Introducing guest author Colleen Pressprich “Independence from God is an illusion that harms us.” These words from this month’s Magnificat have been echoing in my heart this week. Partially through Lent, I had gotten complacent in my prayer life, and with this one sentence, God cut through the distracted thoughts […]
Writers: Journal Your Faith Story, part 2
Part 2: The long and the short of it Last month in Part 1, I stressed preparing to evangelize by keeping a spiritual journal. As writers, we know that brevity gets attention! Focused words sell! To write an effective elevator speech, first, write a long faith bio from bullet points […]
A retreat to remember
The camaraderie with other writers at the Catholic Writers Retreat was exciting and the speakers encouraging. The space and time to write was a breath of peace in my over busy life. We had plenty of time slots designated for writing and a critique group of ten writers in various […]
How to Benefit from a Critique Group
I’m excited about presenting the Non-Fiction Critique Workshop at the Catholic Writers Guild Live Conference, July 18-21, for the fourth year. I draw from my experience as facilitator and co-facilitator of two different critique groups to demonstrate how a critique group works. Here are some guidelines on the whys and […]
When Picking up Your Pen Is Picking up Your Cross
By Janice Lane Palko How do you regard your writing career? Perhaps you’re like me. I’ve been putting words on paper for more than 20 years, and I’ve always regarded my propensity to write as a being a blessing and as a calling of sorts. I wrote last month how […]
Who Do You Say That I Am?
By Janice Lane Palko You’ve seen those Ancestry commercials about people who believe they are one race or nationality and then take a DNA test and find out they are not who they thought they were. My husband could be featured in one of those commercials. This past Christmas, I […]
Pick up the Orange
By Janice Lane Palko Some people receive profound promptings from the Holy Spirit. Me? I get messages like “pick up the orange.” A few weeks ago, I walked into my local grocery store and saw a woman select some oranges and put them in a plastic bag. As she walked […]
A Writer’s Voice
Do you spend time in conversation about the material you write? If not, you may be in danger of losing your voice. Writing is, ultimately, a means of communication – a two-way street. Without an audience – in mind, or on hand – it can become flat and lifeless. Such […]
Why Attend an Online Conference Like CWCO2016?
CWCO2016 is almost here! It’s set for March 4-6, and all the terrific details are at http://catholicwritersconference.com. It’s $40 for nonmembers, $25 for CWG members. Drop by the website and register soon. Registration ends Feb 27 or when we get 200 attendees. It’s been a long haul for Laura Lowder […]
Writers: Journal your Faith Story, Part 1
Part 1 – Always be ready to evangelize As a sidebar to my presentation of “Sharing Your Faith Story as a Writer” for the March 4-6 Catholic Writers Conference Online, I stress the value of preparing to evangelize by maintaining a spiritual journal. Writers keep a journal to capture inspirations, […]