How Case Studies Can Make You a Better Writer

If you were learning about photography or medicine or how to make rosettes when icing a cake, you'd look at a model -- a case study, if you will. Right? You'd study photos that used different techniques, documented ailments and successful courses of treatment in medicine, and a recipe or a YouTube video before you ever touched the tip of a piping bag to a cake.

For fiction writers, everyone recommends that one of the best ways to grow is to read, read, read. But there's a big difference between reading for entertainment and reading to improve your craft. The latter form makes a science of it, which can help you understand the bones and techniques of your work in useful ways.

You can glean a lot from other authors to help you produce original, creative work -- and not just the structure of a novel/novella. A few of the case studies I like to do include:

• Reading back cover summaries on Amazon and observing the general structure and techniques of the most captivating ones before writing my own.
• Looking at popular movie taglines before writing one for my proposal or pitch. 
• Studying the beginnings and endings of chapters for tips on how to draw readers in and keep them reading.

But there's a big difference between an author studying a comparable novel and a chemist reading a lab report. Here are some tips to make case studies work and amp up your creativity:

Avoid copycatting at all costs. How can we maintain our unique creativity when we are consuming the work of others for inspiration? Easy. When you take notes or outline, use general terms and loose estimates. For example, instead of writing down "Jenny and Kyle decide to put aside their differences and go in on the business together to avoid losing what they both want," I write down "10-25% mark: external goal revealed; relationship between the hero and heroine starts to grow." Write it down in general terms that capture an element this author has done well but leave room for what will work with the story you're telling. 

On that note, if studying structure, make sure to scale. Since your word count will likely not be the same and divided into different chapters, estimate the percentage of the whole work at which your note occurs. If you write down that the black moment occurs in chapter 20, your chapter 20 may be barely past the middle of your manuscript while this book is 80% finished. Percentages work much better.

Don't be afraid to venture into different genres. Do you know of an author who supposedly does something brilliantly? Read it and learn! In the creative disciplines, reading/researching a variety of genres provides an invaluable perspective that amps up the creativity and helps artists and authors produce through a wider, multi-dimensional lens. This also helps with the uniqueness factor, too.

Protect your voice and feel free to give yourself wiggle room. Make sure you maintain your individual voice that reflects the rest of your work. And feel free to "break the rules" if you're so led. Sometimes case studies can illuminate what we don't want our work to look like or inspire us to go in a completely different direction.

No matter what, I hope you find inspiration in the science of novel writing that case studies provide!

I'm working through the pictured novella collection for a new project and often look at Jenny B. Jones's backmatter before writing my own. Is there an author you'd pick to case study for your own project?

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Laurie Tomlinson is a wife and mom from Tulsa, Oklahoma, who is passionate about intentional living, all things color-coded, and stories of grace in the beautiful mess. Previously a full-time book publicist, she owns a freelance copywriting, editing, and PR consulting business called 1624 Communications. 

She's a member of the American Christian Fiction Writers, a two-time Genesis Award winner, and the runner-up in the 2015 Lone Star Contest's Inspirational category. Her work is represented by Rachel Kent of Books & Such Literary.

You can connect with Laurie here:

Facebook - AuthorLaurieTomlinson

Twitter - @LaurieTomlinson

Web - www.LaurieTomlinson.com

Methods To Plot Your Novel

Photo by audFriday13
freedigitalphotos.net

Many people are gearing up to begin NaNoWriMo next month and so I thought I would share some awesome blog posts on plotting that I found. These are great tools for those who need a little punch in their plotting craft.

Kaye Dacus: Look What @Sherrinda Made Me Do
A look into Kaye's storyboarding/plotting while she is furiously trying to meet a deadline.

Erica Vetsch: Plotting and Pages
A look into Erica's plotting techniques.

Julia Reffner: Storyboarding for "Plodders" & "Mist Flyers", Storyboarding Part I
Great look into the benefits of storyboarding.

Cindy Wilson: Writing With A Formula (even if you are not a plotter)
A great tool for figuring out your story's main plot.

I would also recommend My Book Therapy's book, From the Inside Out...discover, create, & publish the novel in you. It is a great tool and very simplistic, and has worksheets to help you think through your story in the development stages. I love this book!

How do YOU plot out your story?

***Links are from my personal blog October 22, 2010.**

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This post is brought to you by

 Sherrinda Ketchersid

Sherrinda is a minister's wife and mother to three giant sons and one gorgeous daughter. A born and bred Texan, she writes historical romance filled with fun, faith, and forever love.

Writing A Synopsis

If there's one thing authors hate writing, it's synopses. What is it about these things that is so difficult?

Just before the ACFW conference, my agent encouraged me to develop my book into a series concept, which is an idea I was (and am) very excited about. Problem? I haven't written the other two books. Sure, I had some ideas floating around in my head that I was excited about, but ideas and outlines are two very different things.


So I started researching online for synopsis tips and tricks. And I kept coming across these things: 1) The synopsis is dreaded.  2) All writers hate synopses. 3) Your synopsis will probably be awful writing. Just expect it.

Uh, anyone else not okay with that idea? Let's just throw in the towel before we even give it a try, shall we?

You wouldn't think it would be that hard. I mean, it's only a couple pages. I can see all sorts of areas for improvement in other authors' synopses, so I should also be able to see the same weaknesses in my own, right? Wrong.

In the past few months, if there's one thing I've learned, it's that synopses really are challenging. But they don't have to be dreaded. See, the thing about synopses that's so cool is that they offer you something very powerful, and that is a big picture approach for your book before you even write it. If you can write a well-organized, thoughtful synopsis of your story, writing your book is going to be that much easier because you'll be able to stay focused.

Today I'm compiling the information I've learned through the process of writing, rewriting, rewriting, and rewriting my synopses again. (By the way, a major shout out to Angie, who read every version of my synopsis and never threatened to ban me from her inbox, but instead offered helpful suggestions each time around!) I hope you find this to be a helpful resource for you as you work on your own synopses, and I hope it helps take a little bit of the terror out of the processes. I've adapted many of these concepts from Cami Tang's synopsis worksheet, from MBT resources, and just from my own general reactions of disgust when I realized something was really, really not working for my plot.

• The Plot Level

• External goal. Your protagonist's external goal needs to be very clear, very early on. Preferably even the first paragraph. Editors like to see that this girl knows where she's going and what she wants. This is so important because it helps pave the way for the obstacles she is going to encounter along the way.
• The inciting incident. Usually this is going to come in you first or second paragraph. What incident throws your protagonist into the story? Loss of her job? A sudden move across the country? A scratch-off lotto win? The realization she's a princess? (Sorry, couldn't resist. Who doesn't love Princess Mia?)
• Obstacles. Include two or three external obstacles that keep your heroine from reaching her goal. These need to be believable, legitimate, and clear. "She ran out of Godiva truffles and missed an important meeting because she had to go to the grocery store for more" is probably not a very good obstacle, although we can all sympathize.
• Black Moment. How does it all come crashing down? This could be one of your obstacles.
• Resolution. Be sure you show us how the plot threads connect to bring us to the ending.

• Emotional Level

• Dark moment. What moment from your character's past is holding them back? This moment should shape some kind of fear or apprehension that fights against (or perhaps further compels) their push toward their external plot goal.
• Desire. Your character needs an emotional desire that will give her motivation to climb her way past the obstacles you put in her way. In a romance, your character likely is going to desire love, yet hold herself back from a relationship with the hero because ________. This reason will relate to the dark moment, so that the desire and the resistance create a push/pull effect that draws in your reader. Also, you can relate your character's emotional desire to their desire to accomplish an external goal, thus tying together the plot and emotional threads.
• Black moment. In the same way that the black moment causes the external goal to fall apart, the black moment should also (seem to) confirm your heroine's greatest fear, thus positioning her to find the strength to conquer that fear and attain the goal (or not, but at least find closure in the process).
• Resolution. The emotional level must be resolved. Even if you don't allow the character to reach their external goal, unless you're writing literary fiction, your character should attain her emotional goal. Otherwise, readers are going to be very mad.

• Spiritual Level

• Lie. Your character needs to believe a lie throughout the book, not only about herself (i.e. she's safer not risking her heart in a relationship), but also about her faith/God. The emotional level and spiritual level can relate to each other, but they both must be clear. If you're going to sell to a CBA publisher, they are going to want to see some sort of faith journey depicted in the book. And really, isn't that why we as CBA writers have chosen to write for CBA? We should take advantage of this privilege and include the spiritual arc in our characters' journeys.
• Obstacles. Just like the plot obstacles should show setbacks and growth within the character's emotional arc, these obstacles should impact her spiritual arc as well. You want to confirm her worst fear, then force her to face it and help her get beyond it. You can utilize your external goal and obstacles to really play around with the emotional and spiritual stakes and journey. If you get stuck, think about your own life. You might think you would never face ___________, but what if you could find love, youth, or a free trip to Hawaii on the other side of that obstacle? Brainstorm some motivations that would be strong enough (on the plot level) to force your characters out of their comfort zones. 
• Healing. This is where the bring-you-to-tears moment comes in if you play your cards right. After your character goes through those obstacles--and once again, they need to be challenging, difficult obstacles--we will respect her for her strength, dignity, and courage for how she faced these challenges head on (even if not perfectly) on her quest toward her external goal. Throughout this process, God is working on her heart more and more, until finally she finds a breakthrough. The light through the clouds. Spiritual epiphany. It's really important that you include this moment of hope and spiritual healing in your synopsis so that whoever is reading your synopsis is clear about the spiritual takeaway readers will get from your story.

A few notes...

You'll want to include these elements for each of your primary characters. So if it's a romance, we'll need to see a basic plot, emotional, and spiritual arc for your hero as well as your heroine, although you'll probably want to spend more time with the heroine.

Remember to include your voice in your synopsis. You may want to write a draft where you just focus on getting all the elements in, then revise it with your own dazzle. But however you go about it, make sure the writing really shines, because this is the first taste an editor or agent has of your writing style. If you can hook them with your voice in the synopsis, then you've really accomplished something.

Try, as best you can, to play these elements off each other, so that your main characters' lies, for instance, cause problems with each other. In my most recent book, my heroine is afraid of abandonment, and my hero is afraid of being a failure/letting down the woman he loves. I'll leave you to guess what he does, and how that affects her. Try to find a way that the characters' black moments play into each other, and your story will be stronger from that irony.

Have fun! Yes, I know what you're thinking. No way is that going to happen. But all too often, we listen to all the negative buzz about synopses... they're dreaded, they're hard, and they are going to be awful. Don't adopt that defeatist perspective. Sure, brainstorming can be frustrating, but it's so rewarding to have a big picture version of your story before you've even started writing it.

Take these sections a little at a time. This is advice I am giving you from experience. It is all too easy to take on too much at once, but you'll end up frustrated. Let the ideas come to you naturally. Go to a coffee shop and eavesdrop. Imagine possibilities. Talk to your characters out loud. Pray about your characters' struggles and stories. Seek the help of those with fresh perspectives, like critique partners, mentors, and friends. When you open your mind to creative possibilities, you'll find that the ideas flow much more easily.

Have you ever written a synopsis? What did you learn through the process? What do you think is the hardest thing about writing synopses?

Catching A Vision, Part 2: The Big Picture Behind the Book

For part one of this series, I talked about the importance of vision in our lives when it comes to fulfilling our callings. Today I want to take things to a more specific level and apply some of these same concepts to each book we’re writing.

Have you ever been in the middle of writing and realized that you no longer really know what your book is about? Sometimes this realization can be frustrating, as we realize we’ve gone down too many rabbit trails and haven’t stayed focused to our key plot points. Other times it can be exciting because we know we’ve stumbled upon an even greater idea than we had originally.

But either way, there’s something about that first draft that’s so disheartening. It’s flat out hard to write, really. Putting the words on the page for the first time can be exhilarating when we get to an exciting scene, but most of the time, it’s painful! The creative side of our brain is flittering to action with different ideas, while the critical side keeps saying, “Uh, you might want to throw in the towel on this one. Have you actually read anything you’ve written so far on this WIP? Because it stinks.” Have you been there? Raising my hand right now because I know I have!

When we face these moments of what I would call the discipline of writing--where it becomes something we stick with because we are committed, even if our first-draft words are kind of terrible—it’s so important to keep our vision in mind, because that’s what keeps us going.

You can either use these bullets as you plot your book, before you even begin writing; or as you edit, working to pull out the most important aspects of what you’ve created. Ultimately, remind yourself that the story God has put on your heart will not write itself. Unless we all sit down consistently and get the words on the page, the only person that story is impacting is ourselves. And that’s a selfish way to use our gifts, really. So here are several ways to help you stay encouraged and keep a big-picture approach to your book, so that on the days you feel like giving up, you can remind yourself why your story rocks, and why you wanted to write it in the first place.

Vision for Ministry

One of the easiest things for me to lose sight of is the spiritual thread of my books, which is ironic because it’s also the most important element to me. It can be so easy to get caught up in the details that we begin to see our WIP’s  as simply a practice for editing. Spend some time daydreaming about your future readers. Imagine it’s your book people are reading on the beach, or the in airport, or in bed at night before they go to sleep. How would this change the way we are writing? Don’t be afraid to allow your calling to empower your writing. That’s the way it’s meant to be.

Vision for Plot and Characters

Sometimes it’s easy to get so fixated on the knitty-gritty that we neglect our characters’ hearts. I know I talk a lot about Robin Jones Gunn’s writing, but one of the reasons I love her so much is because she does this in her stories. She makes readers really care about the characters, so that when they experience transformation in their lives, we experience the same thing. Checking your dialogue tags for repetition and paying attention to what characters are wearing can only go so far if we don’t have a heart for the characters to begin with, and for us to feel that way, we need to really be aware of their big-picture journeys.

Vision for Tone and Voice

God has gifted you with a voice.  In my own writing, I find it so much more difficult to write in my natural voice when I feel shut down for some reason. This is particularly the case if I’ve received some overly-harsh criticism, or if I’ve allowed doubts to flood my mind. Another thing that can affect tone is the fear of what other people will think. Should I wrote an Amish novel, for instance, because those certainly seem to be selling! If we’re not careful, we become more consumed about market than we do about vision. The ironic thing is, most bestsellers actually do so well because they are unique. So be conscious of genre conventions, sure—but don’t write to the market, or you’ll always feel as if you’re missing the mark. If we aren’t writing in our sweet spot when it comes to the voice and tone of our novel, we’ll never really feel as if our vision for the book has been accurately portrayed.

How do you keep your vision for a large project? Do you ever find your vision for a story waning when you begin to feel discouraged?

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Ashley Clark writes romantic comedy with southern grace. She's dreamed of being a writer ever since the thumbprint-cookie-days of library story hour. Ashley has an M.A. in English and enjoys teaching literature courses at her local university. She's an active member of ACFW and runs their newcomer's loop. When she's not writing, Ashley's usually busy rescuing stray animals and finding charming new towns. You can find Ashley on her personal blog, Facebook,Pinterest, and Twitter. She is represented by Karen Solem.

Let's Get Real

Yesterday, Karen wrote an amazing post about deepening the emotional resonance of your prose. If you missed it, scroll down! But today, I'm going to talk about another way to deepen the layers of your story, and that is by writing honestly.

Have you ever read a story and thought to yourself, "Give me a break. That would never happen in real life"? I find this happens a lot with romances because they're so formulaic. And I feel cheated every time I invest in a story, only to realize I've read the exact same thing fifty times. This can happen in any genre. The hero is a little too perfect. The heroine reminds us of a certain curvy plastic doll. And the only thing keeping them from finding what they're looking for is a little self-discovery. A trip to France, and wha-la! Everything is perfect. We're left with that just-ate-too-much-sugar feeling.

I think we have a responsibility as authors to be honest with our audience and honest with ourselves. It's not easy. All too often, when I'm writing, I get this sneaking suspicion that I'm not quite digging deep enough to my heart for the story. Has this ever happened to you? It can be so much easier to write surficial prose and play it safe, writing what we think readers will want to buy.

But is this really being true to our calling?

Writing deep, honest prose is difficult because it requires vulnerability on our part. The critiques, the contest feedback, the rejections all hit us on a more personal level when we've put ourselves, our own struggles, into our writing. But the results are so much more rewarding. These are the stories that inspire, that stick with the reader. These are the stories that change lives.

The following are three ways I think we can be intentional about conveying that vulnerability and crafting better stories.


1) Honest characters. Your characters need struggles as much as they need strengths. I have found that for me, my characters' struggles have to resonate on a personal level with me in order for them to be believable and for me to write these characters honestly. Does that mean every character is an autobiography? Of course not. You would only write one book if that were the case. But we have passions outside of our personal experience. Maybe you never went through something your friends struggled with because someone gave you sound advice, and you feel passionate about giving the same advice to others. Or maybe it's displaying the complexity of a problem or conveying sympathy. But no matter the theme, your characters have to portray that honesty, which takes authorial vulnerability.

2) Honest plot. In real life, people have struggles. Even a lighter story needs to demonstrate this complexity. Oversimplifying things might keep you from squirming too much as a writer, but it will also feel weak to the reader. Your main character doesn't have to be dealing with a terminal illness in order to show a struggle. Maybe she just feels lonely. Or she's got a big crush on some guy who doesn't even know her name. Or her best friend is moving away, and she's trying to put on a strong front even though she's hurting. These things are all ways to show deeper, honest levels of your characters' emotion in a way that comes across as honest to the reader. Try to incorporate these things into your plot instead of going with the first thing that comes to mind. It will endear your readers so much more to your story and leave a more lasting impact.

3) Honest voice. You have a unique writing voice. You may not know what it is yet, but it's there and it's brilliant-- I promise you. Voice comes more easily to some than others, so don't be discouraged if it's not your thing yet. But regardless of how strong you perceive your own voice to be, it's important to realize that for an author's voice to work, it's got to be honest. Otherwise, the line-by-line of your manuscript is going to sound hollow. For example, my writing voice lends itself to comedy. For years, I didn't realize this. As I was working on my M.A., I thought I was a terrible creative writer because I was trying so hard to be literary. But then one day, through the grace of God (literally), it dawned on me that comedy was my thing. Even if you've identified your writing voice, writing in your voice doesn't always come naturally. Things like fear of rejection, too many critiques, and even burnout can get in the way. Sometimes it's really difficult to get in the groove, so to speak. With comedy, I have found that I often get nervous that other people are not going to think I am funny. But when these doubts come, you have to push through. Don't try to hide behind someone else's writing style. Be who you are, because that is who God has called you to be.

Don't be afraid to be vulnerable. Make the first move, and readers will feel comfortable allowing themselves to be vulnerable too. And really, isn't that what good writing's all about?

How have you found honesty to be important in your own writing? What about in the books you read?

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Ashley Clark writes romantic comedy with southern grace. She's dreamed of being a writer ever since the thumbprint-cookie-days of library story hour. Ashley has an M.A. in English and enjoys teaching literature courses at her local university. She's an active member of ACFW and runs their newcomer's loop. When she's not writing, Ashley's usually busy rescuing stray animals and finding charming new towns. You can find Ashley on her personal blog, Facebook, and Twitter. She is represented by Karen Solem.

Guest Beth Vogt-- Real Life and Writing Life: Don’t Waste the Pain

Life happens.

So much for stating the obvious.

Several years ago, my family went hiking on a picture-perfect Colorado day. Our laughter filtered through the evergreens. Sunshine warmed our shoulders as we balanced on fallen trees spanning a mountain creek.

And then, as my husband, Rob, jumped from one boulder to the next, he slipped and broke his knee cap.

Imagine estrogen-laced pandemonium as my two oldest daughters stepped up to control the situation. Three-strong-willed women in a crisis? Not a pretty sight. While my youngest daughter burst into tears, I feigned calmness and prayed “Dear God, please don’t let Rob pass out until he tells me what to do.” (He’s a doctor). Meanwhile, Rob assessed his knee, which resembled two mountain peaks and one very deep valley.

In the end, our daughters ran down the mountain to alert rescuers. Rob, with the help of two young men, splinted his leg with tree branches and hiked back down the mountain—meeting the rescue teams as they hiked up. I trailed behind and photographed the journey.

A great family story? Absolutely.

Even better? In my debut novel, Wish You Were Here, my hero, Daniel Rayner, needed a “what else can go wrong?” moment. Daniel’s an outdoorsman like my husband. And so, I borrowed from real life and had Daniel (say it with me) slip on a boulder and break his knee cap. 

Write what you know, right? And while you’re at it, don’t waste the pain – yours or someone else’s.

Lest you think I only glean from my husband’s misfortune, here’s a sneak peek into my second novel, Catch a Falling Star (Howard Books May 2013.)

My hero, Griffin, is an Air Force pilot. I’d already plotted one problem for Griffin, but I wanted to add another layer of “why me, God?” to his life. I’m a novelist, it’s what I do: Wreak havoc on fictional people. I only looked as far as my reflection in the bathroom mirror to figure out how to torment poor, unsuspecting Griffin.

For the past year, I’ve ridden the daily tilt-o-whirl of vertigo. Sometimes with grace. Sometimes with tears.

Why waste the experience? Griffin got vertigo.

Bwahahahahaha.

One thing is certain: I knew what Griffin would feel – emotionally, physically, mentally, even spiritually. When my husband read one of my scenes, he said, “I feel kinda nauseous.”

Mission accomplished.

What about you? I’m sure you’ve been told not to waste the pain in your life. Have you ever used the pain to benefit your writing?

Author Bio: Beth K. Vogt is a non-fiction author and editor who said she’d never write fiction. She’s the wife of an Air Force family physician (now in solo practice) who said she’d never marry a doctor—or anyone in the military. She’s a mom of four who said she’d never have kids. She’s discovered that God’s best often waits behind the doors marked “Never.”

 Her contemporary romance novel, Wish You Were Here, debuted this month (Howard Books.) ). Beth is an established magazine writer and former editor of Connections, the leadership magazine for MOPS International. She enjoys connecting with other writers as the Skills Coach for My Book Therapy, bestselling author Susan May Warren's writing community. Learn more about her at bethvogt.com.

Why Writers Should Read

Recently I spoke with an Alley Cat about a crit I’d received. The crit partner had wisely uncovered a problem no one else had seen. The Alley Cat’s response was “Your crit partner must read a lot.”

I pondered the underlying message in her statement: Reading a lot has great value for writers.

As a writer, I, of course, see value in readers. I want to please, inform, entertain, and intrigue readers. But sometimes I forget that I, too, am a reader and because I want to be a good writer I should be much more than a reader, I should be a voracious reader.

After all, a chef eats, a musician listens to music, a tailor wears clothes, an actor watches plays/movies, a medical persons observes procedures, a swimmer watches others swim, and etc. A writer should read.

"In the ongoing process of becoming a writer, I read and reread the authors I most loved. I read for pleasure, first, but also more...of how sentences were formed..." Reading Like a Writer by Francine Prose

True confession: I have read this year, but only a few books. 

Not that long ago someone like Cec Murphey or Frank Ball challenged those participating in a writers loop to read one hundred books that year. I have so much to learn from them, sigh.

The challenge inspired me. Someone had dared me with a difficult task. I read more than one hundred books that year. It also happened to be one of the best writing years in terms of, wel,l many writing components for me.

So, for my sake, and hopefully your benefit, I chose to make a list: The benefits of reading for a writer. After only ten minutes I came up with twenty-five benefits and am thinking more will pop in my head before this post is published. And I'm sure you will think of some too :)

The Benefits of Reading Voraciously for a Writer:

1. Plot ideas:  A secondary character in a movie said to the MC something like, "I once wanted to be a fashion designer. I learned to sew, studied the fashion magazines, and managed to see a few shows. As the models paraded the new styles I looked at the garments and thought how I would have made it differently." The Trouble with Angels. 

When a writer reads books, many books, new ways of telling stories pop. Fresh, interesting new ideas. Cinderella has been told in countess ways, yet the story always piques our interest. Why? Because the foundation is a good story. Change the setting, themes, characters, throw in this, add that curve, and a new story is born. (i.e. a bookstore worker chatted with me about the Twilight series. She said she loved the books, and in her opinion the series was nothing more than retellings of the classics, but with a new twist.) 

I am one who frets over finding new story ideas. Sometimes the pressure of creating the new perfect story looms over my head. After thinking about this post I realized this was not the key. Writing well and presenting a fresh twist will bring the new story idea.

Since I hate homework, I will give you a challenge--should you chose to play with me--read one book between now and the next post. That means we have two weeks. In this newly read book, search for one way you would changed the story had you thought of the same great idea. What new story could be created?

sample: Cinderella. What if the prince had been changed to a pirate. What if the wicked step mother had been changed to a prince? (Princess Bride)

The purpose of this challenge is to grow an idea pool from the wealth of fabulous books sitting at our fingertips. Are you willing to rise to the challenge? Ready? Go.

Hmm, I've used up today's post with the first benefit on my list. Guess you'll have to come back to see the next one...Buwahahaha...hints of 1001 Arabian Nights.

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This blog post is by Mary Vee

Mary lives in Montana with her husband and loves to hear from her three college kids. She writes Christian young adult fiction (pirate tales, missionary and Bible adventure stories).

Come Step into Someone Else's World with Mary's writing

To learn more about Mary, visit her blog http://www.mimaryvee.blogspot.com/