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Words For Writers

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A Touch of Madness

by Ginny L. Yttrup | Creativity | 0 Comments

My hands poised on the keyboard tingled with an odd neuropathy as words threatened to explode through my fingertips. I yanked my hands back. My knees hit the bottom of the desktop as I stood, rattling pens in a ceramic mug on the desk. The glare from the...

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Inspiration for the Writing Life from Merriam-Webster

by Ginny L. Yttrup | May 30, 2023 | Uncategorized | 0 Comments

Recently, I was accosted by a stereotypical Monday. I emerged from the gauze of sleep, stretched, pulled the covers tight, and nestled in like it was Saturday morning. Just as I was falling back into the bliss of slumber, the distant drone of traffic tapped at my...

Walk Away

by Ginny L. Yttrup | April 30, 2023 | Uncategorized | 0 Comments

Occasionally, you may want to walk away from something—a writing project, an overwhelming task, a relational issue. Just walk. Walk away despite the insistent voice hissing its condemning messages to your mind, your soul. When the voice condemns, there’s a good chance...

Finding the Forest

by Ginny L. Yttrup | March 31, 2023 | Faith, Writing Life | 20 Comments

Sometimes, as writers, we lose sight of the forest for the trees. Focused on the details of our writing life, we forget to rest in the shade of God’s perfect plan. Over the last three years, I’ve struggled to see God’s plan for my career as a novelist—a struggle I’ve...

Preaching to the Choir?

by Ginny L. Yttrup | February 28, 2023 | Faith, Gifts, Spiritual Gifts, Uncategorized | 8 Comments

Are those of us who write for the Christian marketplace “preaching to the choir,” crafting a message for those who already embrace the message? That question has swirled in my mind for many years. It came around again last month during the Words for Writers Book Club...

Live the Tension

by Ginny L. Yttrup | November 29, 2022 | Faith, Tension, Writing Life | 4 Comments

Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see. This is what the ancients were commended for. Hebrews 11:1–2 NIV Tension. Tension is unanswered questions. Tension is unresolved conflict. Tension is a crafting tool for writers....

Tips for Solid Planning

by Ginny L. Yttrup | November 15, 2022 | Planning, Writing Life | 2 Comments

I am not a planner by nature. Instead, planning is a skill I’m nurturing, especially this month. I’ve set aside time to rest, recharge, and reevaluate the work I’m doing. To consider what, if anything, needs to change. To determine what I want to focus on moving...

In All Circumstances

by Ginny L. Yttrup | October 30, 2022 | Desire, Discouragement, Thanksgiving | 18 Comments

Do you sometimes wish for things you don’t possess? Do you long for gifts you haven’t received? Each morning, I set out from my house in search of unobstructed views. I walk, hoping to find vistas where beauty beckons. Where the breeze whispers reminders. Of purpose...

Promote Myself? No, Thanks!

by Ginny L. Yttrup | October 16, 2022 | Platform, Promotion | 2 Comments

Platform building is the consistent work of offering relationships to email subscribers and social media followers, first by attracting them, then by serving them with our authentic selves through the content we create and provide The 31-Day Platform Challenge...

Five Lessons from the Road to Publication

by Ginny L. Yttrup | September 30, 2022 | Publication, Rejection, Surrender | 9 Comments

I pulled into the cabin’s driveway, put my car in park, and turned off the ignition. I stared into the inky night. The giant redwoods that surrounded the cabin, boughs stretched wide, offered strength and steadfastness in the light of day. But at night, they loomed. ...

Rest + Community

by Ginny L. Yttrup | September 4, 2022 | Community, Creativity | 4 Comments

Last week marked the end of a very long, busy summer of packing up my house and moving. Finally mostly settled, I put my to-do list aside and hopped in my car for a 45-minute drive across town to meet two other busy writers for lunch. A long lunch. A lunch that...