Blog

As a homeschooling veteran, I review middle-grade stories to help parents, librarians, and teachers choose good books.

Look for author news here too!

 

Jacob deceives his father Isaac

My name is Jacob. I have a twin brother, Esau, who is a few minutes older.  Before we were born, God told our mother Rebekah that the older would serve the younger. This means that the younger son, I, Jacob, would some day be the boss over the older son, Esau. I...

read more

Ehud changes his mind

You are Ehud, a timid man with handicaps. You live in Israel during the time of the Judges, when the children of Israel occupy the promised land in a tenuous kind of way, bedeviled by the Canaanites and their tempting fertility worship while forgetting who their help...

read more

God plans ahead

God chose the spot where he asked Abraham to build an altar and sacrifice his son Isaac. God told Abraham to take the boy to “a place I will show you.”  It was several days’ walk from where Abraham lived in the Negev desert.  When they got close, Abraham laid the...

read more

Trusting God

Imagine that you are Rebekah, a young Aramean woman, not yet married. You live in Haran in a household that includes your elderly father but is run by your brother Laban. You have a comfortable niche, with friends and servants, a mother, maybe sisters. Life is looking...

read more

Focusing on God

Why is paying attention to God so difficult? I have great intentions every day to pray a lot and let the Lord guide me through my decisions of the day: how I will spend my time, what I will focus on. But things degenerate pretty quickly. Soon I'm making choices...

read more

Focusing on God

Why is paying attention to God so difficult? I have great intentions every day to pray a lot and let the Lord guide me through my decisions of the day: how I will spend my time, what I will focus on. But things degenerate pretty quickly. Soon I'm making choices...

read more

What do disciples, writers, and faith have in common?

How many times have we as writers been discouraged, passed over for a book contract, received a rejection letter or fought writer’s block? What did we do? Peter gives us a great example of what we should do. His faith inspires us to step out of our comfort zone and meet Jesus. But we can all relate to what happened next. Peter turned his attention to the storm.

read more

The editorial process for writers

I was reading a blog post by Steve Laube, a literary agent well known in ACFW circles. He was describing the editorial process, which proceeds in several stages. First, your editor gives you a big-picture edit, also known as a developmental edit or a substantive edit. This addresses plot and other large issues.

read more

The editorial process for writers

I was reading a blog post by Steve Laube, a literary agent well known in ACFW circles. He was describing the editorial process, which proceeds in several stages. First, your editor gives you a big-picture edit, also known as a developmental edit or a substantive edit. This addresses plot and other large issues.

read more

A lesson from Abel

You remember the story of Cain and Abel, no doubt. At least, you remember how it ended, in the world’s first murder. But how did it begin? Where was the root of the festering anger that took hold of Cain?

read more

Christian fantasy ebook free today

Finding Angel by Kat Heckenbach, published by Splashdown Press, is free on Kindle today, but not tomorrow.

I’ve got my copy! Can’t wait to read it. Grace Bridges’ Splashdown Books is making a place for itself publishing Christian fantasy and science fiction. I really liked Keven Newsome’s Winter, and I’m sure I’ll like this one too.

read more