By Penny Reeve Dear Writer, Have you met Discouragement yet? I have. She hovers close by the door of my office. She twiddles her fingers by my lounge. She stares over my shoulder as I brush my teeth and whispers ‘Why bother?’ or ‘You’re not good enough’ or ‘Just give…

By Holland Webb @WebbHollandLyle You're a writer, and writers should get paid, right? Yes, they should! If you work diligently enough, you will probably find people and publishers who will pay you for your work. Unfortunately, you may also run into a scammer along the way, someone who is more…

by Rhonda Rhea @RhondaRhea Have you ever been tagged—maybe trapped—in a group text? You’re begging your phone. Please, not one more notification. And your phone answers with: zzzzzt. Even worse, you go to bed early while the other 30 in your group have a night owl session. Get up the next…

By DiAnn Mills @DiAnnMills Writers are often stalked by a predator called stress. It’s a nasty physical, mental, and spiritual disorder that can cause headaches, back and body pain, nausea, depression, problems in relationships, doubt in God’s calling, and a host of other ailments. Not a pleasant malady. The causes…

by Mary Holloman @mtholloman I got a 3 on my elementary school writing test. Do you remember those? It was in fourth grade. Each student was given a prompt, and you had a set amount of time to write a story using the prompt. The highest score you could receive…

By Debb Hackett @debb_hackett We’re in contest season and it’s always proposal and submission season. But not everyone wins or gets offered a contract. Disappointment is as much a part of writing, as breathing. Therefore, managing your actions and feelings when you’re not successful is crucial. Over the years I’ve…