I've Been Quoted!

In all my years of writing devotionals, articles, and books, as far as I knew my words had never been quoted by someone else. Today, through amazon.com, I found out I've been quoted!

When I typed in Pat Stockett Johnston at amazon.com I expected my newly released book, Mums the Word: Secrets to Growing Chrysanthemums for Home and Show to be at the top of the page. Instead, the book Pilot Light Christianity: The Danger of a Lukewarm Witness by Doug West, published on November 18, 2011, was on top.

Under the Kindle information was this:
Excerpt - Page 67: "... Argentina. The author, Pat Stockett Johnston, shared that, after ..."

This quote shares how band-aids and motorcycles helped a JESUS Film team share about Jesus' life in an Argentina village.I gotta admit it. I enjoyed finding out I had been quoted.

I have a 1-minute video on YouTube that shows one bloom for each of the 13 chrysanthemum classes. If you have time, please watch and then click on "like" for me. Thnx! http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=endscreen&NR=1&v=P7u-Fowfey0

About the Book Cover for Mums the Word

I've been working for several months on a book that  demonstrates how to grow mums for home and exhibition shows. I have 15 articles that share the monthly, mums-growing process in the online magazine Yahoo Voice: http://contributor.yahoo.com/user/795056/pat_stockett_johnston.html -I used these articles as a basis for the book.  

Mums the Word is a full-color, 42-page book. The chapters are built around around the tasks a grower must accomplish each month to have blooms to enjoy at home or submit in October and November exhibition shows.

I grew the mums blooms shown on the back and front covers last year. My friend Dale Welcome is a photographer. He asked me if he could take pictures of some of my flowers last fall. Of course I said yes! Dale printed some note cards using some of the pictures for me.

So when Debby Alten, the editor of G8Press, asked me for pictures for the book cover, I immediately thought of Dale's. He graciously agreed to format the pictures as requested by cover designer Alison Anderson for no charge. Alison did a great job on the cover. If you need a cover designed, I highly recommend her and her company, blue peacock creative: http://bluepeacockcreative.com

I asked for suggestions for the book title on my Facebook page. Both Beverly Mims and Jeanette Gardner Littleton suggested "Mums the Word." I'll be sending them a free copy of the book after it is published next week.

Mums the Word: Serets to Growing Chrysanthemums for Home or Show will soon be available through G8Press and amazon.com.

 

My Unexpected Article Response from a Facebook Friend

I’ll be honest. I signed up for Facebook because a faculty member at a writers conference insisted it was an important communication tool for every author. However, I kind of hee-hawed the idea of reaching the global world through my Facebook page. Until today.

A couple of days ago a Nazarene Facebook friend in India asked me if I had written any material that might be relevant in India. I mentioned I had written about some religious articles and devotionals that were published in the Yahoo! Voices online magazine. 

Then attached links to several of them, including this one:  http://voices.yahoo.com/my-unplanned-unexpected-personal-christian-7486838.html?cat=34

As soon as I signed in this morning I received a Facebook “Chat” message from him. “Your article about your personal Christian religious conversion is powerful,” he wrote. “I’ve sent the link to several of my friends. One of them, who is not of our faith, was moved by it. Can I print or distribute your article in India?”

I own the rights to my Yahoo! Voices articles, and I gladly gave him permission to reprint them. Then I said, “I find it amazing that an article written by a retired American missionary could be relevant in India.”

“You are a good writer because you speak and articulate the heart's language,” he replied. "I've just sent the link to a friend in Brazil."

Talk about encouragement! And it came all the way from India on Facebook.

Writing Tips from Cec Murphey Mentoring Clinic

A Step Beyond

Mentoring Clinic Review
by Pat Stockett Johnston

A couple of years ago my friend Julie said, "To write well enough to be published you need to attend a writer's conference." She handed me a brochure about a conference scheduled in April. "You should go."
During the two following years I attended that writers' conference plus several others. I benefited, not just from the honing of my writing skills, but from the opportunities to pitch my ideas for articles and books to publishers and editors. But I found the Writers Mentoring Clinic with Cecil (Cec) Murphey that I recently attended to be a step beyond the traditional writers' conference.

The Process

A month before the clinic date, Cec allowed the eight participants to e-mail him five double-spaced pages (fiction or nonfiction). He critiqued our submissions, (using the Word tracking option) up to three times before the start of the clinic. When Cec believed we'd mastered our first five pages, he told us to move on to the next five.

The Clinic

Each participant brought a laptop computer with a USB port and a flash drive to the clinic, which began on Wednesday evening and ended Saturday after lunch. When we arrived, Cec downloaded the latest edit of our pages. At the start of each day's session, Cec shared a list of common problems he'd come across while editing our material; afterward we serious writers got to work.
Cec spent the clinic days editing new submissions and meeting with us on an individual basis to discuss our manuscripts. At 4 p.m. we transferred our revisions via our flash drives to his laptop. He edited our new material before the next day's session so that we could begin each day with newly revised material. After the clinic Cec gave us two weeks to submit one last revision.

The New Insights

At the end of the clinic, the participants each listed tips from Cec that helped them improve their manuscripts. The new insights included:

For Nonfiction:

• Trust my writing and don't over-write.
   
• Review my writing and check for repeated phrases.
   
• Use contractions unless the manuscript is a formal or academic piece to avoid a stilted sound.
   
• The active voice is preferred; avoid passive voice verbs.
   
• Never use an exclamation mark if you can make the meaning clear without it.
   
• Every word must be needed; if it isn't needed, delete it.
   
• I learned to see specifically the words that detract from my message.

For Fiction:

• Make sure that one scene follows naturally from the previous scene, building on what's been established. Don't switch gears and drop what has already been set up for the reader to introduce a new subplot or character.
   
• Get more fully into the point-of-view character's mind, personality, and situation. Consider how he or she would think and react to what's happening rather than infusing my own natural thoughts or reactions into the scene.
   
• Identify strong words and end your sentences with them.
   
• Avoid filler words such as then, really, just, and very; they take up space but add no meaning.
   
• Insert narrative explanations without interrupting action.
   
• Pay more attention to word choice and tone.
   
• Avoid using names in a dialog.

For Both Fiction and Nonfiction:

• This and these refer to the present or something close by; that and those refer to the past or something that isn't actually present.
   
• Don't be afraid of the word said, because it is invisible. When you use other words, (replied, announced, answered, responded, etc.,) you call attention to how the speaker talked and not to what the speaker said.
   
• Afterward is American; afterwards is British.
   
• Don’t use clichés. Try to say it better using your own words.
   
• Check for rough transitions.
   
• Let my heart shine through. Don't place myself outside my writing.

Other comments included, "I don't just want to get my manuscript published; I want my writing to shine;" This valuable clinic has boosted my confidence in my own writing as well as my ability to help other authors improve their manuscripts;" "I'm a better writer than I give myself credit for." Cecil helped me to understand to write less difficult sentences and shorter paragraphs without dumbing down the information. Peter spoke for us all when he wrote, "Cec made a gargantuan difference in my writing. If the clinic had cost $2000, it would have been worth it to me."
Cec's statement helped us recognize our responsibility to help others just as we've been helped. We also agreed that writers who desire to significantly improve their writing—no matter what their level of talent or how much they've been published—would profit from participating in a mentoring clinic like this one.
For more information on his mentoring clinics, visit Cec's website at: themanbehindthewords.com

This article was first published in the Spirit-Led Writer online magazine:  http://www.spiritledwriter.com/jan08/clinic.html

Writing for the Quarterly Daily Devotional Magazine Reflecting God

I've been writing 7-day sets of devotionals for the quarterly devotional magazine Come Ye Apart/Reflecting God for fifteen years. The magazine is published by WordAction and the Nazarene Publishing House. My lastest set, for March 19-25, is in the Spring 2012 issue.

Getting an Assignment for Reflecting God

 I don't write query letters requesting an assignment. Instead, the current editor of Reflecting God sends me an email offering an assignment. The details for the Spring 2012 assignment included:

• Which issue: Spring 2012
• How many daily devotionals: one week (7)
• The word count for each devotional: 180-200 words
• A 2-3 word title
• Two-line quote from a public domain hymn found in the Sing to the Lord hymnal
• Due date if I accept the assignment: March 14, 2011. That gave me one month to write the devotionals.
• Adult Faith Connections Session Title taught at the end of the week of devotionals: What Will You Decide About Jesus?
• Scripture readings and Key Verse for each day. Example: 3/19 - SR: Mark 2:23-3:6; KV: "[T}he Son of Man is Lord even of the Sabbath' (Mark 2:28).
• Payment: $115
• I am asked to accept or reject the assignment as soon as it is convenient. (I answered "yes" the same day.)

The Contract

I received two copies of a contract that included all the details of the Spring 2012 devotionals assignment by mail a week later. I signed one copy and returned it to the publisher in a post-paid envelope, and filed the second copy. I also included a hard copy of a recent photo of myself, as the Reflecting God magazine includes an "Introducing Our Contributors" page with a picture and short bio for each contributor.

With the contracts came a copy of the Reflecting God Writing Guidelines and Procedures. Those included:  

1. Some direction for preparing my heart before writing: "Jesus said, 'For out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks. Good people bring good things out of the good stored up in them...' (Mat. 12:34b-35a, TNIV). Your own walk with God will produce insights God can use to draw others closer to him."   

I  begin by reading the assigned scripture in 2-3 versions of the Bible. Then I'll read what several commentaries, including The New Interpreter's Bible, have to say about the verses. As I read, I pray for the Spirit's inspiration and guidance for illustrations that reflect how the scripture relates to twenty-first century believers.

2. How to develop a single theme for each devotional: "As you study the scripture assignment, write down insights that come to you. Choose the one that you believe would encourage growth in the spiritual ife of readers. Rewrite the insight into a single, simple sentence. This will become your theme. Unlike sermons or longer assignments, you don't have the luxury of developing more than one point."

3. I'm to remember that style matters so I should:

• Begin each devotional with a strong lead-in sentence.
• Avoid spiritual, church, or technical jargon.
• Avoid use of the passive voice.
• Be careful of TMI (Too Much "I")
• Document all quotes. If I can't, don't use them.
• Watch my word count. Don't go under 180 or over 200 words.
• Write a closing sentence that "ties a bow" on the devotional.
• Title my work.
• Select a 2-line hymn quote

4. Directions for submitting the set of devotionals (The Work):

•  Read, review, and revise before submitting.
• Save the seven devotionals in one document.
• Include my name as I would like it to appear, my city and state, a short bio (25 words or less).
• Submit the devotionals and supporting info to the email address provided.
• Will receive acknowledgment of receival of the "work" by email.

I confess that I find writing sets of devotionalswith such a short word count a challenge. Getting an idea across in 180-200 words demands careful editing and tight writing. Writing devotionals also brings joy--a chance to follow the Spirit's leading and draw the reader closer to God. You can't beat that.


 
 

Memories of My First Christmas in Another Land

"It doesn't even feel like Christmas!" Tears welled up as I turned towards my husband. "The familiar sights and sounds that proclaim it's the Christmas Season don't exist in Beirut. No Christmas decorations brighten the stores or our neighborhood apartment buildings. No outdoor lights glow with Christmas cheer. No manger scenes are displayed in front yards. No fresh Christmas trees are available here either, and that skinny, artificial Christmas tree we bought is a far cry from our beautiful, 6-foot flocked tree last year. How are we going to celebrate Christmas in this place?" I fell into my husband's arms. Read more