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This is going to be a very short post! But it will amuse me to give you an insider view of what happened. Remember those business cards I promised?

Yeah, not happening! I ordered them and they came in looking the worst of any business card I have ever ordered. Why? Too little real estate crowded with too much text and graphics! They just will not do. You can only read them with a magnifying glass, so I am going to re-design them and order a fresh printing.

That’s it. A short and laughable glimpse into the struggles of a writer/publisher. Have a great day!

We learn best by following in the steps of those who have succeeded before us. We see our greatest improvements when we seek to learn from those who we admire and respect. A recent project (that of transcribing old biographies) has made me realize that this is an awesome tool in the writer’s learning process.

Over the past couple months I have been sitting down with one of my favorite biographies, a young adult focused title published circa 1932. A wonderful piece of writing that I have long admired. As I prepare this title to be published through Flaming Pen Press, each and every sentence is mine to type into a Word document. It seems tedious at times, yet it has served two benefits that are invaluable. First, transcribing the entire biography is helping me retain the content of the book. The story of Sir Francis Drake is being freshly engrained in my mind. And who doesn’t want to better know world history? I certainly do!

Secondly, through typing each and every word, I find my subconscious learning from the author’s entertaining, albeit antiquated, style. The structuring of her sentences, the way she developed her characters, and the genuine, rather than superfluous, feel to the book’s content.

We learn best by following the best examples of our writing craft.

Q: What methods help you improve your writing?

It is a blessing to recognize artistic beauty in all its forms, like the variety of expression. We each can find inspiration in our unique spiritual and life journey.

A spirit of gentle submission to the glory of our created condition. Written words contribute songs, stories, and films.

With Flaming Pen Press there are so many things we can accomplish. I believe in dreaming big. But dreaming doesn’t build reality. Action is necessary to achieve goals.

Hiring people to provide jobs and pool their creativity. I’m starting by outsourcing for help in transcribing the antique books awaiting their inclusion in the Flaming Pen Press library. What an awesome opportunity to be helped and also provide jobs.

It only grows from here.

Managing these endeavors is exciting. It’s taken years for the how behind the vision to become clear. I am done trying to do it all on my own. I cannot. To grow, my business needs me to get out of the way and take opportunity to shift burdens on other gifted individuals.

Setting up the business to free myself to write and direct projects. Fingers in the pie-in-progress, so to speak, yet without disturbing it.

Q: What are your gifts and passions?

Last month I found a Bus RV conversion online. It met all the criteria in what I was looking to get to put my family on-the-road again. I committed to going down to Oklahoma and checking out the bus and then buying it. My plane ticket was purchased but…

Sometimes God closes doors for reasons that we never know, and sometimes we find out why he does later on.

My wife and I have an exciting announcement: we are having another baby Summer 2015. I am so excited to become a father again!

Prompted by this realization I went back over our finances and factored in setting aside the money for the baby, as well as the payment for the bus. There is also another factor that God wants me to stay open to but right now I cannot divulge. Unfortunately the financial figures for buying the bus just didn’t add up. (To my shame, because I should have factored the possibility of another baby in). I am convinced that God will be able to use us more effectively if we are debt-free, so I am trying hard to stick to that.

The pastor who owns the RV Bus was very gracious in his response when I called to let him know I had to back out from purchasing it. But calling him to say I was backing out was the most difficult decision I made this year. Please pray that God brings along the right buyer for his bus as it would be a tremendous blessing to his family.

Thank you for coming by! On Monday, May 26th the introductory posts for AuthorAppleton.com will be released, and a new post will release every Monday thereafter.

Keep your eye out for great fantasy and science-fiction reads and always consider what you read. Consider what is good, honorable, and right; be cautious of how fiction shapes your worldview! I pray God’s blessing on what I write here and on what you read here.

Welcome to the Blog-Centric website for wholesome fantasy and science-fiction. Here we will converge all of my writing to give it focus and meaning!