Weekly Inspiration for the Christian Writer

As you face the blank page and crank out words, you work in isolation and alone. Are you someone the Bible calls a "Ready Scribe?" If so, you will find encouragement in THE HEART OF A READY SCRIBE, 52 REFLECTIONS FOR WRITERS.

Melanie Stiles has picked a clear target audience for this powerful slim book. Each week begins with an inspirational quotation, a short devotional thought, a relevant Bible verse and some action steps called Reflections. I loved week 7 "No" Means Take Further Action. Stiles writes, "Too many of us quit at Rejection Number One. If you don't give up after the first round you could land in a prominent crowd. Let's review a short list:

* CS. Lewis is said to have been rejected some 800 times before he sold anything.

* A Time to Kill by John Grisham earned 45 rejections.

* A Wrinkle in Time by Madeline L'Engle received 29.

* Jonathan Livingston Seagull by Richard Bach – a whopping 140." (Page 13)

I found inspiration in these weekly readings--and believe you will as well. For example, Week 38 is called "Follow, Don't Lead" about the necessity for writers who want to get published to follow the guidelines. Stiles concludes, "We, as writers, are given guidelines. When followed, they give editors one more reason to keep reading our work." (Page 75) If you are a Christian writer, you will profit from a careful reading and application of the pages of THE HEART OF A READY SCRIBE.