Debra L. Butterfield's Blog, page 21

How does the power of observation affect our writing?

God designed us with 5 senses—hear, taste, touch, see, and smell. In the majority of manuscripts I read, the sense of sight is heavily relied upon. It’s understandable to describe what we see in our world, but there’s so much more we can use—not just the other 4 senses, but also human and animal behavior, and […]

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Are you crippling your creativity?

Something I noticed this year as I met with writers across the country at conferences were their frustrations with the writing process. Over and over they expressed frustrations in different ways. They couldn’t quite put their fingers on the problem. And it took me a few minutes of listening to figure it out: They were trying […]

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Overwhelmed with Marketing Plans and Strategy?

Marketing. It’s a task many writers dislike for various reasons. It can be a daunting task added to a busy schedule leaving us feeling overwhelmed. I understand quite well, how busy our lives can keep us and how overwhelmed writers can feel. I’ve just returned from my last writer conference for this year and have […]

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Using Life’s Lessons to Create Fiction

Today’s author interview is with Kelly Klepfer, whose debut book released earlier this month from Bling! Romance (an imprint of Lighthouse Publishing of the Carolinas). I really enjoy Kelly’s sense of humor and think you will too. Kelly had ambitions to graduate from the school of life quite awhile ago, but alas…she still attends and […]

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3 Common Dialog Pitfalls and How to Avoid Them

Crafting great dialog takes work. And today I’d like to discuss 3 mistakes I see more often than any other. Let’s look at definitions first. A dialog tag (also known as attribution) tells the reader who is speaking, but also serves as a type of punctuation. Example: “Now are you satisfied?” she said. “Now,” she […]

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5 Christian Book Publishers Accepting Submissions

A consistent mistake beginning writers make is in sending queries to publishers without first learning what genres they publish and what information they require in a submission. To that purpose, publishers provide submission guidelines. Improve your chances of acceptance by following the guidelines and submitting in the manner required. Submission Guidelines AWOC.com Publishing, See their About […]

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11 Kinds of Magazine Articles You Can Write

Writing magazine articles is a good way to bring in steady extra income while you work on your book. But do you struggle to find ideas? Let the following list of 11 types of articles you can write serve as a springboard. Each type has it own requirements and purposes. If you are a regular subscriber […]

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Creative Marketing with Cheryl Barker

I’m pleased to have Cheryl Barker with me for this month’s author interview. Cheryl is the author of Mother of the Bride—Refreshment and Wisdom for the Mother of the Bride that released last month. She’s also written for compilation books, magazines, other publications, and for Blue Mountain Arts greeting cards, gift books, and calendars. Her […]

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You’ve written a book. Now what?

So there you sit, staring at the book you’ve written. You’re proud of your hard work, and you should be. Now you’re faced with “What do I do next?” If you’ve only just finished the draft, then it’s time to start in on revisions. Maybe you’ve revised and revised, and then revised some more and feel it’s […]

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Don’t let intimidating tasks force you to procrastinate.

When a task intimidates you, are you inclined to procrastinate doing it? I admit, I do. Usually it’s fear that stops me from taking action. Fear of the technology or the complexity of the task and so I procrastinate (for days, months, and yes, even years). Invariably when I finally get to a point of […]

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