Glorifying God and Faith

[Abraham] did not weaken in faith when he considered his own body, which was as good as dead (since he was about a hundred years old), or when he considered the barrenness of Sarah’s womb. No distrust made him waver concerning the promise of God, but he grew strong in his faith as he gave glory to God, fully convinced that God was able to do what he had promised.
Romans 4:19–21 ESV

Yesterday in my devotional time with the Lord, I came across these verses in my Daily Light devotional book. And I saw something I had never seen before. But before I explain what, I need to go back and explain a little.

The Daily Light is a devotional compiled back in the early 1900s. It has readings for morning and evening, and each reading has a theme verse in bold at the top of the reading with several verses that follow the theme. All scripture; nothing but God’s Word.

My grandmother got a copy of this devotional book when it first came out. Portions of it she clung to as promises that helped her get through some very difficult situations in her life (my sister has her original marked-up copy). Then my mother started to use it. And her testimony was similar to her mother's; portions of it she committed to memory because of how those particular scriptures helped her (I have that copy—torn, tattered, marked up—but oh so precious to see which portions helped her and when). As a young adult, I wanted a copy for myself. So I bought a paperback copy. All of these copies were in the King James Version.

Why is that last sentence important? Because my copy finally became so tattered and falling apart that I ordered a new hardback copy—this time in the English Standard Version. And that’s why a particular phrase jumped out at me in this passage. (I highly recommend having your devotional time in other versions of the scripture to gain fresh insight into God’s Word that can become superficial when reading from the same version over and over again.)

I’ve often been amazed at Abraham’s faith. Mostly because I’ve never felt like I had much faith. I’m constantly praying the prayer of the at-his-wit’s-end father in Luke 9 when he prayed, “Lord, I believe; help my unbelief!” I’ve read the stories of the great men and women of faith in the past, and longed for that kind of faith to be real in my life. Others tell me that they see it, but I don’t, probably because of the struggle it is for me.

One Sunday many years ago now, I can remember my pastor in Illinois preached on this passage, focusing on Abraham’s incredible faith. At home, I said to my husband, “That’s all well and good . . . for Abraham . . . but HOW can I get that kind of faith?” Hmmm . . . wrong person to ask! My poor husband, all he could do is shrug. See, for him, it’s simple—just choose to believe God is who He says He is, God can do what He says He can do (yes, I took Beth Moore’s Believing God long after this incident).

At the time I was so frustrated with my husband . . . and, yes, God . . . for simplifying an issue I was having such a hard time getting my mind around. Little did I know the journey the Lord would take me on in order to teach me how simple faith really is.

It really is choosing to believe. Choosing to obey, even when I don’t understand it. My human mind isn’t going to grasp the fullness of every doctrine or aspect of God’s attributes. But when I finally give up my “right” to understand everything and accept what God says as true, I experience His grace, His love, and yes, His faithfulness—and I’m walking in faith.

What was the phrase that stood out this time? In verse 20, Abraham “grew strong in his faith as he gave glory to God.” Giving glory to God is simply accepting that He is who He says He is, that He can do what He says He can do. Period.

The Message makes this concept even clearer: He didn’t tiptoe around God’s promise asking cautiously skeptical questions. He plunged into the promise and came up strong, ready for God, sure that God would make good on what He had said. . . . The same thing gets said about us when we embrace and believe the One who brought Jesus to life when the conditions were equally hopeless. The sacrificed Jesus made us fit for God, set us right with God.

Wow! Abraham didn’t “tiptoe” around the promises God gave him. He didn’t ask “cautiously skeptical questions.” So why do I? As you can probably tell, I’m still on this journey of learning how to live by faith. I’ve made progress, but I still have a long way to go! And thank God, He will be with me each step of the way, faithfully teaching me to plunge into His promises.

God is good. God is faithful. And He loves each one of us with an everlasting love. I’m choosing to believe these things today. I hope you will join me in this wonderfully rewarding faith walk!

The Confusing Comma, 2

Today we’re talking about the serial comma. (For those of us who write mysteries, suspense, or thrillers—that’s comma, not killer. :-) ) According to the Chicago Manual of Style, the serial comma is the one before the conjunction in a series of words, phrases, or independent clauses. It helps keep the meaning clear to the reader, in my opinion.

For example:
Roger used a hammer, nails, and glue to repair the cabin’s window.
You may write an essay, read a book, or do your homework in this study hall.
Mary went to the store, Carol walked around the track, and Sharon stopped in for coffee.


However, if a conjunction is used between each of the elements in a series, no comma is needed.

For example:
Roger used a hammer and nails and glue to repair the cabin’s window.
You may write an essay or read a book or do your homework in this study hall.
This morning Mary went to the store and Carol walked around the track and Sharon stopped in for coffee.


While most book publishers follow the Chicago Manual of Style and use the serial comma, I know of several who don’t. One of the trends in grammar today is to use fewer commas, and this is one area where many believe less is better.

Consistency is the key to including or excluding the comma before the conjunction. This isn’t something that’s going to be a major roadblock to getting a contract. Once your book is contracted, the copy editors and proofreaders will make sure the serial comma is used according to house style.


As to other “news,” I will be hosting three more blog tours in the next six weeks: Montana Mistletoe, September 14; The Restitution, by MaryLu Tyndall, September 29; and The Begotten and The Betrayed by Lisa Tawn Bergren, October 3. All three of these books are excellent examples of their genres, and I’m happy to host these talented authors. If you missed the blog tour for Allison Bottke's latest fiction book, One Little Secret, see the August 23 post.

Have a great week! Check back in on Thursday for another installment in our grammar tips.

One Little Secret Blog Tour

Today I am hosting my first-ever author on a blog tour. And I’m excited to introduce you to Allison Bottke, well known as the God Allows U-Turns lady. I met Allison when we were both in an intensive writing clinic with Tracie Peterson at the Colorado Christian Writers Conference several years ago. Allison brought her then manuscript to be critiqued and worked over, which is now her first fiction book, A Stitch in Time. Her second book, One Little Secret, has just released, and Allison is here to chat with us about her many projects.


Greetings from the land of 10,000 lakes! I won’t be able to say that for too much longer, as my dear hubby and I will be moving to Texas the end of this month. Every winter we wonder why we live in the Tundra … but not this winter! I moved here from Arizona when I met my husband back in 1994. He’s a 5th generation Faribault, MN native. Can you believe that? FIVE generations of Bottke’s have lived in this town of 20,000 souls. Wow. It made more sense for me to pack up my computer and move here when we met than to have him start his career in real estate over from scratch in AZ.

It’s been twelve great years, and I do so love our 25-acre farm in this lovely southern Minnesota town, but I’m not as fond of it in winter when it’s 20 below zero with a 40 below zero wind chill factor. Tragic! I am so NOT a winter kind of gal. Ice fishing and snowmobiles … not my cup of tea. It’s very difficult to walk in stiletto heels in the snow, and while two complete wardrobes may sound like fun, there’s simply no way to look even remotely thin wearing multiple layers of garments.

Okay, now that I’ve gotten my weather-whine out of the way (whew) let’s get on with the show!

I was 35 years old when I made my u-turn toward God. Some of you may be aware of my ministry called: GOD ALLOWS U-TURNS www.godallowsuturns.com In fact, as an aside, we are collecting stories for three new volumes in our true short story anthology. So, if you’d like to submit your story for consideration, please read the Writer’s Guidelines on the God Allows U-Turns web site.
( http://www.allisonbottke.com/writersguidelines.htm )

My very first book was published in the year 2001, it was a collection of true short stories called GOD ALLOWS U-TURNS. Today, there are over 23 books (non-fiction AND fiction) under the God Allows U-Turns “brand.” It’s the release of ONE LITTLE SECRET, my 2nd “Boomer-Lit” novel that brings me here today.
( http://www.boomerbabesrock.com/boomernovels.html )

Wonder what “Boomer-Lit” is?

Typical “chick-lit” is written for a 20–30 year old target market. The protagonist is usually single, and struggling with her faith, career, family, love-life, and things young women often struggle with. In my books, I wanted to approach the issues that baby boomers are dealing with (women born between 1946–1964), things like the empty nest syndrome, aging parents, a change in career, retirement, menopause, and other health issues. I wanted to look at women in the prime of their life who were suddenly stepping out in faith to achieve the dreams of their heart. Women who weren’t afraid to take risks—who had the chutzpah to dare to dream big. That’s how “Boomer-Lit” was born.

I developed ONE LITTLE SECRET first as a screenplay called JUST A HOUSEWIFE. When Bethany House wanted a second novel after my debut novel called A STITCH IN TIME, I immediately thought of this story, realizing that it would make some great Boomer-Lit!



Here’s a little synopsis about ONE LITTLE SECRET…but I think Marjorie is posting a review … (Yes, I am. It's at the end.)

**** For Ursula Rhoades, her ONE LITTLE SECRET becomes her one big problem! ONE LITTLE SECRET fits seamlessly into a culture obsessed with reality TV and celebrity lives (think American Idol and E! channel). Delving into the life of a fictional rock star, ONE LITTLE SECRET takes readers on a fun-loving ride through Hollywood and the famous GRAMMY awards.

In a land of glitz and glamour, Ursula Rhoades isn't fazed in the least by the constant parade of Prada. She has a beautiful home, a loving family, and fulfilling volunteer opportunities that leave this fashionable and loving Bel-Air housewife completely content, even if she did have to give up her dreams when she married Don so many years ago. Enter Nikolai Prevelakis, or Nik Prevel to his fans, the hottest young music star in the country. But it isn't enough. Handsome, famous, and living the life of a rock star, Nik isn't content. When his path crosses Ursula's, he sees the opportunity he's been waiting for. But what seems like a harmless little secret changes their lives forever—and becomes one big secret everyone's trying to figure out!

ONE LITTLE SECRET is a Hollywood fairy tale with all the pleasures of escapist literature mixed with gentle lessons on using the talents God has given you, the power of sacrifice, self-esteem, and the value of being "just a housewife."

I had a blast writing this book. I had even more fun developing a contest to go with it. We’re actually giving away an all expense paid trip to Hollywood for two in the event the book gets optioned for a film. Readers can vote on who they think would make the best Ursula and Nik—from stars like Catherine Zeta Jones and Antonio Banderas. It’s a fun and funky contest, how about stopping by and voting, okay? Check out the contest here, we call it The Hollywood Casting Call Contest — http://www.boomerbabesrock.com/bookcontests.html

I’ve been asked what prompted me to step into fiction, after so many books in the God Allows U-Turns series?

I’ve always wanted to write fiction. In fact, when I grow up I’d like to work in the world of film—writing screenplays. I have a deep love for creating those sappy, romantic comedy fairy-tale love stories that women can escape into. However, as I mentioned earlier, I had a major life-changing epiphany at the age of 35 that brought me closer to God in a very profound way. As a result of that, I founded GOD ALLOWS U-TURNS. In sharing not only my story of a changed life, but the stories of hundreds of others as well, I was blessed to enter the world of publishing and get my feet wet—I was able to make connections with editors and publishers who were able to see my passion for reaching people with a message of faith.

I also began attending writer’s conferences as an instructor, and while there I was able to take classes as a student with some amazing novelists who generously shared their craft in workshop sessions. I soaked up everything I could about how to write fiction—taking notes—buying tapes—listening over and over again to teachers like Angela Hunt, Gayle Roper, Brandilyn Collins, James Scott Bell, Jack Cavanaugh, Lauraine Snelling, and Tracie Peterson. It was after taking a 3-day long intensive workshop with Tracie Peterson that I was able to fine-tune my work-in-progress and submit it with a proposal to Bethany House. The rest, as they say, is history. Bethany House signed me to write two novels and the whirlwind began.

I’ve just been contracted by David C. Cook Publishers to write three new Boomer-Lit books in a series I’ve called THE VA VA VA BOOM series. All three books will introduce entrepreneurial boomer babes who own their own businesses. Additionally, each woman has a deep dark secret and a deep dream desire. The first book in the series will release in 2009.

For years I’ve been known as the “God Allows U-Turns Poster Girl.” I’ve been blessed with that moniker and it’s always a joy to share with people how my life direction radically changed. Yet over the years, I found myself being drawn to the challenges my fellow baby boomer sisters were experiencing. In late 2006 I woke up one day with the idea to develop a Web site separate from www.GodAllowsUTurns.com devoted to boomer women. We launched the new business, www.BoomerBabesRock.com on January 1st of 2007. A cornerstone of the outreach is a monthly electronic e-zine that we call a “Dream-Zine.” It’s called Boomer Babes with Brilliant Dreams and our goal is to empower and encourage baby boomer women to achieve the dreams of their heart. ( http://www.boomerbabesrock.com/dreamzine.html )

Our Mission Statement is, “Boomer Babes Rock, where fun, fashion, food, family, and faith merge to empower and inspire boomer women around the world!”
( www.boomerbabesrock.com )

Here’s the definition that appears on my Web site. “A Boomer Babe was born between 1946 and 1964, we are women who are comfortable enough in our own skin to realize that the mid-life years can be some of the best and most exciting in our entire life. That the hubris of youth is behind us and the wisdom of the years has made us pretty darn attractive—both inside and out. We are Boomer Babes and we’re proud of it!”

I love encouraging all women, no matter what age, to achieve their dreams. I could go on and on about this, but I think I need to say good-bye now. However, please allow me to close with this…the fact I’ve been published at all boggles my mind. I want to encourage your readers who have a desire to write to never give up! I also want them to stop judging themselves against other writers. I’m a high school drop out with a ninth grade education and a GED. I quit school after the 9th grade to run away from home and get married. I was going to live happily ever after in my fairy tale dream.

But that’s NOT what happened. As a teenager, I was looking for love in all the wrong places. As a Boomer Babe, I know a whole lot more about life, love, and the pursuit of happiness. I also know a whole lot more about pursuing the dreams of our heart…walking in God’s purpose for our life, and making life-changing U-Turns. Boomer Babes Rock is all about living the great American dream. It’s about deciding today… that THIS is the break-out year when you’re going to make things happen—and happen in a BIG way! And that’s what ONE LITTLE SECRET is about. It’s about a dynamic woman who takes a risk to make her lifelong dream come true.

Writing is not about formal education, or who you know, or how long you’ve been at it. It’s about perseverance and risk and belief in yourself—and knowing that inevitably, God will make a way where there seems to be no way. Thanks, Marjorie, for hosting me on your blog today. It’s been a joy visiting with you and your readers. I welcome any comments about ONE LITTLE SECRET and I’ll stop back to check in with you soon!

Have a blessed day!

Allison
www.AllisonBottke.com
www.BoomerBabesRock.com
www.GodAllowsUTurns.com
www.BoomerBabesRock.com/blog

MARJORIE’S REVIEW AND COMMENTS… I finished reading One Little Secret early this morning. Allison has given you a synopsis of the book, so I won’t go into that again. I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book for several reasons. As a Boomer Babe who is starting to see her dreams come to fruition, I love reading about women who realize their dreams in their mid-life. In many ways, I identify with Ursula. And in other ways, Ursula’s dream opened my eyes to a world I’ve never followed very closely. The reminder that God gives us the desires of our hearts when we delight in Him was a timely one for me. Allison has subtly woven several biblical principles of marriage, sacrifice, commitment, and love into her story of realizing dreams—ones we all have, ones I believe are God-ordained. As I read, I couldn’t help but be reminded of a quote my husband loves: I’ve dreamed many a dream that were gone at the break of dawn. But I’ve realized enough of my dreams to make me want to dream on.

Thank you for joining us today. Please leave your comments for Allison. Also, I have one extra copy of One Little Secret that I will send to one person who leaves a comment telling us what dream you’ve long held that you would love to see realized. No offense to the younger readers, but. . .this book goes to a Boomer Babe, so you’ll have to include proof that you are a Baby Boomer along with your dream.

Catch up

Goodness. I knew I hadn't posted for a while, but I just saw it's been a whole month! Yet another sign of how crazy my life is. And another reminder that I need to slow it down. Since I blogged last, I've been in Philadelphia with my friend and mentor, Marlene Bagnull, assisting her with last-minute details for and then being at the Great Philadelphia Writers Conference. I also stayed a couple of days after the conference to help her start the mopping up details. I arrived back home late last Monday. I was also involved with the Nangie 303 clinic with Angela Hunt and Nancy Rue. I learned so much and came away greatly encouraged with my continued development as a writer.

This last week, I've been busy trying to meet several publishers deadlines for proofreading projects. I took Thursday off to drive our HIS Writers (Denver ACFW chapter) board to my cabin west of Boulder, about 15 miles from the Continental Divide. It's very rustic—no phone service, no electricity, no running water—but it's a great place to get away and focus on the Lord. Something we all needed. We didn't get any planning done, but we did have a wonderful time of prayers and meeting with God. I thank the Lord for Paula, Bonnie, Jill, and Kathy.

Then on Saturday, I was at the cabin again—wow! Twice in one week! Doesn't happen very often. This time I went with my husband and son. Randy will be heading back to college for his last semester of undergrad work this coming Saturday, so we're trying to spend some time with him, doing the things he doesn't get to do very often. And I don't think he's been to cabin for at least a year now. We did a little hiking, after the guys set up a new heating stove for the main room of our cabin.

Today is my husband's birthday! Happy birthday, honey. Yesterday we celebrated as a family; our daughter joined us for church and dinner. (She attends a different church in the area.) Good family time!

I plan to have a lighter week . . . after I finish one more project for a publisher today. I'm looking forward to another day in the mountains with Randy. He's climbing a fourteener today with friends; he's missed the mountains this summer, so he's trying to make up for lost time! And I don't mind, because I'm always up for a trip to the mountains. God is good! And we are blessed to own a cabin where we can get away and relax and enjoy His creation.

Have a good week! Thanks to all those who have left comments lately. I appreciate each of you.

Upcoming posts: We'll get back to the punctuation posts next week. On Thursday, I'll be posting a review of One Little Secret and an interview with the author, Allison Bottke. I'm enjoying the book immensely!

Vacation in Maine

We’re back. It was a busy five days, and of course there’s all the stuff to do at home after you get back from vacation that makes one wonder if it’s worth it! But this definitely was. Outside of the travel days. Sigh. Now if we could just figure out a way to get from one place to another without all the hassles, I’d be in line to sign up!

We spent the weekend with friends of ours, Thomas and Nancy Spear of Cushing, Maine. They have two sons, Micah (6) and Zach (2), who are a lot of fun to be around. On our first day in Maine, Roger went out with Thomas and his sternman, Rob, to drop lobster pots. Thomas said he’s behind in getting them out this year, but Roger didn’t mind. He loves learning new things and getting in on the action. This is Thomas loading pots onto his lobster boat, the Nancy Elaine.


Saturday evening, we drove over to Augusta and had dinner with son, Randy, and the other team members. Sunday we caught up with them again and enjoyed services at two churches, getting to see both of their drama presentations in the process. Randy accused me of crying almost before their military drama started. Excellent theme: the goodness of God—all the time. It was very touching.

After the rain we had on Sunday, we hoped that it would clear in time for our plans on Monday. God was good, and we had a beautiful day! We started with a hike on the breakwater close to the Spears’ home. It was a fairly easy walk out to the lighthouse at the end, and long enough for me to say I got my exercise in for the day.


We enjoyed sitting at the end of the breakwater, soaking in the sun.


Randy helped Zach make the mile and a half trek to and from the lighthouse at the breakwater a little easier. His mom and I are the ones in front. Sunni and Aaron travel with Randy this summer.


Randy went with us to Moody’s for lunch. Moody’s is a diner started back in the 1930s by Nancy’s great-grandfather. It is a very popular spot to eat at any time, day or night. Randy ordered a lobster roll, since Mom and Dad were paying and he hadn’t been able to afford to eat lobster on his own.

We met up again with the rest of the crew to take a trip out into the river to watch Thomas and his sternman haul lobster pots and bring in our dinner. It was quite the group on the boat: the six members of the Truth in Action drama team; Nancy and her two boys; the sternman’s daughter; and of course, the sternman and Thomas. (A couple of us were stoked up with Dramamine. After my last experience on that boat four years ago, I was very careful to take all precautions this time! Even though I was assured that we wouldn’t be going out into the Atlantic as we had on my previous trip.)

In this picture, Bill is on the left, then Ashley, Sunnie, Christi, me, and Randy.


Soon the men were hauling up the pots, taking out the keepers, throwing back the females who were producing eggs and other shell fish, like crabs, hermit crabs, and snails (abalone). Not that most of those aren’t edible; they weren’t what we were wanting for dinner that evening.


Here’s one we kept. . .and ate later.


On the way back in, Zach took a turn helping his dad steer.


The ride got a little "zig-zaggy" about then! But we all had a great time.

Then it was time to say good-bye to Randy again. But he’ll be home in two weeks to spend a little time before heading back to school in South Carolina for his final semester before graduation.

Next week, we’ll return to the good old grammar!

Vacation

We're headed to Maine for a long weekend. I've been trying to finish a couple of editing/proofreading projects that needed to be done before we leave Friday. So didn't get anything posted on Thursday. And since I won't have Internet access a good portion of the time we're gone, I won't be posting on Monday, either. Hey, isn't that what vacations are for?

We'll be staying with friends who live near Portland. And we'll catch up with our son who is traveling in New England with a ministry drama team for his Christian university (for more details, check out http://rvawter.livejournal.com/). If I remember, I'll try to take some pictures and post them next week here at The Writer's Tool.

Have a great and blessed weekend!

Calling vs. Task

All my life I’ve thought of the work I do as a fulfillment of God’s calling on my life. But I’ve often struggled with the fact that the calling seemed to change frequently, according to the stage of life I’m in. And that didn’t make sense to me. I’ve often said jokingly, “I’ll be glad when I grow up and know what I’m supposed to be doing.” But I turned fifty at the end of last year, and I still haven’t “grown up”??

Well, this past week, I learned the difference between my calling and the tasks the Lord asks me to do. I teach a small ladies Sunday school class. We are slowly working our way through Beth Moore’s study Jesus: The One and Only. Excellent study. By slowly, I mean we do one day’s study in the book per week. We started last fall, and now we’re almost halfway through.

This week our study was on how Christ sent out the disciples two by two to minister to people in the small villages surrounding Capernaum (Luke 9:1-11). Beth pointed out the fact that the disciples were already called. That happened when Jesus spoke to each one and said, “Follow me.” But in this instance, He was tasking them with a specific mission: Go out and preach the kingdom of God to the lost sheep of Israel. And He gave specific instructions and equipped them for the work. Since they had already surrendered to Jesus’ call, it wasn’t difficult for them to obey—in spite of certain fears, misgivings, and, I’m sure, wonder at being chosen.

Finally, I got it! All the many things I’ve done as a teen and adult, I’ve done because first I was surrendered to God’s call on my life: to be committed to a relationship with Him. He’s equipped me to accomplish the many, seemingly varied, tasks He’s asked me to do. Since a young teen, I’ve known my primary spiritual gift is teaching. I thought at first it was to teach in a classroom. And because I was so shy, I decided to teach children, the younger the better. And God allowed me to start out small. Now I see that He used each of those experiences so that I could gain confidence in the abilities He’d gifted me with. Because when I taught first grade my first year out of school, I couldn’t understand why they drove me nuts! We moved, and I taught fourth grade. Much better! Then I had my first child, and God enabled me to be a stay-at-home Mom for the next thirteen years. And I quickly realized that in raising my children, I was also teaching. When I went back to teaching, it was in the high school! And I started leading a ladies Bible class. . .that grew in number until we were running between sixty and seventy ladies. This was way beyond what I ever expected, especially the fulfillment of what I thought were pipe dreams before. We moved again, and I was now the kitchen manager at a Christian camp in Colorado. Teaching? Yes, training my assistant who didn’t even know how to cook when she and her husband joined us in running the camp. Now she runs that kitchen better than I ever did. . .and puts out meal after delicious meal for the largest groups that camp has ever experienced. We’re no longer with the camp, and I’ve again taught high school English and Spanish, and now teach others how to write well and effectively through the editing and teaching at conferences I am now tasked with.

As for writing, I’ve always had the desire to write. But God told me that it was one of the tasks He had for me when my firstborn was a baby. (She’s now 25!) I attended my first writer’s conference back in the early ’90s. And I’ve taken several writing courses. Several published articles later, many Bible studies later, and now I’m writing fiction. There have been good writing seasons, and there have been dry times when I’ve dealt with life, fulfilling other tasks that have taken the forefront and most of my energy. Yet, I’ve never been released from the task, though I’ve often questioned God if that truly is His intent for me. In so many, many ways He’s confirmed that I’m to continue, but He’s also confirmed that those “rest” periods from writing are ordained by Him. Look at what He asked the disciples to do when they returned from their time of intense ministry: Go to a secluded spot to rest. While some of my “rest” periods have been that, most of the time they’ve been wilderness experiences where He has drawn me into even closer relationship with Him. Not always fun experiences, like the one I’m coming out of now after the deaths of both my mother-in-law and my mother in six months. But always blessed times with Him.

To God be the glory! He showed me this last week that the things He’s “called” me to do, the tasks, have all been a part of His primary calling—to be committed wholly to Him. Finally, I see that I have grown up. And I’m excited to see how He’s going to continue to equip me for further service to Him.

American Christian Fiction Writers September Conference

I’ve been a member of the American Christian Fiction Writers (ACFW) three years. And the benefits and encouragement I’ve received during those three years are priceless. Shortly after I joined, I became a member of Crit14, and I was amazed at how quickly we all became friends, sharing our lives not just our writing. Over these last few years, we have shared the struggles of health problems, death of family members, and spiritual struggles for us as well as our families. I am the one who is truly blessed by these ladies: Kim Sawyer, Eileen Key, Darlene Wells, Beverly Olojan, Crystal Ratcliff, and Donna Schlachter.

But one of the main reasons I joined ACFW when I did was so I could attend the 2004 conference held in my backyard—Denver. What a blessing to meet my crit group face-to-face, to listen to Francine Rivers talk about her writing journey and how her relationship with the Lord defines her writing, to meet writers whose books I have enjoyed, and to sit under their teaching.

Since that first ACFW conference, I haven’t missed any: 2005 in Nashville, 2006 in Dallas, and I’m already signed up for the 2007 conference, also in Dallas. And each conference has furthered my writing, and now editing, experience. I can’t explain what it’s like to attend a conference that is totally geared toward fiction writing. And I’ve attended other very good conference since the mid-90s. Each conference has its unique qualities.

At each conference I meet more people whose names I see on the ACFW member’s loop. And now it’s like going to a huge class reunion, all bonded together as brothers and sisters in Christ and our love of writing fiction. I not only learn more about the craft of writing and build my network of writers, editors and agents, I also am blessed spiritually. And each year I add something to my experience. This year I’ve added the early bird session with Margie Lawson. And I’m looking forward to learning more, not only for my own writing, but also for my clients, many of whom are also ACFW members.

It was through the ACFW conferences that I auditioned for and earned a place as a writer for Brandilyn Collins’ promotional blog, Scenes and Beans. And it’s been through this conference that I have met many others who encourage me, pray for me, and love me—just as I am—showing me God’s love. And ACFW has given me the opportunity to give back to the Christian writing community in ways that I could only dream of in the past. And in fact, the confidence to step out by faith, quit teaching, and go full-time into editing is a dream I’ve long had, but God used ACFW to realize, much more than I could have asked or imagined (Ephesians 3:20).

So I’m taking this opportunity to encourage you to attend the ACFW conference September 20–23 in Dallas. I look forward to seeing you there!

Lie vs. Lay

Today we’re going to look at these often misused verbs. I’m hoping this will help you figure out which word to use when.

Lay is what is called a transitive verb. That simply means that this is a verb that demands a direct object. It means to put something down, to place or set an object somewhere. It also mean to place for rest or sleep (think babies or funerals, as in lay someone to rest). The various forms of this verb are: lay, laying, laid, and laid.

Lay your pencils down.
The woman was laying the dishes on the table.
She laid her pencil on the desk.
He had laid his pencil on the table.

Lie is an intransitive verb, meaning it never uses a direct object. However, it is usually followed by a preposition. It means to rest or recline, to assume a horizontal position. Now here is where it gets a little confusing. The verb forms are: lie, lying, lay, lain.

I lie down on the bed for a short nap.
The dog was lying on the rug before the hearth.
Exhausted, the woman lay down on the sofa.
The body had lain in the garden for several hours before being discovered.

One quick hint on how to tell which verb to use, try substituting the verb with set. If it works the verb is transitive and you use a form of lay.

Set your pencils down.
She set her pencil on the desk.
He had set his pencil on the table.

If it doesn’t work, like in the following examples, use a form of lie.

I set down on the bed for a short nap.
The dog was setting on the rug before the hearth.
Exhausted, the woman set down on the sofa.
The body had set in the garden for several hours before being discovered.

See if this helps your word choices when it comes to these two verbs in the future. If you have any questions, please feel free to leave them in the comments.

For those readers who live in the States, I hope you have plans to celebrate our nation’s independence on Wednesday. We’re planning to spend some time at our cabin during the day. Haven’t decided where to watch fireworks, though.

Thursday I’ll be posting my thoughts about attending writer’s conferences, specifically the ACFW conference in September. Have a good writing week!

Too many thats?

I attended a Words for the Journey Meeting (Rocky Mountain Region) earlier this week. In a conversation I had with an author after the meeting, she asked a question about the copy editing she'd had done in preparation for her book coming out later this year. A good question about the use of the relative pronoun that. I’ve sometimes heard the overuse of that called "that attacks." Plus that is a word Angela Hunt calls a “weasel word,” meaning "take it out whenever possible." Following is my answer to this author:

The only place I found a good explanation of this issue is in The Writer’s Digest Grammar Desk Reference (by Gary Lutz & Diane Stevenson, Writers Digest Books, 2005, pp. 194/95 Chapter 16 “Two Special Problems with That”). Here are a few excerpts from that chapter (I’ve done the correct omissions in blue):
16A Omission of that from the Start of a Nominative Dependent Clause

Do not omit the indefinite relative pronoun that from the beginning of a nominative dependent clause if the subject of the clause is likely to be misread as the direct object of a transitive verb in the clause immediately preceding. Despite the widespread notion that that is a superfluous and discardable word, the inclusion of that often improves the readability of the sentence.

Consider this sentence: When a researcher discovers a new strain of flu could threaten a large segment of the population, the ethics panel determines whether the public should be notified immediately. Readers can initially misconstrue strain as the direct object of discovers. Only when they read the helping verb could will they realize that they have misread the sentence. The inclusion of that between discovers and a will ensure that readers can traverse the sentence without stumbling. . . .

Corrective additions to the following sentences have been boldfaced and bracketed.

• Mr. Green noticed [that] the kids he continued to bring to practice with him improved greatly.
• But on board his flight to Los Angeles, he found [that] the promised seat-back TVs were missing, and the bottled water ran out halfway there.
• I think it [the movie] should be required viewing for every American, but as usual, I fear [that] the people who could learn the most from the issues it raises will avoid it like a fund-raiser for free abortions.

The indefinite relative pronoun that can usually be omitted following verbs such as say, think, and hope, because there is no possibility of misreading: She said the food was overcooked. I thought the girl looked pale. He hopes the incumbent wins the election.

If two or more nominative dependent clauses follow a transitive verb, be sure to phrase the clauses in parallel form. . . .
Faulty: I realized I was going to be late for the meeting and that there was nothing I could do.
Correct: I realized that I was going to be late for the meeting and that there was nothing I could do.
Correct: I realized that I was going to be late for the meeting and there was nothing I could do.
In this revision, the first that is implicitly carried forward to the start of the second dependent clause, and the absence of a comma before and signals to the reader that what follows is another dependent clause and not a second independent clause.

16B Erroneous Doubled that

Writers sometimes mistakenly insert that at both ends of a dependent clause: He knows that if he oversleeps again that he might lose his job. The second that is superfluous and ungrammatical. A comma should be inserted in its place.

In each of the two following sentences, the second, bracketed that should be replaced by a comma.

• The PA Department of Revenue knows that no matter how careful a taxpayer is about reporting their income on the Personal Income Tax return [that] mistakes and oversights can happen.
• Many think that when they enter a highway from an on ramp [that] the approaching right lane traffic is required to move to the left lane in order to allow them to enter the traffic flow without interruption.

In the second sentence of the following excerpt, the third, bracketed that must be deleted, and it would be advisable to insert then in its place.

• Valentine’s Day is this weekend; if you are alone, it is your fault. So embrace your responsibility, feel that pain, and consider that if you are without a companion at 35—when you still have a fairly decent body—[that] when you die at 80, there will certainly be no one at your beside.

In researching this topic, I learned some new concepts, which will help me be more aware of this issue. I hope this helps you, too.

Have a great weekend! See you on Monday.