A Step in the Write
Direction
June 30, 2014
Update: Not much
to update this week. Still resting up from the Oklahoma trip and getting ready
for the Michigan trip, and finishing several editing/proofreading jobs including
the galleys for the updated Step in the
Write Direction book. I do have a
prayer request to share though. My “bestest” friend (friends for 69 years) is
now under hospice care at home with cancer of the liver. I visited her Saturday
and she was cheerful as usual, but thin and a little confused at times. Prayer
request, however, is for her husband—a super nice guy, but doesn’t know the Lord
and this is what bothers Kathy the most—that she won’t see him again. Say a
little prayer for the two of them today, would you?
Thanks!
Thought for
Today: The
disciplined person, the disciple, is someone who is able to do what needs to be
done when it needs to be done. The whole purpose of the [spiritual] disciplines
is to enable you to do the right thing at the right time in the right spirit”
(John Ortberg & Dallas Willard, Living in Christ’s Presence, 2014,
143).
Laugh for the
Day: One day, my husband announced to the family that he was
going to fast and pray. Ginny, our five-year-old, had recently learned that
fasting meant not eating. "No!" she shouted. "You can't fast! You'll die!" Her
dad carefully explained that many men and women fasted in Bible times. Ginny
paused a moment. Then, with a flash of insight and a note of warning, she proved
her point: "And they're all dead!" she said. (The Gospel Greats Newsletter, June 24,
2014)
Second
laugh: Here’s 1-second video that’ll
make you laugh, especially if you’re over 40: www.youtube.com/embed/qteu4ld_SCE?rel=0
Song for the Day:
More about Jesus in His
Word,
Holding communion with my
Lord,
Hearing His voice in ev’ry
line,
Making each faithful saying
mine.
—Eliza E. Hewitt, 1851–1920
(Do we Hear His voice in every line we
write?)
Writer’s Tips (#5 of unpublished
writer’s devotional book):
Our Reward for Writing
Do you not know that in a race all runners run, but only one gets
the prize?
Run in such a way as to get the prize. Everyone who competes in the
games
goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not
last; but we do it
to get a crown that will last forever (1 Corinthians 9:24-25).
A
speaker at a writer’s conference asked the question, “Would you write if you
didn’t get a byline?” I’m sure, knowing we were all Christian writers, he
expected all of us to answer with a resounding “Of course!”
I
was a little slow at answering the question in my mind. My first thought was,
Other editors might see the article and want to purchase it for their
magazine. How would they know who wrote it? Then I thought, What if a
reader wants to get in touch with me—not necessarily to offer praise for the
article, but to let me know it helped them, or to share something they’re going
through. They won’t know my name.
My
final answer, however, was that the message was more important than the
byline—which is why I often write deeply personal articles under a pen
name.
There
is an old story about the Greek Marathon. Muscular, conditioned runners paced
nervously near the starting line for the long-distance race. In the midst of it
all, a young stranger with an awesome physique took his place at the starting
line. Taking no notice of the other contestants, he stared straight ahead. Two
prizes awaited the winner: a bouquet of flowers and the honor of standing beside
the king.
There
was no question of who would win, and allegedly someone offered the stranger
money and property not to run. Refusing the offers, he toed the mark and when
the signal was given, he was the first away—and the first to cross the finish
line.
At
the end of the race, a bystander asked the young man if he thought the flowers
were worth as much as the money and property he had refused. He replied, “I did
not enter the race for the flowers. I ran so that I could stand beside my
king!”
Bylines
are nice, checks are more than welcome, but oh, to someday cross the finish line
and stand before our King!
Would
you write without a byline? Why or why not?
Have a good week spreading
the
gospel through
the printed page.
Donna Clark
Goodrich
dgood648@aol.com
www.thewritersfriend.net
http://donna-goodrich.blogspot.com
"A Step in the Write Direction--the Complete How-to Guide for Christian Writers"
When I started my blog, I chose to use the name of the writing ministry for part of my blog title. When I composed and edited two newsletters for a nonprofit ministry, I kept my name off the pages,likewise when I submit items for our church's newsletter.
ReplyDeleteBut, aren't there times when we need to include our name as a byline? Books, and articles submitted to magazines come to mind.
I would say 99% of the time I do use my real name as my byline; however, several times (as in the case of my great-nephew's suicide and my article on living with a disabled husband) there were other people involved who might want to see those personal details in print so I chose to use a pen name. I think what I was trying to get across is that in some cases the message is more important than the byline. Of course, if I did use a pen name and someone wrote to the magazine about the article, the editor would know my real name and would forward the letter on to me. There are several authors who write under their real names AND pen names, such as Dennis Hensley who writes mostly nonfiction, but who writes novels under a pen name. Thanks for writing!
ReplyDelete
ReplyDeleteWhoops,I meant to say "other people involved who might NOT want to see..."