by Karin Beery Have you ever been in a restaurant when the people next to you started arguing? Talk about tension! Putting a fight or argument into your story is a great way to add tension, but if you rely solely on personal confrontation, you’ll end up with characters who fight constantly. It won’t take…
By Ken Walker Editors, what would you do if you found yourself unable to work? I found myself staring down the barrel of that possibility last November when a tumble down the stairs left me with what proved to be a moderate concussion. That resulted in two trips to the emergency room, two visits with…
by Sue A. Fairchild As freelancers, we almost all experience the Feast or Famine scenario at one time or another. For me, it’s usually around the Christmas/New Year holiday, but this past season, it lasted quite a bit longer than normal and it began to worry me. I tried all sorts of things to fill…
by Dori Harrell As editors, we’re always searching for ways to take our editing to the next level, beyond just developing our style-guide skills (though that’s always a focus.) Bottom line, when we return a manuscript (MS) or article, we want it in the best shape possible once it’s been in our hands. As an…
by Karin Beery How many books do I have to edit before I’m a successful editor? Someone asked a similar question at the faculty panel of this year’s PENCON. I don’t know who wrote the question, but I’m pretty sure I know what kind of answer that person was looking for – a per-month average…
by Iola Goulton I often find my clients ask questions that go beyond editing or proofreading. I see from the various editor groups I’m involved in that I’m not the only one hearing these questions. Today I’m going to offer my answer to one of the questions I often hear. I hope it will help…
by Jenne Acevedo Our annual conference opened in Grand Rapids with keynote Robert Hudson, author of The Christian Writer’s Manual of Style. Although like a celebrity in our industry, Robert had a kind heart and encouraging message that instantly captured our attention. PENCON 2018’s experienced faculty challenged us to dig deeper into developmental edits, find…
by Karin Beery One year ago, I attended my first PENCON in Atlanta. I’d attended more than a dozen writers conferences (my box) so I had an idea of what to expect. It was so much more than I could have hoped for. At PENCON 2017, I found my people. There’s no way to explain…
by Ken Walker I have helped write/edit two books in recent times, one of which is still in process. The first, which will be self-published this fall, is by a doctor who writes about the parallels between the human body and the body of Christ. The second is the spiritual memoir of a friend I’ve…
by Tisha Martin Recently, I attended Festival of Faith and Writing at Calvin College to promote Christian Editor Network and its divisions. CEN LLC partnered in sharing a table with Breathe Christian Writer’s Conference. Ann Byle, co-founder of Breathe and also owns AB Writing Services, and I had a great time at the conference, interfacing…
