I encourage you to participate in group Bible study. Check to see what studies your church offers, sign up for an online course such as those from JesusWalk Bible Study Series … or both!

The Book Meme

Karen at A Deaf Mom Shares Her World tagged me for a book meme. This is one meme I’m responding to as it fits the theme of my blog.

Total Number of Books on my Bookshelves: Not counting the nearly 100 books I’m donating to my friend Beverly’s literacy project, I have more than 500 print books on my bookshelves in my den and my office. These include writing and reference books as well as Bibles, devotionals, and other Christian books. In addition, I have a bookshelf in the bedroom with about 150 autographed books (mostly novels) – from my clients, writing friends, and favorite writers. I have about 600 e-books (nonfiction and fiction) on my computer “bookshelf” and more than 100 e-books (mostly novels) on my virtual bookshelf at Fictionwise. It’s possible there’s some duplication there, but generally I download e-books I buy directly to my e-book reader rather than to my computer.

The Last Book I Read: The last 15 books I’ve read have been entries in a contest, and I can’t divulge the titles of the books I judged. The last book before that was Help from Above by Misti Sandufer, a Touched by an Angel type novel.

Last Book Bought: I never buy just one book! I ordered e-books from Fictionwise just before I got the contest entries to judge, so I haven’t even downloaded them to my e-book yet. The titles I bought are Web of Deceit by Kim Watters, Fated Love by Darcy McKenna, Secret Agent Minister by Lenora Worth, Marriage on Her Mind by Cindi Myers, Stranded with a Spy by Merline Lovelace, Their Christmas Wish Come True by Cara Colter, Summer Heat by J. A. Clarke, Junior Matchmaker by Susan Lyons, and One Halloween Evening by Susan Lyons.

Five Meaningful Books:

The Holy Bible – You can’t get any more meaningful than God’s Word! I love the King James Version for its beauty and like the New International Version for study and understanding.

Mere Christianity by C. S. Lewis – This short treatise lays out the basics of the Christian faith in a way that is both simple and profound.

Now, Discover Your Strengths by Marcus Buckingham & Donald O. Clifton – Through this book and the accompanying profile, I discovered my strengths are belief, achiever, responsibility, learner, and arranger. I was surprised communication wasn’t one of my top strengths and that learner was. I never had any desire to get a graduate degree or take any formal classes, but I do like to learn by the trial-and-error method.

The Elements of Style, Fourth Edition by William Strunk and E. B. White – The classic book of writing style packs a lot of valuable information in a small package.

Self-Editing for Fiction Writers, Second Edition: How to Edit Yourself Into Print by Renni Browne and Dave King – Though geared toward fiction writers, this excellent guide to editing your own work is helpful to any writer.

Rather than tag anyone individually, I’m inviting anyone who loves books and wants to share their favorites to participate. Just put a link to your post in comments. I’d love to hear from booklovers!

[tags]meme, books[/tags]

What Do You Think of Weekly/Monthly Roundups, Themes, and Link Love Posts?

As I read blogs, I notice an increasing trend in certain kinds of posts.

Some blogs have a weekly or monthly roundup drawing attention to some of the posts on their blog. I look at the headline and click away from these posts. If the topic interested me, I read the post when it first appeared. If I didn’t read it then, I’m not going to read it now just because it’s listed in a roundup of posts. Of course, I realize new readers find blogs all the time, and these roundup posts might be helpful to them. What do you think about writing a post at the end of the week or the month linking to earlier posts on your own blog?

Other bloggers post roundups with links to posts on other blogs they found interesting. Lisa Gates at Design Your Writing Life and Liz Lewis at My year of getting published have recently linked to a post on this blog, and Matt Keegan at The Article Writer regularly publishes link love posts. I enjoy link posts that include a few links related to a particular subject, especially if there is information about why the link is worthwhile instead of just a list. I’m less apt to pay attention to a long list of links, especially if the links don’t seem to be related in any way.

Some bloggers make it point to thank everyone who commented on their blogs in the past month. Sharon Hurley Hall at Get Paid to Write Online and Jeanne Dininni at Writer’s Notes are among those who thank their commenters. This is a nice gesture, and I want those who take the time to time to comment here to know how much I appreciate them. However, I don’t want to just copy someone else’s good post idea.

Then there are themes and regular features. Joanna Young follows a monthly theme at Confident Writing. Yvonne Russell hosts the Weekend Writers Cafe at Grow Your Writing Business. Mig at Pamil Vision’s eWritings posts on Blogs to Read, a group of blogs related to a specific topic. Laura Spencer at Writing Thoughts features a different blog “Of Note” each week. I don’t think posting a feature on a regular schedule is how I want to blog, though I enjoy all of these as a reader.

I would like to post one series each month. I enjoy focusing on a particular topic - such as self-publishing, POD, news releases, e-books, and others I’ve done in the past - and covering it in more depth over several days. I’d like to know what readers would find interesting. What topics related to writing, editing, and publishing would you like to learn more about?

Share what kinds of posts you like by making a comment.

[tags]blogging[/tags]

« Previous Page