Make-A-Story™ - Monday's Writing Prompt

Writing to spec – you’ve heard the term.  It means writing what the publisher wants.  Can you do it?  In our new feature - Make-A-Story™, we ask you to create a story with these elements.  The story can be set in any time frame, any length, must adhere to our guidelines and have our standard Christian world view.   

A child's toy
A black dog
A train ride 

Happy Thanksgiving!

This weekend, as a special thank-you, we're offering 45% off all eBooks. Use Code THANKS509 at checkout, Nov.22-24

Have a blessed and happy weekend!

Call for Submissions: Passport to Romance

Passport to Romance emblem
Passport to Romance™


Let’s take a trip and fall in love! Passport to Romance™ titles are contemporary romances that are set in specific locales and feature a special set of objects. (Check out the Location/Object table for specifics).
Passport to Romance™ titles feature chic heroines who are sparkling, confident, open for adventure—and who are a perfect match for a contemporary alpha male who has a zest for life, a thirst for God, and who likes an intelligent woman who can hold her own.

Set in exotic locations around the world, these stories offer the contemporary Christian reader adventure, vivacity, romance and faith.

Passport to Romance™  key elements:

·       Heroines must be between the ages of 22 and 35.

·       Heroes must be between the ages of 22 and 39.

·       Settings and objects must be chosen from within the Passport to Romance™ guidelines.

·       Hero or Heroine (or both) must’ve traveled to the location of the story (i.e. He/She must’ve needed a passport to arrive at the story setting)

·       Regular guidelines for White Rose Publishing also apply

·       Word length: 30,000-35,000 words

·       Please submit only completed stories


An Important Tip:

We created the Passport to Romance™ series to for a two-fold reason: to give readers a taste of overseas and to stir the creative juices of authors. We encourage authors to research the chosen location so that the cultural flavor of the location can be infused into the story. Also, we want to encourage authors to think outside the box when considering ways to incorporate the object prompts. If the location is the Arctic Circle and one of the objects is "Hibiscus in Winter," don’t be discouraged! Rather, consider alternatives to the conventional bush blooming in the garden. Hibiscus in Winter might be the name of the heroine’s favourite musical band or book or poem. A hibiscus could arrive in winter when a plane carrying hibiscus bushes crashes or dumps its cargo for some reason, or because the hero knows a the hibiscus is the heroine’s favourite flower and so carries one with him as he arrives from Hawaii.

When ready to submit, please use the regular submission form found on the www.pelicanbookgroup.com website.

Make-A-Story™ - Monday's Writing Prompt

Writing to spec – you’ve heard the term.  It means writing what the publisher wants.  Can you do it?  In our new feature - Make-A-Story™, we ask you to create a story with these elements.  The story can be set in any time frame, any length, must adhere to our guidelines and have our standard Christian world view.   

Ice skates
A photograph
An antique truck


Tactical Tuesday: Advice for Self-Editing

I've written on this subject before, but recently I've watched as an epidemic has spread from one manuscript to another. I feel the subject is screaming to be approached once again.

First, let me ask a few questions. How many conversations have you engaged in where the person or persons you are communicating with literally scream every bit of information they give to you? How many individuals in a group squeal with excitement over mundane information they want to share? Lastly, how many times do your own thoughts scream at you?

I'm teased many times because I really abhor an abundance of exclamation points. My own annoyance with them once led me to ask the advice of a very well-known literary agent who graciously commented that more than one exclamation point per manuscript screams--yes, screams! amateur author.

The common theme among authors today is the use of exclamation points for emphasis when, in actuality, are very few reasons for an exclamation point when used correctly. These reasons would include: your character is either screaming at the top of his or her lungs or they are excited beyond measure--real excitement, such as finding out that a long-lost relative has left you his entire estate, which includes a private island, a private jet, half of the real estate in America, and a diamond mine in Africa. Now, that might elicit an exclamation from even me.

So dear self-editor, look at each of your exclamation points. If your characters are in a conversation dotted by !'s, ask yourself if they are truly screaming or yelling so that everyone can hear them. Are they excited about what they have to say so much that they'd actually squeal over the news. Are they crying out for help? Do your inner thoughts really need to bellow to get your attention?

Imagine the scene in your head. If you were truly a part of what's going on, would the loudness of what is being said give you a headache.

Then, delete every unworthy exclamation point you find. Replace the lazy showing of emphasis by replacing the punctuation with action and or dialogue that says so much more than the exclamation point can convey.

And happy editing.