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The Steve Laube Agency

Helping to Change the World…Word by Word

The Steve Laube Agency

The Steve Laube Agency

Helping to Change the World Word by Word

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Home » Writing Craft » Page 11

Writing Craft

Handling Disappointment

By Steve Laubeon June 19, 2023
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I do not like to experience disappointment. I do not like rejection, even when it isn’t my personal project being turned down. I do not like to be the bearer of bad news.

And yet I do experience disappointment, rejection, and the telling of bad news–every week. That is the nature of the arts.

The arts (meaning music, writing, dance, and painting) are comprised of thousands of hours of practice, long days of solitude, and truckloads of self-doubt in a world where everyone is a critic.

However, I am inspired by the recitation of the failures of Abraham Lincoln during the 26 years before he was elected President of the United States. During those 26 years he:

Lost his job.
Was defeated for the state legislature.
Failed in business.
Lost his sweetheart to death.
Had a nervous breakdown.
Was defeated for Speaker.
Was defeated for nomination for Congress.
Lost renomination.
Was rejected for land officer.
Was defeated for U.S. Senate.
Was defeated for nomination for Vice President.
Again was defeated for U.S. Senate.

I find that list invigorating. I began in this business forty-two years ago as a part-time shelf-duster in a bookstore. In these ensuing years, I experienced many disappointments and failures, yet God has blessed our family in so many ways.

If you get slapped with a rejection letter today:

“Woe is me! For the Lord has added sorrow to my pain. I am weary with my groaning, and I find no rest” (Jeremiah 45:3).

If your agent tells you that your latest proposal is flat and needs work:

Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth (2 Timothy 2:15).

If your editor goes on a rampage and takes a machete to your manuscript:

We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they are good for us—they help us learn to endure. And endurance develops strength of character (Romans 5:3-4).

If your self-talk begins shouting the word “Loser” in a shrill voice:

As I looked at everything I had worked so hard to accomplish, it was all so meaningless . . . like chasing the wind (Ecclesiastes 2:11).

If any of these things hit you, remember:

Therefore, my beloved brothers and sisters, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain (1 Corinthians 15:58).

Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal (2 Corinthians 4:16-18).

 

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Category: Encouragement, Faith, Get Published, Personal, Rejection, Theology, Writing CraftTag: disappointment, Encouragement, Faith, Rejection

4 Tips for Surviving a Writers Conference

By Steve Laubeon June 12, 2023
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I’ve had the fun of teaching at nearly 200 writers conferences over the years. In that time, I’ve noticed several common things that all writers face. Let’s explore a few tips that may help you survive at the next one you attend. Relax The most common mistake is viewing the conference as a make-it-or-break-it event. The stress folks place on themselves is palpable. I’ve had …

Read more4 Tips for Surviving a Writers Conference
Category: Conferences, MarketingTag: Get Published, writers conferences

The Writer Who Doesn’t Know What They Don’t Know

By Lynette Easonon May 24, 2023
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Dan Balow has been posting a series of blogs on different types of writers. I’ve been reading the posts with great interest, and I wanted to add one other type of writer I’ve come across: The writer who doesn’t know what he/she doesn’t know. I’ve been going to conferences and attending or speaking to writers groups now for over fifteen years. At these conferences, we have these things called …

Read moreThe Writer Who Doesn’t Know What They Don’t Know
Category: Inspiration, The Writing Life, Writing Craft

Review Any and Every Contract You Sign

By Steve Laubeon May 22, 2023
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Today’s headline sounds like a blinding flash of the obvious, but you’d be surprised how many writers are not careful about the agreements they sign. Those with a literary agent have a business partner who will review their book contracts; that is a given. But that does not remove the writer’s responsibility. And what about their magazine or online article contracts? Years ago, the Condé …

Read moreReview Any and Every Contract You Sign
Category: Book Business, ContractsTag: Book Business, Contracts

I Did Not Finish Reading Your Book

By Steve Laubeon May 15, 2023
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In the past year, have you started reading a fiction or nonfiction book and did not finish it? I have. Many times. There are a lot of reasons for this to happen. Here are a few examples. Fiction: I didn’t care about your characters. The plot fizzled. The story became ridiculous and unrealistic. It was too easy to put down. Or, in other words, it was forgettable. Nonfiction: It became …

Read moreI Did Not Finish Reading Your Book
Category: Craft, Creativity, Editing, Writing CraftTag: Books, Craft, Writing Craft

Hacks for Inspiring Ideas and Descriptions

By Tamela Hancock Murrayon May 4, 2023
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Seeking inspiration? Here are fun and weird hacks for writers. 1. Read advice columns to find ideas for creating conflict in novels. The problems people pose to columnists are rife with family drama, misunderstandings among friends, marriage issues, and romantic entanglements. Even columns about etiquette offer an array of tenuous situations. When you locate some columnists online, you may …

Read moreHacks for Inspiring Ideas and Descriptions
Category: Craft, The Writing Life, Writing Craft

Can Macros Make Me a Better Writer?

By Bob Hostetleron April 27, 2023
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Don’t be afraid of macros. They can be your friend. A macro is a shortcut you can make in, say, Word (or virtually any program) to automate or accelerate certain tasks. If you’ve never done it before, rather than explain it here, let me suggest that you search the web for “how to create a macro in Word” or on your specific computer. (For example, in a Mac, you can go to your …

Read moreCan Macros Make Me a Better Writer?
Category: The Writing Life, Writing Craft

Author Accounting 101

By Steve Laubeon April 17, 2023
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You are a published author. You must be rich! You are an agent. I know you are rich. If it only were true. Let’s attempt to explain some of the bottom-line basics of Author Accounting. Please remember this exercise is generic; your mileage may vary. I will use some simplified numbers, so we can all follow the math. Let’s start with a $20.00 retail-priced book. The publisher sells the book …

Read moreAuthor Accounting 101
Category: Book Business, Career, Contracts, E-Books, Economics, MoneyTag: Author, Economics, Money

The Readability of Your Writing

By Steve Laubeon April 10, 2023
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The importance of communicating ideas with readable words has become more critical than ever in a TikTok world. Have you ever wondered what grade your writing’s reading level is? Dan Balow told me of a fun website, www.readabilityformulas.com, where you can post up to 3,000 words and find out its reading-level grade. I first tried the Bible using Daniel 7:1-7 in different translations. King …

Read moreThe Readability of Your Writing
Category: Craft, Creativity, Writing Craft

Define the Takeaway First

By Bob Hostetleron March 29, 2023
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A few months ago, one of my friends (don’t worry, Sarah, I won’t mention your name) asked this question on social media: Writer friends: Do you ever write something, think it’s nearly finished, and fail to be able to define the “take-away?” So, “writer friends,” I’m about to do you a favor. I will suggest an approach that will save a lot of time, stress, regret, and other bad things. Ready? …

Read moreDefine the Takeaway First
Category: Craft, Get Published, Pitch, The Writing Life, Trends
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