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Fun Fridays – September 7, 2020

By Steve Laubeon September 4, 2020

You can tell by now I enjoy virtuoso performances of all types (including those by writers!). Today’s video is the indefatigable Lang Lang playing Franz Lizst’s “La Campanella.”

I’ve programmed the link to start at the 2:14 mark to highlight the extraordinary finger work needed to play this piece at this speed. The fingers are literally a blur.

It also made me wonder about the composer: Was he simply cruel to future pianists? (LOL!) Or was he such a genius that he just composed what only he could play?

Did you know that Franz Lizst was the first to perform solo piano concerts? He was a European “rock star” in the 1830s. The piece you are hearing in today’s video was inspired after Lizst heard violinist Niccolò Paganini play for the first time. Lizst ultimately worked to replicate Paganini’s virtuoso violin technique and transfer his effects to the piano.

[If you cannot see the embedded video in your newsletter email, please click the headline and go directly to our site to view it.]

What are the Upcoming Trends in Fiction?

By Tamela Hancock Murrayon September 3, 2020

The “Your Questions Answered” Series __________ What do you see as the upcoming trends in fiction? Do you think chicklit will ever make a comeback? I don’t make a point of trying to predict trends. To borrow a line from Steve Laube, “By the time you spot a trend, it’s too late.” Recall that if I were to sell a novel on Buddhists traveling to Pluto and, as a result, converting to Christianity while …

Category: Trends

Can Silence Make You a Better Writer?

By Bob Hostetleron September 2, 2020

Decades ago, when I was barely out of diapers, I started taking annual (sometimes twice-yearly) prayer retreats at the Abbey of Gethsemani in the hills of central Kentucky. It’s a silent Trappist monastery, and it’s been a boon to my prayer life. A lifeline, sometimes. It’s also been a boon to my writing life. Once I’ve checked in and been immersed in and surrounded by silence (interrupted only by …

Category: Inspiration, The Writing Life, Theology

How to Use Scrivener with David Martin

By Thomas Umstattd, Jr.on September 1, 2020

Writing is hard. But using the right tools can make it easier. One popular tool many authors rely on is Scrivener. But others find it impenetrable. This is why I am excited to introduce our guest today. He is an ordained pastor, church planter, author, and a creative Christian coach who has as much passion for prayer as he does for productivity. He trains Christians to get their message and value …

Category: The Writing Life

How to Use Scrivener with David Martin

By Thomas Umstattd, Jr.on September 1, 2020

Writing is hard. But using the right tools can make it easier. One popular tool many authors rely on is Scrivener. But others find it impenetrable. This is why I am excited to introduce our guest today. He is an ordained pastor, church planter, author, and creative Christian coach who has as much passion for […]
You can listen to this episode How to Use Scrivener with David Martin on Christian …

Category: The Writing Life

Only Hours Left to Save the Writers Conference at Mount Hermon

By Steve Laubeon August 29, 2020

As you may recall, nearly six weeks ago we began a Kickstarter campaign to raise the funding to ensure that the writers conference at Mount Hermon could proceed as planned in 2021. (Click here for the campaign page and for more details.) We are at 61% of the goal as of this writing, which is rather incredible with over 220 people contributing!. But we are still short. The campaign will end at …

Category: Conferences

Fun Fridays – August 28, 2020

By Steve Laubeon August 28, 2020

Today’s video is “The Bugler’s Holiday” by four members of the Boston Pops. Wow! My oldest brother is an excellent trumpet player and played this in college when part of the Seattle Pacific University trumpet trio. Back then this was a relatively new song. Me? I was inspired by my brother and tried to play trumpet in junior high, using one of his old instruments. …

Category: Fun Fridays

Do I Need an Agent?

By Tamela Hancock Murrayon August 27, 2020

The “Your Questions Answered” Series __________ I would love to hear more advice about finding an agent or if we really need one. I’m planning to teach a Zoom course on this topic through ACFW on September 18. Here is their link: ACFW conference. If you are planning to attend, I’d love to see you there. The conference offers, for a reasonable cost, many excellent classes and chances to connect …

Category: Agents, Your Questions Answered Series

Don’t Know Much About Editors

By Bob Hostetleron August 26, 2020

A literary agent is not an editor–or a publicist. That may seem obvious to some, since the words are all spelled quite differently. But I occasionally get a submission from an aspiring writer who wants me to act as one or the other. I have been an editor (of both magazines and books), but an agent has a different role from those people. So I thought I’d try to clarify the various kinds of …

Category: Book Business, Editing, The Publishing Life

A Growing Readership

By Steve Laubeon August 24, 2020

It recently came to my attention that the email list for our agency’s blog has grown by 40% over the last two years. It’s now the size of a small town or a rather large church! That is only the email list. It doesn’t count those of you who use the Facebook feed, the Twitter feed, an RSS feed, or come to the site directly on a regular basis. That is a pretty big crowd, and it is …

Category: Agency