Archive - October, 2010

So I’ve decided to Nanowrimo…

October 30, 2010 in General with 5 Comments

If you’ve never been introduced to Nanowrimo, the word is shorthand for “National Novel Writing Month.” The idea is that a participant will write at least 50,000 words of a novel in the month of November. It’s intended to be a crappy first draft that you write while banishing your inner editor, something I’m not sure I can accomplish, but here we go anyway. November 1st marks the beginning of this adventure. 

Coach Culbertson, the Founding Editor of The Midnight Diner (and my husband), created a video course called Write A Book in 30 Days, and I’m about to try it out. If you’re giving Nanowrimo a go, you might want to check it out, too. There’s a little bit of pre-work that you can do in these last two days of October, so click over it out right away :)  

Novel Journey Interview

October 29, 2010 in General with 0 Comments

Mike Duran, Diner Editor alumni, writes for Novel Journey, one of Writer’s Digest’s 101 Most Valuable Websites for Writers in 2008 and 2010. Recently, he asked to interview me about The Diner 3.  I think you might enjoy reading how things came together. We discussed what kinds of stories the Diner does (and does not) look for, whether or not “Christian Horror” is an oxymoron, things that happened during my first year at the helm, the gorgeous cover art,

and

a secret.

You can read the interview here.

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Our God Is…what?

October 29, 2010 in General with 1 Comment

I started my new job at Willow Creek Community Church about four months ago, and it’s great to be soaking in the culture of a new workplace–especially one that is faith-centered. One of my new coworkers is Aaron Niequist, Willow Creek’s Weekend Worship Leader. He is a very creative and intentional guy, and he posts to his blog several times a week.

One of his more recent posts, titled “Did We Just Sing That?”, really hit me. It zones in on a lyrics from a popular worship song that seems very boastful. I had the similar thoughts the first time I heard that song, and I’m glad that Aaron was able to write his opinion. You can check it out by clicking on the blog post name above.

Another Notable Mention for a Great Relief Author

October 27, 2010 in General with 2 Comments

A. Trevor Sutton’s essay “Modern Love: The Findings of a Sorority Chaplain” (Relief 3.1) has been selected by Robert Atwan as a “notable essay of 2009″ in the Houghton Mifflin Best American Essays 2010 anthology. Trevor’s essay is the second to receive notable mention in this anthology, and as I’ve already told him, nothing makes us happier than seeing our authors get the recognition they deserve.

Since Relief is (for the time being) not able to pay for publication as we would like, we do everything we can to promote our authors and see their work anthologized and honored beyond publication in the journal. In our less than 4 years of publication, we have been thrilled to see 6 of our authors receive honorable mentions in anthologies such as Pushcart Prize, Best American Essays, and The Best Spiritual Writing.

So a special thanks and congratulations, Trevor. You’ve done us proud.

Relief Recommends: D. S. Martin’s Kingdom Poets Blog

October 15, 2010 in General with 0 Comments

D.S. Martin

Relief author D. S. Martin is doing some interesting things at his blog Kindgom Poets , which serves as a resource for anyone interested in Christian poetry. As he describes it, “The Kingdom Poets blog is a resource of poets of the Christian faith, regardless of background; there is no attempt made to assess orthodoxy, but simply to present poets who speak profoundly of faith in God.

Mr. Martin is a returning author who has two poems appearing in the upcoming Relief 4.2.