I am asked all the time where a person interested in writing should start. I remember wondering the same thing. It took two years for me to finally find resources, people, and places where I could learn the craft of writing. Here is what I found. Hopefully you find my list useful 🙂

There are two parts to writing for a new writer: learning how to write and practicing it.

First, learning. I learned the craft of writing by reading books, attending classes or conferences, and learning from other writers. Here are some great resources to get you started.

 

Books:

–The First 50 Pages by Jeff Gerke (he’s my editor and good at what he does. His books and seminars are phenomenal)

–Plot vs Character by Jeff Gerke

–Fiction Writing for Dummies by Randy Ingermanson

–Plot and Structure by James Scott Bell

–Self-Editing for Fiction Writers by Renni Browne and Dave King

–Stein on Writing by Sol Stein

 

Conferences:

The Oregon Christian Writers put on some great one day seminars and a summer conference. Here is their website: Oregon Christian Writers

Two nation conferences I have been to and recommend are the ACFW Conference and Mt Hermon Writers Conference

 

Organizations/Blogs:

Here are some blogs or organizations I am a part of that help writers learn:

-Randy Ingermanson’s blog Advancedfictionwriting

–Bestseller SocietyThis site is a great place for video and audio teaching and the instructor is Jeff Gerke for the fiction track. I think it’s about $35 a month and you can pay for one month or more.

–ACFW (American Christian Fiction Writers). This organization offers local chapters you can be a part of, online classes, a place to ask seasoned authors questions, and a yearly conference.

 

All of the above are great places to start learning the craft of writing.

As far as practice: write, write, write! My friend Randy says that you usually need to write a million words before you start writing something worth reading. I wrote for about six years and had a finished novel and the rough draft of another before I was published. I wrote when the kids napped, early in the morning, or at night. Even now I write for about 1-2 hours most days and get in about 500-1,000 words (everything in writing is measured by words).

Now, go forth and write!