Reversion of Rights: From Old to New

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Historical Post by Gail Gaymer Martin Reversion of Rights: From Old to New It’s spring in our new homeland of Sedona Arizona and flowers are everywhere. I had no idea our landscape had so many amazing colors and so many beautiful birds. In Michigan where I lived all my life until our recent move, I knew the flowers and birds in that part of the country. But here in Sedona, I’m seeing orioles, hummingbirds (by the droves) and even the Western Bluebird that is so beautiful. You can probably see that I am happy. I am, but that’s not the…

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Cut, Snip, Tighten by Gail Gaymer Martin for CAN

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Historical Post by Gail Gaymer Martin Cut, Snip, Tighten I have been blessed to have been given an amazing career as a writer of Christian fiction, and in my days of creating stories that I hope will touch your hearts, I have learned so much about writing stories readers can enjoy. Most people do not understand the amount of detail and craft that goes into being a writer, and most people do not sell their first novel. I did, but not before it went through “refining fire.” I knew nothing about writing fiction when I began to write. My first…

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Writing Fiction Using Real Locations

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  Welcome to the CAN Blog from Gail Gaymer Martin @ www.gailgaymermartin.com. Today I decided to talk about one way my writing has changed in the past few years. Although I wrote about places I knew, I didn’t worry about accuracy and often I used a fictitious location so I didn’t have to worry about accuracy. Writing Fiction Using Real Locations But over time, I learned if I want to write real, I needed to visit the location of my novel. While creating a fictitious location can be easier, I’ve found that fans love to read about real places since…

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An Emerging Theme In Fiction – by Gail Gaymer Martin

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Good morning and welcome to the CAN Blog from Gail Gaymer Martin. As a novelist, I work hard to improve my writing no matter how many novels that are published. With over 70 published novels, I am excited to find a new idea or a new approach or technique that will make my stories better. I always enjoy sharing these ideas with other writers and even readers who then learn what writers go through to make a book enjoyable. Today’s topic deals with  developing a theme in the novel that is natural and pertinent in the story and that fits a…

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New Release: Over Her Head by Gail Gaymer Martin

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Over Her Head  By Gail Gaymer Martin January 2017 ISBN-10: 1542361125 ISBN-13: 978-1542361125 High school teacher, Lana West, plans a quiet summer doing anything but being around teenagers. But Mark Branson, her new neighbor and youth director has other plans. But soon Lana finds herself knee deep in bowling and horseback riding, and chaperoning teen summer camp, elbow-deep in soap suds, up to her neck in poison ivy and over her head in love. About the author:  Award-winning author, Gail Gaymer Martin writes romantic suspense, romance and women’s  fiction. She has 4 million books sold. Her books have received numerous national awards…

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Five Steps to Write Forward-Moving Scenes – by Gail Gaymer Martin

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Welcome to the Christian Author Network blog from Gail Gaymer Martin. Today I will be talking about ways to improvement elements of writing fiction. My experience comes from seventeen years of published fiction writing, and my pleasure is to share my expertise with you. Today I will talk about keeping your novel moving forward so that readers are caught up in the story and don’t want to put it down. Five Steps to Write Forward-Moving Scenes  A scene is part of a chapter in a novel. Some authors write only in chapters and therefore have far more chapters than a…

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Build a 3-Dimensional Hero Using Core Personalities – Part II

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Historical Post by Gail Gaymer Martin Build a 3-Dimensional Hero Using Core Personalities – Part II In Part 1, I explained Core Personalities and gave you the basic information needed to use these personalities to create fictional heroes and heroines. Today I will go more deeply into the subject of Core Personalities by adding more of the techniques novelists use to create characters. After digesting the personalities of the four core types from Terrance Real’s book How Can I Get Through To You, you can see the opportunities to build some interesting characters and create dynamic conflicts. Consider plotting a…

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Build a 3-D Hero Using Core Personalities – Part I from Gail Gaymer Martin

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Historical Post by Gail Gaymer Martin Build a 3-D Hero Using Core Personalities – Part 1 Today I will talk about using Core Personalities to help create a novel’s hero or main male character. This information can also be used for females, but since most popular authors are females, especially those who write romance which is the largest selling genre, we need to put our feet into a man’s shoes. Whether you write suspense, romance, or adventure, any genre needs 3-D characters. Author Mark Mynheir presented a workshop once on characterization and suggested the use of the Myers Briggs personality…

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Not All Conflicts Sustain A Novel by Gail Gaymer Martin

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Good morning at Christian Author Network from Gail Gaymer Martin. Last month I provide information about Conflicts That Lifts the Bar, but this month, we’ll talk about conflicts again but the topic is: Not All Conflicts Sustain A Novel. I hope you find this information useful. Not All Conflicts Sustain An Entire Novel Since I’ve taught writing fiction for years and wrote the Writers Digest book, Writing The Christian Romance, I have received questions from writers about many elements and techniques of writing that they struggle with. Below is one of the questions and my response. Question:  This question is about…

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Conflict That Lifts The Bar by Gail Gaymer Martin

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Wishing you blessings from Gail Gaymer Martin and the Christian Author Network.  As always, I’m busy working on a new novel, and  that always reminds me of the many techniques and elements it takes to write a salable book of fiction. Today I will talk to you about conflicts and why lifting the bar and presenting strong conflicts is important in any kind of fiction from thrillers to romance. Problems, crises and conflicts need solutions, but the conflict needs to be strong. It can’t be running out of wine at a party or disagreeing on what movie to see. You all…

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