Peter Leavell
Peter Leavell, a graduate of Boise State University with a degree in history and a MA in English Literature, was the 2011 winner of the Christian Writers Guild’s Operation First Novel contest, and 2013 Christian Retailing’s Best award for First-Time Author, along with multiple other awards. An author, blogger, ghostwriter, teacher, historian, and jogger, Peter lives in Boise, Idaho.
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Bark Factor: Pets in Novels
Animals have personalities of their own. But how should we use a pet in our novel?
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The Well-Read Writer Becomes an Author
What tools are vital for an author? Mine are a laptop, headphones, caffeine, a canvas grey jacket with a white T-shirt, faded jeans, Olukai Hawaiian shoes, and two-day stubble I’ll shave soon. I can’t write without them. However, no tool is more essential than my writer’s library. Every great writer has curated a personal library. Their library is so valuable that when they die, people take down the titles and publish the list so we can read what the author studied. So, as a famous writer, you must collect books and be the curator of your library. Need better justification? Ten Reasons Why You Should Have An Extensive Home Library 1…
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Diary of a Novelist
Day 1: Fingertips brush against the keys and heart throbs as every thought shivers through the future. Imaginings thunder as the story beckons the muses of old. Chocolate never tasted so good. Day 2: Someone hacked the computer and turned poetry into gibberish. A toddler, indeed, yes. Tomorrow, perhaps it can be salvaged. Day 3: Salvaged, but after a second glance, the toddler’s ideas weren’t so bad. Maybe it’ll be published someday. Day 7: Three thousand words! Done? Blah. Books are around 75,000 words. I’ve consumed the first pound of chocolate. Semisweet, Semiconscious. Day 18: Took the day off writing and feel like *********. Won’t take a day off again.…
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Clarity and New Years Resolutions
My New Year’s resolution is to write clearly. Emails, social media posts, and novels need clarity. After some research, I’ve pulled together the top ways to keep readers from second-guessing meaning and working too hard on deciphering content. Before you sit down to write: When you begin: When you are finished writing: After you hit send to the editor or your audience, you do your best editing. This is because you’re able to see your text through their eyes. Before hitting send, consider having one or two people review your Facebook posts, blogs, and novels. One last thought. Monitor reactions to your writing and file their responses to mull over…
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The Writer’s Christmas Spirit
Christmas is a time to reflect on the holiday spirit and what it means to be a writer. And no one can speak on the subject quite like Charles Dickens. A Christmas Carol is a tale about a grumpy man named Ebenezer Scrooge who loves business and money, not in that particular order. He likes them so much he’s a detriment to society. To fix the problem, the Cosmic powers send three well-meaning ghosts who show him the true spirit of Christmas. They look at the lives of others in the past, present, and future. The intervention works. He changes to incorporate love and tenderness into his manner and business.…
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Learn How to Write Good/Well
There’s no perfect approach when you decide to learn how to write a novel. When baseball and softball players train to bat, they ask for various pitches to expand their hitting ability. If all they prepared for was a fastball down the middle, the batter could only hit when pitches were strikes over the plate. The same is true when learning to write a book. You’ll fully develop your skillset if you learn how to write from various sources. I’ve included a few ways to learn your craft and stay relevant to your writing. Change how you educate yourself to fit your needs in response to your life circumstances. The…
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How to Never Bore Your Readers
There is deeper magic in a novel that keeps the reader from boredom—secondary additions to your plot line. These work with any genre.
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Writing Groups and The Writer
IdaHope Christian Writers has a writing group that comes together quite often to read, write, and fellowship. Why do established, mainstream authors suggest all writers join a writing group? Stay in a writing group, don’t give up, contribute, and you may be fortunate to find yourself like the man in the following joke: He pulled up to the charred ruins of his home. Smoke still drifted from the possessions they spent years accumulating. She stood out front, a pan of burned biscuits in her hand, a cell phone in the other. She sobbed. “I’m sorry. I put biscuits in the oven. The phone rang. It was your agent. And then…
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The Novelist Entertainer
Jerry Jenkins once told me the number one rule of the novelist is never to bore the reader. As a novelist, you have one job—to entertain. “Yet,” someone may point out, “I’m a Christian novelist.” Indeed, you are. And to bring forward a good Christian moral is vital, to offer a moral of hope and redemption. However, you can’t bring forward a moral if no one will read your book. “I’m American,” some might add. “My Puritan background means seriousness is a Fruit of the Spirit. How does that jive with entertainment?” Ah, a dilemma. How do we make a morality tale entertaining? Look to the Bible. Literally. You can’t…
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Garlic Ice Cream and the Novelist
Niche means “a specialized market,” and your novel fills a niche. Let’s look at how best to understand your niche. I have a dream. A three-course meal should consist of an appetizer entirely of ice cream, followed by the main course—ice cream, followed by ice cream for dessert. To see if my dream is a viable dietary option, I checked online health sites. On day two or three of the ice cream diet, you’ll probably develop an intolerance to lactose. Day four or five, afib. And after a full week of ice cream, you’re on a straight road toward diabetes. And extreme dehydration and/or constipation. We’re going to need to…
