I just read a sentence from a children’s lesson about the Bible that leaves me bewildered. I don’t want to reveal the source, but here is the sentence: “Through the past centuries many ungodly men have determined and tried to destroy the Bible, the Word of God, but have not been able to accomplish it.” … Continue reading Give them reasons to believe
writing
The first step in keeping your child out of prison
Teach him to read. Maybe this sounds overly simplistic, but a young adult who is illiterate is unqualified for all but the most menial jobs. You can't even work at McDonald's if you can't read the job instructions or the words on the screen of the till. 96% of the available jobs are out of … Continue reading The first step in keeping your child out of prison
Why Couldn’t I Be The Healthy One?
It was the morning after my father's funeral and my cousin Dennis and I were sitting at a table with my mother looking at old photographs. Here was a school phot from when I was in Grade 2 in a one-room school. There were two little boys in the front row, one bright-eyed, smiling and … Continue reading Why Couldn’t I Be The Healthy One?
Book Review – Talent is Not Enough
Here is the long-promised review of Mollie Hunter's book on writing for children. First let me warn you that this is not a "Christian" book, it is not a book for those who merely want to entertain children, nor is it a how-to book. But it is an inspiring book. Mollie Hunter has a rare … Continue reading Book Review – Talent is Not Enough
Learning the craft of writing
The child that was myself was born with a little talent, and I have worked hard, hard, hard to shape it. Yet even this could not have made me a writer, for there is no book can tell anything worth saying unless life itself has first said it to the person who conceived that book. … Continue reading Learning the craft of writing
The sad state of publishing
Doesn't everybody have a dream about writing a fantastic book that will be bought by a major publisher, where an editor will be assigned to fine tine the manuscript, a publicist will be assigned to promote the book, and everyone will live happily ever after? Forget about it. It's not going to happen. The publishing … Continue reading The sad state of publishing
Memories of the Inscribe Conference
You know you're in a group of writers when a workshop leader asks each participant to name five of their favourite books from childhood and one includes the dictionary in her list. She says she used to read two pages a day. And nobody thought that was weird. That happened in Colleen McCubbin's class on … Continue reading Memories of the Inscribe Conference
Driving home beneath the lunar eclipse
We left out friends in Alberta just after 4:00 PM to return home to Saskatchewan. We stopped for supper at Provost and when we got back out on the highway this great white moon was straight in front of us and just above the horizon. There was a little bite out of the left size … Continue reading Driving home beneath the lunar eclipse
Making a faux pas
Today I stepped out of the place where I was working and started out for the nearest convenience store to find myself something to eat. Halfway there I made a misstep (a faux pas) and felt myself going face first towards the ground. My first thought was that I am going to be at a … Continue reading Making a faux pas
The pursuit of happiness
Times are tough for writers today. Every writers' group and every writers' conference tells us that no publisher will even look at a book manuscript unless the author has an impressive "writer's platform." That would consist of a blog with at least 10,000 followers and a similar presence on Facebook and Twitter. And then there … Continue reading The pursuit of happiness
Flatlander Faith 