How to be a Courageous Author

by Beth K. Vogt, @bethvogt

It appears that one of my favorite songs in The Sound of Music is the song actress Julie Andrews liked least of all.

The Sound of Music. What a story, with Julie Andrews as Maria, the spunky postulant – almost a nun – who falls in love with Captain von Trapp, the stern widower with seven children.

I love the scene where Maria sings “I Have Confidence,” as she strides down the street in those awful cast-off convent clothes, trying to convince herself that she’s not afraid of her future. If acting brave equals courage, Maria is one of the most daring woman you’ll ever meet, fictional or true to life.

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Five Things I've Learned Writing a Series

by Josh Vogt, @JRVogt

My third urban fantasy novel, The Dustpan Cometh, has just released. I thought I would share some of the lessons I’ve learned while writing The Cleaners Series.

1- Humor is Incredibly Subjective

When I first got the idea for an urban fantasy series focused on a supernatural sanitation company, where magically empowered janitors, maid, plumbers, and others wield mops, squeegees, and feather dusters like wands and staffs, I knew it had to have a strong humorous angle. How could it not with such an absurd premise?

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First Time Writers Conference Jitters

by Cindy Sproles, @CindyDevoted

Learning curves. They’re a pain in the . . . well, you know. No one likes having to learn something new. We’re comfortable in our space just the way it is. When you unload your suitcase and stare at the hotel, it’s easy to ask that burning question: What have I done?

Your conference director and faculty have things coordinated, organized, and ready to go. You, on the other hand, feel the butterflies. As you walk through the halls of the conference venue pods of folks gather hugging, laughing, and sharing their writing adventures. Do you even fit in this world?

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Giving a Webinar--Should You, Could You, Would You? (Part One)

by Linore Burkard

I recently gave my first webinar.

In the past, I'd wondered if it was something I could do, should do, or would do. I am a big proponent of continuously strengthening one's platform, and right off the bat, giving webinars in an area of expertise qualifies as a way to do that. I enjoy teaching, and I have a heart for helping other writers. So what was my hesitation?

The idea of being on camera intimidated me.

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The Power of One Word

by Beth K. Vogt

I don’t do New Year’s Resolutions.

Oh, sure, I’ve tried to resolve my way into a better me – usually failed before the month of January is over. I lose the list. Or I just lose the want-to, overwhelmed by all those numbered priorities. It’s as if I’m juggling a bunch of have-to's.

Anybody else relate?

Twelve years ago, I discovered the principle of One Word – choosing to focus on one word for an entire year. Consider this quote from the book My One Word by Mike Ashcraft and Rachel Olsen:

“ …words encapsulate ideas. They evoke our emotions. They hook into memories. They define our experiences—helping to shape us in the process.

There’s power in words. Beauty in words. Grace in words.

Words create movement. They craft nations. They seal a marriage. They cast vision. They make us laugh. They focus our attention. They expand our horizons. They stimulate our creativity. And they script our possibilities.”

As writers, we can all agree with that statement, can’t we? Words are powerful. Now consider the process of prayerfully choosing one word to focus on in 2017, allowing it to fuel personal and spiritual change in your life. Intrigued?

To further spark your imagination, here’s a recap of my previous One Words:

• 2006: gratitude - Keeping a gratitude journal revolutionized my “glass-half-empty” attitude.
• 2007: simplify - A severe illness changed this word to survival as I embraced simpler things in ways I never imagined.
• 2008: content - as in “be content with such things as you have” (Hebrews 13:5) I bought a lot less that year!
• 2009 & 2010: forgiveness - I had a lot to learn and unlearn about forgiveness.
• 2011: hope - There were times I could have asked “Why?” Instead, I asked myself, “Are you going to abandon hope?” My answer: No.
• 2012: trust - During a year of change, I faced doubting versus trusting -- and chose to trust. 
• 2013: confidence - I was so much stronger after keeping my heart and mind set on "not throwing away my confidence." (Hebrews 10:35-36) 
• 2014: think - I anchored my thoughts to truth more and more, rather than letting my thoughts go wandering.
• 2015: collaborate – This means to work jointly on an activity, especially to produce or create something. Synonyms: co-operate, join forces, team up, band together, work together, participate, combine, ally. As a writer, I focused on collaborating with God.
• 2016: prosper - to act wisely, as in "And David was acting wisely (prospering) in all his ways for the LORD was with him." (1 Samuel 18 14.) This word helped me make major decisions.

My word for 2017 surprised me: inheritance.

Psalm 16:5-6 (NIV) says: "Lord, you alone are my portion and my cup; you make my lot secure. The boundary lines have fallen for me in pleasant places; surely I have a delightful inheritance." 

At times I've talked negatively about my inheritance. Not the eternal one I've received from God, no. But there can be emotional "inheritances" carried from generation to generation within families ... some good, some harmful. One night as I battled insomnia, I read Psalm 16:5-6, and the word "inheritance" seemed to be written in bright, bold letters. I knew it was my One Word for 2017.

If you’re considering focusing on One Word in 2017, here a few things that have helped me:

1. Read the book My One Word by Mike Ashcraft & Rachel Olsen. It’s not mandatory reading – I chose One Words for several years before I found this resource – but it’s excellent. There’s also a website: http://myoneword.org
2. Take time to pray about your One Word.
3. Read through Scripture and see if a particular verse stands out to you. My One Words are always scripturally based.
4. Look for confirmation. My One Word is often confirmed by a quote, a song, or a visual. I use those as additional ways to focus on my One Word for the year.

So, do you prefer to keep New Year’s Resolutions? Does anyone else choose One Word for the year like me? I’d love for you to share them in the comment section!

TWEETABLES

The Power of One Word by Beth K. Vogt (Click To Tweet)

I don’t do New Year’s Resolutions~ Beth K. Vogt (Click To Tweet)

There’s power in words. Beauty in words. Grace in words. (Click To Tweet)

Beth K. Vogt is a non-fiction author and editor who said she’d never write fiction. She’s the wife of an Air Force family physician (now in solo practice) who said she’d never marry a doctor—or anyone in the military. She’s a mom of four who said she’d never have kids. Now Beth believes God’s best often waits behind the doors marked “Never.” As a contemporary romance novelist, Beth is a 2016 Christy Award winner and 2016 Carol Award winner for her novel Crazy Little Thing Called Love.  She was also a 2015 RITA® Finalist for her novel Somebody Like You, which was one of Publisher’s Weekly’s Best Books of 2014. In 2015, Beth introduced her destination wedding series with both an e-novella, Can’t Buy Me Love, and a novel, Crazy Little Thing Called Love. She continued the series in 2016 with the e-novella You Can’t Hurry Love (May) and the novel Almost Like Being in Love (June). Her novella A November Bride was part of the Year of Wedding Series by Zondervan. Beth enjoys writing contemporary romance because she believes there’s more to happily-ever-after than the fairy tales tell us. Find out more about her books at bethvogt.com. An established magazine writer and former editor of Connections, the leadership magazine for MOPS International, Beth is also part of the leadership team for My Book Therapy, the writing community founded by best-selling author Susan May Warren. She lives in Colorado with her husband Rob, who has adjusted to discussing the lives of imaginary people, and their youngest daughter, Christa, who loves to play volleyball and enjoys writing her own stories.

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Words are Wonderful Things

by Linore Rose Burkard

Writers are wordsmiths. We play with, struggle over, muddle in, misuse and pluck words into and out of our books or articles with anything from reckless abandon—the heady steam of inspiration—to plodding, pulling-teeth frustration. 

One day's work is like rolling full steam ahead, while another's is a journey on a horse-cart as we struggle to find the right words. If we do, the magic happens, the work sings, and we leave readers happy.

As writers we know perhaps more than anyone, the power of the written word.

And yet--what a struggle we have at times to get those words written.

We may over-write, under-write*, fail to write, or fail to thoroughly edit what we've written.  

Since this is my last post for the year for Novel Rocket, I offer the following words that I've gleaned over the past months to encourage you in your writing journey, whether you are at an acme of success, rolling along on a fast track, or climbing the trenches. (Do we ever leave the trenches? Even J.K. Rowling has to face a blank page when she writes.)

Enjoy the following—and if the shoe fits, well, you know what to do.  

It is never too late—in fiction or in life—to revise. -Nancy Thayer 

Write even when you don't want to, don't much like what you are writing, and aren't writing particularly well. -Agatha Christie 

Forget about all the reasons why something may not work. You only need to find one good reason why it will. -Dr. Robert Anthony 

I don't know of one 'overnight bestseller' that didn't take a year and a half to get there. -Mark Victor Hansen

I mailed a manuscript to fifteen publishers. The fifteenth one said yes. - Max Lucado                           

You cannot cross the sea by staring at the water. -R. Tagore (You cannot write a book by staring at a blank page. Write, now. Right now.)

Nothing will come of nothing. Dare mighty things. -Shakespeare

Every writer I know has trouble writing. -Joseph Conrad

It's not over til it's over, and it's never over. Don't give up too soon, and it is always too soon to quit. -Edward W. Smith

If God didn't have real plans for us and want to use us, he'd take us to heaven. It's that simple—and that complicated. -Anonymous

The only place where success comes before work is in the dictionary. -Donald Kendall

Believe, when you are most unhappy, that there is something for you to do (or write) in this world. So long as you can sweeten another's pain, life is not in vain.    -Helen Keller

Writing is like a sculpture where you remove, you eliminate, in order to make the work visible. Even those pages you remove somehow remain. -Elie Wiesel 

You can't think yourself out of a writing block; you have to write yourself out of a thinking block. -John Rogers

In closing, a poem on the power of words. While the poet may have been thinking of the spoken word when she wrote this, it can apply to us who wield the pen as well.

Words are Wonderful Things 

Keep a watch on your words, my darling,

For words are wonderful things; 

They are sweet like the bees' fresh honey,

Like the bees they have terrible stings; 

They can bless like the warm, glad sunshine,

And brighten a lonely life;  

They can cut, in the strife of anger,

Like an open, two-edged knife. 

                                  Mrs. E.R. Miller

To your writing success,

Linore

*For word detectives: Under-write, a compound word, meaning not writing enough, or fully, to describe or portray a subject. NOT underwrite, as to accept liability.   

TWEETABLES

Words are Wonderful Things by Linore Rose Burkard (Click to Tweet)

Even J.K. Rowling has to face a blank page when she writes~ Linore Rose Burkard (Click to Tweet)

Linore Rose Burkard writes historical romance and, as L.R.Burkard, YA/suspense. Linore teaches workshops for writers, is a mother of five, and still homeschools her youngest daughter—preferably with coffee in one hand, and an  iPad in the other. 

For a chance to win a free copy of one of her books, simply subscribe to her mailing list at either of her websites (above). Winners are announced in each newsletter, which now has content for writers, readers, poets and dreamers. (That means you!) 

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Emotional Dragons Eating Authors: Emotions and YOU!

Peter Leavell

Peter Leavell, a 2007 graduate of Boise State University with a degree in history, was the 2011 winner of Christian Writers Guild's Operation First Novel contest, and 2013 Christian Retailing's Best award for First-Time Author. Peter and his family live in Boise, Idaho.  www.peterleavell.com.

I heard dragons devour authors who write boring books. Or maybe dragons burn the books. I can't remember.  

Repeat after me—my writing will not be boring.

Jesus wasn't boring! (Jesus juke!)

You know what deflects boredom? Not reading a boring book. 

But even better, add this key ingredient:

Emotion.

Galadriel: "The quest stands upon the edge of a knife. Stray but a little and it will fail to the ruin of all." LotR

Your quest is to evoke emotions in readers. 

Emotions and Me

I hate waiting. Groans, pleadings, cries for mercy come from my side of the car at every red light. Why? Anger covers my boredom. Makes the dull moments manageable. I’m not emotionally engaged in the bored moment until I’m angry. 

David Banner: "Mr. McGee, don't make me angry. You wouldn't like me when I'm angry." TIH

Love can work the same way. Humans are intolerable. We're writers, so we can admit that little secret. But love makes me want to be with my wife every second of every day. 

Miracle Max: "Sonny, true love is the greatest thing, in the world-except for a nice MLT – mutton, lettuce and tomato sandwich, where the mutton is nice and lean and the tomato is ripe. They’re so perky, I love that." PB

Credits: Relatable.com 

Getting Philosophical

Postmodern America. Emotions reign as king. Emotion is truth. Science is proved and disproved and proved again with no answers to the meaning of life. Philosophy is depressing, and worse, confusing. Religion builds massive structures then erects signs to advertise like banks, promising huge rewards for deposits. How can that be truth?

To most, how I feel is the only motivation that matters. It's the only truth we can verify. We’re told we can’t control how others feel, only ourselves. So if we control our stimuli, or situations, then we can have a pretty good time. 

*Special INSERT: Christians

The truth is Christ. But if Christ is king, then emotions are prince. We look for joy and peace from Christ. God delivers. Beware of guilt, though. We work to assuage guilt, then the lack of guilt is pleasure. Is lack of guilt true joy? For some.

Col. Jessep: ''You want answers?"
Kaffee: "I think I'm entitled to."
Col. Jessep: "You want answers?"
Kaffee: "I want the truth!"
Col. Jessep: "You can't handle the truth!" AFGM

Practical Writing Tips

Readers desperately want to feel their pain reflected back through our work. They want joy. They want boredom squashed. They want to learn so they can feel as if they are getting smarter. Evoke emotion!

These are extraordinarily boring for today's readers:

Endless Flashbacks.

Narrative longer than Tweets.

Mindless monologs.

Action with no point.

Kissing and sex with no point.

Clichés. 
Gardening. Just kidding. Gardening is awesome. 

A society grows great when old men plant trees whose shade they know they shall never sit in. -Greek Proverb

Last Tidbits of Advice You Can Skip But Shouldn't:

Sometimes we see the world in a problem/solution kind of way. Society and religion, yes, they have problems. But we use our fiction to dispense solutions. That’s not art. That’s propaganda. Stop it. It’s boring. The line is too fine to walk. Focus on story, and if there's a statement in there somewhere, great!

Tension on every page? It’s a cheap emotion and readers grow immune. Vary emotions like you would vary sentence structure.

What’s exciting for some is boring for others. Vary the thrills.

Conclusion:

Counterpoints can be set out like drinks for every problem that enters the café. But there's one truth we can't get around. Boring doesn't sell well, unless the professor assigns it. Emotionally engage your reader. Give them something to feel. And maybe, just maybe, they'll feel alive.

Doc. Frankenstein "It's Alive! IT'S ALIVE!" YF

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Christmas Through the Eyes of a Child

DiAnn Mills @DiAnnMills



Christmas makes children out of all of us. Actually, writers are kids who failed to get the memo that it was time to color between the lines. We write and worship during this season with the same enthusiasm as a child.

I remember the Christmas I was three years old. The vivid accounting could not possibly be true—or could it have really happened?

As a lively three-year-old, I often woke during the night for a drink of orange juice. My parents soon learned to keep a small glass in the refrigerator. 

On Christmas Eve, I woke to make the trek to the refrigerator for my OJ. The lights from the tree lit a pathway across the living room to the kitchen causing the darkness not to be so ominous. I remembered Santa was coming and quickly drank my juice then set the empty glass back inside the fridge.

On the way to my snug and warm bed, I passed by the Christmas tree. Oh, how I loved the twinkling lights, mesmerized by their quiet beauty. Still do. They remind me of the star that guided the wise men to the baby Jesus. I paused in front of a large window to gaze up at the starlit sky. To my amazement, Santa in his red and gold sleigh led by eight reindeer flew high above me. 

My little heart pounded, and I raced back to bed for fear Santa would stop at my house and find me awake. The next morning, I scrambled from my bed to make sure he’d brought my toys. To my joy, the toys I’d dreamed about were under the tree.
A child’s imagination for a future writer? Or a magical happening to a wee child?

This Christmas explore the season filled with wonder. Take time to journal what this special day means to you. Perhaps it will be a birth of renewed commitment to God and the special gift of writing that He’s given you.
 
Do you have a Christmas story that is dear to you? Would you share it with us?

DiAnn Mills is a bestselling author who believes her readers should expect an adventure. She combines unforgettable characters with unpredictable plots to create action-packed, suspense-filled novels.

Her titles have appeared on the CBA and ECPA bestseller lists; won two Christy Awards; and been finalists for the RITA, Daphne Du Maurier, Inspirational Readers’ Choice, and Carol award contests. Library Journal presented her with a Best Books 2014: Genre Fiction award in the Christian Fiction category for Firewall.

DiAnn is a founding board member of the American Christian Fiction Writers; active in Romance Writers of America’s Faith, Hope, & Love chapter; a member of Advanced Writers and Speakers Association, and International Thriller Writers. She speaks to various groups and teaches writing workshops around the country. She and her husband live in sunny Houston, Texas.

DiAnn is very active online and would love to connect with readers on any of the social media platforms listed at www.diannmills.com.

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Ten Habits of a Strong Heroine

Ten Habits of a Strong Heroine
By DiAnn Mills



Whether my source of entertainment is a novel, a movie, or a vibrant play, I want to experience a strong heroine. She’s fixed in my mind long after her role is finished. This enigma challenges me to understand her, and when I think I have a handle on her personality, the real work comes in.

We writers long to develop a complex heroine who has the same gumption while being totally feminine. A tough project!

But not impossible if we’re willing to do the work.

The following are ten ways to expand a female character into a heroine who leaves a dynamic legacy.

1. Build a heroine who has a credible backstory that motivates her into action. Show how her past experiences grew her mentally and spiritually, propelling her into a remarkable main gal. 
2. Establish a feminine heroine and assign her a meaningful name that fits a startling story world. She’s not a woman in a man’s clothes.
3. Incorporate a heroine’s physical attributes into her character. Include how the physical world affects her behavior, goals, strengths, weaknesses, and flaws in her character.
4. Discover her physical problem or goal, and why it matters to her and the world around her.
5. Create a well-rounded character psychologically. This means enhancing a distinct personality and ascribing great communication skills. She’s a character who experiences realistic emotion and uses the lessons of the past to form who she is today.
6. Unearth her internal struggle(s) and how she will triumph over the issue(s).
7. Provide reasons why your reader will care about the heroine and why she is the only character who can play the starring role in the story.
   
8. Ensure she is never a victim. She may have been victimized in the past, but she survived and now she’s on guard with anyone who exhibits harmful traits. The heroine is focused on the world around her.
9. Show how the heroine uses her skills and acquires new ones to journey through her story and be successful.
   
   
10. Drop her into a story in which her goals and how she reaches them captivate a reader.

The heroines in today’s novels, no matter the genre, must have the ability to take care of herself while entertaining us with a powerful story. What traits do you think are essential for a strong heroine?

 
 
DiAnn Mills is a bestselling author who believes her readers should expect an adventure. She combines unforgettable characters with unpredictable plots to create action-packed, suspense-filled novels.

She has been termed a coffee snob and roasts her own coffee beans. She’s an avid reader, loves to cook, and believes her grandchildren are the smartest kids in the universe.

Her titles have appeared on the CBA and ECPA bestseller lists; won two Christy Awards; and been finalists for the RITA, Daphne Du Maurier, Inspirational Readers’ Choice, and Carol award contests. Library Journal presented her with a Best Books 2014: Genre Fiction award in the Christian Fiction category for Firewall.

DiAnn is a founding board member of the American Christian Fiction Writers; a member of Advanced Writers and Speakers Association; International Thriller Writers, and the Faith, Hope, and Love chapter of Romance Writers of America. She is co-director of The Author Roadmap with social media specialist Edie Melson where she continues her passion of helping other writers be successful. She speaks to various groups and teaches writing workshops around the country. She and her husband live in sunny Houston, Texas.

DiAnn is very active online and would love to connect with readers on any of the social media platforms listed at www.diannmills.com.

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Resolved: To Finish That Book!

 by Linore Rose Burkard

       I sometimes move from Point A to Point B in ways my kids don't appreciate or agree with. Bear with me, and I'll show what this has to do with writing and procrastination. 

         We were discussing the preoccupation with zombies  ("The Walking Dead," Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, The Night of the Living Dead franchise, and so on). While this may seem silly to Christians, I told my kids the obsession with zombie-ism is actually a deep-down acknowledgment in the heart of man that

1: We are made to live forever; and  2. We really ARE zombies--dead men walking--apart from regeneration in Christ.

 The fascination with zombie-ism is an attempt to deny the REAL facets of an afterlife such as hell and darkness and separation from a holy God. So in a way, zombie-ism is reasonable--It feels reasonable, that is, because the heart knows it is dead, but persisting in existence. Zombie-ism is  popular because it acknowledges "an" afterlife while denying judgment and the real afterlife. 
          "No, mom, that's not it," my daughter insisted. "It's just--for fun. People like to be scared and zombies are scary."
         I agreed that they're scary--"The moreso because they're real! Dead men walking all around us, heading to hell."
         We agreed to disagree. I switched topics. "You know why people love super-heroes?" She waited, wondering where I was heading.  
         "Because the super-hero is god-like, all powerful, does good and saves the day--but without judgment. There's no super-hero worth his salt who will condemn you for being gay, pro-choice, or anti-God. In fact, they won't condemn you for doing anything that is contrary to scripture but SOCIALLY acceptable. They'll stop the bad guy who's a thief, because theft is not socially or politically correct. But try and find Superman when a clerk doesn't issue a marriage license to a gay couple and he's nowhere to be found."  
          My daughter shook her head at me.  "You don't get it, Mom. Super-heroes are just--fun!"
          "Of course they are! God without rules!" 
          Now, what has this got to do with writers and writing?
          Nothing. Not directly. But I'll take you from Point A to Point B on a writing topic, and I'm just as sure the points connect here as I was about zombies and super-heroes. It has to do with why writers waste time. (Actually, it pertains to anyone who meanders their time and energies into anything that isn't part of their God-given calling.) I'm not talking about having multiple interests and hobbies as evil. I'm talking about avoiding the real thing you are called to do and filling it with other stuff. When you do that, you are putting off your holy calling. It is procrastination at its worst.  As an expert at the art, I can say with conviction that:  

     Procrastination, in these cases, is a denial of mortality.

            (I can hear my daughter: "No, Mom, that isn't it!") But it is. It is other things as well, (fear, reluctance, laziness, perhaps) but it is also a denial of mortality. Why? Because when I procrastinate,  it's like saying,  "I have time. I'll get to it. Later. I will, I know it." 
       How do I know? I DON'T. I just like to believe I do. I don't want to acknowledge that time is precious, that I have none, really, to waste.
        Procrastination denies that we are a like a flower--blooming today, gone tomorrow. In reality, all we ever know for certain is that we have now.
         Johnathan Edwards, that incredibly effective 19th century preacher, wrote this:

                    "Resolved, never to do anything which I would be afraid to do if it were the last hour of my life." 

Edwards was acutely aware that we'll give account of how we spend our currency of time, and that it is terribly, terribly, finite.
 
      It is a high and lofty attainment, perhaps, to live as Edwards did. To resolve to never fritter away the hours we are given in anything less than our holy "assignments."  (This doesn't mean we work ourselves to death. Rest is also a God-given assignment!)
          But it is something to strive for.  When I procrastinate as a writer, I deny the reality of my mortality. But since death is real, and coming, let us "press on to the high calling" given us in Christ. Let us not do anything we'd be afraid to do if it were the last hour of our lives.
         Has God called you to write a particular something? A book, perhaps? Say with me: "Resolved: To finish that book!" 
         You may need to resolve to do something else according to your calling. Talk to a child. Reconcile with a relative. Whatever it is, let me encourage you to do it. At least, to begin. To work towards it. Today!


   Linore Rose Burkard is a great procrastinator. But somehow she manages to write historical romance, and, as L.R. Burkard, YA Suspense. When not writing, Linore is a homeschooling mom, wanna-be homesteader, and (in case you haven't noticed) an endless re-writer of her bio. 
      
          Newest Fiction: PULSE

What if everything you depend upon--transportation, grocery shopping, the internet, cell phones--came to a sudden, crashing halt?

Three teenagers and their families must survive when America's worst nightmare occurs; the failure of the electric grid due to an electromagnetic pulse...(Read More..).

                              ....Has the world collapsed forever?
                                Who will survive when technology fails? 

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What I learned About Writing at Disney World by DiAnn Mills

What I learned About Writing at Disney World
by DiAnn Mills

The imagination has no boundaries at Disney World. From Epcot to Magic Kingdom, you can experience one thrill after another. The imagineers refuse to limit their minds to logic and reason. They dream first, knowing if an idea bursts into the mind, a means to make it happen is there also. Color, sound, fantasy, and animation combine to entertain and establish memories long after the visitor returns to reality.

Dream on!

Some of the visitors never want to return to the real world. They much prefer the one where love and laughter rule the day.

Isn’t that what we want to provide for the readers? Don’t we long for them to close our books but never close their minds to the delight of the adventure?

Our goal is for our readers to root themselves in our story world and never leave.

Disney’s Mission statement as of 2013 shows their commitment to creativity and quality: “The Walt Disney Company's objective is to be one of the world's leading producers and providers of entertainment and information, using its portfolio of brands to differentiate its content, services and consumer products….”

Garbage Band Rhythm - Who would ever think?

Here is what I learned about story after visiting Disney World.

1. Characters come to life with smiles, gestures, and personality.
2. Characters are timeless. We remember each one and how they touched our hearts.
3. A story world is painted on a canvas with a setting that enhances every   moment of the story.
4. Content is king. Every word must be bathed in gold then polished and put on display for the world to admire.
5. Experience is the takeaway. Writers succeed when the reader closes the door to the outside world—repeatedly.
6. Disney holds the keys to the kingdom of marketing and promotion. Lovers of the magic are free to maintain the enjoyment with reminders they can hold, sing, view, wear, dance to, and even eat! Writers too must develop ways for readers to find full satisfaction in story.
7. Writers always have room to grow and expand story techniques. Each new set of characters and plot are stronger and more defined. Stronger dialogue and deeper emotion draws the reader into critical situations. Setting enhances a richer theme.

Walt Disney’s philosophy is an inspiration for all of us. “All our dreams can come true - if we have the courage to pursue them." 

Think about your current story. Can you incorporate the Disney philosophy into your adventure? Do you have the courage to pursue the world of story?

DiAnn Mills is a bestselling author who believes her readers should expect an

adventure. She combines unforgettable characters with unpredictable plots to create action-packed, suspense-filled novels.

Her titles have appeared on the CBA and ECPA bestseller lists; won two Christy Awards; and been finalists for the RITA, Daphne Du Maurier, Inspirational Readers’ Choice, and Carol award contests. Library Journal presented her with a Best Books 2014: Genre Fiction award in the Christian Fiction category for Firewall.

DiAnn is a founding board member of the American Christian Fiction Writers; the 2015 president of the Romance Writers of America’s Faith, Hope, & Love chapter; a member of Advanced Writers and Speakers Association, and International Thriller Writers. She speaks to various groups and teaches writing workshops around the country. She and her husband live in sunny Houston, Texas.

DiAnn is very active online and would love to connect with readers on any of the social media platforms listed at www.diannmills.com.

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Keeping Promises to Your Readers by DiAnn Mills

Keeping Promises to Your Readers

DiAnn Mills

We writers get carried away in our stories. We’re so focused on building memorable characters and scenes with goals, problems, conflicts, and high stakes that we sometimes forget to keep our promises to readers.

Pro writers keep their promises!

At the end of the book, the reader is left scratching her head. What happened to Susie’s ill grandfather? Did Johnnie ever find the missing puppy? Did Mark and Joanna make up after their huge argument?

I’ve slipped and left my story hanging, just like you have done. Fortunately it was an editor who caught the problem and not a reader who was disappointed when her magic carpet tipped.

This is a no-no!

Writers make promises, and our readers expect them to be addressed no matter how small. They look like this:

I will find out who robbed the bank and make an arrest. Nothing’s made mention of the robbery again.

The 5K will happen in three months. I want to compete in it, so I’ll have to train. No mention of the character ever training.

Someday we’d like to have a child. No mention of this desire again. Is the character’s problem infertility?

When our car is paid for, we might look for a home to purchase. The key word is “might.” How does it pertain to the story? Does it need to be tied up before the last page?

5. Matt had a performance review in one week to get a raise. We never learn if Matt received
a raise.


I devised a method to ensure my story promises were fulfilled. It’s easy and it works. All it takes is a little time.

Pinky promise to the reader

Prepare a spreadsheet with columns that are labeled:

Scene Number
Page Number
POV Character
Promise Made
Scene and Page Number of Promise Kept.

As the writer completes each scene either in the draft stage or editing, she fills in the information. The result is no loose ends. Your story is ready to send readers on a magic carpet ride that doesn’t tip.


DiAnn Mills is a bestselling author who believes her readers should expect an adventure.



Her titles have appeared on the CBA and ECPA bestseller lists; won two Christy Awards; and been finalists for the RITA, Daphne Du Maurier, Inspirational Readers’ Choice, and Carol award contests. Library Journal presented her with a Best Books 2014: Genre Fiction award in the Christian Fiction category for Firewall.

DiAnn is a founding board member of the American Christian Fiction Writers; the 2015 president of the Romance Writers of America’s Faith, Hope, & Love chapter; a member of Advanced Writers and Speakers Association, and International Thriller Writers. She speaks to various groups and teaches writing workshops around the country. She and her husband live in sunny Houston, Texas.

DiAnn is very active online and would love to connect with readers on any of the social media platforms listed at www.diannmills.com.

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