We're enjoying a happy day here at the office — three authors named as Christy finalists, Irene Hannon hitting the bestseller list for the third time in a row, the big online launch party for Gina Holmes' fabulous debut novel CROSSING OCEANS. A good day all around — and the perfect time to invite an author I represent to do a guest blog. Keri Wyatt Kent, who has written several very thoughtful books, checks in with her ruminations on the spiritual side of writing. You should check out Keri's books REST and SIMPLE COMPASSION — fascinating stuff…

Those of us who dare to write about the spiritual life face a daunting challenge—how do we practice what we preach? How do we keep our writing authentic? As we “write for God,” how do we tend our own souls?

Spiritual disciplines are simply practices of faith that create some space in our lives for God. If you have ever sat down to read your bible or pray, you’ve engaged in spiritual disciplines. But there are many other disciplines that will help us to grow, while ultimately improving our writing.

It’s important to listen to God’s direction on which disciplines are needed in our lives. God may call us to embrace solitude and silence for a season. He may ask us to build trust by giving.

The most commonly practiced disciplines are study and prayer—also called solitude or quiet time with God. Writers need these. But here are three other spiritual disciplines that I have found a particularly helpful as a writer:

1. Community. But we also need the balance of authentic community. Writing is a solitary venture—we bravely face a blank page, alone but for the thoughts in our head. We need the discipline of setting aside our work to connect with others—and not just via Facebook. God may speak to our hearts, but we need to test those leadings with the wisdom of friends, mentors and people who love God, love us, and are willing to speak truthfully to us. That’s what community is.

We need time with others who can speak into our lives, offering encouragement to counter our natural neuroses. Sometimes, we need someone to read what we have written and assure us that it is not awful, so that we can have the courage to write a little more. We need others to guide us when we get off track.

Join a small group, preferably not made up of just other writers. Pull yourself away from the writing for a time to actually nurture others by praying with them, listening to them, simply enjoying them. Celebrate and enjoy the gift of friendship.

2. Inspiration. When we take time to notice and to be inspired by beauty, we connect with God. Walk through a garden or an art museum, read really great writing. In a way, this is a form of listening prayer, of hearing God through beauty.

I hear God in the beauty of creation, in the careful staccato brush strokes of a Monet, in the grace and athleticism of a modern ballet. So my spiritual practice includes taking time to pry myself away from the computer and get outdoors each day—to notice beauty of snow on tree branches or spring flowers blooming. It also includes occasional outings to get my fill of “culture” in the form of music, theater, art or other beauty, because it draws me into the presence of God. Such activities are not a waste of time—they feed my soul, which nurtures my writing. 

3. Sabbath. Most writers do not go to an office to work. We carry a notebook and furtively scribble in it when thoughts or images come to mind. We sit in coffee shops in or in the spare bedroom and pound out words on the computer. Hence, we’re easily tempted to work 24-7. Our lives are unframed by trivialities like a calendar. However, if we never rest, our reservoir of words will run dry. We need to honor God by keeping the Sabbath.

In nearly two decades of Sabbath-keeping, and being a professional freelance writer during those same decades, I’ve found that there is a beautiful mystery when we honor God by obeying his command to take a day of rest.

You may be worried that taking a day off will put you further behind. But Sabbath actually has the opposite effect.  In the weeks that I don’t write on Sunday, my overall production (measured by words written, articles finished, whatever) is higher than it is on the weeks I don’t stop. And on Mondays, after a day of rest, my productivity soars.

During World War II in England, a factory conducted a productivity study. Workers were put on a schedule of working twenty-one days in a row, then having a several days off, and their productivity measured. Then, by way of comparison, the workers were put on a six-days-on, one-day-off schedule. On each schedule, the number of days worked was the same. Yet when they got to take one day off per week, their productivity doubled. God gave the command for Sabbath because he made us and knows how we would function optimally. 

Writer Cec Murphey has found this productivity principle to be true in his life. (I tell his full story in my book Rest: Living in Sabbath Simplicity). Cec is a prolific writer, having written or co-written 104 books and more than 700 articles. He makes his living primarily as a ghostwriter, taking other people’s ideas and shaping them into books. He’s taught at over two hundred writers’ conferences. At seventy-four, he still works full-time and has no plans to retire. For most of his life, Cec says, he was a bit of a workaholic, even in seemingly spiritual careers as a missionary, pastor, teacher, and author. Today, he’s still very driven and highly disciplined. But he’s found that he’s a much happier man, and no less productive than before, now that he has incorporated the practice of Sabbath rest into his life.

="font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; ">At first, Cec could not even conceive of taking a whole day off from work. So, he started gradually, with just taking one or two hours after church to simply do nothing, to relax. “After a while, I gradually made it three hours, then four,” he laughs. Now he understands that value of keeping a Sabbath, and gets more done by taking time away from writing. 

Build the practices of community, inspiration and Sabbath into your life, and you’ll find that your soul, and your writing, will flourish.

-Keri Wyatt Kent

Dennis Hillman, Publisher at Kregel, offered an excellent response to my post about "what is reasonable in a book contract" a couple days ago. If you're interested in a publisher's perspective, go to the comments section and read his thoughtful response.

And BIG NEWS: Three authors I represent are finalists for the Christy Award (the books of the year awards in Christian publishing). Lisa Samson's THE PASSION OF MARY MARGARET is in the stand-alone novel category; Mark Mynheir's THE NIGHT WATCHMAN in the "suspense" category; and Kaye Dacus' STAND IN GROOM in the "contemporary romance" category. Congrats to Lisa, Mark, and Kaye!

And one very cool side note… Jeff Gerke, publisher at startup Marcher Lord Press, also saw one of his books named as a Christy finalist. To me, that's a very cool thing — one of the new, small houses up against the Big Boys. Gotta love it. Congrats, Jeff. 

Let's talk a bit about what I call The Christian Connection.

I've seen it one too many times: Some Christian writer with big-time aspirations discovers that Chip, one of the top agents in the business, is also a Christian. Ba-da-boom, the query is sent, the correlation made, and the aspiring author sits back patiently awaiting Chip's acceptance.

And then they're rejected.

They slump in their chair, defeated. Demoralized. Because it was meant to be.

And now they'll have to venture out into the cold, dark world of the eternally damned.

Give me a break. 

We all know finding the right agent is about more than your personal belief system. It's about how you interact, what your expectations are, what work you produce, and whether you feel any chemistry. Authors who rely on the Christian Connection generally miss this whole concept. And I'm really fine with that. I am. It's their loss.

What I'm not fine with is how the Christian Connection communicates a general fear of interacting with the unsaved.

I feel it in the twelve exclamation points that follow each reference to Christianity. I see it in the continual reminder that God's will must be at work, bringing two like-minded professionals together like this. And it bothers me. Aren't we to be salt and light?

But what if my agent swears?! Drinks?!! Cheats?!!! Or does all three while I'm meeting him at a club in Las Vegas?!!!!

Here's the bottom line. Chip likes representing other Christians. He really does. And there are times when the connection is there and there's no doubt that he should represent another Christ-follower. But  when it comes down to it, well … If Tony Dungy (former coach of the Indiana Colts) put each and every Christian football player he ever met on his team, do you think they would have won the championship? Do you think they would have even come close?

And what's more important, do you think his impact on football would have been half what it turned out to be?

Nope. Not a chance.

-Amanda (Assistant at MacGregor Literary)

Ack. I forgot to mention that Gina Holmes, an author I represent and whose first novel, CROSSING OCEANS, is just releasing, also made the list of 101 Best Websites for Writers. Gina is the founder of Novel Journey, a GREAT site that I should have mentioned anyway. Congratulations, Gina! (And, um, sorry for not mentioning you before…) You can find Gina's wonderful site at www.noveljourney.blogspot.com .

Darlene asked an agent question: "I've been working with an agent I was introduced to at a conference, but I'm not sure she knows what she's doing…nor do I know what she should be doing for me. It seems like I basically did the deal myself. Can you help me?"

Sure. A good agent should (1) give you career advice, (2) introduce you to people you don't already have connections with, such as editors and publishers and marketers, (3) offer wisdom on book ideas and writing, (4) help give guidance on your marketing, (5) negotiate your contract [and do a good job of it], (6) ensure contract compliance, and (7) be your insider — the person who knows the industry and offers some experienced wisdom, serving as your advocate when necessary, taking on the hard issues and conversations when necessary. I suppose many times the agent also serves as the author's friend and encourager, though that doesn't always happen. If you ended up basically doing the deal yourself — well, that's a shame. It happens sometimes, but you probably need to have a conversation with the agent and clarify expectations, Darlene. 

Bobbie asked this: "How do agents feel about writers following up on a query or proposal submission? What is an acceptable time period to wait before following up?"

Well, I TRY to get back to people within three weeks. The fact is, I’m often much faster. But I'll admit that I hate having people send me short notes in order to remind me that I’ve failed them (“I sent you my proposal a month ago!”). Those folks have forgotten that I don’t owe them a reading. If I agree to read their proposal, it’s because I choose to. (Sorry if I sound cranky, but I got two of these today, from two people I’ve never heard of. My first reaction is to say something snarky like, “Okay, if you’re forcing me to decide, my answer is no. Now leave me alone.” But no, I’ve never actually done that.) So I guess following up after a few weeks in a short, polite note (maybe thanking the editor or agent for looking at it) is fine. I prefer just a quick email that reminds me I’ve got your proposal, and asking me if I need anything else. No whining, no blame, just a reminder. I will tell you that I’ve heard from a couple authors recently about some editors who have kept things for a YEAR without a reply. I find that unconscionable. You wonder how these folks keep their jobs. Look, if the person hasn’t responded in a couple months, move on. Move on emotionally at least. If they've had it a year, they're not really interested.

Susan wants to know, "How does an agent work in an author's best interest when it's also in the agent's best interest to keep publishers happy?"

An agent works on behalf of his or her client. Period. Every publisher understands that — in fact, it's why publishers prefer working with agents rather than working with authors directly. It allows the editor to talk books and contracts with a professional who knows the business and isn't tied emotionally to the project. I don't know of an agent who is more interested in making the editor happy than in making the author happy…but if you run into one, feel free to send 'em to an editorial friend. I know several editors who would love to be more happy.

And by the way, a response to the person who commented that "my editor…told me I didn't need an agent." Uh-huh. That's a perspective that used to be pervasive in the paternalistic world of old-time CBA. It stems from the "just-trust-me" style of management, since they're all smarter than you, and they are SURE to look out after your best interests, being as how they're all nice Christians who are only in it for the ministry. That thinking went out of style 30 years ago in the general market, and at least ten years ago in CBA. I doubt you'd get that same advice from…well, from any significant publisher in CBA, and you'd get it from zero publishers in the general market. (Does the term "amateur hour" mean anything to you?)

Some cool news: This website has been selected as One of the 101 Top Websites for Writers by Writers Digest Magazine. Woo-hoo! Also on the list was Rachelle Gardner's CBA Ramblings blog [
www.cba-ramblings.blogspot.com 
]and Thomas Nelson President Mike Hyatt's blog [
www.michaelhyatt.com 
] — two of the few sites I read regularly, offering great wisdom on a daily basis. Of course, there are a bunch of other super sites on the list for writers, including the wonderful Writer's Digest blogs (if you're not familiar with Chuck Sambuchino's site, you should definitely pay a visit at 
www.guidetoliteraryagents.com 
). 

Cool news II: Jim Rubart's novel, ROOMS, has just released with B&H Fiction. It's a great read (think of it as a cousin to THE SHACK), and it's currently the #1 book on Kindle. Wow! Jim was also just featured in the current edition of Writers Digest, in the "Breaking In" section.  

Cool news III: Irene Hannon's IN HARM'S WAY, a romantic suspense with Revell, is on the bestseller list. Here's why that's so cool – this is the third book in her HEROES OF QUANTICO series, and all three made it onto the bestseller list. AND Irene's EYE FOR AN EYE, the first book in that series, was named a RITA Finalist as Book of the Year in the Inspirational Romance category. You rock, Irene!

SOME FUN NEWS

My son (aka Abe Lincoln) and his 3-4-5 grade classmates wowed a crowd of 300+ guests last week with their orations and period dances during the performance of a Civil War Peace Cotillion. 

Until the day of  dress rehearsal, my son wouldn't let me hear his oration of The Gettysburg Address nor watch him and his classmates rehearse the complicated dances he and his fellow classmates practiced (often on their own time) for months before the two hour live performance.

 I find it simply amazing what kids can do when we raise the bar! He knows more about the Civil War now than I'll ever pretend to know!

AND SOME SAD NEWS

Dan Penwell, the longtime publisher at AMG Publishers and a wonderfully
gentle man, passed away yesterday after a long bout with cancer. Dan
was a fixture at many Christian writing conferences, offering wisdom to
anyone looking to talk with a longtime publisher professional. He'll be
missed.

AUTHOR NEWS AND REVIEWS

Christian Fiction Library
Journal says this of a few recent releases by authors we represent:

Janice Thompson's romantic comedy, Weddings
by Bella, is "full of laugh-out-loud moments … and
sure to appeal to fans of Adriana Trigiani's more secular Lucia,
Lucia."

In their review
of RITA® Award winner Irene
Hannon's In Harms Way, LJ said Hannon is a "master at
character development" and said new readers will want to go back and
read the first two titles in the series (Against All Odds; An Eye
for an Eye).

Called Riva Riva's Heading Home
"essential for parents and teens who want a YA story with elements of
romance that aligns better than many popular YA novels with their moral
beliefs."

And
here's what they said about debut author Carla Stewart's Chasing Lilacs: "This
nostalgic debut is perfect for readers who enjoy Christian
coming-of-age stories."

UPCOMING SEMINARS

Here's what Susan Meissner says about the upcoming Master Seminars workshops she's teaching:

"I want each successive book to plunge deeper, to snag more
acutely the reader in the most tender and savage of ways, so that my
books are to them memorable, unique and evocative. The best books I've
read are the ones whose prose is so lovely and sharp you don't even
know you're bleeding.

Writing of that caliber reads easy and fluid but churning it out can be
like mining for gems in solid granite. But it can be done. It should be
done. But it takes a concerted effort. At least for me, it does. And
there's no better place to hone your mining skills than in the company
of other miners.

The wildly talented Lisa Samson and I are teaming up to teach a two-day intensive and intimate fiction
workshop called Adding Depth to Your Fiction 
that will be offered twice this year in two different spots in the nation.
The first one is coming up May 7-8 in Orlando and a second one is set
for Detroit in July, as part of the Masters Seminar series sponsored by
Command Performance and MacGregor Literary. Lisa and I have been working
on our class materials for this first workshop, and I must say I am
getting more excited every day to share with writers what I have learned
about adding depth and dimension to a story. And I love the idea that
ours will be an intimate group which means there will be lots of
indepth, one-on-one feedback, insights and mentoring.

If you're a novelist or you know a novelist, pass on the above link to
them. We're going to have an amazing time together spelunking in the
prose cave with our axes, picks and little yellow hats with the lights
on top.

SANDRA'S 2010 CONFERENCE APPEARANCES

Keep an eye out for Sandra at the following conferences, and be
sure to let her know if you're going so she can save room on her dance card for you …

Oklahoma
Writers Federation 42nd Annual Conference
April
29-May 1st,
2010

Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
http://owfi.org/Conference

Northwest Christian Writers Renewal
May
7-8, 2010
Bothell, Washington (Seattle area)
http://www.nwchristianwriters.org

Colorado Christian Writers Conference
May 12-15, 2010

Estes Park, Colorado
http://www.writehisanswer.com/

Write to Publish
June 9-12, 2010
Wheaton, Illinois
http://www.writetopublish.com

ICRS
St. Louis, Missouri
June 27-30
http://www.christianretailshow.com/

Oregon Christian Writers Conference
August 2–5, 2010
Canby Grove, Oregon (South of Portland)
http://www.oregonchristianwriters.org/

ACFW in St. Louis
September 17 – 20, 2010
Indianapolis, Indiana
http://www.acfw.com/conference/

Chip is away at the Calvin Festival of Faith and Writing, so this week's guest blog is from another Calvin attendee, Sarah Freese, who works as a university writing instructor in Colorado…

I kept a journal of people, places, events, and silly quotes while attending the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee for my MA in creative writing and my MLIS in library science. One of the first conversations that I had involved one of my professors, George Clark (The Small Bees’ Honey). He stated, “If you’re here to make the bestseller list, you need to leave.”

At the time, I was shocked. However, I have come to see at least some truth in that statement.

I have no business sense at all. I have always produced my best work when someone gives me a task to complete. Determining what tasks need to be completed and managing those tasks independently of a project I have received is a mystery to me. In order to publish in the non-academic market, one needs to have a plan: writing, purchasing books about how to write, networking, querying, etc. Before attending graduate school, I knew none of this. I was naïve enough to think that writing could be published based on its own merit without being researched and marketed by the writer (it can’t).

Graduate school allowed me to learn someone else’s already established plan.  I needed to hear about writing and the writing market through people—friends, writers, professors, and colleagues. Two years of intensely learning about the writing, editing, and publishing world allowed me to hone my writing into a specific niche: literary journals. And even within that market, I am still growing.

Often, beginning writers are too broad when they consider their audience. For example, a Christian woman might think that she needs to write Christian romance because she knows Jesus and that is the genre that she prefers to read. While that isn’t necessarily inaccurate, there may be other markets about which she has learned nothing. In fact, she may be better suited for other genres. And, anyway, what exactly is Christian romance? Is there room for expanding the definition of what currently is? Graduate school allowed me to explore those questions and categories. It also allowed me to see who is really in charge of the current literary classification scheme: the librarians. (Remember, the other half of my degree is an MLIS!)

Finally, I don’t only want to write. I also want to teach at the collegiate level. Having my MA/MLIS allows me to do that as an affiliate faculty. I hope (please read this if I’ve applied to your school) that obtaining my PhD will allow me to continue teaching as a full professor. If a writer only wants to write, then perhaps obtaining a higher education degree is unnecessary.

Obtaining a graduate degree is not for everyone, nor should it be. But it does provide an excellent sense of community and encourages writers to think outside of their proverbial boxes.

I still do not have a bestselling novel, but I do have a plan, friends, and memories to take with me wherever my literary journey continues to lead.

What’s your plan?  

We have been getting publishing questions at a fast pace, so let me tackle two of them today… Jason wrote to say, "I'm graduating from college soon, and looking for a job. What advice do you have for a journalism major who is interested in a career as a freelance editor? Do I need to work on my master's degree?"

It's a tough time for anyone graduating from college, Jason. Jobs are scarce everywhere, and particularly so in this tough publishing economy. But our world runs on words, and that means there is a huge need for editors. So if you're thinking of going the freelance route, some thoughts… First, pick up a copy of something like THE DUMMIES GUIDE TO COPYEDITING AND PROOFREADING, because it moves things from an academic to a real-world view. Second, talk with local publishers (magazines and newspapers, not just books) and see if you can do some freelancing for them. I might suggest you go over to a local publisher and say, "I've got some experience editing, and I'd like to copyedit something for you. I'll tell you what — if you'll give me a project to copyedit, I'll do it for free, just to show you I can do it and get it on my resume." With a book publisher, maybe offer to do some page proofs or blue line checks (if you know how to do those — running heads and page numbers and all). 

Third, you're going to need to set up a business — "Jason's Editing" or something like that. You'll need business cards and a bank account with that name (just go to any good local bank — they'll help you out). Most of the publishers have to prove to the government they aren't using freelancers as no-benefit-full-time employees, so they have to have evidence you're working for others. Business cards and a website can help with that. Fourth, write to publishing houses and ask to take their copyediting test. Many have a test they send out, in order to find new copyeditors. Fifth, go to the marketing companies in town (or directly to the larger businesses and organizations), and offer to copyedit their websites. Every business and organization has a site, and most need both content creation and content editing. Make some similar sort of "I'll do some work for free" offer, just to get in the door. Websites are notorious for being poorly edited, having been written by marketing majors (who often struggle with basic tasks such as "can you find your butt with both hands?"). 

I asked Rob Eager about this, and he says they spent months of research to uncover the 500 largest and most active women’s ministries across the United States. He wrote to me that their listing "is the most accurate and complete resource of its kind." (His words, not mine.) The database gives you the leader’s name, church mailing address, phone number, overall attendance size, and denominational affiliation. The data is provided as a sortable Excel spreadsheet and a Word document with ready-to-print mailing labels. To view pricing information, author testimonials, and a free sample of the Top 500 database, call Rob Eagar at 1-800-267-2045 or visit: www.startawildfire.com/ministrydatabase.html
  (And Rob says if you mention "Chip MacGregor" when placing your order, you'll receive a 10% discount — it just PAYS to know me, I guess.) 

Another resource for this is Randy Ingermanson's website, OR you could just go over the right side of this blog and click on the word "marketing" to find a couple year's worth of blog postings on the topic. So there are a handful of resources for you to consider, Dineen. 

By the way, if you haven't read Jon Acuff's STUFF CHRISTIANS LIKE, you're missing out on one of the best books I've seen in a long time. VERY funny stuff, along with with some VERY insightful and thought-provoking material. Just released from Zondervan — you should pick up a copy. And if you're already a fan, you should see the article the author just created for the folks at Catalyst — really strong stuff here: 

http://bit.ly/94cNOy

I'm off to the Calvin Festival of Faith and Writing, first stopping to spend the day with the students in Dennis Hensley's fine writing program at Taylor University. If you're close by, please come introduce yourself to me. (I'm the guy who looks EXACTLY like Brad Pitt, only without the ugly long gray beard thing.) 

Occasionally I have friends come onto the blog to share a story. Here's one from a longtime buddy…

A few years back, Margaret (Meg) Chittenden wrote an article (perhaps it was a speech) now commonly known as “Leaping and Posturing.” It’s one of my favorite articles on writing and publishing. I laugh. I cry. I ponder. 

One of the lines goes like this: One of the most confusing things I heard was “Write What You Know.” My problem was that I didn’t know anything.

I understood Ms. Chittenden’s dilemma. For years I wrote on inspiration. I would see something, hear something, think something and think, “Oh, that would make a good story.” Of course some of my “good stories” only went about as far as the first paragraph before I realized I didn’t know enough about what I was writing to go any further. And so I stopped.

However, in her speech Ms. Chittenden also penned these words: I prefer to emphasize a slight change in direction from “Write What You Know” to “Know What You Write.”

And so I did what we writers call “research.” I went places. I talked to people. I scanned the Internet, buried my nose in books, and got lost between the stacks in libraries. And then I wrote. For the most part, it all worked out just fine.

Soon, however, I became restless. And a little nervous. What if, I thought, someone challenges me on what I’ve written? What if a reader comes up to me in a bookstore filled with people fighting for my autograph (It could happen!) and says, “Eva Marie, I have lived in Anytown USA and I’m here to tell you we’ve never had a street lamp in the middle of Main.” Or, let’s say, someone else said, “I’m a doctor and there is no such disease.”

I was in the middle of writing The Potluck Club series with Linda Evans Shepherd – a fun romp if there ever was one! Linda said to me (about a half dozen times) that when I wrote in the voice of my character Goldie, who is from the South, I did my best work. Well, of course, I thought. I’m from the South. I know the South, her nuances, her idiosyncrasies, her landscapes and her varying dialects. I know her heritage; it runs in my veins like thick maple syrup on a muggy summer morning laden with fog hovering low to the wet grasses … I was born there, I’ll die there, and I will be buried under a shady oak tree there.

Well, you get the dramatic point, I’m sure.

I spent some time thinking all this over. I re-read a few of my favorite Southern novels and books, researched a number of great Southern writers (most of which I hadn’t read since high school). I sat at my desk staring at photographs I found on the Internet of places and events that could only be held in the South. (You may not know this, but my granddaughter was just named Gnat Days Hospitality Princess!) I called up memories of Rattlesnake Roundups and Dinner on the Ground, riding with my friends in the back of an old pickup singing along with a CCR 8-Track while we were on our way to Brandon’s Bridge for a swim. I thought about how – even at a young age – I learned to blow a gnat or mosquito away from my face and how to catch lightning bugs in jars in the cool of a spring afternoon.

And of my family – the grandparents, great-grandparents, aunts, uncles, great-aunts, great-uncles, cousins, second and third cousins, second cousins once removed – which, for the Southerner, is everything.

Then I knew what my next step would be in writing and publishing. I would be a writer of Southern fiction. After all, “the South” was what I knew …

Then a new problem arrived. What I knew got mixed up with what I remembered. Were the memories accurate? Were the fields really ripe with cotton during Thanksgiving and just when did we shell butterbeans until I thought my thumb nails would fall off?

The “write what you know” and “know what you write” came together and formed a single thought: know that when you write about the things you know, you know about the things you write about. Ironically, I was back to researching even the things I should be somewhat of an expert on.

The end result has been two books I’m proud to call my own (Things Left Unspoken, Revell, 2009 and the just released This Fine Life, Revell, 2010) and a contract to write three more. My Southern editor says the work shines. My readers email or post on my Facebook page that they felt as though they had “been there” or “did that” and those who have come to book signings smile and say, “You’ve hit your stride.”

In conclusion (for surely there has to be one), allow me to say that it’s true. It surely is. You do have you know what you write. And you should write what you know. But in the end, it’s really a little and a lot about both.

Eva Marie Everson

Guest Blogger

TODAY IS THE DAY. If you're an author interested in marketing, I'm teaching a webinar for Writers Digest today at 1 eastern. The cost is $79, and you can find out all the details at this site: http://www.writersdigestshop.com/product/self-marketing-for-authors-webinar/?r=chipblog033010