If you are a writer, I’m sure you have your own ideas on the hardest thing about being a writer. Or, as a reader, when you read books by your favorite authors, you may have wondered

How did the author come up with such great ideas?

How did he/she develop those ideas so they read as smooth as silk?

How did he/she create such memorable characters that you feel you would recognize them at your local supermarket?

Fact is, writing — creating content that is engaging, exciting, and memorable — is hard.

But before we think about the hardest thing about being a writer, let us look at what is entailed in writing a book that people want to read.

First, you must have a story inside of you. A story so compelling you must tell it. Then you must tell your story in ways that are creative, engaging, and unique.

But before you do all that, you must know who you are writing for — who your target audience is. Who will want to read your book?

Once you know who your target audience is, you must know where to find them! And having found them, you must know how to keep them.

Last but certainly not least, you must believe in yourself. Putting your thoughts and ideas down on paper can be a daunting task. If you don’t believe in yourself, when the plot begins to sag or the characters don’t behave the way you expect them to, your writing falters, and you may give up. Don’t! Press on. Have your writers’ group or beta readers look at it, but don’t give up!

For me, coming up with the idea for a new book is never difficult, but writing the beginning is my pain point. I struggle with my opening. I rewrite, and rewrite, and rewrite. And I hate to say it, but I’m usually never satisfied with my beginning. But I continue writing, and by the time I get to the middle, I’m full sail ahead. My confidence soars, the words pour out of me, and I make it to the end.

And then I go back to the beginning …

So, what is the hardest thing about being a writer? I would say it’s about believing in yourself. If you feel called to write that story, do it. Make a start, and everything will fall into place.

In my latest release, Making Music Together, I almost gave up because it’s a romance, and I’d never written romance before, but I kept at it, and now I’m on to the sequel, Harmonizing Hearts. To learn more about this and my other books, please fill in the form below to join my newsletter.

Angela is a blogger and author of Christian women’s fiction and Christian romance. Her latest release is Making Music Together.

If you read books or watch movies with any elements of romance — not just romance novels — you are sure to fall in love with some of the male characters. They become your best book boyfriends or great book boyfriends. Books and movies usually paint larger-than-life characters for just that reason — to get you to keep watching or turning the pages and reading through the series just to see what your best book boyfriend will do next.

As I did some Google searches, I came across some adjectives to describe great book boyfriends: swoon-worthy, handsome, sensitive, charming, over-protective, funny, “touch her and you die” — you know what that means — so on and so forth.

As I read, I couldn’t help comparing Mark, my last book boyfriend in Making Music Together, with some of the descriptions people wrote. I’ll talk about some of the above and add a few of my own.

Swoon-worthy – I would lump swoon-worthy and handsome together because that’s how they fit in romance novels. The lead male is always handsome, which makes women swoon, right? Mark, the protagonist in Making Music Together, is handsome. He is Native American and Gullah mixed, has straight black hair, straight nose, a strong jaw, and his clothes fit him in a way that would make the manufacturer proud. Women can’t take their eyes off him. It’s instalove between him and Trudy, but they face some hurdles.

Sensitive – definitely. I would also pair this with over-protective. Trudy has a disability, and this brings out Mark’s over-protective instinct. He is sensitive to her needs, ensures she is safe at all times.

Charming – This goes with well-mannered in my opinion. A great book boyfriend must display old-fashioned good manners, and that makes him charming. Mark gives her flowers, compliments her on her outfit, opens the car door for her … you get the point.

Funny – A man who can make me laugh captures my heart any day. Even though Mark is a tech guy, he says things to make Trudy laugh: “Alaska? Not a bad idea. We could spend our days fishing and skiing and our nights snuggling on a bearskin rug in front of a roaring fire.” She laughed. “Sounds heavenly. I think I’m ready to go.” (On another occasion) “I think I’ll trace my ancestry one of these days,” Trudy said.

“I don’t need to trace anything,” Mark said. “I’m mixed up enough as it is.” – referring to his mixed ancestry mentioned above.

Family-oriented – the way a man treats his family can tell you a lot about the way he will treat you. Mark is loving, kind, and enjoys spending time with his family, and they enjoy having him around.

Faith-filled – In a Christian romance, a great book boyfriend will rely on his faith to help him overcome challenges. He will live his faith by participating in church activities. Mark is a youth director, sings in the choir and takes part in other church activities. Definitely a man to love.

Who are some of your best book boyfriends? What qualities do you look for in a great book boyfriend? If you’ve read Making Music Together, does Mark exemplify some of these qualities? If you haven’t yet read the book, why don’t you pick up a copy today by clicking here?

Angela is a blogger and author of Christian women’s fiction and Christian romance. Her latest release is Making Music Together.

As Black History comes to a close, I decided to write this post about the beginning of Black History Month. Have you ever wondered how this annual observance came about?

It was through the efforts of Carter G. Woodson, teacher, historian, author, and publisher, who later became known as the father of Black History. Woodson, son of former slaves, had worked as a sharecropper, miner, and did other odd jobs to help support his family. Despite the fact that young Woodson could only attend school on rainy days when it was impossible to work on the farm, he later earned his bachelor’s and master’s degrees at the University of Chicago before entering Havard.

In 1915, after attending a national celebration of the 50th anniversary of emancipation in Chicago, Woodson was inspired to do something more to honor the achievements of African Americans. Before leaving Chicago, he helped found the Association for the Study of Negro Life and History (ASNLH) —  (which later became the Association for the Study of African American History).  

Woodson sent out a press release announcing the beginning of Negro History Week in February 1926. He chose the month of February as it contained the birthdays of Abraham Lincoln and Frederick Douglass. A year later, Woodson singlehandedly launched the Journal of Negro History, in which he and other researchers highlighted the achievements of Black Americans.

He also helped create Negro History and Literature Week in 1924, but was not satisfied with one week being allocated to the study of black history. Efforts began to expand the week-long celebration to a longer event, however, Woodson died suddenly in 1950 before this could be achieved. 

Much later, in 1976, on the 50th anniversary of the first Negro History Week, younger members of the ASNLH succeeded in getting the organization to change the celebration to Black History Month. 

President Gerald Ford issued the first proclamation in 1976.  Ronald Reagan in his first Black History Month proclamation stated that “understanding the history of Black Americans is a key to understanding the strength of our nation.”

The efforts of one man, born into humble beginnings, brought about Black History Month, which we look forward to celebrating every year. Let us continue to understand and appreciate “the strength of our nation” not just for one month but every month of the year.

Angela is a blogger and author of Christian women’s fiction and Christian romance. Her latest release is Making Music Together.

In this digital age of text messaging, email and AI, very few people take the time to sit down and pen a letter. Letter writing may be seen as a lost art — something that went out with corsets, carriage rides, and black-and-white movies.

I remember the first time a high school classmate told me she had a pen pal. At that time, I had a budding interest in writing and the thought of writing to someone overseas filled me with great excitement. I followed my friend’s instructions and was soon communicating with my pen pal from a foreign land. So now you know, I come from an era when people did write letters, either for fun or out of necessity.

Some very famous letters are those written by the apostles in the Bible, letters from the French emperor Napoleon Bonaparte to his wife Josephine, and letters from Celie to God and her sister Nettie in The Color Purple. These letters still have purpose and meaning today and are widely read or referred to.

Let’s look at some of the benefits of writing letters.

1. Self expression – Sometimes when we try to express our feelings to someone we become tongue-tied. Writing a letter allows you the freedom to state those feelings in a way you might not be able to if the person were sitting across from you at the dining table, for example.
2. Tangible – Letters, like paperback books, are tangible. Ebooks, email, ecards have become the norm in our digital age, but they don’t give us the tactile satisfaction that a handwritten letter or a paperback gives. Letters that have been passed down through a family carry great sentimental value. Imagine the memories and the emotions evoked by holding a letter from an ancestor who has long passed on.
3. Therapeutic – Writing a letter can be therapeutic to the writer as well as the receiver. As the writer puts his thoughts on paper, he releases feelings he didn’t realize he had and is able to express them with more clarity. The receiver also gets a better understanding of the person’s feelings.
4. Handwriting – You get to practice your handwriting when you write a letter. Whenever I sign an important document, I notice how much my handwriting has deteriorated. I attribute this to typing more and writing less with a pen.
5. Connections – Last but not least, letter writing helps us connect with our loved ones and with strangers. During COVID, letter writing got a boost as people wrote letters to friends and relatives. I recently came across an article about a letter-writing campaign to encourage readers to write letters to the authors of banned books letting them know how much they appreciate their work. What a lovely gesture!

Letter writing has many benefits, and, as you can see, it does not have to be a thing of the past. We can still write letters today — if only to improve our handwriting!

You may wish to read some of the letters mentioned above as well as this one written by a character from my debut novel Coming Out of Egypt.

My dearest Cicely,
I know you must be wondering why I haven’t called or come to see you. It pains me to
say this, but after you told me what your father had done to you, I realized we could no longer
have a relationship. You know my feelings about things of that nature. It appalled me to hear
about the Garcia girls, and it sickened me to know the same thing had happened to someone
so precious and important to me. Maybe if I had heard it from you first it would not have
been so shocking.
Cicely, for what it’s worth, I want you to know I still love you. I don’t think I can ever
stop. Part of me will always belong to you. But, my darling, how could I stand at the altar
and watch you walk up on your father’s arm, and have him give you over to me? It would be
a sacrilege. A life for us is now impossible. Even though I don’t blame you for what happened,
I cannot, will not have such a man for a father-in-law. Just remember this, I love you and
always will.

If you haven’t read this book yet, I encourage you to get your hands on a copy. It will captivate you as it has done many others. When you are done reading, please drop me a line and let me know what you think.

Angela is a blogger and author of Christian women’s fiction and Christian romance. Her latest release is Making Music Together.

Three years ago, I wrote a blog post titled Abortion: A Sensitive Topic. The post began like this:

Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who passed away a few days ago, was best known for her forceful stance on women’s rights, particularly abortion rights, and equal treatment of women under the law. Her name is usually linked with the landmark 1973 case Roe v Wade that made abortion legal in the United States …

Now that she has passed away, there is a lot of concern about the future of Roe v Wade and abortion rights. Far be it from me to attempt any legal or political discourse. I am not a lawyer nor a politician, but as a woman and a writer of women’s fiction, I understand the reasoning behind the passage of Roe v Wade.

As we now know Roe v Wade has been overturned by the US Supreme Court and women’s abortion rights have been returned to the states. Since then, the national conversation has focused on abortion and with the US presidential elections just eight days away, abortion has become not just a sensitive topic but a hot one.

Fifty years after Roe v Wade became the law of the land, women have lost their reproductive freedom and are even losing their lives because they can’t receive proper care when it is needed. The situation is very complicated and I’m not prepared to go into details here. Just listen to your television any day and you will hear more on this topic.

However, as a mother, grandmother, fiction writer and as a Christian, the topic of abortion concerns me a great deal.

In my debut novel Coming Out of Egypt, set in the 1980s, the protagonist Marva and her sister June Garcia were both sexually abused by their father. Marva became pregnant and her father instructed her mother to perform an abortion on her. In a scene following her birthday party, Marva recounts to June what happened:

“I had to have an abortion because of Daddy. He made Mama do it to me. The pain was so bad he gave me a shot of gin to dull the pain. And it helped. That was my first drink. After that, I dropped out of school. I knew the teachers were talking about me. It was horrible. I don’t want the same thing happening to you. I don’t want anything to stop you from finishing your education and making something of yourself.”

June yawned. “I want to finish my education.”

Marva’s eyelids felt heavy. She lay down and pulled the covers over her. “Good. So be careful. Don’t let Keith, or any boy, talk you into doing … you know what.”

Silence. “Sister …”

“Mm hmm?”

“I’m glad you told me what you just told me.”

Here’s another scene in which Marva’s former teacher discloses to a detective what she knows about the abortion:

“As I was saying, one day the younger sister June came to me and said that Marva was in the bathroom, bleeding. I told another teacher and we both went and found her groaning and writhing on the floor, her clothes all soaked with blood. We got her cleaned up and gave her an aspirin. I asked her what caused her to bleed so much. She began to cry, but wouldn’t say anything. Mr. Sampson, the vice principal, and I took her home in his car.”

David’s face was expressionless, and Cicely continued, “They lived near the river, and we had to take a little, narrow track off the main road to get to the house. As we turned onto the track, Marva told us to stop the car and she would walk from there. Mr. Sampson refused and drove right up to the house. We didn’t see Garcia.”

“What about her mother?”

Cicely kept her voice low. “She was a frail-looking little lady who seemed as scared as her daughters. She didn’t speak much English. We told her who we were and why we’d brought Marva home. We offered to take her to a doctor, but the mother started to cry and wring her hands and say something in Spanish. She begged us not to tell anybody. She kept shaking her head and saying, ‘No, no, no.’ That convinced us that Marva might have had an abortion and her father was probably responsible.”

“Did you inform the police?”

Cicely nodded. “Our principal advised us to file a report in case anything happened to the girl, but he warned us that nothing would come out of it. Marva never came back to school and I left Egypt Village shortly after.”

David stared into the distance then fixed her once more with his penetrating gaze.

“What did the police say?”

“They said we had no evidence that the girl did have an abortion or that her father was sexually abusing her. And even if we did, the country has no laws against incest.”

To learn more about Marva and June, go to this link where you will see the other books in the Egypt series, all just 99c. for a limited time only. If you are in Kindle Unlimited, you can read the last two books In the Wilderness and In the Promised Land for free. 

Angela is a blogger and author of Christian women’s fiction and Christian romance. Her latest release is Making Music Together.

Ask any writer what is the hardest part about writing or what they least like about writing and, chances are, they will say editing. A Google search turned up this definition: Editing is a process that involves revising the content, organization, grammar, and presentation of a piece of writing. The purpose of editing is to ensure that your ideas are presented to your reader as clearly as possible. 

The last sentence of that paragraph really caught my attention. I have just completed the first draft of the sequel to Making Music Together and am about to embark on this most dreaded of the writing process — editing. But before I begin, I’m taking a few weeks off—maybe three or four— not just to R&R but to allow my brain to rewire itself so that when I go back to the script I will see it with fresh eyes. 

This will ensure that “my ideas are presented to my reader as clearly as possible.”  It will do me and my readers no good if I attempt to revise the book while my mind is still saturated with all the mistakes —not just grammatical errors, there is software to help with that—but consistency, timelines, plot holes, and the myriad of other cringe-worthy mistakes we authors make when the ideas are flowing too fast to process them properly. 

During these few weeks, I will read a book I have been meaning to read for a long time, I will do some ads for Making Music Together, just to keep it before my readers’ eyes, and prepare me for the task ahead. Then before I plunge into editing, I’m going to do something I learned about recently—

I’m going to write the book description. 

Isn’t that written last, you ask? That’s how I always did it, but a course I took recently showed me that writing the book description first serves as a broad outline or a guide to ensure that my plot follows it. Since I’m a panster and not a plotter, I found this lesson helpful. My next step will be (deep breath)

Read the entire book

While I’m reading, I’ll refer to my description and make notes on things that should be cut, added to, moved around or whatever.

With that done, I’ll make an outline of each chapter. 

While I’m not comfortable with outlining, I think an outline will help show up anything that’s out of place or is simply not working. 

Next step is to go back to my research notes and make sure my facts are accurate —medical, legal, musical, as well as timelines. 

When I’m satisfied, I’ll reread the book, fixing all the big issues—plot structure, setting, character development, and other elements that come to my notice. I didn’t mention grammar and the reason for that is I tend to have an eagle eye for grammatical errors and typos, but if I overlook any, these will be taken care of in the next step:

Send to my critique group

This group of fine, talented ladies has been an invaluable help to me over the years, and I never submit anything before having it pass the Sharpened Pencils test. I thank God for them every day. Notice I didn’t mention the title of book 2, as that, and my cover, will be vetted by my group.

So, there it is. The above is a broad outline of how I plan to edit the second draft of my book. I may not follow it slavishly. I may see the need to deviate in a few places, but by writing this post, I have a guide to follow that will ensure that “my ideas are presented to my reader as clearly as possible” and the thought of editing seems less daunting.

Angela is a blogger and author of Christian women’s fiction and Christian romance. Her latest release is Making Music Together.

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Romantic Women’s Fiction

  Date Published: August 25, 2024

  Love cures all …

  When Emmett Chambers comes to Lilac Lake to replace Dr. Johnson, the     town’s GP, Dr. Johnson asks Crystal, owner of the Lilac Lake     Café, to show him around. Emmett is the son of an insufferable     ambitious politician who is the reason Emmett has chosen the life of a     doctor in a small town, away from politics. Just as the relationship between     Crystal and Emmett heats up, Emmett’s mother finds out about it and is     furious, deeming Crystal unsuitable for the family during her     husband’s presidential campaign. Hoping to allow things to cool off,     Crystal spends time at the Ogunquit Playhouse in Maine doing her usual     summer gig as an extra in some of the plays put on there. But when     she’s called upon to help Emmett’s mother with a problem there,     everything changes for all of them.

  About the Author

Judith Keim, A USA Today Best Selling Author, is a hybrid author who both     has a publisher and self-publishes. Ms. Keim writes heart-warming novels     about women who face unexpected challenges, meet them with strength, and     find love and happiness along the way, stories with heart. Her best-selling     books are based, in part, on many of the places she’s lived or visited and     on the interesting people she’s met, creating believable characters and     realistic settings her many loyal readers love.

  She enjoyed her childhood and young-adult years in Elmira, New York, and     now makes her home in Boise, Idaho, with her husband and their adorable     dachshund, Wally, and other members of her family. While growing up, she was     drawn to the idea of writing stories from a young age. Books were always     present, being read, ready to go back to the library, or about to be     discovered. All in her family shared information from the books in general     conversation, giving them a wealth of knowledge and vivid     imaginations.

  Ms. Keim loves to hear from her readers and appreciates their enthusiasm     for her stories. To sign up for her newsletter, go here: ​https://dl.bookfunnel.com/oeiwdp1vkc  

  Contact Links

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Angela is a blogger and author of Christian women’s fiction and Christian romance. Her latest release is Making Music Together.

“They faced death and chose life.”

If you see just one movie this year, I urge you to see The Firing Squad! And I do mean that. This gripping movie will have you reaching for the Kleenex and thinking about it long after you finish watching it.

The Firing Squad is a faith-based film dedicated to the Christians who were executed by firing squad in Indonesia on April 29, 2015. Starring Kevin Sorbo, James Barrington, and Cuba Gooding Jr, this movie shows the power of redemption and how prisoners facing death by firing squad find new life in Christ. This true story will make you marvel at the power of God’s amazing grace to transform a bitter, hate-filled prison warden into a broken prisoner of Christ. The romantic element brought in near the end of the film will also move you to tears.

The movie, supported by the marketing teams behind “The Passion of the Christ,” “Son of God,” and many faith-based organizations, including Campus Crusade for Christ, will be in theaters nationwide on August 2nd.

To learn more about The Firing Squad, please follow this link: https://bit.ly/TheFiringSquadFilm

I do hope you will take the time to watch this film. Whether you are a Christian or not, it will leave an indelible impression on you.

Angela is a blogger and author of Christian women’s fiction and Christian romance. Her latest release is Making Music Together.

Did you know that July is Read an Almanac Month? If you belong to the younger generation, you may ask, “What is an almanac? What is it used for?”

An almanac is a yearly publication that provides all types of information, but it is well known for its weather forecasts and predicting the phases of the moon and the seasons, high tide and low tide.

The first printed almanac appeared in the mid 15th century. Benjamin Franklin began his famous Poor Richard’s Almanacs in 1732. When I was a child, I would hear my parents discussing the best days for planting as outlined by the McDonald’s almanac, and I believe they implemented that advice for planting vegetables as well as flowers.

Then when my father passed away, my mother no longer bought the almanac, and I never thought about it until many years later when I began receiving free copies of the Old Farmer’s Almanac from a charity I donate to. This almanac was founded in 1792 by Robert Thomas. In addition to the usual weather forecasts, planting guides, and astronomical data, the Old Farmer’s Almanac has taken on a new look by featuring trends in fashion, food, sports, technology, and even jokes.

I just received three Old Farmer’s magazines — one with recipes, another with gardening, and the third with birds. Here is a recipe from one of the magazines:

Creamy shredded potatoes

Think of a potato omelet served in squares … this is it. The top is crisp and crunchy, the bottom is nicely chewy. For best results, make enough egg mixture to almost cover the potatoes in the baking dish.

Ingredients

• 5 medium russet potatoes
• 1/3 cup butter, melted
• ½ cup chopped onion
• 1 can (5 ounces) evaporated milk
• 3 eggs, beaten
• 1 ¼ tsp salt
• 1/8 tsp black pepper
• 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

Method

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease an 8×8-inch baking dish.
• Peel potatoes and place in a bowl of cold water to prevent discoloration. Set aside.
• Melt butter in a skillet over medium heat. Add onions and saute for 5 mins, or until limp. Add milk and bring to a boil. Remove from heat .
• Shred potatoes by hand or in a food processor.
• Beat eggs, salt, and pepper in a bowl until frothy. Add shredded potatoes. Stir to combine. Add milk mixture. Add ¾ cup of cheese to potato mixture and mix well.
• Pour into prepared baking dish. Bake for 1 hour, or until egg mixture firms up. Top with remaining cheese and bake for 5 to 10 minutes or until cheese melts. Cut into squares and serve hot.  Makes 4 to 6 servings.

Enjoy!

The next time you visit your library, search the periodicals section. You may be able to browse through a few almanacs. If you can’t find one and you think an almanac may be a valuable addition to your library, you can always pick up a copy by clicking on the link below: https://amzn.to/4cMFyvm

This is an affiliate link and if you do click on it and make a purchase, I would receive a small commission. Thank you!

To learn about my books and other great reading material, please sign up for my newsletter below:

Angela is a blogger and author of Christian women’s fiction and Christian romance. Her latest release is Making Music Together.

In her latest book, Sarah Jakes Roberts, bestselling author, speaker, wife and mother of 6 uses her influence to inspire and equip women to embrace their purpose and revolutionize their lives. She states, “When we do the work of embracing where we are, we create space for God’s love to meet us in our most raw form and then polish us to shine like never before.”

With beautifully crafted prose, Roberts shows us that power does not lie in what you have, nor in success, achievement or performance, but in honesty, humility and in who you are willing to become.

Here are some of the nuggets you will encounter as you read this book:

If you are interested in learning the principles that will help you live authentically and become your best self, I recommend you get a copy of Power Moves today. To purchase a copy, please follow this link: https://bit.ly/4d7K1K4

To learn more please go to: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sarah-jakes-roberts-a609821a4/ and on Instagram @sarahjakesroberts

Angela is a blogger and author of Christian women’s fiction and Christian romance. Her latest release is Making Music Together.