Writing for the Love

Another short story published! And this one, anyone can read. " Ticket to Heaven " is now available online at Faith Hope and Fiction . I wrote this piece in 2005, a year or so out of college. It sat in my computer files getting digitally dusty, but I've always had a difficult time figuring out what I should do with it. The story is about a college-aged drug addict in-denial who encounters an old man handing out tickets to heaven. After she accepts the ticket, a miracle happens and leads her on a path to redemption. The story includes, among other things, drug use, a Bible-quoting drug dealer, and the Gospel message. Why has it been so difficult for me to find a place to submit the story? It's not because of the drug use or real-world scenarios, but because most of the magazines accepting spiritual/inspirational/Christian themes want non-fiction. I've had a really hard time finding places that accept Christian fiction. The word count was a litt...

From The Stiletto Gang Blog, used with permission Past, Present, Future—and Free Download of My Austin Starr Short Story By Kay Kendall Once upon a time I believed my dreams would all come true when I wrote a book. With that accomplished, of course I wanted to have it published. And then when I held it in my hands, I knew I would be ecstatic. Those dreams did indeed come true. With lots of hard work, more than I ever imagined would be necessary, my debut mystery was published two years ago this spring. Now I have its sequel coming out this summer. The goal posts keep moving, however. I am now striving to juggle more than one writing project at a time.  Today I will share with you how I’m doing in that regard. CURRENT PROJECT – Free download! Last month I published a short story that bridges DESOLATION ROW with its sequel RAINY DAY WOMEN. The story is “ Strangers on a Plane,” and through March 6, you can download it FREE on Amazon .  You don’t n...

Just wanted to give a brief update on my days now that I'm an at-home writer for anyone who might be curious. Mon Edit Livinity Tues Edit Sprinter Weds Edit Livinity Thurs Edit Sprinter Fri Edit Livinity Random writing (ie short stories) A very generic, not comprehensive picture of how I spend each day, but a general idea of what I'm trying to get done. For a while, my focus had been deep editing Livinity , my epic fantasy novel turned trilogy. The process is slow. Many people ask me if I'm finished, and it probably doesn't make sense when I have to explain that I'm not. THE END is certainly written, and has been since 2008. But many years later, I'm redrafting yet again to make this the best book that it can be. Sometimes ideas for Sprinter interrupted my edits (women's inspirational fiction that I had set aside). Then I realized it might be fun to go back and forth between the two. And it is. Spri...

If I do nothing, the most predictable thing will happen. Nothing. I can write in my journals, at my computer, create stories and novels all day long. But only when I send them out into the world will anything happen with them. Otherwise, they are just for me. It makes me happy to write, and maybe that is enough. I don't have to have validation through other people to be satisfied about my writing. However, my goal has always been to write books that other people can read. I've got a start. I have two short stories published in FWA collections. I have my first paid short story publication coming out in March 2013. I have two completed novels, and lots of completed short stories. I realize that I have been letting the rejections come in without sending the stories back out as quickly. It's hitting me how behind I am in the submitting process. I believe it takes hard work to be a published writer. Technically, I am a published wr...

I wish I always began by thanking God for each day. Something to strive for. I am going to borrow a tool from a friend in my critique group. She bought a book with exercises for writing and showed me the first one. It was simply to decode the words " thebegin " to get a person thinking outside the box. More specifically, to get a writer to open their mind to new ways of writing. The entire book looks fascinating, and once I get the title and author, I hope to purchase it myself. I won't tell you the answer to " thebegin " except to say that it is quite simply a way to start. For me, I am starting my first website simply as this blog. And I look forward to what is to come. I don't know the end of my story, like I know the end to the one I've written, but neither does anyone else. In college, I had dreams, and not only of becoming a published author. I wanted to marry and have a house. Those dreams have come true and I am truly blessed in the lif...