by Karen Ball

Wednesday again! The days go by so fast this time of year! Well, my office Corgi, Mr. Kirby, and I are happy to welcome you inside once again.

Last week we visited the kitchen. Today, let’s meander into the main office, where, no surprise, you’ll see bookcase after bookcase, all overflowing. Oh, I try to decorate and straighten, but more and more I’m embracing the chaos. I’m persuaded true bibliophiles are seldom organized because there are always more books than shelves! And when you consider that I’ve been in publishing for more than 30 years, you KNOW I’ve got an abundance of books. And what a happy abundance that is!

I’m a firm believer that if you want to get to know someone, you should peruse their bookshelves. So come meet me among the books living here. The first bookshelf holds my books on editing, grammar, publishing, marketing, and writing (both craft and research). The Courage to Write, The Forest for the Trees, Born to Kvetch, Grammar Snobs are Great Big Meanies, Lapsing into a Comma, BuzzMarketing, The Purple Cow… Tome after tome of words about words. And the world of words. Each one is like an old friend, and reading them always brings new realizations and knowledge. Much of which has become part of the fabric of who I am. Which is why, after the research I did on the wonderful Yiddish language for my novel What Lies Within, if you come to our house unannounced around dinnertime, you’ll most likely be served ibbergerblibbernis (Yiddish for leftovers. Isn’t that a great word?).

From there you’ll encounter a bookshelf of devotionals (Streams in the Desert holds such power in its pages!), Bible studies, versions of the Bible, commentaries, and various research books on the Bible and Bible times. These friends I’ve gathered over the years, nestling them on the shelf near my recliner so they’re readily available when I read and study. In their pages I’ve found hope and clarity, guidance and illumination, life and truth. That such things come from books…simply miraculous.

The rest of my shelves—3 ceiling to floor bookshelves in all–house novels. In these pages I’ve raged and laughed and wept at man’s weakness and God’s unending grace. I’ve solved murders, traveled through time, battled evil, rescued innocence, and risked all for justice. And love. Oh, the love held between these covers! Many of these amazing stories were written by authors whom I met as an editor and now, by God’s immeasurable kindness, count as friends. When I see their names, it makes my heart smile. And when I enter again into the worlds they created, it nurtures my spirit. And reminds me what a great honor it is to be immersed in story.

As we approach the celebration of the greatest story of all, the birth of Jesus, I encourage you to take a journey among your own shelves. Savor again the wisdom, enlightenment, and joy you found when words leapt off the page and imbedded themselves deep within, becoming threads in the fabric of your heart and mind. Let them remind you what a wondrous gift words can be. And let them move you to use words well in your own writing.

Karen

Paying Authors More Might be in the Best Interest of Publishers – Mike Shatzkin is a really smart guy and every published writer will want to read every part of this 2,300 word article. Brilliant.

The Twelve Most Dangerous Words for Writers - A provocative title. Worth reading and thinking it through.

The Basic Laws of Human Stupidity – I know I shouldn’t have enjoyed this article but I did!

When You Have to Choose a Pen Name – This author was told by her publisher it was in her best interest.

20 Reasons Why You Should NOT Use Social Media – Clever article by Jeff Bullas

An 8-year-old Teaches Persuasive Writing – Inspired by the movie “Miracle on 34th Street”

Behind the Numbers at Google – Infographic from BusinessMBA.org

Writers expect good news…any day now. Is it the curse of eternal optimism?There is this hope within each writer that it will be their manuscript that is chosen for publication. And the money will rain on them like a spring shower.

Despite the odds.

Despite the competition.

Despite the cynical, horrible, no-good, very-bad agents who review them.

Expectations

Are these expectations realistic? Of course they are. It is the essence of hope. For without hope there is no reason to continue the pursuit of the craft. You have to believe that you have what it takes.

Are these expectations practical? Of course not. Who said the writing profession was “practical?”

Cello Wars! (the Star Wars version)

These guys had way too much fun doing this. Please do yourself a favor and watch the whole thing right through to the credits (four minutes long).

A dedicated reader of the blog (Thank you!) posed an excellent question in response to a recent post:

 Recently, I heard a female Christian marriage counselor/speaker say that women should avoid Christian romance books. She stated there was no such thing as Christian romance. Since she was speaking on the topic of pornography, I assumed she was referring to fiction that leads the reader’s mind where it ought not to go. In my opinion, most romantic Christian fiction does not fall into that category.

My question for you: How would you respond if someone told you Christian romance was sinful, or that there was no such thing? Has that happened to you before?

Last week I responded to the idea that there is no such thing as Christian romance. ”Christian Romance – Fact or Fiction?“

As promised last week, during this Christmas season, I want to share with you all the immeasurable gifts I’ve found in the wondrous world of words. So…

Welcome to my office!

The entrance is, as you can see, humble. But what delights I find inside! So let’s slip past my four-legged greeters (Kirby, our Corgi is welcoming you in today), to the first room, which holds not only a table for work and conversation, fellowship and study, but one of the most important elements of my office: the coffee corner! I start each day here, brewing some special creation that will not only energize me for work but fills my office with the delectable fragrance of dark-roasted coffee.

Is Amazon a “Ruthless Money-Making Devil”? – James Daunt, UK bookseller extraordinaire, makes a bold claim

Five Tips on Writing…from the Grinch – Fun article for the Christmas Season

EMI is sold! – Music giant will be split in half and sold to Universal and Sony. Yes it is the music industry but it would have the same impact if one of the Big Six were split up and sold. Further consolidation in the media world. The sale includes their Christian label which includes Amy Grant and Steven Curtis Chapman.

23 Questions to Ask Your Novel – A fantastic exercise to go through after you’ve typed “The End.”

How Many Christmases Until We See a Whole New Industry? – Mike Shatzkin asks some great questions about the future of Publishing

An Excuse for Plagerism? - Quentin Rowan blames his plagerism on his addiction. Personal responsibility never crosses his mind. “I lost my job in the Brooklyn bookstore where I was a part-owner, my beautiful girlfriend left me (and the apartment we were going to share), and my future in the only field I know anything about, books, came to ignominious end.”

On the Future Partnership of Thomas Nelson with HarperCollins – A great interview with Mark Schoenwald, CEO of Thomas Nelson

We are very pleased to announce that we have two client’s whose books have been named as “The Best Christian Fiction of 2011″ by The Library Journal.

Ted Dekker and Tosca Lee’s Forbidden (Center Street) – we represent Tosca

Tracy Higley’s Pompeii: City on Fire (B&H Publishing Group)

Also Debbie Ulrick and Liz Tolsma are part of the Log Cabin Christmas collection of novellas which is #7 on the ECPA Fiction bestseller list for December.

Congratulations to all!

Preparation is awfully important if you are planning to climb Mt. Everest. If you show up in a t-shirt, shorts, flip flops, and a sack lunch it is likely you will perish during the ascent.

The same idea applies to the writer. You must do the hard work ahead of time to achieve success.

There are No Shortcuts

What if a Worship Service was announced like an NBA game?
Remember the NBA? The strike is practically over. For those of you who missed the opening of the season, this video will have to suffice.