Hello from Crystal Bowman! I have been writing books for children for over 20 years and have learned a few things along the way. Writing for children is much harder than most people realize. The challenge is to write an engaging, creative story using limited vocabulary and word count. Another thing to consider is naming your characters. The characters in a book may be animals or humans, but either way, they need names—and choosing the right name is important!
Tag: writing tips
This is our archive pageProofreading Pointers #41
Hi! I’m Kathy Ide. In addition to being a published author, I’m a full-time professional freelance editor. For CAN, I’m blogging about tips for writers based on the most common mistakes I see in the manuscripts I edit. Cutting the Fat, Part Two Following on the heels of last month’s column, here are more ways you can tighten your manuscript.
Proofreading Pointers #39
Hi! I’m Kathy Ide. In addition to being a published author, I’m a full-time professional freelance editor. For CAN, I’m blogging about “PUGS”–Punctuation, Usage, Grammar, and Spelling … tips for writers based on the most common mistakes I see in the manuscripts I edit. Active vs. Passive Verbs Wherever possible, strive to use strong, precise verbs rather than weak, vague verbs. Instead of saying, “They were going,” write, “They went.” Or better yet, show how they went. “They jogged,” “They raced,” “They ambled,” for example. The more description you can fit into a single action verb, the better.
Tips from the pros: Jesse Florea
A hearty Rocky Mountain greeting today from Davalynn Spencer as we welcome Colorado author, Jesse Florea, who has a fabulous outreach to young people. Tell us, Jesse, how did you get into writing? As a sophomore in high school, I took an introduction-to-journalism course where I fell in love with writing. I started writing for a weekly newspaper covering high school sports.
Tips from the Pros: Cheri Cowell
Springtime greetings from Marti Pieper in Florida. I just returned from teaching at the Colorado Christian Writers Conference, and one of the first people I saw back home in Florida was my good friend, Cheri Cowell. Cheri is a prolific writer and speaker and also happens to be one of the first authors from whom I learned marketing tips. I’m delighted to share an updated interview with her today! Cheri, how many books do you have published? 4 What are a few of your latest titles? Living the Story: Reaching Outside the Church Walls, and Parables and Word Pictures of…
Finding and Writing a Character’s Voice: Lessons from Playwriting
Hello, again! Maureen Pratt here with my monthly blogpost about the craft of writing. Today, I'm going to focus on techniques to employ to find and write distinctive voices for each of your characters or individuals in fiction or non-fiction. I began my professional writing career as a playwright, earning my Master of Fine Arts in Theater Arts with a concentration in playwriting from UCLA and later having a number of plays produced. Unlike writing for the movies, playwriting "runs" on dialogue. A professional script for live theater contains very little, if any, description except to set the scene, and…
A Season for Trust
Jeanne Dennis here. Since June, I’ve been a member of the CAN Board. Even though you haven't heard from me personally for several months, I post the CAN book releases on this blog every Tuesday and help keep the CAN website up to date. During this holy season, I wanted to touch base with you again and express what’s in my heart. We live in a time of personal, political, and financial uncertainty. Countless people now struggle with poor health or finances; suffer the loss of loved ones, jobs, or homes; or deal with other crises. Pain and loss often…