The Best Writing Advice by Dana-Lyn Phillips

 

What is the best writing advice you have ever received, and why?

I am extremely new to the craft of writing. In fact, it has not even been a year since this new world opened up to me, and I’m not embarrassed to admit that…it’s a lot! It used to be that writers would write for a newspaper, magazine or a book and that was their sole focus. Seems to me it was simpler back then.

Now, with websites, social media outlets, and endless talk of ‘building your platform’, the world of writing seems as though it’s become quite complicated. If that weren’t enough, according to so-called “experts” you now need to add audio to your work, live stream Q&A periods, reply to every comment, and post notes five times a day in order to even hope to be successful.

Don’t get me wrong, there are many writers out there who are managing all these different avenues – and doing it well, but that’s not me.

I have received a lot of great writing advice throughout the past year but the message that stands out the most is from an article written on Substack by Grant Herbel. On August 26, 2025, Grant posted an article titled “How to Know if You’re Actually Called to Write: The Relief of Shifting from Seeking Tasks to Receiving Identity”. In Grant’s article there are three sentences that spoke loudly to me.

1. “You’re not a writer who happens to be a Christian. You’re a Christian who may happen to write as one expression of your identity in Christ.”

2. “The goal isn’t to become an influential writer or build a successful platform. The goal is to lift up Christ, who will draw all people to Himself.” (John 12:32)

3. “When success becomes faithfulness rather than follower counts, the metrics anxiety dissolves. You’re free to write from rest rather than striving.”

All three of these quotes describe who I want to be as a writer. I don’t want to be driven by numbers. I don’t want strangers telling me what hoops I need to jump through to be successful in this industry. I’m here only because God orchestrated a big change in my life and He led me here – to the world of writing. If I’m being completely honest, I still question why I am here, but I know without a shadow of a doubt that this is what He wants me to do right now. So I show up and I seek His guidance as I move forward.

Knowing who I want to be as a writer, and knowing who my co-pilot is in this endeavour, doesn’t rid me of confusion from the things I read and hear. It’s still really difficult to wade through the contradictory advice that comes daily, from every direction.

Somedays I still question if I am making the right choices in my writing, or if I am doing all of the things that I should be doing to move forward, but then I remember who is in control and I trust His leading in my career and in my life.

God led me to writing, God gave me the articles I have written, God helped me to create a space on Substack. And God knows why I am here, at this moment in time, and what His future plans are for me. I want to stop focusing on numbers, as a measure of success, and instead focus on lifting up Christ, who will draw all people to Himself. If I can do that, then I can trust God will do what He wants with the numbers.

 

Dana-Lyn is a wife, and mother to teenage boys as well as a 14-year-old cava-poo named Hockley. She is passionate about encouraging Christian women in their faith and is stepping into her mid-life "calling" as a writer. Her happy place consists of a comfy chair, a great book, a hot cup of coffee and a chocolate…or three! You can read more of her work at https://plansfargreater.substack.com

Do What You Can by Susan Barclay

 

I was hoping to refer back to a previously written post on the best writing advice I’d ever received. Unfortunately, if I wrote one, I wasn’t able to find it. Fortunately, I can still answer the question for this month’s prompt!

First, I agree with much of what’s already been shared by others here over the last two weeks, including (but not limited to) Alan’s, “keep writing,” and much from Brenda’s multi-point post. Carol’s “Do I really need those words?” reminds me of Stephen King’s admonition to “kill your darlings.” And I absolutely love Peggianne’s advice to “pray first.” So essential, though sadly I admit to often forgetting.

The best advice I received recently was in a response to my June 2024 contribution, R is for Retirement, where Alan shared, “I write regularly, but in a way that suits me. I know some of our dear writing friends write for so various hours per day, or every other day. I don't follow this pattern. I write according to my writing energy level on a particular day. There are days I can write for four to six hours, whereas some days only two or three. I am my timekeeper. If I have a deadline, say for our InScribe blog or something else, I make sure I meet the deadline with time to spare. The thing is, I do what I can and what I love in my writing.”

This model meets my needs in this current season as I am still providing 24/7 care to my elderly mom, whose birthday is today. I would tell you how old she is, but then she would have to kill me! I am not ready to stop writing for such a dramatic reason, LOL.

So, I aim to follow Alan's suggestions:

● I write as regularly as I can, “but in a way that suits me…according to my energy level.”
● I aim to meet the deadlines for InScribe Writers Online, with time to spare.
● “I do what I can and what I love in my writing.”

I’m thankful that while God equipped me with the gift and love of writing and wants me to use it, Christianity is not a works-based faith. He knows what’s going on in my life and He knows my heart. He doesn’t want me to beat myself up over something outside of my control (my available time and energy level in these trying days). While I wait for a time when I am free to write more, I trust His good reasons for extending this period of shared suffering. His ways and timing are perfect, even when we do not understand.

If you are going through a hard time where you feel your life is on hold, what advice do you give yourself?

______________________________

 

For more about Susan Barclay and her writing, please visit www.susan-barclay.blogspot.com.

Keep Writing by Alan Anderson

 

The Why to keep writing

The writing prompt for March has been a brain scratcher for me, but I finally settled on how to respond. After being a contributor to our blog for ten years, I have received a lot of encouragement from our group. Welcome advice and counsel from more experienced writers have also accompanied this encouragement. The title of this blog post might seem simple to many of you, but it summarizes my response to our prompt.

We, as writers, receive the words, “keep writing,” as an encouragement to persevere in the craft we all love. We can never underestimate our love for the written word. This love is a powerful motivation for us to continue developing our writing skills.

My personal response to the Why

Lord willing, I hope not only to keep writing, but to write well. I pray the words I write will outlast my life here on earth. With the years seeming to pass at a quick pace, I realize there will be a year that will be my final one on earth.

The past year, and into 2026, has challenged me with health conditions in no hurry to end soon. My writing energy has suffered as well. Concentration to keep writing is now a daily challenge. This is where perseverance becomes part of my writing endeavours.

I keep writing as part of who I am, the way God created me to be. Indeed, I am not everyone’s go-to guy for such things as writing advice. In fact, I shy away from giving advice most times. I would rather listen to a person hoping to help them come to their own decisions.

I keep writing to offer hope to people, and perhaps this is a strength of my words. As writers, we don’t have to go far to find people in need of hope. I write to let them know they matter. I hope to assure people someone cares for them. Hope to remind them God loves them, as do I; therefore, I keep writing. There is no reason to stop.

I keep writing with words wrapped in prayer. This is pleasing to God. He loves us to pray for each other. InScribe Christian Writers' Fellowship has a special place in my life; therefore, I pray our ministry together makes the world a better place. I conclude with a prayer I wrote in a previous post for those who are serious writers and InScribe in particular.

Bless our words, O Lord,

as they make their way into the world.

Help them touch hearts,

Heal minds,

Blanket souls in eternal love.

Allow our words, O Lord,

To speak long after we have gone to our blessed hope.

May they live as seeds of Your love.

  

Alan lives in a small village called Deroche, British Columbia, with his wife, Terry, and their poodle, Charlie. He enjoys walking on the dike near his home, with trees all around and where he finds inspiration to write. He has occasionally written articles for FellowScript Magazine and is a regular contributor to the InScribe Christian Writers’ Fellowship blog. Alan’s website and blog is https://scarredjoy.ca. He also writes on Substack.

The Best Writing Advice by Steph Beth Nickel

So many writing adages . . .

• Write what you know.
• Show don’t tell.
• Write every day.
• Write to market.
• To be a writer, you have to write.
• Write what you want to read.
• Write what you need to read. And so on and so on and so on.

All these pieces of advice have their place. But do they apply to every writer at all times? Do any of them apply to any writer at all times?

My response: a categorical no.

The most insightful piece of information I’ve ever come across is this: Each writer is unique and must find their own best practices.

Following an A-Z list of How to Become a Successful Writer might be appealing, but there are too many variables that are beyond our control.

Plus . . .

Would any of us like to think there was a guaranteed formula that applies to every writer?

While there are times such a formula might be useful, for many of us, it would eliminate—or at least minimize—our favourite part of the process, creativity.

Likely the most challenging element of accepting ourselves as unique individuals is to commit to trial and error to see what works best for us.

Most of us would agree that writing only what we know has its limits. Using our knowledge and interests as a jumping off spot, however . . . That can be super helpful and may very well get the creative juices flowing.

While showing rather than telling adds depth to both fiction and nonfiction, there are times simply telling our readers a fact is the best option.

Some writers must write every day, if even for a few minutes. Others cannot commit to doing so for a wide variety of reasons.

The idea of writing to market has its upside and its downside. Each of us must weigh the pros and cons of allowing oft-changing market trends to determine what we write.

We are writers when we’re writing—and when we’re not. Writing involves so much more than putting pen to paper or fingers to keyboard.

It’s helpful to enjoy what we’re writing. However, most of us can find a plethora of books that we enjoy, that motivate, encourage, and entertain us. So, enjoyment alone is rarely enough reason to write—unless we’re writing for our eyes only.

Writing what we need to read may be a more powerful motivation. Plus, we may very well find holes in the market, whether the information is outdated or missing a unique perspective that we could bring to the subject. 

As I said, all of the above adages have their place, but I would encourage you to embrace your uniqueness and explore what works best for you at this point, knowing that what worked yesterday may need tweaking. And what will work tomorrow? That remains to be seen.

Graphic Credit: Tips Tricks And - Free photo on Pixabay

Steph Beth Nickel is the former Editor of FellowScript and the current InScribe Contest Coordinator. Steph is an editor and author and plans to relocate to Saskatchewan from Ontario to be close to family in this year or next. (Headshot Photo Credit: Jaime Mellor Photography)