Christmas is almost here! I have a few more presents to buy and wrap, but now that my kids are officially on Christmas break, it’s starting to feel more like Christmas. Are you finished with your Christmas shopping?
Today, I have author Beth E. Westcott sharing her favorite writing tips for Wisdom Wednesday. Thanks for joining us, Beth!
Name: Beth E. Westcott
Genre: Christian Romance
Latest Release: Meadow Song
Writing Tip for Authors:
One of the first things I learned about writing is to do it regularly. At my first writers’ conference, we had to repeat over and over: “A writer writes. I am a writer, therefore I write.” You may be “gifted” to write and have ideas galore, but you have to become a “good” writer by learning the craft and practicing it. Read books, attend conferences, join an online webinar. Learn from the veterans in the publishing community. And practice. Like an Olympic athlete, we need training and practice. Being a regular and consistent writer has been a challenge for me because life so easily gets in the way.
Life can definitely get in the way. Discipline is the key to consistently writing every day. I struggle with this as I’m sure most writers do.
Be persistent. Keep at it. If writing is your calling, don’t give up.
Artist Kate Greenway moves to a new town to escape the memories of her dead fiancé. While painting beside a meadow, she meets a young girl and the girl’s uncle Jack Chambers. Kate is ready to move forward with her life, but Jack resists commitment. Kate returns home to care for her ill mother. Will she ever fulfill her dreams in art and love? Will Jack overcome his fear and realize that life without Kate will be his greatest loss?
Beth grew up in upstate New York, the youngest of seven. Married to Frank for 45 years, she served with him in Child Evangelism Fellowship for six years and beside him in the pastoral ministry for 33 years. Beth is the mother of three and has five granddaughters. She enjoys music, sewing, and gardening, as well as reading and writing. She has had church programs and devotionals published, and her short story “Sadie and the Princess” is included in Heart-warming Horse Stories on Amazon. Her contemporary Christian romance novel, Meadow Song, was published in 2018 by Mantle Rock Publishers.
Thank you for joining us today for Wisdom Wednesday. Don’t forget to connect with Beth on her website, www.bethewestcott.com and check out her novel, Meadow Song.
Do you struggle with consistently writing every day? Do you have any tips to help become disciplined in writing every day?
Write for 10 minutes every day. It may only be a hundred words or it might be more if you’re in the flow of idea and can type or dictate faster. But you quickly realize you have 10 minutes at several junctions of the day (while you’re waiting in the carpool lane, in line at the check out, while you’re waiting for dinner to cook) and suddenly you have 1000 words/day without sitting at a desk writing like the author in your head. Once you get past the mental block of needing the perfect space/time, then you can write more when you do have those quiet moments.
Great tip, Jessica. Thanks!