Stories and Friendship

by Andrea Renee Cox

Every story I write presents challenges.

Though the difficulties may vary from one project to the next, a couple of things remain the same. Story and friendship both take work, but they’re also both worth the effort.

Story. It could fill up a year’s worth of articles. Story is everywhere around us, but if we look really hard, we can find the best ones. That’s part of my job as a writer, to discover those hiding treasures in order to weave them into tales readers will have a difficult time forgetting. Creating something unique and special every single time might challenge the limits of my imagination, but I cherish the opportunity to craft unforgettable stories that hopefully will find a home with readers around the globe.

A Little Church

by Andrea Renee Cox

Since I'm on a tight deadline (due on Monday!) and I've worked late tonight (Sunday), I'm cutting this article way short. So sorry about that, but this was the one thing I could put on the back burner this week and get away with it.

So, in lieu of a full-blown article, let's do a little church this evening (or morning or afternoon; whatever time of day it happens to be for you).

What do you think of when you see this picture?

I think of a couple of verses I recently read.

Spiritual Battles

by Andrea Renee Cox

Asking for patience (as I talked about last week) or to better see what God is doing in my life might be easy prayers to say, but the living out of the answers that come is hardly ever easy or comfortable. I knew that going into those prayers, but it didn’t dissuade me. The answers are coming now, and boy, are they ever hard. But still I am not discouraged.

Even when the lessons are hard and break me, I refuse to give up the fight for God’s will. He is always worth it. My prayer through those toughest moments is usually, “God, help me.” But I’m finding out that I may add a little something else to that prayer. My prayer is becoming, “God, help me. I cannot do this without You. I need You. More than that. I want You. More than anything or anyone, I want You.”

When the answers God sends aren’t what I thought or were harder than the “hard” I imagined, the choice is mine. Will I decide to give up and settle for less than the best God has in store for me? Or will I choose to step out in faith, no matter how difficult things get, in order to walk in the will of God?

Patience is the Key

by Andrea Renee Cox

Have you ever heard that you should never pray for patience?

I have. Many times.

But I’ve ignored that suggestion every time.

Why?

Because I knew in my soul that I needed patience. And that I wouldn’t receive it if I didn’t ask.

Be My Guest: Pepper Basham + Giveaway!

by Andrea Renee Cox

For the 200th article on Writing to Inspire, guest Pepper Basham shares some of her inspiration for her latest novel, The Thorn Healer. Stay tuned to the very end, because there's a giveaway!

Discovering The Thorn Healer

by Pepper Basham

If you’ve lived long enough in this world, you’ve experienced pain.

It doesn’t have to be big, life-changing pain, but many of us may have experienced that kind too.  

Living in a fallen world, wounds happen – what really matters is how those wounds shape us - what we do with them.

We’ve buried loved ones, faced sickness, moved our families to new places and struggled through the transitions, grieved the loss of a dream or relationship, stumbled through fractured expectations. We shouldn’t be surprised that a broken world is not only made up of broken people but causes brokenness.

But perspective changes everything.

Pantser or Plotter?

by Andrea Renee Cox

Next month is one of my most anticipated ones of the year. Why? Partly because of Thanksgiving, but in large part it is because it's the National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo). I've participated several times now, and this year I even joined in on the two Camp NaNoWriMos (held online in April and July).

What is NaNoWriMo?

Mountain Christmas Brides

by Andrea Renee Cox

Now available!

Mountain Christmas Brides is a wonderful collection of Christmas novellas by a host of Christian fiction authors. Some of the authors were new to me, while others were old favorites. Each brought their unique writing style and creativity to the project, which made it something of an adventure to read. When I began each new novella, it was fun to discover what made this particular story shine brightly among the others in the book. This collection would make a great gift, and Christmas is coming quicker than we know.

Here are my thoughts on a few of my favorite novellas in Mountain Christmas Brides: