New Author Has Joined Our Publishing Family!

🎉 🎉 We welcome Dr. Geraldine Brown of Elkhart, Indiana to the
J. Kenkade Publishing Family!
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We are excited to be publishing her upcoming book, a devotional book designed for adults to unleash their youthful side and express themselves artistically while responding to the Word. 
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Dr. Brown has earned a Bachelor of Science Degree, Master of Education Degree, and Doctorate Degree in Theology. She currently resides in Elkhart, Indiana.
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Help us welcome her to our Publishing family!

www.jkenkade.com 
(501) 482-JKEN

Anyone Can Write

I have a confession to make: my muse for this post is the 2007 Disney Pixar film, Ratatouille, which I recently rewatched whilst babysitting. Inspiration can come from anywhere, right?

There’s a particular scene in the movie that struck me as interesting (though all of it is thoroughly entertaining). Main character Remy, a rat, has traveled to Paris and is looking in the window of a restaurant founded by his hero, chef Auguste Gusteau. Remy, despite being a (cute and lovable) rodent, dreams of being in a chef, a rather rodent-phobic profession as it turns out. When staring into the restaurant, Remy starts to speak with the Gusteau inside his head who’s been giving him advice along his journey. Gusteau sees a young man walk over to the boiling pot of soup, and asks Remy who he is.

“Oh him?” Remy says. “He’s nobody,”

“Not nobody,” Gusteau says. “He’s part of the kitchen.”

“He’s a plongeur or something,” Remy says. “He washes dishes or takes out the garbage or something. He doesn’t cook.”

“But he could,” Gusteau prods.

“Uh… no” Remy shuts him down.

“How do you know?” Gusteau says. “What do I always say? Anyone can cook.”

This scene stuck with me even after the credits rolled. If anyone can cook, I would go as far as to say anyone can write. This is a bold statement with which many will disagree, but hear me out. I refuse to believe that writers are simply born, that those who are destined to write great novels and scripts are ordained by God himself. Yes, perhaps some are born with a knack for stringing words together, but the truth is as simple as this: Writing is a learned skill. Just like cooking or painting or playing piano. Some may be naturally talented, but that doesn’t mean they are naturally skilled. Because they had to learn it at some point. They had to work hard and put in tons of hours and perfect their skill.

So yes, anyone can write. But it takes work. It takes hours spent at your kitchen table, forcing yourself to put down words when you don’t feel like it. It takes getting feedback and listening to critics. It takes lots and lots of editing and rewriting. It takes voracious reading of the greats, past and present.

The greats didn’t get to the top by divine intervention. They were famous because they spent months if not years on their manuscripts, and they spent years if not decades honing their skill. Even if you don’t believe you’re talented, don’t give up on writing if you truly love it. You’re not nobody; you’re part of the kitchen, and anyone can cook.

Also during the film, Gusteau says: “Brave cooking is not for the faint of heart. You must be imaginative, strong-hearted. You must try things that may not work, and you must not let anyone define your limits because of where you come from. Your only limit is your soul. What I say is true: Anyone can cook, but only the fearless can be great.”

Likewise, brave writing isn’t for the faint of heart. You’re putting pieces of yourself out there for the world to rave about or rip to shreds, and that’s no easy task. However, I agree that your only limit is your soul. Be fearless, work passionately, and keep on writing.

Weekly Pointers: Mastering Subject-Verb Agreement

When it comes to grammar, the English language can be complicated. Even practiced writers can trip up on subject-verb agreement from time to time, because, honestly, it’s easy to do. Below,

I’ve compiled a few subject-verb agreement rules and tips that might help:

If the subject is singular, the verb should be in singular form.

Example: "Allison runs twice a week."

If the subject is plural, the verb should be in plural form.

Example: "Team members run twice a week."

If the subject is singular as part of a whole (everybody, anyone, each one), use the singular verb form.

Example: "Everyone on the team runs twice a week."

Likewise, if the subject is plural as part of a whole (several, many, both), use the plural verb form.

Example: "Several members of the team run twice a week."

If the subject is multiple words connected by “and” or “both,” then the subject is plural. Use a plural verb. 

Example: "Allison and Carrie run twice a week."

If the subject is multiple singular words connected by “or,” “either…or,” or “neither…nor,” then the subject is singular. Use a singular verb. 

Example: "Neither Allison nor Carrie runs twice a week."

If the subject is multiple plural words connected by “or,” “either…or,” or “neither…nor,” then the subject is plural. Use a plural verb. 

Example: "Neither team members nor new recruits run twice a week."

These pronouns —all, most, more, none, some, or any—may have a singular or plural verb, depending on the form of the subject.

Example: "Most of the team runs twice a week. Most of the team members run twice a week."

Hopefully, these tips provide some clarity where you might struggle with subject-verb agreement. If you need additional help, Purdue has a great guide here:

https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/599/01/ 

How To Start Writing Your Book

Like most writers, you’re probably an avid reader. Maybe you have your own story percolating your brain right now! But how do you sit down and start writing that story? How do start a task as daunting as writing a book?

Jeff Goins, author of The Art of Work, says book writing is best accomplished in three phases: Getting Started, Doing the Work, and Finishing. I’ve added my own tips below within these three phases:

1.  Getting Started

Sounds simple, right? Wrong. This is often the toughest part. You’re probably wondering how you’ll transfer the vibrant story in your head to the blank page in front of you.

First, pick a genre, and decide what the story is about. Do you like crime? Memoir? Nonfiction? Historical fiction? Romance? What is your basic storyline?

Map out your characters. Characterization is one of the most important parts of writing, so don’t cheat this one. Roughly map out your characters, their traits and their transformations in your story. Even go as far as writing biographies for your characters. If you don’t truly understand them—and you created them—how will your audience understand them?

Start from the end. Endings can make or break your story. Decide how you want to tie up your story in the end, and then work from there. This way, you’ll be able to craft your plot with the end goal in mind and not end up with the dreaded Deus Ex Machina (unless you’re going for the M. Night Shyamalan thing).

2.  Doing the Work

Now, it’s time to get down to business.

First, we need to make an outline. I’ve always hated making outlines, probably since I first learned to write essays in elementary school. It’s a step I always want to skip, but I know I’m so much more productive when I have a map to follow later on. You don’t have to include every single detail of your book either! Make it easy on yourself, and type up an outline that works for you. I’d suggest including a brief overview of each chapter, the main struggle of your story, important character interactions and plenty of room for improvisation.

Set a total word count. And while you’re at it, decide how many words you plan on writing each day. Come up with a schedule, and stick to it!

Write, edit, rewrite. As Hemmingway said, “There is nothing to writing. All you do is sit down at a typewriter and bleed.” I wouldn’t go as far as saying there’s nothing to writing, but this should be the fun part! This is the part you love, after all.

Find some friends. Get feedback as early as possible, just so you know your work is making sense. You don’t want to have to go back and do a massive rewrite, do you? Feedback can be scary, but sometimes nothing propels you further in your craft like critique and validation.

3.  Finishing

It’s time for final edits. This is the nitpicky perfecting and polishing that will really make your book shine. It seems tedious, but is crucial to the process.

Commit to publishing. Please, please, please don’t go to all this trouble to let your manuscript sit in a drawer. I know it’s daunting to release your story to the world, but if you don’t, what’s the point?

Celebrate and start planning the next one. Take some time off if you need it, but start thinking about what you want to write next. Don’t let this project zap you of your creativity and keep you from future writing.

If you’re still struggling with creativity, inspiration and motivation, I highly suggest reading Big Magic: Creative Living Beyond Fear by Elizabeth Gilbert. Liz, author of Eat, Pray, Love, is an incredible writer and knows a thing or two about writing books. The thing that sets apart Big Magic from other writing self-help books is her focus on living and enjoying a creative life. She taught me how to truly love my work and not fall into tortured artist persona that so many adapt. It’s a quick read, but I promise it will change your work, mind and life.

I’ll leave you with a Big Magic quote from Liz herself: “The universe buries strange jewels deep within us all, and then stands back to see if we can find them.”

Go find your jewels, and write your story.

Maranda Wiggins Joins the J. Kenkade Publishing Family!

🎉🎉We welcome Ms. Maranda Wiggins of Hall Summit, Louisiana to the J. Kenkade Publishing Family!
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We are excited to be publishing her upcoming book, a children’s novel of the divine love shared between a child and her best friend, her father, the police officer!
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Maranda hopes that her book will show that not all police officers are bad or uncaring.
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This book was inspired after three law enforcement officers lost their lives in the line of duty in Baton Rouge, LA. 
As a wife of a good and loving police officer, Maranda hopes to show the good side of the law.

Help us welcome her to the family!

www.jkenkade.com 
(501) 482-JKEN

Weekly Pointers: Commonly Confused Words

The English language is tricky; there’s no way around it. Sometimes when it comes to grammar and usage, there are a few rules rather than patterns to memorize. Today we’re tackling some commonly confused words.

Affect/Effect

Affect is a verb, whereas effect is a noun. You can affect change to bring about an effect.

Among/Between

Among typically expresses the collective relationship of several items, whereas between typically refers to the relationship between one thing and another or many other things. Alice found her phone among the clutter in the floor. Alice’s text message were between her and her friend, Grace.

Assure/Ensure/Insure

Assure means to confirm, usually with another person. Ensure is to make sure something is accomplished or completed. Insure means to protect from harm. Jenny assured the buyers that the newly purchased home was insured. She ensured this by giving them a thorough insurance policy.

Farther/Further

Farther refers to distance, while further refers to time. Do not go any farther until you’ve received further notice.

Historic/Historical

Historic refers to something that is monumental. Historical refers to something related to history. The speech given on Friday was a historic event. On Saturday, we put on our historical costumes for the play.

Its/It’s

Its is possessive. It’s is a contraction meaning “it is.” It’s about time we clean the house before its remodel.

Lay/Lie

Lay refers to putting down an object. Lie refers to reclining. He lays the magazine on the ground as he lies out to tan.

Lead/Led

Lead is present tense (pronounced LEED) or the element (pronounced LED). Led is the past tense verb form of lead.

The chemistry teacher leads the class as he discusses the element lead. Afterward, he led the class through their homework assignment.

Loose/Lose

Loose refers to the free state of something. Lose means to misplace something or to fail. The girl with the loose ponytail thought she would lose her basketball game.

Principle/Principal

Principle is a value or belief. Principal is either an adjective or a noun. As an adjective, it refers to something that is most important or comes first. As a noun, it is the person in charge of a school or organization. The school’s principal announced the principal reason for the new handbook rules. The rules adhere to the school’s values and principles.

That/Who

That refers to objects, and who refers to people. The boy who lost his homework found it had been turned into the bin that was on the green wall.

Then/Than

Then refers something that comes next, while than means a comparison. Then, I asked if peanut butter was better than jelly.

There/Their/They’re

There is a noun meaning a place. There is a possessive pronoun. They’re is a contraction meaning “they are.” They’re traveling to their grandma’s house over there.

Who’s/Whose

Who’s is a contraction meaning “who is.” Whose is a possessive form of who. Who’s going to the party later? Whose car are we taking?

Hopefully these few tips will be found helpful in your writing. If you need extra help on any other commonly confused words, see the link below!

https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/usage/commonly-confused-words

Judge a Book By Its Cover: The Importance of Good Design

We’ve all been told not to judge a book by its cover. However, if you’re seeking to publish a book any time in the future, I want to urge you to throw that advice out the window. I cannot stress enough the importance of good book design.

Whether or not we like it, we do judge a book by its cover, the second we pick it up. So, let’s turn that around: If you want people to pick up your book and feel compelled to read it (and I’m assuming you do) they need to know in those first seconds of viewing the cover what to expect on the inside. Your cover design is your visual representation of all the work you put into the meat of your book, so don’t cheat it. Use it to its full potential.

If your cover is not an intriguing and accurate depiction of the writing underneath it, then you are throwing away book sales. Think of your book’s cover as clothes—I mean, they do call it a “book jacket.” You have a sense of style that reflects your personality, and you (hopefully) dress accordingly. You choose items that communicate to others who you are without you actually having to speak to them. Your book is the same way. Choose for it a style that reflects the tone and vibe of the words within.

You not only want a design that echoes the book itself, but also a design that is stylistically sound. This means the text must be easy to read both in person and online, and in a professional and appropriate font. Color theory also comes into play here. What do the colors used on the outside of your book say about the mood of your story? Do your graphics, images and illustrations look like an expert’s or an amateur’s work? Is everything working together in a meaningful way?

All in all, a poorly designed cover can be off-putting and can cheapen the actual work inside. When publishing a book, make sure you work with a designer to come up with a clear design that you love and that represents the quality of your story. No matter how strong the writing is, your cover is your sales pitch, if you will, to your audience. Make sure you really sell it!

Weekly Pointers: Parallel Structure

If you’re anything like me, you love a good list. But what happens when lists in our writing don’t quite match up? Most likely, you have an issue with parallel structure.

What Is It?

Parallel structure or parallelism is the matching of items in a written sequence to ensure they are structurally and grammatically sound. This means using the same tense and pattern of words to make sentences more precise. If one or multiple words or phrases do not match, it would be considered shifted construction or faulty parallelism.

Writers often get into trouble with parallelism when trying to diversify their words and phrases. Although variety is great in writing, keeping parallel structure within a sentence gives rhythm, emphasis, organization and clarity.

Take the sentence above. If we were to restructure this sentence with faulty parallelism it might say something like this:

Keeping parallel structure within a sentence gives rhythm, emphasis, organizes your sentence and clarity.

This is difficult for readers to follow because the items in the sequence do not structurally match. Our brains when reading are constantly trying to make sense of words and phrases. Sentences like this can be distracting and disrupt the flow of one’s reading.

Let’s try a few more examples:

Incorrect: Last summer, I traveled to California to go hiking, shop and visiting family.

Correct: Last summer, I traveled to California to hike, shop and visit family.

If you’re having trouble with parallel structure, try to find the list within your sentence. In this case it would be: hike, shop, visit family. If these words in your list don’t match up, ask yourself a few questions.

Are they past or present tense? Are they gerunds (-ing words) or infinitives (to + verb)? Do the nouns, pronouns and modifiers remain consistent throughout? Does it match the voice of the surrounding sentences?

Famous speakers such as Abraham Lincoln, Martin Luther King Jr. and Winston Churchill were absolute pros at using parallel structure to utilize the power of repetition and emphasize phrases.

Let’s look at a Churchill quote for our last example:

An incorrect version would read: “I have nothing to offer but blood, toiling, tears and sweating.”

Instead, Churchill correctly used parallel structure and said: “I have nothing to offer but blood, toil, tears and sweat.”

Always remember to edit for parallelism—it might make the difference in sounding like an amateur or professional writer.

Why It’s Time to Rewrite the Story of the “Starving Artist”

The story of the Starving Artist goes back hundreds of years. I imagine Florentine painters in the Renaissance, absorbed in their work as they subsist in a meager studio that doubles as a living space. I imagine 17th century German composers furiously scrawling down sheet music, not sure how they’ll pay for their next meal. I imagine British romantic poets living in shacks by the water, nearly freezing to death at times while they spend their days sipping tea and pondering words.

Part of me loves these stories. They are beautiful and romantic, and the idea of “art for art’s sake” is a noble one. There seems to be a notion that the more impoverished or unpopular an artist is, the better their work will be. That’s why we all try to listen to Indie music, right? But this story doesn’t translate well to our current society.

In the 21st century, those who are artistically inclined are encouraged to “get a real job,” and would be considered lazy by most if they chose to pursue their passion. But why do we still have this idea that artists will never make any money? Why do we believe they must settle for monotonous, uninspiring work in order to survive?

It's time for a rewrite of the Starving Artist story. People everywhere are pursuing creative careers, and yes, they are making money. These jobs aren’t traditional, but they are all around, with more being created every day. They may look like side gigs or part-time jobs or even remote positions—little things that Creatives can stack on top of each other. They may look like short-term or long-term projects rather than 9 to 5 jobs. They may have paychecks that vary in size with irregular paydays. But they’re getting paid nonetheless. It’s time to accept that you can pursue your trade and put food on the table. It’s time we start pushing for the Thriving Artist.

The "Thriving Artist" is everywhere you look, so pervasive that you could not go a single day without encountering their work. The "Thriving Artist" looks like bloggers and writers, graphic designers and painters, musicians and sound technicians, photographers and filmmakers. These careers are booming, and the "Thriving Artist" is able to do what they love and survive. They are able to find fulfillment and pay their bills. We need them to carry on, which is why the nay-sayers need to change their tune. We need to support them in their work.

Why? Because humans need art. It’s what separates us from other living things. It’s what gives our lives depth and meaning. It’s what future generations use to remember us. Art reflects humanity, and humanity, art. Without it there is no deeper thinking, no exploration of the human soul. Many have taken initiative and started building creative careers that never before existed, and you can join them as a creative professional. Here’s to believing in the power of the Thriving Artist.

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Check out the links below for a more extensive look at creative careers:

https://www.theartcareerproject.com/careers/

https://www.bls.gov/careeroutlook/2015/article/creative-careers.htm

How to Craft Strong Themes in Writing: Part II

Part II: Building and Selling Themes

Creating a satisfying and cohesive story is the entire goal when building a theme into your story. You want readers to be able to walk away from your piece and really know what it’s about; however, you don’t want to beat them over the head with your theme either. It’s a fine line to toe.

So, how do we build theme into our stories? Start considering ways to present it to your audience:

Character arcs

Usually a story’s themes will lie in our character arcs—their transformations or journeys made to reach the goal of the story. Our theme can be woven into their flaws or obstacles that they may or may not overcome. This makes your theme more personal to the readers, and allows them to connect with your characters. When your characters go through their transformation (or remain the same), it allows readers to understand your thematic statement.

Ask yourself: What kind of person was this character in the beginning? What are their flaws/obstacles? Do they change or not change for the good or bad? What kind of person is this character in the end?

Narration and Description

Clear character arcs will only be successful with narration and description. Narration allows you to present facts and plot points in a detailed and organized way, usually chronologically. It can also give readers insight into the character’s inner thoughts. Here is where description can come in handy. Strong descriptions stay with the readers in the form of sensory details and images. This is a perfect way to carefully craft theme. Choosing powerful words can help readers latch onto your deeper meaning, your theme.

Symbolism

Using your story’s environment or inanimate objects in a symbolic way helps to subtly deliver the theme. Perhaps it is a landmark or a flower or a broken mug. Think of ways that symbols reiterate what the character is going through. In “Hamlet,” Shakespeare uses Yorick’s skull to symbolize Hamlet’s obsession with death. This obsession is laced into the story’s theme: the mystery of death and uncertainty of life.

Motifs

Repetition is a powerful tool in a writer’s repertoire. In “Mrs. Dalloway,” author Virginia Woolfe uses the time as a motif—a recurring object or idea that conveys a deeper meaning. Here she uses time as a motif to reveal the characters’ fear of time passing, a mundane and meaningless existence, and inevitable death—also a central theme of the novel.

Comparison and Contrast

“The Poisonwood Bible,” by Barbara Kingsolver is a perfect example of this. The author uses the ideas of light and darkness repeatedly to allow readers to consider their sources. This contrast relates back to the theme of cultural arrogance of the West. Linking or juxtaposing ideas in your writing will help readers outline your main themes.

Sell it!

Once you’ve built themes into your writing, it is time to sell it! Get plenty of feedback, and be open to criticism. Allowing fresh eyes to discover your themes will let you know if you’ve mastered the subtlety and clarity of theme deliverance. Then, step away for a while. Distance yourself from your writing, and give it time to breathe. Later, you can come back, review it and make the necessary changes to ensure your writing is the best it can be. Best of luck!