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Fun Fridays – November 9, 2018

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On November 9, 2018

Today’s video is designed to make you think more deeply about art. Especially the intentionality of great art.

Understanding the use of light and shadow, which directs your eye when looking at art, can help you view book-cover design in a new way. Bad cover designs make you look at the wrong part of the cover. Great covers help you focus on what is most important.

Let’s learn from the master, Rembrandt:

(I recommend watching it full screen. The video is 7 minutes long. The last minute is a commercial for the sponsor of the show.)

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Writing Thoughtful Books

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Dan Balow

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On August 15, 2017

There has always been a hierarchy in fiction distinguishing “literary” from “popular” books, with lines drawn between both topics and reading levels.  Authors of each are different, somewhat like actors who work on stage versus those who work on screen. Comparisons of literary vs. popular and stage vs. screen are often done …

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Write Like Jazz

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Bob Hostetler

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On August 2, 2017

Years ago, I was helping a friend brainstorm and outline a book, and at some point in the course of our conversation about writing, I said, “Writing is like jazz.” Both of us were jazz aficionados, so the phrase was apt, and it stuck. He has reminded me of it …

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Real Life is Edgy

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Dan Balow

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On October 18, 2016

A major topic of discussion among writers of all types of Christian books is the issue of how far is too far when showing someone’s life before they surrendered to Christ, and how real you show their journey of sanctification once they exit the broad road. It’s called the “edge.” …

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Lyrics as Literature

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On October 17, 2016

I normally steer away from controversial topics in this blog but the announcement that Bob Dylan, the popular musician, was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature gave me pause. My first thought was “What?” To place Dylan alongside previous Nobel laureates like Solzhenitsyn, Steinbeck, Kipling, Hemingway, Camus, Faulkner, T.S. Eliot, and Churchill? …

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The Work of a Cover Designer

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On September 12, 2016

We have all heard the phrase “a book is judged by its cover.” And it is true. We all do it. Even when the cover is as small as a postage stamp in an online bookstore. It is the first impression of what’s inside. Rarely will you buy the book after you’ve read …

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Five Dollar Words

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On July 28, 2016

“Don’t use a five-dollar word when a fifty-cent word will do.” – Mark Twain One of my daughters is an Arts and Visual Technology major, so of course she has to read articles about art. Here are a few sentences from an eight-page article, “Modernist Painting” by Clement Greenburg. The …

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Dear World, We Have What You Want

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Dan Balow

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On June 14, 2016

Dear World, Those of us involved in Christian publishing can’t help but notice you are hurting. While our work is to write and publish books, one or more times each week we gather to worship and pray to the Creator God, considering ways we can ease your pain. I hope …

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There is Power in Possibility

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On May 9, 2016

The publishing industry can be a challenge for someone with artistic sensibilities. The psyche can be worn down by disappointment, bad reviews, poor sales, and rejection by agents and editors. To be resilient in the face of such disillusion is a quality to be desired. I found this quote from …

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Tossed by the Ocean of Emotion

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On January 25, 2016

It is hard to be a writer or to work in the publishing industry. Everyone defines success differently and we strive to meet those expectations at every turn. Often we let “success” define us, especially when a writer is told “You are only as good as the sales of your last …

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