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totally unfamous is totally available on Kindle!

January 23, 2012 in books & faith, the writing life with 0 Comments

Last week I was very quiet because I was working to get my verse novel ready for the Kindle. Many hours and tears later, it’s finally available!

I really love this novel. I wrote it primarily because I was hearing from so many readers that wanted to know more about Beka. Well, I was actually interested in writing about Lucy – Beka’s younger sister. Totally Unfamous takes place about three years after the Becoming Beka series ends. It’s written as a novel-in-verse – which means that lucy’s voice is a bit different – but she has a voice all her own.

The cover!

Here is the description:

Totally Unfamous is a contemporary novel-in-verse about Lucy Madison, a 17 year old gymnast who is struggling to cope with a changing family and a past that haunts her. When Lucy meets Ben, she finds herself cautious and scared at the idea of any kind of relationship. But the longer it goes on, the more entwined her heart becomes and she becomes stuck – unable to move forward anywhere in her life. Lucy must face her troubles in the gym, at home and in her past if she is ever to find a hope for the future.

Intended for ages 13 and up.

Thanks for letting me share – and if you know others who might be interested – can you share it with them as well? I’d appreciate it quite a lot:-)

~Sarah~

 

 

don’t overthink it!

January 3, 2012 in books & faith, how to be a christian with 1 Comment

I love a new year don’t you? Fresh – with no mistakes in it yet! (Of course, since it’s actually Day 3 there may already be some mistakes in it – in which case you can use the original quote “Tomorrow is always fresh, with no mistakes”.)

My middle daughter is a gymnast. She is so strong, so flexible and so good at what she does. But there are times when she holds back. When you are supposed to run full out towards a very large stationary object like a vault, you have to give it your full energy so that you have the momentum to actually go over. You can’t hold back. But she does. It comes down to fear – fear of falling, fear of not getting over, fear of getting hurt. Yet – and here is the big thing – by being afraid and holding back – she doesn’t give herself all the tools she needs (momentum and power) to do it successfully either.

And we do the very same thing. At least I do.

Today as I finished up some housekeeping details and began to turn my attention towards my writing project, I felt that niggling sense of fear. Fear of failing. Fear of not being good enough. Fear of getting hurt. I am not so different from my daughter. But instead of not running hard enough or pounding the board hard enough, I start with the questions:

Should I plot more of this out first?

Should I go back and edit what I have?

Maybe I should read this writing book first?

Maybe I need to think more about this subplot first?

Maybe I should check Facebook…

See? Even though I have all the tools I need – a good handle on the plot and characters and voice of the piece – I fidget and fuss about jumping in.

There comes a season when it’s time to stop thinking about it and just run towards it. Whatever “it” is.

When you have your heart and your will submitted to God, then running towards what He wants you to do is the same thing as running towards Him – in that perfect childhood trust – and trusting that He will catch you in His arms. Every. Single. Time.

This year, well, I’d like to stop thinking so much and just trust the One whose Hands I am in. How about you?

~Sarah~

Christmas Shopping: Books for Boys!

December 13, 2011 in books & faith, media, arts & faith with 2 Comments

I don’t have boys. So let’s just start by saying that. But I do have some recommendations for you! You’ll find that with many of these, you’ll have to order from different places – as I mentioned in my post yesterday, there are many great books out there that you will not find at your local bookstore – unfortunately.

Graphic Novels/Comic Books

Did you know there are Christian comics? Yes!

Ben Avery has quite a few Biblical/historical comics that you might want to check out! here are some available in his Amazon bookstore. Check out his TimeFlys series for younger readers. If you use the menu at the top right, you can scroll through lots of possibilities, including books that teach you how to script your own comics!

Zondervan has quite a few graphic novels, so check out their site for even more ideas.

Kingstone media has a number of both comics & graphic novels to check out.

Marcher Lord Press

Marcher Lord Press is a company that specializes in the fantasy – science-fiction – speculative genres. While you may have heard of Ted Dekker and Robert Liparulo, there are many other possibilities out there and Marcher Lord is all about bringing them to you! So check out Marcher Lord and find many different novels!

Travis Thrasher 

I mentioned Travis yesterday because his books will appeal to girls as well, but I’ll re-mention his Solitary Tales books today for the guys!

Jill Williamson

I mentioned Jill’s brand new book Replication yesterday as well, but I’m pretty sure it would appeal to the guys as well!

Stephen Lawhead

Avid readers are probably already aware of Stephen Lawhead, but just in case, I thought I’d mention he has a lot of novels that would interest guy readers.

 

Got more ideas? I’ll be glad to add to the list!

~Sarah~

Christmas shopping list: Great books for tween and teen girls

December 12, 2011 in books & faith, media, arts & faith with 3 Comments

Books! Yes, I was one of those kids who really enjoyed finding books under the Christmas tree and since I am regularly asked for recommendations about books, I thought I’d post some ideas for you while you still have time to order!

A little-known secret: The books on the shelves of your local Christian store represents only a small portion of what’s available. You can shop online at Amazon or Christianbook.com or any online retailer. I am a fan of actual bookstores and it kills me to see them closing – yet I also know most of what I recommend cannot be found on the shelves. Can’t fix that, unfortunately.

So we’ll start with girls! (I’ll list some boy ideas tomorrow!)

For tween & teen girls:

Get this magazine for the girls in your life!

Susie Magazine
A yearly subscription makes a great gift that you can send to the teen girls in your life – content is appropriate for ages 12 and up, but I know middle schoolers will enjoy it as well. In each issue of SUSIE Mag, she’ll receive life-changing stories about faith, fashion, guys, friendship, music and more. And as a member of our online community, she’ll be part of a sisterhood of girls who are joining hands and standing tall for what’s right.

Subscribe today:
• Call 888-81SUSIE
• Online at www.SUSIEMag.com

 

Contemporary Fiction for ages 12 and up:

The Becoming Beka series

I don’t talk a lot about my own books on here because it’s weird and I don’t like hawking my stuff. But I’ll make a brief exception here because I still regularly get mail from readers who have just discovered these series and have fallen in love with Beka and her story.  So if you know and love a girl aged 12 and up, then consider this series:-)  You can read more about the Becoming Beka series here.

Buy Beka On Amazon

Jenny B. Jones

Jenny has several series out for teen girls including “A Charmed Life” and “In-Between” and several stand-alones that teen girls will love. Check out Jenny’s Website for all her book titles.

Stephanie Morrill

Check out Steph’s series “The Reinvention of Skylar Hoyt” at her website.

Sci-Fi/Fantasy

For the girls in your life who adore the sci-fi/fantasy genre better than contemporary, then check out:

Lisa Tawn Bergren

Lisa’s “River of Time” series is a teen time travel trilogy that lands two teens in medieval Italy. For more info, check out her website!

Jill Williamson

You can get a hot-off-the-press novel with Jill’s latest sci-fi/suspense called Replication.

Travis Thrasher

Might want to also check out the Solitary Tales series from Travis!

Historical/Amish Fiction

Wendy Lawton

If you know an 8-12 year old who loves historical fiction, have you discovered The Daughters of the Faith series by Wendy Lawton? I love all her books, and there’s quite a few in this series about real girls in history whose faith affected their lives.

Kim Vogel Sawyer

Kim’s Katy Lambright series, likely good for both teens and tweens, follows a Mennonite girl named Katy

There are lots more but this should get you started!! Chime in if there’s something you’ve loved and maybe that will help someone find that perfect something!

~Sarah~

How NaNoWriMo is like a Pitocin Drip

October 31, 2011 in books & faith, the writing life with 0 Comments

Tomorrow – the madness will begin. If you’ve never heard of NaNoWriMo, it stands for National Novel Writing Month. I heard a statistic years ago (and I don’t feel well so I’m not going to go hunt it down or anything), that 85% of all people “want to write a novel”. (I think this statistic is true because invariably if I mention that I’m an author, someone will say “Oh really!? I’ve been writing a book!! Could you introduce me to your agent..publisher..etc.” – yeah, that’s a post for another day.)

Anyhow – while NaNoWriMo is designed for everyone to finally write that book they’ve been dreaming of, many of my author friends use NaNoWriMo just like I do – for a virtual kick in the pants. A self-imposed deadline. A mass hysteria kind of frenzy writing that can turn those Blank Pages into Pages With Words On Them. They might be good words. They might be dreck. But at least they are words on the page. And as any writer knows, that’s half the battle!

So I’m throwing my pen (computer?) into the ring and will attempt to write a minimum of 1,667 words every single day during the month of November.

This would be a less-daunting feat if I weren’t directing a youth musical right now…that happens to open during November. This will be a problem because my brain is non-functional for several days as we rehearse. Which means I will need to up my word count on the days where we are not rehearsing. And this reveals why I technically “fail” at this challenge every. single. year.

I have never “won” NaNoWriMo for this very reason. Tech week hits (you theater geeks will know exactly how tramautic those two words are) and no more words go on the page. It’s been like this every year I have particpated.

So why do I keep doing it?? Glutton for punishment? (maybe.) Love a challenge? (maybe.) Love being a part of something extreme and crazy that pushes me out of my writerly isolation? (yeah. that.)

So I know I won’t “win” and I’m perfectly okay with that. Because at the end of the craziness, I will have words on the page and it will be more fun putting those words there when I know so many others are out there putting words on the page too. I might not hit the finish line, but the book will be well underway and far enough along that it will be impossible to not finish it up.

NaNo is like my pitocin drip to get this next baby (book) birthed. The pitocin gets things kick started but at some point the baby must come out.

Bring. It. On.

~Sarah~

the brave new world of publishing

October 11, 2011 in books & faith with 1 Comment

At heart, I am a storyteller. While I enjoy telling stories in a variety of ways (writing books, writing screenplays, writing and directing plays), it always comes down to sharing stories. And since I’m an author, I’ve been reading about and following what is happening in publishing today. And wow – it’s wild out there right now!

But it doesn’t just affect writers – it affects readers too. And I wonder if the readers know…

My brand new book has been written for quite some time, but it won’t come out until early 2013 – which basically feels like forever to me. (And to some of you who have been waiting forever for me to come out with a new book – you. are. awesome.) The wheels of publishing have always turned quite slowly. Everything takes forever.

But with e-books, a writer can – conceivably – write the book and get it out within weeks rather than years. This is exactly what many authors are doing. They can skip the publishers and go straight to the readers, using the Internets to find those that want that book. It’s SO tempting. I’m still a fan of traditional publishing. They have served as gatekeepers for a long time – readers knew that if they bought a book, that it was alreday vetted by publishing professionals – people who are supposed to “know” if it’s good or worthwhile.

When my mom asked me last year what I wanted for Christmas, I asked for a Kindle. I like my Kindle. It’s a cool concept. And I’ve downloaded an awful lot of free books. But.

I have yet to read a whole book on my Kindle. I do not know why this is.

I went out and bought “Falling Together” a few days ago – the hardback. There’s just something about holding a thick hardcover book in my hand. The feel. The smell. There’s nothing quite like it.

And yet I can’t help but wonder if it would be worth it to explore the world of e-publishing. I have quite a few stories that I would love to share with my readers, yet know it would take SO long to ever get them out. But are that many people reading e-books? And for me – the much bigger question – do teens and twenty-somethings read books this way? Does anyone know?

And how do those readers find the books they want to read? The e-book world is kind of like a giant thrift store. Thousands of items packed into every corner of the web. How do you sort and sift? How do you find what you’re looking for? How do you find the books that are worth reading? (Because – the big problem with everyone being able to publish a book with a click of the button is that everyone can publish their stuff – even if it’s awful.) That means that readers are sifting through that giant thrift store looking for a specific kind of item.

I don’t really have any answers – just lots of questions right now.So chime in if you have thoughts:-) I’d love to hear them!

~Sarah~

 

 

writers are at first, readers

October 7, 2011 in books & faith, fun friday with 3 Comments

I grew up loving to read. I think most writers have had a great friendship with books through the course of their lives. I remember so many from my childhood. The “Shoe” books, my beloved Anne of Green Gables, “Someday Angeline” by Louis Sachar, Harriet and her spy notebook (and those are just the ones that pop into my head while I’m still nursing my second cup of coffee this morning). What are your childhood favorites?

I am still a fan of books, and I love getting lost in them. I have a hard time reading while I am hard at work on a writing project (it messes with my writing voice) so I prefer to soak in the luxury of books in between projects. One of my favorite authors is Marisa de los Santos. I read her first book “love walked in” and I was hooked from the first paragraph. It was literary enough to be beautiful, yet still had a wonderful story and characters that stuck with me long after I closed the page. Like most fans, I’d bring up this book anytime someone wanted a book recommendation. And when I found out she’d be signing books within driving distance, we packed up the kids and went to the beach several years ago so that I could meet her.

I probably rambled because getting to meet her was like meeting a movie star to me:-) Yes, I am that lame. I asked questions that only another writer would want to know. She was gracious anyway.

Her third book came out on Tuesday and I am planning to go buy it today. (And I find it odd that despite owning a Kindle, I must have an actual book. Hardback. The curl-up-on-the-couch kind.)

So that’s what I’ll be reading. What about you? What great books have you read lately?

win books! win a bag!

July 22, 2011 in books & faith, fun friday with 0 Comments

Besides hanging out here, I also like to hang out over at Girls, God & the Good Life where we offer encouragement and inspiration to teen and twenty something girls. Have you checked it out yet?

Girls, God, and the Good Life

Well, now’s a great time and I thought I’d point you over there because we are having a fun summer giveaway!

Check it out!

we can’t afford to be wrong on hell

May 20, 2011 in books & faith, real life & faith with 2 Comments

So appreciated finding this video today – it’s worth watching. Francis Chan and “Erasing hell”.

worried for the church

May 16, 2011 in books & faith, monday manna devotional, pop culture & faith, real life & faith with 2 Comments

I only posted once last week because I had a writing deadline that I needed to focus on. And I am delightfully ecstatically happy that I turned it in yesterday! (all the praise and glory to God!! – seriously…)

So I’m back!

And I’m worried for the church.

I have been reading a crazy good book by Francis Chan called Forgotten God.It’s really, really good stuff and I find myself wishing I could invite Mr. Chan and his family over for dinner and just talk. (Anytime, Pastor Chan. Anytime! Do you like lasagna?) Oh, how I love to find people out there who say things that resonate so deeply in my heart. I know that is the work of the Holy Spirit – which is what the book is really about. I admire him for speaking up about the topic because it is such a polarizing discussion. The Body of Christ as a whole seems to have divided into this kind of “mainstream” Christianity and segmented off any Christians who talk about the work of the Holy Spirit into a fringe group of Christianity. So called “charismatics”. They have their own publishers. They have their own magazines. They have their own churches. And nary do the two worlds meet. But that’s kind of the problem with the labels anyway. When we label ourselves, we segment ourselves. He rightfully talks about how there is extremism and abuses when it comes to those groups, but he also shares about how that is not a reason to dismiss the importance and the need for us to understand and interact with the work of the Holy Spirit.

But Pastor Chan challenges those conclusions in a compelling way. Frankly, I already agreed with him on the points he makes. But it thrilled me to see someone stepping out and saying it so well. Well enough that I could point to it and say – read this! And I do highly recommend the book.

What it did do is challenge me personally though because sometimes I find myself censoring what I want to say because I don’t want to look like “one of the crazy ones”. No more.

Then yesterday I heard a fabulous sermon that was about Samson – and the Spirit of the Lord. And that brings me to my main thought – I’m worried about the church. Ever since I first met Jesus in college, I’ve frequently wondered why the Church often seems so…apathetic…aloof…and un-thrilled about the amazing God that they say they know. How can we be aloof about God??? It confuses me, and saddens me. I am thrilled that people are out there evangelizing and spreading the gospel to those who have never heard it, but I have always felt that my heartbeat, the passion that God put in me, has been for the church. That it would awaken from it’s slumber. That it would take the place of influence and power that it should have within our culture.

Keith Green, who sang with such a prophetic voice, sang a song years ago called “Asleep in the Light” that is still true today, and maybe even far worse…

The world is sleeping in the dark / And the church just can’t fight /Cause it’s asleep in the light

I leave you today with a video of him singing the song – it’s worth watching…

~Sarah~

 

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