10 Podcasts for Writers & Creatives

As a writing teacher and writer, hearing writers share about their process fascinates and inspires me. Here are ten podcasts I recommend for writers and creatives.

#AmWriting

This podcast covers all things writing and also offers a free Facebook group for writers. They sometimes invite guests to share, but the hosts themselves have a ton of wisdom and experience which they offer to listeners.

Ann Kroeker, Writing Coach

I chased Ann Kroeker down the hallway once at the Festival of Faith and Writing, then cried all over her boots. The word that comes to mind with this podcast is “generosity.” In short, weekly podcasts, Ann offers her knowledge of the craft of writing as she coaches writers, suggests resources and offers advice to stuck writers.

Beautiful Writers Podcast

The host, Linda Sivertsen, has had fantastic guests on the show such as Anne Lamott, Arianna Huffington, Tom Hanks, Brene Brown, Mary Karr, Elizabeth Gilbert, and Seth Godin. I’m always amazed that she doesn’t fangirl all over the guests, like I would be prone to do …

Become a Pro Blogger

This is a practical podcast for those who view their blog as a business. While I personally see my blog as a vehicle for testing out writing ideas and connecting with readers, this podcast has helped me make a few shifts to be more productive and strategic in getting my content to the right readers.

Magic Lessons

In this podcast, writer Elizabeth Gilbert helps struggling writers and creatives to find their creative mojo. When I listened as a brand new writer, it helped me overcome the insecurity of calling myself a “writer” and admit that writing was a calling and gift claiming me (and not the other way around).

Creative If Writing Podcast

This is a bit more focused on blogging, and I’ll often turn here if I have a specific blogging-related question, like “How do I get the right image to show up on Facebook?” She has episodes on anything from non-smarmy marketing, tips for building traffic, to the top tools for bloggers. This is a very practical podcast for bloggers and online writers.

The Hope Writers Podcast

This podcast is hosted by the founders of the Hope Writers writing group as a teaser to encourage you to join Hope Writers. That said, it still has value as a stand-alone venture as the hosts discuss their genius and idiot moves, how to make money writing, book launch secrets, and how to organize your writing ideas, among other topics of interest to writers.

Rewrite Radio

This podcast was put out by the Festival of Faith and Writing and I’ve listened to many of the episodes more than once. My favorites are Barbara Brown Taylor (2004), Frederick Buechner (1992), Memoir as Feminist Testimony (2016), and Katherine Paterson (2004). They offer recordings of the sessions from the festival over the years.

Writers on Writing

This is a fabulous podcast where the hosts usually interview two professional writers each week about their writing process. I’ve gotten tons of ideas about what to read, new writing routines to try, and the constant encouragement that comes with realizing the writers I admire are real people with some of the same doubts that I have.

Writing Class Radio

The hosts invite writers to read their nonfiction essays and then they discuss what made it work. I appreciate the honesty and generosity of these women and have learned about the craft of writing from them.

10 Minute Writers’ Workshop

This podcast not only increased my “to read” list, it also gave me exactly what I needed as a new writer–the reminder I wasn’t alone in my questions, quirks and hesitations. I mean, if great writers were distracted by social media, then I didn’t need to feel so guilty. This podcast also provided me with practical ideas for editing, finding inspiration, and books on writing to hone my craft. I’m sad it ended, but if you are a writer, you should check it out. I think I listened to every single episode (you can read ten tips I learned about writing from this podcast here).

What are your favorite podcasts on writing or creativity?

***

If you want to win a copy of Mystics and Misfits, sign up for my newsletter by Monday, August 30th at midnight (MT)! Already a subscriber? Tag up to four friends on my Instagram post about this book and I’ll enter you once per time! (CONTEST CLOSED!)

Sign Up for My Monthly-ish Newsletter Here:

***

Our theme for April is “Books and Writing,” and I hope to share my favorite books, podcasts and resources for new writers. Click here if you’re new to the series and want to catch up on old posts. Be sure to follow me on social media and sign up for my newsletter below so you can be alerted of new posts. Please get in touch at scrapingraisins (dot) gmail (dot) com if you are interested in guest posting on this topic!

**This post includes Amazon affiliate links

10 Podcasts for Writers & Creatives: As a writing teacher and writer, hearing writers share about their process fascinates and inspires me. Here are 10 podcasts I'd recommend for writers and creatives.

April 25, 2018April 24, 2018

Afraid of Poetry? Start Here. {guest post}

By Charlotte Donlon | Twitter: @charlottedonlon

I have always loved poetry, but I have also always been afraid of poetry. When I started graduate school three years ago, one of my assigned readings was T.S. Eliot’s Four Quartets. I was terrified of not understanding Eliot so I read Tania Runyan’s How to Read a Poem, too.

I managed to make it through that first residency and those first class discussions without embarrassing myself too much. I was also able to let go of my insecurity enough to learn a few things about Eliot and his work.

The MFA in creative writing program at Seattle Pacific University gave me many gifts. One of those gifts is poetry, even though my primary genre is creative nonfiction. After reading Eliot, I kept reading poetry. I wrote papers about poetry. I discussed poetry. I even became friends with poets.

I can now say I’m no longer afraid of poetry. I need it. I need to swim in words and language and ideas, and reading poetry is the easiest way for me to sink into those seas.

When I read poetry, I slow down and pay more attention to words and their sounds and their places in the world. I also pay more attention to my places in the world.

Poets invite me to enter their waters and discover more about them, more about myself, and more about the spaces between us. They invite me to make new connections and think about things from different perspectives.

They invite me to consider what happens if we don’t worry about rules, get rid of punctuation, and sit with the silence that exists between stanzas.

Over the past couple of months, my relationship with poetry has deepened. I began writing poetry and I taught a poetry workshop at my local library. I had no idea these sorts of things would ever happen. I guess sometimes we end up doing things we never could have asked or imagined. I guess our actions have consequences.

If you have been interested in exploring poetry, but have been afraid to dive in, please don’t hesitate any longer.

Here are links to some of my favorite poets and some of their poems:

Come on in. The water feels great.

***

What about you? Who are your favorite poets?

Charlotte lives in Birmingham, Alabama with her husband and their two children. She recently earned an MFA in creative writing from Seattle Pacific University, and she does freelance writing and copywriting. You can find her online at www.charlottedonlon.com, on Twitter at @charlottedonlon, and on Instagram at @charlottedonlon. You can sign up for her weekly email newsletter about reading, writing, and creativity via her website at charlottedonlon.com.

***

Sign up for the Mid-month Digest and Secret Newsletter Here:

***

**This post includes Amazon affiliate links

April 20, 2018April 20, 2018

Places for (Edgy) Faith Writers to Publish

Anyone who’s read my blog for any length of time knows I love lists of resources. Perhaps it’s the teacher in me? For those of you who might be new to writing, I wanted to give you a leg up and let you know some places to submit your work.

I’ve written for many of these, but some are on my bucket list of places to submit one day in the future. Let me know if you have other information for me to add to this list and feel free to contact me via the query form on my blog or other social media to ask questions.

Here are some places for writers to submit their work:

Online Collaborative Blogs (you’ll be paid in readers & community)

SheLoves Magazine

I’m one of the editors, so I can speak most specifically to this site. SheLoves is about Jesus, justice and juicy living. The best submissions are personal narrative, not preachy. We love stories that share your heart, not just quotes and Bible verses. You can email your submissions to Kathleen Bertrand at shelovesmagazine@gmail.com. For more submission info, go here. They only accept previously unpublished pieces. Here are the themes for 2018–usually due the 15th of the previous month:

June: Transitions
July: Territories
August: Fire
September: Edge
October: Warrior
November: Gathering
December: Glory

The Mudroom Blog

The Mudroom is gritty, raw and real. The women here are world changers and justice-seekers. They love Jesus, but aren’t afraid to ask the hard questions. I’ve published here several times and have had a really great experience. Visit here for submission guidelines and monthly themes (which are usually amazing). They only accept previously unpublished pieces.

Altarwork

Altarwork is a collaborative blog featuring fiction, creative nonfiction, poetry, music and visual arts. I’ve published several pieces with them and they don’t mind republishing previously published work. To submit a piece for Altarwork, visit this page.

Scraping Raisins, by me;-)

This year I am using themes for each month, so take a look at the themes here and let me know if you’d be interested in submitting a guest post! I’m looking for personal stories from 500-1000 words.

(In)Courage

Okay, so I wouldn’t normally consider (In)Courage “edgy,” but they just announced 10 new writers that are edgy, so we might begin to see a bit more of that! 😉 Submissions to (In)Courage are quarterly, so you have to watch for the two-week window. You can usually submit the first two weeks of December, March, June and September. Visit this page for more submission info.

Literary Mama

Not for faith writers, per se, but I’ve always wanted to write for them. They put out info about places for writers to submit their work on the first Wednesday of every month.

RELEVANT (online)

RELEVANT will publish previously published work, so if you have a blog post that’s done well, you might want to think about sending it along to RELEVANT. Be sure you keep an eye out, though, because they most likely won’t inform you whether or not they decided to run it. This year, I had a surprise birthday present when they ran my piece without my knowledge. Visit here for more submission info.

Red Tent Living

I’ve been meaning to submit here for a long time because I love their vision and the authenticity of their writers. Visit here for more submission info. Submissions are theme-based and due the first of the month. Here are the current themes.

Sojourners

This is also a site where I’ve wanted to contribute because I respect and admire their work. For submission guidelines, visit here. This link also includes info about submitting to their print magazine.

For Missionaries and Expats:

A Life Overseas

This was the first place I ever had a piece published, so I have a fondness for this site (it was also the place I had the most engagement and visits to my personal blog as a result of publishing). This is a fabulous online community of thoughtful missionaries and expats. To submit a post, email Elizabeth at emarietrotter@gmail.com and write “Guest Post” in the subject line.

Velvet Ashes

I wish Velvet Ashes had existed when I lived overseas. This is a vibrant, active, and encouraging community of women who are mostly all living away from their passport cultures. VA offers online small groups, an online retreat (the next one is the 19-22!), and a weekly link-up on Thursdays for bloggers, called “The Grove”. For current themes and submission guidelines, visit here.

Writing about Motherhood:

For Every Mom

This site will also publish pieces that have been published before, so I’ll often send the editor, Jenny Rapson, any pieces that have done well on my blog. They will also take pitches for paid pieces, though I haven’t done that yet, so I don’t have any tips. For submission info, visit here.

Coffee + Crumbs

This is a lovely blog featuring quality essays that is still on my bucket list to submit to. Check here to see if they are open for submissions (they rarely are).

If You Prefer to Get Paid, Try These:

iBelieve

This is a Christian site that features articles about faith, relationships, calling, health, beauty, devotionals, motherhood and career. They do pay for articles, though it’s not a lot. You can submit queries here.

Think Christian

From the website: “Think Christian serves the devout faithful who are also fans of popular culture. In music and movies, television and video games, we seek to find—in the words of the Apostle Paul—“whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable.” Our task as a digital magazine is to consider how popular culture and its cultivators interact with God’s story, and we do this with grace, appreciation, and discernment.” Email editor Josh Larsen with pitches and queries: jlarsen@reframemedia.com

Christianity Today

From their site: “Articles for CT should be factually sound, well researched, and pertain to modern Christianity. We are interested in profiles, interviews, feature stories, book reviews, and opinion pieces that are expertly written and well supported, provide a fresh perspective, and connect the eternal message of the gospel with current trends, culture, events, and news. First-person articles should apply your personal experience to a broader concept of faith and biblical truth.” Visit here for guidelines on submitting to CT.

Washington Post, Acts of Faith

From their site: “The Washington Post’s Acts of Faith offers breaking and ongoing news, analysis and opinion about major religion stories. We tackle anything where faith, spirituality, ethics and values live, from politics and culture to science and education. Please note that we are considering a limited number of submissions right now. Acts of Faith is edited by Sarah Pulliam Bailey (spulliam@gmail.com).” Visit here for more submission info.

Print Magazines (some pay, some don’t)

Faithfully Magazine

Editor-in-chief & founder: Nicola A. Menzie

Faithfully Magazine is a news and lifestyle publication that covers issues, conversations and events impacting Christian communities of color. It’s also the first print magazine I was ever published in! For detailed submission info, visit here. They do not currently pay.

Image Journal

Editor & founder: Gregory Wolfe

Image Journal is a beautiful magazine featuring fiction, nonfiction and poetry. For submission info to either their print magazine, Image Journal, or their daily blog, Good Letters, visit here. They also have a yearly week-long writer’s workshop called The Glen that I’ve had my eye on for a while.

Plough Magazine

Managing editor: Shana Burleson

This is a quarterly magazine featuring poetry, book reviews, fiction, creative nonfiction, and visual arts related to faith, culture, justice and community. (I really need to write for them…) For submission info, visit here. The site says they will pay an “honorarium” (I’m not sure what that means) for their print articles, but are unable to pay for online articles.

Ready Publication

Editor-in-chief & founder: Gail Dudley

Ready is a quarterly print and digital publication designed with the beautiful diversity of women around the world in mind. To submit an article, visit here.

Relief Journal

Editor-in-chief: Daniel Bowman

This is an annual print journal that accepts poetry, fiction, graphic narrative, and creative nonfiction. Their reading period is October 1 – March 31. For more submission info, visit here.

Ruminate

Editor-and founder: Brianna Van Dyke

This is a gorgeous magazine that publishes fiction, creative nonfiction, poetry and visual art. To find more info about submitting to the print magazine, visit here. They also have a blog, so visit here for info about submitting there. They pay a little for pieces for the print magazine, but I’m not sure about the blog. Ruminate also runs contests throughout the year. (Side note–they are located in my city in a renovated barn!)

St. Katherine Review

Managing editor: Angela Doll Carlson

The guiding principle at Saint Katherine Review is “Inquiry seeking Wisdom.”This print magazine accepts poetry, creative nonfiction, reviews and fiction. Contributors receive three copies of the issue in which their work appears, plus a one-year subscription. For more submission info, visit here.

Have you signed up for my newsletter? New subscribers will be entered to win a free copy of this gorgeous magazine, Ruminate. If you’re already a subscriber, head over to my Instagram post and tag up to four friends to be entered to win there! Giveaway will be open until this Friday at midnight (MT). Sorry, only U.S. residents and no bots, please!

Sign up for the Mid-month Digest and Secret Newsletter Here:

***

Places for (Edgy) Faith Writers to Publish

April 18, 2018April 18, 2018

A Writer’s Hotbed of Stupidity, Saints & Selfies (#FFW)

As a stay-at-home mom to three tiny children, I no longer feel fluent in socializing or adult conversation. So, as you might expect, a writing conference where I had to meet and interact with some of my writing heroes was a hotbed for saying and doing stupid things.

Lest you think I’m exaggerating, here are a few foot-in-mouth moments for your entertainment:

1. I saw an author I admire and said, “I read half your book!” #whatNOTtosaytoanauthor

2. I tweeted something Deidra Riggs said during a panel about sex and without thinking, my husband replied something about loving when I talk dirty, accidentally including Deidra in the reply. (okay, so that one’s on my husband)

3. I told a magazine I couldn’t write for them yet because I have other writing projects now (they didn’t ask me to).

4. I chucked my stuff on a chair, then chased Ann Kroeker down the hallway and slobbered all over her.

5. I told a girl she looked “so familiar” and she said it was because we had met two days earlier.

6. I couldn’t go into the expo room for two days after seeing my face on a poster about new authors. (denial, perhaps?)

7. I think I may have sat next to Fleming Rutledge on the flight to Grand Rapids, but didn’t realize it until I got to the conference (this is why you should always make small talk on the plane).

8. I started talking to Shannan Martin in line in the bathroom and when I walked out, I realized I still had my dirty paper towel balled up in my hand.

9. I often said the first thing that came to my mind when I met someone–usually pertaining to their appearance. “You’re so much shorter/thinner/taller than I thought!” Generally not a good idea.

But apart from my many blunders, the conference was still a fabulous experience.

Here are a few highlights for me from FFW:

1. Hearing Luci Shaw and Madeleine L’Engle’s granddaughters tell stories about Madeleine, my greatest writing hero. (Did you know Madeleine L’Engle loved playing ping-pong?)

Luci Shaw & Madeleine L’Engle’s granddaughters

2. Spending time with other writing friends talking, crying, trading stories, and sharing on a level I so rarely get to relate on in my regular life.

3. Meeting some of my writing and life heroes: Deidra Riggs, Luci Shaw, Sandra Van Opstal, Shannan Martin, Addie Zierman, Lisha Epperson, Ann Kroeker, Katlin Curtice, D.L. Mayfield, Amy Peterson, Christiana Peterson, inspiring writers from my publishing House, Herald Press, my editor, friends from SheLoves, Redbud Writers’ Guild and my other writing group, and so many others.

4. Meeting my heroes reminded me that even though a writer may have thousands of followers on social media, it doesn’t mean they don’t struggle with insecurity and imposter syndrome like I do.

5. I sat in five fiery sessions about race that burned away my idealism, selfish motivations and pride involved in being a white woman who writes about race. It reminded me that these discussions are messy, complex and yet so necessary in spite of the discomfort. I’m still processing many of the conversations, emotions and challenges.

Deidra Riggs, Karen Sallow Prior, Sandra Maria Van Opstal, Kathy Khang, Katelyn Beaty, “Still Evangelical in the Age of #MeToo?”

Lisa Sharon Harper, Marlena Graves, Kathy Khang, “Writing for Our Lives”

5. Overall, the best part of the festival for me was putting people to the avatars and remembering there is flesh, bone and spirit behind the names and faces on the 2D screen.

Did you attend the Festival of Faith and Writing this year? What was your biggest take-away?

Have you signed up for my newsletter? New subscribers will be entered to win a free copy of this gorgeous magazine, Ruminate. If you’re already a subscriber, head over to my Instagram post and tag up to four friends to be entered to win there! Giveaway will be open until this Friday at midnight (MT). Sorry, only U.S. residents and no bots, please!

Sign up for the Mid-month Digest and Secret Newsletter Here:

***

April 6, 2018April 6, 2018

My 14 Favorite Books on Writing and Creativity

Sometimes I’d rather read about writing than actually write. Perhaps I secretly think I’ll glean enough from their advice and experience to produce a crop without the same effort? I pared this list down a bit (believe it or not), and while the majority are about writing, a few are for creatives, by creatives.

Do yourself a favor and dash over to Goodreads, Amazon or to the library and add these to your ever-expanding reading list.

The Artists Way, by Julia Cameron

One of my favorite things about this book are the quotes in the margins. Before I begin writing, I sometimes browse through for writing inspiration. I often think of her reference to “restock the pond” and “refill the well” when I feel creatively depleted. She says, “When we work at our art, we dip into the well of our experience and scoop out images. Because we do this, we need to learn how to put images back.” (p. 21)

The Art of Memoir, by Mary Karr

Mary Karr is hilarious. I heard her interviewed on several podcasts before I read a single book of hers and I confess I still haven’t actually read one of her memoirs. As I’ve been writing, I often think about how she said the reader needs to feel like they’ve zipped themselves into the author’s skin. (Kind of gross and Shel Silverstein-esq, but so helpful.) And I’m going to give away the ending because it makes me cry:

“None of us can ever know the value of our lives, or how our separate and silent scribbling may add to the amenity of the world, if only by how radically it changes us, one and by one.” (p. 218)

The Art of the Personal Essay, edited by Phillip Lopate

I had this anthology for an advanced writing class in college and LOVED it. It’s not a writing book, per se, but has examples of some of the best essays of all time by Annie Dillard, G.K. Chesterton, Virginia Woolf, James Baldwin and Adrienne Rich, among many others.

The Artful Edit: On the Practice of Editing Yourself, by Susan Bell

I first heard about this from Ann Kroeker on her incredibly helpful podcast for writers and quickly checked it out of the library. I’m struggling to write my first manuscript, so I wasn’t sure if I should be editing as I go along, or if I should wait until it is all completed to wade back through the mire to make sense out of it all. This book helped me figure out a strategy that works for me and provided some tools to edit both at the micro and macro level. My only tip would be to make sure you’ve read The Great Gatsby before reading this book because Bell uses that book as an example in many of the chapters.

Bird by Bird, by Anne Lamott

I’ve listened to many hours of writers sharing about writing and their favorite books and this one is probably mentioned the most frequently. Lamott loves to share the story about her brother who procrastinated on a project about birds for school and had to finish it the night before. Their father told him, “Son, we’ll just take it bird by bird,” and that became Lamott’s mantra for writing–just take it “bird by bird.” Along with this, the second most quoted part of this book is the author’s permission to create SFD’s, or “s**ty first drafts.” I’ve taken much consolation in that.

Breath for the Bones, by Luci Shaw

Less technical and more spiritual, this book spiritualizes the work of the Christian artist. My favorite parts are when she talks about the Holy Spirit as her muse and mentions walking around at attention, with her antennae combing the air. I once heard a writer say every book is a conversation with another book, and I feel like this book is in conversation with Madeleine L’Engle’s Walking on Water and Barabara Brown Taylor’s An Altar in the World. It’s probably one of my favorites in this list.

Letters to a Young Poet, by Rainer Maria Rilke

The main reason I list this book here is because it is so often quoted that I think every artist needs to at least say they have read it. Here’s the infamous quote (though the rest is worth reading as well): ”

“Go into yourself. Find out the reason that commands you to write; see whether it has spread its roots into the very depths of your heart; confess to yourself whether you would have to die if you were forbidden to write.

This most of all: ask yourself in the most silent hour of your night: must I write? Dig into yourself for a deep answer. And if this answer rings out in assent, if you meet this solemn question with a strong, simple “I must,” then build your life in accordance with this necessity; your whole life, even into its humblest and most indifferent hour, must become a sign and witness to this impulse. Then come close to Nature. Then, as if no one had ever tried before, try to say what you see and feel and love and lose…”

Life Creative, by Wendy Speake and Kelli Stuart

I read this book in the perfect moment of my writing career, just as I was beginning to wonder if it was worth it or possible to be a mother to little ones AND try to be a writer. Life Creative is the type of empowering, inspiring and fire-lighting book that women need to remind them they are called to this important work of being creators.

On Writing Well: The Classic Guide to Writing Non-fiction, by William Zinsser

This was also assigned reading in one of my writing classes nearly 20 years ago and when I reread it last year, I could see why. Zinsser’s voice is usually in my head as I edit: “Clutter is the enemy” (p. 15), “Do I need it at all? Probably I don’t” (p. 79), and “Every successful piece of nonfiction should leave the reader with one provocative thought that he or she didn’t have before” (p. 52). Thank you, sir. If you need a refresher on the craft of writing, this should be your go-to book.

Several Short Sentences About Writing, by Verlyn Klinkenborg

Similar to On Writing Well, this book celebrates simple, concise work. The entire book is written as a list of sentences, so you can see his point about varying sentence length play out throughout the book. He writes,

“No subject is so good that it can redeem indifferent writing. But good writing can make almost any subject interesting.” (p. 129) This book is a perfect mix of creative inspiration and technical advice on the craft of writing. It’s a quick read, but every sentence packs a punch (sometimes clichés are just exactly what you want to say…).

Walking on Water, by Madeline L’Engle

This is my all-time-favorite book on creativity and spirituality. I wrote a whole post about it for SheLoves here and often quote her in my work. My favorite quote from the book is this:

“If the work comes to the artist and says, ‘Here I am, serve me,’ then the job of the artist, great or small, is to serve. The amount of the artist’s talent is not what it is about. Jean Rhys said to an interviewer in the Paris Review, ‘Listen to me. All of writing is a huge lake. There are great rivers that feed the lake, like Tolstoy and Dostoyevsky. And there are mere trickles, like Jean Rhys. All that matters is feeding the lake. I don’t matter. The lake matters. You must keep feeding the lake.” (p. 23) We feed the lake.

Writing Down the Bones, by Natalie Goldberg

I remember seeing a quote by Natalie Goldberg and being intrigued. The quote was something like, “Writers get to live life twice.” So I put her book on hold in the library and devoured it in less than a week. Now, as I write, I often think about the composting I mentioned in my last post and the redemption of what feels like waste as we write. This is a fabulous companion to the other writing books on your shelf. I wish I had bought it, not just checked it out of the library.

The Writing Life, by Annie Dillard

I read this book long before I started a blog, submitted an article or even began calling myself a writer. And when I shyly stepped naked onto the screen, Dillard’s words empowered me:

“Why do you never find anything written about that idiosyncratic thought you advert to, about your fascination with something no one else understands? Because it is up to you. There is something you find interesting, for a reason hard to explain. It is hard to explain because you have never read it on any page; there you begin. You were made and set here to give voice to this, your own astonishment.” (p. 67-68 emphasis mine)

Writing Tools: 50 Essential Strategies for Every Writer, by Roy Peter Clark

This is also a very practical book for writers who may have been at it a while and need to hone their craft. It’s added to my personal editing checklist as I read back through my drafts and consider if I’m using active verbs, being too wordy, or losing my subject in long sentences. This book feels a bit like when I used to study theory and practice scales as a piano student–less sexy, but very necessary.

On my “To Read” List:

A Writer’s Diary, by Virgina Woolf

The Art of Nonfiction, by Ayn Rand

Creativity Rules, by Brenda Seelig

If You Want to Write, by Brenda Ueland

Light the Dark, edited by Joe Fassler

Rumors of Water, by L.L. Barkat

Writing About Your Life, by William Zinnser

What are your favorite books about writing and creativity? I’d love to hear!

***

Our theme for April is “Books and Writing,” and I hope to share my favorite books, podcasts and resources for new writers. Be sure to follow me on social media and sign up for my newsletter below so you can be alerted of new posts. Please get in touch at scrapingraisins (dot) gmail (dot) com if you are interested in guest posting on this topic!

Sign up for the Mid-month Digest and Secret Newsletter Here:

**Includes Amazon affiliate links

Writing & Creativity #writing #writerslife #amwriting #booksonwriting #bookreview

April 3, 2018April 3, 2018

Writing Garbage

Three years ago if you had told me I’d be calling myself a writer today, I would have chuckled and said, “Right. I wish.”

Natalie Goldberg talks about writing being like a compost heap. All those journal entries, letters, emails, short stories, articles, and blog posts mingle together in their juices and every once in a while a stunning tulip pushes her way up and out of the mush. I had about 30 years of composting—mostly pure garbage–before I ever published a word.

This month on the blog, the theme is books and writing. I’ll share some guest posts from writers who have called themselves professionals much longer than I have. I’ll also have a book or two (or three) to give away to readers who love books as much as I do. Be sure to follow along on social media and share with your book-nerd and writerly friends.

I signed a book contract this February, though it won’t be published until fall of 2019, so it still feels distant and surreal. I confess I suffer from major Imposter Syndrome most days (check out a couple great podcasts by Lead Stories about that).

But I’m writing the words and adding compost to the pile, trusting something holy, hopeful, and transcendent will emerge from the heap. Before I begin writing, I pray for those who read my book—that this wouldn’t just be about me, but that we’d be together in it all. I ask the Holy Spirit for inspiration, wisdom and winsome words.

But mostly I beg God for permission to write badly. At least at first.

Julia Cameron says it like this:

“Remember that in order to recover as an artist, you must be willing to be a bad artist. Give yourself permission to be a beginner. By being willing to be a bad artist, you have a chance to be an artist, and perhaps, over time, a very good one” (The Artist’s Way, p. 30)

I pray for freedom to run my fingers over the keyboard without obsessing, over-analyzing or self-criticizing, with the reckless abandon of my naked children dancing around the living room after a bath. I need that level of confidence, self-indulgence and blind courage.

Many writers have said you can’t edit a blank page, so I’m filling the page with words and then giving myself time to wade back through the sludge. I’m hoping to find some gems buried there.

This month is about writing and books mainly because writing is at the center of my story right now. I hope this theme will somehow intersect with wherever you are in life—even if you’re not a writer. Perhaps insert whatever thing God is calling you to do that causes you the greatest amount of self-doubt or quivering-in-your-boots and relate in that way.

Now that I’m a writer, I read the Bible with new lenses. As I read Ecclesiastes recently, certain passages suddenly glowed with new meaning. Wise Solomon writes,

“He who observes the wind will not sow, and he who regards the clouds will not reap.

As you do not know the way the spirit comes to the bones in the womb of a woman with child, so you do not know the work of God who makes everything.

In the morning sow your seed, and at evening withhold not your hand, for you do not know which will prosper, this or that, or whether both alike will be good.” (Eccl. 11:5-6 ESV)

Writing demands feisty faith.

Writing demands feisty faith.

Click To Tweet

We till, plant, and sow, then God whispers miracles from mounds of trash. He infuses bones with spirit breath and tiny seeds hidden in the ground with life. Our job is to show up, trust the Light to do its part, and keep doing the work of tilling, planting and watering. Then we sit back on our heels, and do some waiting for the tulips to grow out of our years of faithful composting.

***

This month, I hope to cover some of the following topics, so you can treat this introduction like a table of contents for the month and check back here for updated links. I probably won’t have time to do all of this, but here are some topics I *want* to cover:

My Favorite Books on Writing
Redbud Writer’s Guild vs. Hope Writers
#WOCwithpens (And a White Evangelical Woman’s Place in the Interwebs)
Interviews with Authors
What Should I Write About?
Juggling Motherhood and that Other Thing You Love to Do
Favorite Podcasts about Writing
10 Reasons You Should Start Writing
How to Start a Blog (ok, so this could be like 10 posts…help?)
Book Reviews
Summary of My Favorite Sessions at the Festival of Faith & Writing
Editing Checklist (s)

***

Our theme for April is “Books and Writing,” and I will share my favorite books, podcasts and resources for new writers. Be sure to follow along on social media and sign up for my newsletter below so you can be alerted of new posts and free book give aways. Please get in touch at scrapingraisins (dot) gmail (dot) com if you are interested in guest posting on this topic!

Sign up for the Mid-month Digest and Secret Newsletter Here:

**Includes Amazon affiliate links

Writing Garbage: Natalie Goldberg talks about writing being like a compost heap. All those journal entries, letters, emails, short stories, articles, and blog posts mingle together in their juices and every once in a while a stunning tulip pushes her way up and out of the mush.

January 3, 2018January 3, 2018

State of the Blog (and some exciting changes)

State of the Blog (and some exciting changes). Blogging, writing, newsletters, monthly themes, guest posters and living for Jesus.

Maybe you’re interested in social justice.

Or perhaps you’re a mom desperate to find meaning in the monotony.

Maybe life hasn’t gone as planned—God detoured your life and you are far from where you thought you’d be.

Or you’re a missionary limping from years of living overseas, trying to find your footing again as you integrate back into your home country.

Or maybe you’re a new writer, petrified, but electrified by the prospect of unleashing your words into the world.

Whoever you are, I’m honored you’re here—either by accident or by intention, my words are in your inbox, in your hands, or in front of your eyes–and I’m humbled.

I started this blog because I had some things to say about reentry, motherhood, race, writing, and living out a life of faith in practical ways. I didn’t think about “platform,” “SEO,” “branding” or “monetizing my blog.” In fact, I started it in 2012, wrote four posts, and only told my husband. But when I dusted it off and began writing again in 2015, writing felt like standing nude and exposed in a crowd. It was terrifying–and exhilarating.

I hoped for heads nodding and whispers of “yes, yes” as you read. Many of you have reached out via email, comments on the blog or on social media and let me know I wasn’t alone.

Thank you.

Some of you are new here and thinking, “So, if she doesn’t have a “brand,” then what is Scraping Raisins about?”

Good question.

What is the purpose of this blog?

If I were to distill this blog down to a single message, it would be this: How does Jesus impact our everyday lives?

Click To Tweet

And specifically:

How does Jesus sway me and you to swing to the rhythm of the Holy Spirit when culture pushes us a different direction?

How does Jesus model love and inspire us to serve family, friends, neighbors, strangers and even enemies?

How does Jesus teach us to create, live inspired lives, fight injustice, and see the sacred in the small?

And how does this all play out when it comes to our roles as mothers, fathers, husbands, wives, employees, neighbors, creators, citizens and thoughtful human beings?

You know, all the easy questions in life;-)

If these questions boil in your veins, too, then we’re sharing the right space on the internet. I look forward to learning, growing and being inspired together in 2018. Here are a few of the exciting changes I’m making this year.

Changes in Email & Blog Post Frequency

This will be the last post to come directly to your email inbox if you subscribe to my blog. I’ve decided to move to a mid-month digest and end-of-month newsletter where I’ll share what I’ve been reading, listening to and some things that are working for me. I’ll also tell about some opportunities to win free books and audio books, which will be exclusive to my newsletter subscribers. If you haven’t yet, be sure and sign up for my newsletter here if you want access to the secret content and perks of being a subscriber.

Why cut down on the frequency of emails?

I want to cultivate a relationship with you and I feel less, but more personal, email interaction will help this. I also want to write more posts without feeling embarrassed that you’re getting bombarded with multiple emails from me each week. 🙂

If you’re still interested in reading each post, then be sure and follow me on my social media channels, as I’ll be sharing posts on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and Pinterest. Otherwise, you can wait and catch up on reading posts all at once, as I’ll link to posts in the newsletters.

Changes in Content (sort of)

As a planner, I find I do better when I have a theme to write about. Because of this, I’ve chosen monthly themes to center my posts around. I may write an occasional post that is off-theme, but for the most part, the month will involve essays, interviews, guest posts, list posts, and how-to’s revolving around the monthly themes, which I’ll share at the bottom of this post.

Another big change is that I want to open up the blog to invite guest writers each month, so if you’d like to contribute, visit the “Write for Me” tab at the top of the blog (coming soon) and email me a thoughtful post or idea. I love hearing from other voices and providing a platform for new writers to share. I want to make room in my small corner of the internet for you to send your words out into the world. Welcome.

I also plan to include monthly interviews with men and women who inspire us to buck cultural norms and live Jesus-centered lives. I have several friends I want to introduce you to in the coming months.

And though I’m still resistant to having ads on my site, I’ll be pursuing affiliate partnerships with a few companies I love and don’t mind supporting in order to pay for the operational costs involved in running this site and keeping my content free for you as the reader.

So without further ado, here are the themes for this year …

2018 Themes for Scraping Raisins

Scraping Raisins Blog Themes

Sign up for the secret newsletter and/or follow me on social media to join in learning how Jesus wants to empower us wherever we are to be transformers, wonder-catchers, and seekers of the sacred in the ordinary this year.

Sign up for Mid-Month Digest & Secret Newsletter Here:

October 12, 2017

The People Who Write Books

The crazy people write books, that’s who. Trying to write a book after spending two years as a writer of 800 to 1000 word blog posts is like running a marathon after training to be a sprinter.

I’ve been attempting to wake up and write at 5 am. Giving up our usual method of grinding beans and waiting for French press coffee, I pulled out the 12-cup automatic drip coffee maker. The smell of coffee yanks me out of bed, down the stairs and into my chair.

But as a mom to three young children, the time is too short. Just as I begin to swim away from the shore, out of the shallow end into the deeps, and finally start writing something real, it is 6:30 am. The children whine for breakfast, the baby needs to be nursed, it’s time to go out on a short run, or the laundry needs to be transferred from the washing machine to the dryer. I struggle to break out of the writing trance to get back to life as usual.

But on my run today, I thought about the small work that gets us to the end. Every morning that I wake up and pound out my 500 words, is like a notch in the wall, a foothold taking me higher up to the summit. Some weeks I feel depressed. Self-doubt and loathing threaten my resolve. My inner accusers challenge me, critiquing my every word, every sentence, every groggy minute spent away from my family, friends, or hobbies. Why are you wasting your time? they say.

But then God inevitably gives me a sign. Like the sun bursting through the spruce tree branches into the window over my kitchen sink in the morning, he creates a constellation out of the ordinary.

This autumn, Colorado experienced an uncharacteristic three weeks of dreary cloud cover and rain, which eats away at my soul more than other people since I suffer from seasonal affective disorder. It didn’t help that my three children, five and under, seemed bewitched.

So one night last week, I escaped the house at dusk, abandoning my husband to stories about talking animals, tooth-brushing, toileting, singing and prayers. I wandered the streets of our suburb, which was probably very attractive in 1979, gazing into windows and wondering how I got here.

I considered quitting writing.

I passed a yard with a small, green wooden box constructed on top of a pole–one of many little free libraries that have sprung up across the nation that invite the free exchange of magazines, literature, and trashy novels. Rifling through, I found a book. A strange, slim stranger among ordinary friends, it was a book so niche that I wondered if my husband had slipped in it in the box. It was exactly the book I needed for the next notch in the wall I am climbing towards writing this book proposal. I took it as a sign that I am on the right road.

Lately, my three year old daughter has been flapping her arms, running round and round the kitchen island, singing, “I fly through the sky and land on the ground!” over and over and over again. It is the mantra of a writer. Sometimes I feel like I’m flying through the sky, with words and images elevating me almost effortlessly, but most times I just feel like I’m walking with my feet firmly on the ground. I crunch dying leaves, get hit in the face by stray branches, act as referee for my children at the park and wipe oatmeal up off the floor that my daughter has dumped out.

“Look! Look at those geese!” my five year old son said earlier this week, pointing into the grey sky. Turning like he does to mansplain to my three year old daughter, he said, “They spell out words in the sky, like our last name, ‘Verner.'” I imagined all the things the geese would write if they could spell out messages for those of us on the ground to read.

I keep trying to quit, but God keeps sending new North Stars to guide me along my way. I am caught in the river current and swimming back is impossible. Earlier this week, Annie Dillard pushed me along, with these words:

“Why do you never find anything written about that idosynratic thought you advert to, about your fascination with something no one else understands?

Because it is up to you.

There is something you find interesting, for a reason hard to explain. It is hard to explain because you have never read it on any page; there you begin.

You were made and set here to give voice to this, your own astonishment.” —The Writing Life (p. 68)

So I’m showing up. I’m writing what only I can write. I’m giving voice to my own astonishment every morning at 5 am–even if it means I only end up with one decent paragraph. I’m walking with my feet on the ground, but trusting God to lift me up every once in a while and set my ordinary words to flight. Perhaps my words will speak to someone on the ground.

September 12, 2017

How Writers Find Their Brave

Madeleine L’Engle should be the patron saint of Christian women writers. Any time I start doubting myself, I pull out Walking on Water and feel like I can stop hyperventilating and breathe again. This morning in Walking on Water I read:

“I believe that each work of art, whether it is a work of great genius or something very small, comes to the artists and says, ‘Here I am. Enflesh me. Give birth to me.’ And the artist either says, ‘My soul doth magnify the Lord,’ and willingly becomes the bearer of the work, or refuses; but the obedient response is not necessarily a conscious one, and not everyone has the humble, courageous obedience of Mary.” (p. 18)

“When the artist is truly the servant of the work, the work is better than the artist.” (p. 24)

“When the work takes over, then the artist is enabled to get out of the way, not to interfere. When the work takes over, then the artist listens.” (p. 24)

Serve the Work. Get out of the way. Listen.

Yes.

Annie Dillard says something similar in The Writing Life:

“At its best, the sensation of writing is that of any unmerited grace. It is handed to you, but only if you look for it.” (p. 75)

Most days I sit down and write paragraphs of pure junk. It flows so easily. Then I pick back through the rubble like a hurricane victim trying to salvage valuables from the storm. A friend of mine just shared an article with me about how we must first allow the madman to write. That’s what I’m doing these days. Lots of “shitty first drafts” written by my inner madman. (Thank you, Anne Lamott, for empowering us to write what comes first.)

I have a friend who wants to start writing. “How did you get the courage to start?” she asked.

I wrote because not writing was no longer an option. It was more painful not to write than to write. Like plugging a water faucet with your finger, the words were just too pent up. They demanded a release. In Letters to a Young Poet, Rilke says that we should only write if we must.

But I am still learning how to get out of the way and serve the work. It takes a certain faith to believe in the word magic. Elizabeth Gilbert has built her entire career on it, writing Big Magic and producing a podcast called Magic Lessons. It feels like voodoo. But Christian poet Luci Shaw instead names the Holy Spirit as her muse in Breath for the Bones.

Sometimes it helps to over-spiritualize things.

When I meet other writers, they ask me if I want to write a book. “Maybe eventually,” I’ve always said. I still feel like I’m in love with the love of writing, like I’m not ready to commit to this as a profession. It is an affair without the commitment and I don’t want to sacrifice the butterflies for the long-term, daily work of love that includes the non-sexy tasks of emptying the dishwasher and hanging the wet clothes on the line. But the time has come.

The Book is asking me to write it.

I was excited at first. But lately I’ve taken cues from my children and become a fantastic whiner. Just what my husband needs.

I made the mistake of going into Barnes and Noble. Thousands of beautiful books full of billions of words assaulted me. I couldn’t leave quickly enough. They seemed to all be harassing me, screaming, “We don’t need any more of these!”

But hanging on my husband’s neck in the kitchen after the kids had finally quieted down that night, I told him about the abuse I had suffered. I echoed the books’ words: “Why? Why does the world need another book?”

“Think about it like this,” he said. “The world doesn’t need another child, either. There are billions. And yet each one is precious—unique—and a necessary and beautiful contribution to the world. And people just keep birthing them.”

This from a man who consumes over 80 books a year and reads for a living. He has narrated a few horrible books in his lifetime. Surely he would save me from myself if I was way off track.

But he believes I can do it. I don’t think I would have even started writing without him as a coach, editor and cheerleader. God knew I wouldn’t venture out without at least one person in the world telling me I could do this.

So I released my inner madman this morning. He’s running all over the page. I’m listening. I lift my hands in terrified obedience–surrender, even.

Yes. I will serve the work.

Here we go.

If you are a writer, how do you find your brave?

*Contains Amazon affiliate links

What do Annie Dillard, Madeleine L'Engle, Luci Shaw and Rilke have in common?

August 6, 2017

Why I Write (because don’t we sometimes need to remember?)

I haven’t written in five weeks. Julia Cameron would call this taking time to “restock the pond” or “refill the well.” But it has been out of necessity more than creative intention.

I painted our entire house. Alabaster White now coats the renovated popcorn ceilings and hides the dark wood trim. Sherwin Williams “Silver Strand” cools most of the walls of the house, lending a faint blue, green or grey tint depending on the lighting of the room. There is still more to do, but now that we are living here, we will have to shift furniture and barricade rooms to get it done in the evenings after the kids have gone to bed.

I also took a break from podcasts, instead painting to playlists collected from illegally downloaded music while I was living in China. But I also painted to childhood favorites like the Big Chill soundtrack including “My Girl” and “I Heard it Through the Grapevine,” as well as my Christian youth group culture beloved albums like “Enter the Worship Circle” and the album I listened to freshman year of college—Chris Rice’s “Deep Enough to Dream.”

Becoming more adept at cutting in with the angled paintbrush, I numbly eased into the music of all the women I have been. Escaping into those old identities was more comforting than obsessing over whether or not I was trading those old selves for the American Dream.

But now I have to shut off the music, put down the paint brush and get back to regular life.

I must get back to writing.

But the amount of time it takes to be a writer (not to mention a mother who writes) and live in that headspace begs the question: Why do I write at all? You may write for different reasons, but this is why I do it.

I write to think. I think best with a pen or pencil in my hand. I told a friend once that I am not a verbal processor, but need a pen to work out my thoughts. “So what is that called?” I asked her. “A writer,” she said.

I write to stay sane. (Seriously.) My journal is my personal counselor. If my husband and I reach an impasse in our communication, I’ll grab my journal and hole myself up to write it all out until I’ve figured out what I am feeling and why. I almost always reach clarity through doing this. I have saved thousands of dollars on therapy simply by journaling.

I write to remember and keep a record of my life. I have purposely not bought a fantastic camera because I want to transcribe my memories with words and not just pictures. I rode the bus in China and would experiment with different ways I could describe my experience to friends and family back home who would never have the opportunity to visit. Pictures seemed a less challenging puzzle.

I write to connect. I used to be a letter writer. I still schlep boxes of letters around with me to each place I’ve lived. Blogging, for me, sometimes feels like a polished letter to a friend. It is the state of my heart right now, in this place. But it can also feel one-sided–like standing in a lit room at night with the shades wide open. Others are seeing me from the outside, but I can’t see them. In this way, writing makes me feel exposed. Yet the days I feel most vulnerable as a writer are inevitably the days I get an email from a reader saying, “Thank you.” And “Me, too.”

I write because I am compelled. When I fell in love with my husband, love was a rapid river current that would have been impossible to escape. Writing feels much the same. Since the word “calling,” makes me squeamish, I hesitate to use that word, and yet it is something like that. I’m committed, but I also can’t imagine not writing. Being trapped without a way of getting my thoughts out seems like the worst kind of punishment. Writing is a need, not a want.

Writing is a need, not a want.

Click To Tweet

And to spiritualize it all (because sometimes we need to do that, don’t we?), I write my life as an offering. I hope God will take my loaves and fish—the simplicity of my days—and use them to feed more than just myself. Writing demands faith because there is always the fear that I am just wasting my time and adding noise to the world. But God delights in creating banquets out of table scraps, abundance out of scarcity, and cool springs from parched land.

I trust that the God who makes tiny seeds grow from dirt can plant my word offerings in the world and cultivate beauty that wasn’t there before.

And so this week I return to work without pay, fame or fanfare. For all its impossible demands on my time and attention, not writing is a far worse torture.

If you are a writer, why do you write?

**Contains Amazon affiliate links

Category: writing

10 Podcasts for Writers & Creatives

Sign Up for My Monthly-ish Newsletter Here:

Afraid of Poetry? Start Here. {guest post}

Sign up for the Mid-month Digest and Secret Newsletter Here:

Places for (Edgy) Faith Writers to Publish

Online Collaborative Blogs (you’ll be paid in readers & community)

For Missionaries and Expats:

Writing about Motherhood:

If You Prefer to Get Paid, Try These:

Print Magazines (some pay, some don’t)

Sign up for the Mid-month Digest and Secret Newsletter Here:

A Writer’s Hotbed of Stupidity, Saints & Selfies (#FFW)

Here are a few highlights for me from FFW:

Sign up for the Mid-month Digest and Secret Newsletter Here:

My 14 Favorite Books on Writing and Creativity

On my “To Read” List:

Sign up for the Mid-month Digest and Secret Newsletter Here:

Writing Garbage

Sign up for the Mid-month Digest and Secret Newsletter Here:

State of the Blog (and some exciting changes)

What is the purpose of this blog?

Changes in Email & Blog Post Frequency

Changes in Content (sort of)

2018 Themes for Scraping Raisins

Sign up for Mid-Month Digest & Secret Newsletter Here:

The People Who Write Books

How Writers Find Their Brave

Why I Write (because don’t we sometimes need to remember?)

Welcome to Scraping Raisins!