Braiding a Story

August 27, 2012By Karen Barnett 2 Comments

Yesterday, my 10-year-old daughter taught me how to do a fishtail braid. I twisted, gathered, and plaited her long, blonde hair, as a familiar tension gathered in my chest. I would glance to the left, knowing I needed to gather a lock from over there and weave it to the right, somehow combining it in … Read More

Six Resolutions for Aspiring Writers

January 3, 2012By Karen Barnett 3 Comments

This is the time of year that many people dust off their dreams and make resolutions to help them achieve their goals. I did that several years ago and set out to follow my dream to become a writer. In case you’re just starting out, I thought I’d offer what I think are six of … Read More

Changing School Supplies…and Writers’ Supplies

August 31, 2011By Karen Barnett No Comments

Have you noticed how the school supply lists have changed in recent years? School starts next week (in our region) and I always marvel at how different the lists are from when I was a kid. Paper, crayons, folders and scissors are still on the list. Glue sticks have replaced the paste. Remember paste? My kids don’t even know what … Read More

Conference Fever

August 19, 2011By Karen Barnett 3 Comments

I apologize for being uncharacteristically quiet these past two weeks. I’ve been busy with writing conference preparations. This week I attended the Oregon Christian Writers Summer Conference and in a few more weeks (see the countdown clock to the lower right) I will be flying off to St. Louis for the American Christian Writers Conference … Read More

My Interview About Mount Hermon

February 7, 2011By Karen Barnett No Comments

If you have followed my blog for very long, you know that I am a huge fan of the Mount Hermon Christian Writers Conference held each year over the Palm Sunday weekend. I’m preparing for my third conference this year. Yesterday, I popped onto the Mount Hermon blog to check out a new post and … Read More

When Characters Lie

January 18, 2011By Karen Barnett 2 Comments

I’ve been burning a lot of midnight oil lately, in the name of research. Okay, that’s a lie–I’ve been watching a lot of TV. I have a new favorite show, Lie to Me, on FOX (and yes, I posted about this show last week, too). Thanks to Netflix, I’ve wasted away many hours catching up on the previous … Read More

The Devil is in the Details

January 10, 2011By Karen Barnett 1 Comment

Details enrich story. They help to create a story world in which your reader can dwell for the length of your book. They can also throw them out. A few days ago, I was watching an episode from the television series, Lie to Me (A big favorite of mine). A young girl had gone missing … Read More

Great Reads of 2010

December 29, 2010By Karen Barnett 3 Comments

In the spirit of those end-of-the-year top ten lists, I thought I’d organize a list of my favorite Christian novels that I read during 2010. Not all of them were published in 2010, I just happened to read them this year. If you click on the link, it will take you the “Book Pick Friday” where … Read More