In his first edition of Write from the Heart, Hal Zina Bennett presented a spiritual approach to writing that showed both beginners and seasoned authors how to overcome blocks, unleash their creative voice, and see their books in print. In this edition, he gives readers an even more interactive experience by incorporating exercises he's developed during his many years conducting workshops. An all-new chapter on supportive critiquing shows readers how to make contacts in the all-important community of writers and how to get help with the process of writing and refining. This revised edition also includes an updated section on getting published that addresses print-on-demand, electronic books, and the Internet.

Best-selling New Zealand author Joy Cowley, author of hundreds of books, including the classic Mrs. Wishy-Washy, offers an indispensable manual for those who are called to write for children. Brimming with down-to-earth advice and keen insight, the book draws on Cowley's lifetime of writing and teaching writers. From plot to dialogue, and on through discipline and humor, editing and presentation, Cowley reveals the whys and hows of telling stories that will captivate young readers. Above all, Cowley reminds writers to "keep your serious adult voice under control, and let the child within you grow wings to fly with the child out there."

Do you dread writing notes to say "Thank you," "I'm sorry," or "Congratulations"? When's the last time you sent a handwritten letter to a faraway friend, just to catch up? What should you write to a grieving friend or colleague? How do you let friends know you're getting a divorce? As our lives get busier and faster-paced, the old-fashioned art of personal correspondence is becoming sadly lost. In this upbeat, wise, and witty guide, journalist and lifestyle expert Sandra Lamb offers a wealth of advice, inspiration, and examples for anyone who wants to add flair, voice, and plain old fun to their letters and notes---as well as anyone who wants to know the etiquette of when and what to write. Using colorful examples and practical advice, the book covers thank yous, congratulations, engagements and weddings, birthdays and anniversaries, births and adoptions, appreciation, love notes, illness and accidents, divorce, condolence, regrets, apologies, and forgiveness. This delightful, indispensable guide helps us rediscover the joy of connecting with others through the simple act of putting pen to paper.

Let His Truth Find a Home in Your Heart... Here are the words of hope you’re looking for when your faith needs a boost or a friend needs encouragement. Chosen by more than a thousand women as their favorite verses in the Bible, each one is worth learning, worth sharing, worth remembering. You’ll find verses you already know and love: “I can do all this through him who gives me strength” (Philippians 4:13). Others may be less familiar but are no less powerful: “Fear of man will prove to be a snare, but whoever trusts in the Lord is kept safe” (Proverbs 29:25). All of them capture the truth of God’s goodness, mercy, and love for His own. Bestselling author Liz Curtis Higgs invites you to experience — * a deeper, richer understanding of thirty-one treasured verses. * a fresh look at how these timeless truths can impact your life. * a new passion for memorizing Scripture, verse by verse. * thirty-one creative ways to keep them in your heart forever. With a study guide included, 31 Verses to Write on Your Heart is a daily devotional and a small-group Bible study, wrapped in a lovely gift book overflowing with joy! "When you spend time in God's Word, life starts making sense. The broken places inside you begin to heal. Darkness and discouragement give way to the light of hope. Your purpose becomes clearer, and your desire to make a difference grows. The Bible can do all that? It can. It will. Just begin. Go slowly. Stand on tiptoe, anticipating all God has in store for you. " —Liz Curtis Higgs

With warm, lively, often humorous anecdotes, advice, and lessons, this unique approach to creative writing as a path to healing the self shows how to reverse the damaging effects done to writers in school, where red pens disciplined grammar and taught them to mistrust their natural ability as storytellers--freezing them in their creative tracks NPR sponsorships .

The best story is one that comes from the heart. The library is having a contest for the best story, and the quirky narrator of this book just has to win that rollercoaster ride with her favorite author! But what makes a story the best? Her brother Tim says the best stories have lots of action. Her father thinks the best stories are the funniest. And Aunt Jane tells her that the best stories have to make people cry. A story that does all these things doesn't seem quite right, though, and the one thing the whole family can agree on is that the best story has to be your own. Anne Wilsdorf's hilarious illustrations perfectly capture this colorful family and their outrageous stories in Eileen Spinelli's heartfelt tale about creativity and finding your own voice.

In 1997 Mark Salzman, bestselling author Iron and Silk and Lying Awake, paid a reluctant visit to a writing class at L.A.’s Central Juvenile Hall, a lockup for violent teenage offenders, many of them charged with murder. What he found so moved and astonished him that he began to teach there regularly. In voices of indelible emotional presence, the boys write about what led them to crime and about the lives that stretch ahead of them behind bars. We see them coming to terms with their crime-ridden pasts and searching for a reason to believe in their future selves. Insightful, comic, honest and tragic, True Notebooks is an object lesson in the redemptive power of writing.