By Stephen R. Clark Have you ever been in a lively discussion when you realize that you’ve talked past what you know on the topic? Or else you took a conversational wrong turn with no clue how to get back to the main topic? You’re on conversational thin ice or lost on a rabbit trail […]
Continue ReadingBy Jason Dreistadt Creativity is more than equipment. It is more than typing or clicking. It is more than the latest and greatest fonts and color palette. Creativity encompasses more than all of that. It is a mindset… a way of life, if you will, that includes both the approach as well as the execution. […]
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By Tim Walker Sometimes imposter syndrome is based on a little reality. In 1996, a friend suggested I apply for a job editing a student devotional magazine at Walk Thru the Bible Ministries. I was a long-shot—not an ideal candidate. I had work experience… just not editorial experience. I had writing experience… just not writing […]
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By Joyce K. Ellis An ambulance whips in front of the hospital’s emergency entrance. One paramedic leaps from behind the steering wheel. Another jumps out the back, dangling an IV bag above the head of a lifeless patient. Inside the ER, Nurse Bella quickly takes vitals while other staff connect monitors. “I can’t get a […]
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By Andy Butcher Imagine going to church next weekend and finding the women in the choir have traded their gowns for micro-skirts and midriff-baring halter tops. When you inquire about the new dress code, you’re told that people expect a bit of skin these days, so we’re just giving people what they want—only in a […]
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By Randy Petersen I have no words. For a writer, that’s a strange place to be. Maybe you’re feeling something similar. This is no “writer’s block.” We know all about those cerebral deserts. Channel some bad Hemingway, laugh about it, and you can usually write your way out. But there’s no laughing now. Just a […]
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Race, Grace and Forgiveness? Can We Write Our Way to Racial Healing? This was the subject of a candid and interactive exploration of how writers of every background can help heal racial wounds by writing truthfully about our racial struggles and journeys. What’s required? How does one start? What narrative and spiritual elements make a […]
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Like a good meal, the best journalism depends on having the right ingredients. Gifted cooks can make macaroni cheese taste pretty good, but they can’t produce a real banquet without having the best fixings to work with. It’s why so much of today’s go-with-what-we’ve-got instant “news” is just fast food, a few morsels to be […]
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Have you ever written a first-person article and wondered why it fell flat? If so, maybe I can help you with a tried-and-tested writing principle. This principle has a particular application for first-person articles, but it pertains to all nonfiction writing. I didn’t learn this from a writing book, but inferred it after reading Dale […]
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By Chris Maxwell Poetry is, at least for me, like life. Life isn’t a three-point sermon. Life isn’t a doctrinal debate. Life isn’t a lecture series. Life isn’t a new platform for the coolest and newest and tightest and loudest performance. Life, to me, is poetry. I know. Many poems aren’t smooth. They aren’t always […]
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