The winners of the Words for the Journey Summer Devo Contest, 2012 are. . .
1st Prize, Nook Color e-reader, Niki Nowell for A Father’s Voice
2nd Prize, $50 Barnes and Noble gift card, Donna Lee Loomis for Only One
3rd Prize, $15 Starbucks gift card, Chris Dellacroce for All that I Need.
Donna Lee Loomis and Linda Hamilton’s entries also rounded out the top five. So proud of all of you!
By Denise Miller Holmes, Director, Words for the Journey
Wherever you go, as a writer you need to promote yourself. You will especially need to promote when you are engaging editors and agents at conferences. ALWAYS be ready to tell people what you do as a writer–and keep it to thirty seconds or less.
A dynamite way to do this is with a verbal business card. It’s very much like the “elevator pitch” you practice for your books, but it’s about you.
When asked what they do, most writers say, “I am a writer,” or, “I write romance novels,” or “I write historical non-fiction,” etc. This response is somewhat interesting, but it doesn’t grab. Proponents of the verbal business card say that you need to hook the listener, much like you hook the reader at the beginning of a novel.
Here is what a VBC does–it discards bland verbs like “I write” or “I am” and uses exciting verbs instead such as build, craft, teach, inform, manage, design, construct, generate, train, guide, establish, mentor, regulate, develop, structure, organize, etc.
The reason these verbs work better is they are verbs used to describe what authorities do. Teachers are authorities in our society. People who construct and train and design and regulate all have authority. Writers? Not so much. 
Notice how much more powerful these statements are than “I am a writer”:
“I craft futuristic mystery stories that inform readers about social issues in an entertaining way.”
“I teach people who hate gardening how to care for their gardens in five easy steps so they have more time to enjoy Life.”
If you are a Christian writer, here are more examples:
“I inform Christian women through my romance novels about God’s love, so they can find a deeper happiness.”
“I design materials for Sunday schools that helps primary-school-age children understand how to have a walk with God.”
“I teach teenagers about history through non-fiction that emphasizes the biblical worldview so they make constructive decisions.”
There are two more things we need to look at when writing a VBC–specificity and benefit. These will be covered in Part 2.
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This article is the same article called The Power of the Verbal Business Card, Part 1 which is posted on Red-Hot Writing Tips.
By Michele Cushatt, former WFTJ director
“I gave my back to those who strike me,
And my cheeks to those who pluck out the beard;
I did not cover my face from humiliation and spitting.
For the Lord GOD helps me,
Therefore, I am not disgraced;
Therefore, I have set my face like flint,
And I know that I will not be ashamed.”
~ Isaiah 50:6-7
May 27, 2002, Boulder, Colorado. The day of my first 10K running race. Sixty-two minutes later, as I crossed the finish line in front of 40,000 fans, I looked only for the faces of my husband and three little boys in the crowd, cheering me to the very end. They’d driven over an hour and waited for another two just for those few seconds of reassuring affirmation at the finish line.
April 21, 2007, Highlands Ranch, Colorado. Another day, another 10K race, but this time in my home town. Without a single familiar face in the crowd, I ran every agonizing step, climbed hills and covered rocky terrain, with the thought of quitting never far from my mind … and received my worst race time in five years of running. Due to other responsibilities, my cheering section couldn’t make it. How I needed them that day!
When Jesus returned to his hometown of Nazareth in Luke 4, it was as if he stood at the starting line of the launch of his ministry. I wonder if he hoped for a send-off, a crowd of familiar friends and family cheering him on as He embarked to finish the race the Father called him to run. It wasn’t to be, however. Instead of support and encouragement, those who once cheered from front row seats now hurled accusations and rage.
It’s hard to run a race alone. I have to be honest with you: When it comes to rejection, I’m a quitter. All it takes is the evaporation of my fan base and I hardly have the strength to keep going on. I need the support of those closest to me like I need air. But I’m not sure that’s a good thing. There’s nothing wrong with having people who encourage you, but absolute dependence on it? Well, that’s a fickle foundation if I’ve ever heard of one.
As Jesus left his hometown behind, I think He knew He was on His own. With a God who loved Him, yes. But without those people who should have understood him, believed in him, and cheered for him. He would face more opposition than praise, more rejection than acceptance. And still He ran, determined and face-forward anyway. Because the God who called Him was worth it.
Father God, strengthen me to do the same!
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Based on the lesson How to Write Remarkable Dialogue, Part 2, presented by Denise Miller Holmes, Director, WFTJ
There are four main types of dialogue: Modulated, Directed, Misdirected, and Interpolated. Wow, that’s a mouthful! In this series, I will be sharing basic facts about each style. Today it is . . .
Modulated Dialogue
Modulated Dialogue uses narrative commentary and details to enhance the dialogue. I also call this meat and potatoes dialogue. It’s the most common dialogue type, and it has a beat, which I discussed in my lesson How to Write Remarkable Dialogue, Part 1. This is dialogue that goes back and forth between what the characters say and narrative description. Good authors get a beat with this—a nice back and forth that gives the writing rhythm.
With modulated dialogue, each line of dialogue is also a place for narrative details. One character may talk about the past, and this sparks internal thoughts which the author describes. Or, a character comments about his or her surroundings, then the author adds scene details before continuing with more dialogue. Body language is often described.
The following is an example of modulated dialogue, starring one of my favorite characters, James Bond, in a scene I made up for this occasion:
“I was wondering when you might show me this,” Bond said, touching the tiny microphone lightly.
Q whipped his arm back, taking the microphone with it. “That isn’t ready yet. What I want to show you is this.” He slowly removed the Mylar blanket that had been covering a large something to Bond’s left.
Bond’s sharp intake of breath was louder than he expected. What had been hiding under the blanket, the lump he had so arrogantly leaned upon as if it were furniture, was the most beautiful automobile he’d seen in his life. Metallic red reflected the laboratory lights as if they were the sun, and the sleek, cat-like design gave the feel of a jungle predator, sure-footed and fast.
“May I?” Bond asked, pointing to the driver-side door and fighting an almost desperate tone in his voice.
Q blinked slowly in assent. “Of course. Just don’t drink, eat, or smoke in it, please.”
“I quit smoking long ago,” said Bond.
This is modulated, meat and potatoes, dialogue. It just goes back and forth between dialogue and description, dialogue and description. It moves the story along, sets the pace, and lets us know what the characters are thinking and feeling (often through body language) and what the environment looks like. As a writer, you should practice modulated dialogue first and get your rhythm. Rhythm is part of your style and voice. Learn it well.
Next time, we’ll cover Directed Dialogue. It’s used to emphasize the tension between two people in a scene.
Based on a Passive Marketing lesson presented by Denise Miller Holmes, Director, WFTJ
You can’t wait to finish your book, right? You don’t know much about marketing, but you assume you’ll figure something out once the book is published.
Unfortunately, the assumption here is wrong. First, you need to start marketing NOW before your book is published, and secondly, you need to market YOU first, not your book.
But writers are shy and have a terrible time getting out there and letting people see them. What they want is to push their book in front and say, “Don’t look at me. See this fabulous book and buy it. It wrote itself.”
But, the biggest authors get their names out there FIRST, before they ever have a book.
Passive Marketing is about doing things that get your name (and later, your products) out there in the public eye without overtly asking for the sale. It includes things such as distributing business cards (yes, a writer should have a business card); speaking to organizations; filling out profiles for Yahoo, Google, Blogger, and any place that asks; a professional head shot to put on your blog, business cards, and your profiles; writing a blog; and actively presenting yourself on Facebook and Twitter, and, if you ghostwrite or speak–LinkedIn.
Please don’t think these things are a waste of time. They are very powerful. But, they are only the first step. You HAVE to get your name and presence out there in the public eye, or any active marketing you do later will fall flat. Of all the things listed above, I think speaking is the most powerful.
Overcoming your resistance to being SEEN is probably the hardest obstacle for you the writer to conquer. You may go through tough denial. You may think that you will be the one who writes the book that becomes the bestseller the minute it hits the shelves. It won’t happen!
But, you can choose to conquer your fear of being out there. When you do, the world will open to you.
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For a related article, see Is Self Promotions Sin? You’ve Gotta Be Kidding!
This article is similar to an article on http://denisemillerholmes.blogspot.com/ called Writing Adventures: Passive Marketing Lesson for January 17th Writers’ Guild.
By Kay Day
Psalm 52:8 But as for me, I am like a green olive tree in the house of God; I trust in the lovingkindness of God forever and ever.
Each New Year I ask God to give me a word to be the focus for the year. Last year He said, “Trust.”
I tried to argue. Tried to convince Him that I didn’t need that word, I already had trust down, but He didn’t believe me. He insisted.
I knew right then I was in for a ride.
And I was right. Last year had some rough spots. And in the midst of one of those the truth I’d been hiding hit me full force. I didn’t really trust God.
I lay in bed crying to Him. Telling Him I didn’t trust Him but I wanted to. I asked Him to help. I begged, “Show me what I can trust!”
The next morning I inserted “trust” into an online concordance. It seemed that all of verses said the same thing, “I will trust in your lovingkindness.”
I already knew that word. It is a Covenant word. It means that because I am in covenant with God, he treats me as family. It is a word that means love, compassion, gentleness, mercy, and welcome. I am His.
It’s easy to misplace our trust. We can place it in books about writing—If I just get the right education….
We can place it in representation—If I just get the right agent….
We can place it in sales—If I can just impress enough people….
The only secure place for our trust is in His lovingkindness. We are His. He loves us tenderly and totally. He knows our dreams and our hopes and He also knows what is best for us. We can trust that.
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This post was originally sent out to thousands of happy subscribers in our newsletter. Well, okay, maybe not thousands, but. . . a lot!
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Kay’s blog is Loopdeloops in La La Land
Presented to Words for the Journey as an Appetizer, February 14, 2012
by Denise Miller Holmes
Here are the second round of tips to help remove obstacles to getting your first novel published.
6) Create a layered protagonist who is the main character.
Create a realistic and interesting personality that has the main p-o-v for the story and who carries the theme (Jeff Gerke’s Plot Versus Character is a great book to learn how to do this also). Give her a fire to reach a goal. Obstruct that goal. Make her change where she is flawed and face her pain where she is wounded in order to achieve success.
There…you have the START of an interesting character. But a Protagonist is only as exciting as her … Antagonist.
7) Create an absolutely frustrating and fascinating antagonist. The antagonist is the main obstacle of the whole story, so make sure he (or it) is almost as in-depth as your main character and has his own wounds that fuel his passion to hurt the hero. The antagonist is often a person, but it can be something else. Pick one of the following conflicts to be the main conflict of your story….
The Eight Basic Conflicts—Man versus….
8) Structure your story to increase tension, even if you have to rewrite true history.
9) Be cruel to your characters.
10) Avoid back story until you’re well into the book.
Denise Miller Holmes is the director of Words for the Journey and writes blogs for her author blog denisemillerholmes.blogspot.com.
