Write for a Reason

Send us Fan Mail This latest podcast episode is an interview with Writer for a Reason and first time author Fiona Murphy. Like many of you, Fiona began writing a while ago, and it was all going quite slowly. After investing in the Write for a Reason Academy and getting a writing mentor, she finally finished her first book, Daisy's Journey, which was published by Fisher King publishing earlier...

Send us Fan Mail Welcome to the Write for a Reason podcast. My name is Janet Wilson; I'm a publisher of Christian fiction for young people with Dernier Publishing. If you are a Christian, and new to writing stories for kids and teens, stay tuned for encouragement, creative writing tips and actionable strategies you can implement immediately to become a better writer. Thanks for coming over, n...

Send us Fan Mail Any time is a great time to people watch, and get some tips for when you are creating characters for your novel. If you are meeting with family and friends, or out and about, take a few moments to observe tell-tale signs that show how people are feeling. Observe the look on the grandmother's face when a grandchild is placed in her lap, and her movements as she rocks him. Watc...

Send us Fan Mail Hello and welcome! If you write novels for 8-14s, do you need to include quotes from Shakespeare plays, make a passing reference to the Spanish Inquisition, and have your protagonist quote Scripture? We all use passing references to people, places and events we are familiar with in our writing, but we do need to consider the age of our target readers before mentioning things that...

Send us Fan Mail Welcome to the Write for a Reason podcast. My name is Janet Wilson; I'm a publisher of Christian fiction for young people with Dernier Publishing. If you are a Christian, and new to writing stories for kids and teens, stay tuned for encouragement, creative writing tips and actionable strategies you can implement immediately to become a better writer. Thanks for coming over, n...

Send us Fan Mail Who eats shoots and leaves? We all know the one about the panda who eats shoots and leaves. Or is it that he eats, shoots and leaves? Correct punctuation can at times be essential to the meaning of a sentence; but more than that, it can make your story so much easier and more pleasurable to read. If your story is confusing, or stilted; if readers have to go back to make sense of w...

Send us Fan Mail Hello! Today's podcast is all about getting the pace of your story right - and it's for Christians who write fiction for kids and teens. Pace is one of those invisible things that helps your novel to shine above the rest. I hope you find all the ideas and tips helpful! If you do, please share with a friend. I mention the Write for a Reason Academy in today's podcast...

Send us Fan Mail Thanks for coming over! Here's an interview with Joy Vee, author of several Christian children's books. Her story is a real inspiration. If you are writing for children and are unsure of the way, Joy's story of doing the Write for a Reason Academy, writing stories then getting them published will give you all the encouragement you need to keep going. So, listen, and...

Send us Fan Mail I have known Martin Smith for quite a few years now. Martin has done the Write for a Reason course and participated in various challenges, but most importantly, has gone on to have three books published! Here are the details of his books: Treasure Tree by Martin Smith ISBN 978-1907509964 Mystery Tours with Treasure Tree by Martin Smith ISBN 978-1788157100 Both of these books are p...

Send us Fan Mail Who are you writing for? We’ve touched on this a little bit before, but it’s so important, I’m bringing it up again: Who do you want to write for? This may sound like a daft question, but you need to know who you want to write for, BEFORE starting your novel. You can have what we think is a brilliant idea for a story, but you need to check that it will resonate with your target re...

Send us Fan Mail Voices for your Characters One important element of creating good dialogue is to make sure that each of your characters has his or her own voice. Just for fun, in the Write for a Reason course, one of the assignments is to imagine telling a group of your family/friends some astonishing news (e.g. that you have bought a new car or are going on holiday to the Seychelles) and write a...

Send us Fan Mail Freewriting is a technique where for a set period of time you sit down and just write. It's a great way to: begin if you don't know where to start practice writing (practice makes better!) gain confidence get disciplined write from the heart get used to writing from your own experience finish your first draft. Try and write for at least ten minutes every day. This will f...

Send us Fan Mail Should you ask friends and family to review your newly finished manuscript for you? Writers are often advised against it, because those who are close to us are likely to be more polite than honest, and may not have the necessary knowledge to make comments on the technical aspects of story writing. However, although they are unable to advise on characterisation, plot, narrative voi...

Send us Fan Mail I have a really quick, but important creative writing tip for you today... How old should your protagonist be? Getting this one thing right or wrong can make or break your novel! Here’s the thing: Children like to read about other children either their own age or a bit older. They tend not to be so keen on reading about younger children – not as the main characters, anyway – they...

Send us Fan Mail Theme and Purpose Writing for pure enjoyment is a wonderful thing! God has given us all gifts, and if you enjoy writing for fun, that's great! If, however, you want to write a story for a specific reason, it might help if you can ask yourself the following questions: Who am I writing for (we covered that last week, right?) What is the purpose of this story? What reaction am I...

Send us Fan Mail Children love animals! Well, most of them do, anyway, and if you have an animal in your story, that can help to engage your readers. If your animals can help to solve a crime, find a missing person or be an asset in some way, so much the better. Equally, if there is an animal in need - hurt, in danger, or otherwise at risk, this could also add emotion to your story. Dolphins, hors...

Send us Fan Mail How many characters do you need for your story? The answer is, as few as possible! If you can keep the number of characters in your story down to the bare minimum, it will make your writing less complicated, thereby keeping the action going at a good pace. If, for example, you have two main characters, let's say they are neighbours, and each of the children have several sibli...

Send us Fan Mail  In these difficult days, children all over the world so badly need to hear the good news of Jesus. Every child is precious . If your story only touches one or two, wouldn't it be worth it? So, on to today’s writing tip: If we want to draw readers into our story, we need a great beginning. If we can make our readers' mouths drop open with a great opening paragraph, and i...

Send us Fan Mail In this interview, I was interviewed by Wendy Jones, for her podcast: The Writing and Marketing Show. We talk about writing and publishing for children, and give some tips on where to begin! Support the show Like to do my free writing course, Gripping Beginnings ? Or perhaps you would like to join our membership group, for support while you write your novel? Click on this link to...

Send us Fan Mail Here’s today’s writing tip: If we want to include a message in a story we are writing for children, we need to do it through the vehicle of an exciting and gripping plot. However valid and earnest our message, we will not engage our readers unless the story is thrilling too . Some of the unsolicited manuscripts we receive at Dernier have a good moral or spiritual lesson, but the s...

Send us Fan Mail In the years I've been a publisher, I've found that even people who know they have been called to write stories for children and teens struggle with doubts and fears about their writing. I did, when I started to write! Who would want to read what I’d written? Was it any good, or was it rubbish? Who was I, to be a writer? We all need tons lots of encouragement and support...