Jeremy D Vance Author

Finally! I’m moving to my new website: jeremydvance.com Thank you to Blogger for my time here! I’d recommend this site to use before acquiring your own domain. The interface is pretty easy to use in my opinion.  Also thank you to all who came here to read my blogs. I hope you were encouraged and if you still need encouragement, please follow the link to my  new website .

       Why should we put our hope in Jesus?      1. Because He brought hope to many others during His life             Matthew 11:5 : The blind receive sight, the lame walk, those who have leprosy are cured, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the good news is preached to the poor.       Jesus pointed out that what He was doing fulfilled the early portion of Isaiah 61, but also that John the Baptist (who was experiencing doubts) could hope in Him because so many people had already found their hopes fulfilled. People who spent their lives lame found restoration of their limbs. A paralyzed man experienced full healing as well as forgiveness of his sins. After being dead for a few days, a man returned alive to his two sisters through Jesus’ calling him out of the tomb. Also He elevated the position of women, recognized people considered outcasts, and even touched lepers.       If people of Jesus’ day could find hope then, so much more can we find hope today in what He says and does.

       Everyday we deal with the world’s trouble. We may experience the loss of loved ones or our savings might dwindle from unexpected bills. We can grieve or be angry for awhile, but do we allow these troubles to lead us to despair? Do we drown in our feelings without any hope whatsoever?      When trouble comes to us believers, we are given the opportunity to focus our faith on Jesus. In the above passage, the news of Christ’s imminent death confused and saddened the disciples. Yet Jesus wanted them to know that though trouble exists in the the world, He has in fact overcome it. Though death exists, it has been overcome. Though pain exists, it has been overcome. What an assurance! We don’t need to fear the world’s troubles, because Jesus has overcome them all and the power behind them.       Believers, let’s not fear hardships anymore. Let them come for we rest our faith in Jesus. 

        All this time, I believed I would be writing speculative fiction. After another period of distraction, I read about the church at Ephesus in Revelation 2:1-7. This inspired an idea that morphed from time travel to a contemporary inspirational fiction story. The story just didn’t fit with what I was writing so it became what it is now.       God has a way of shifting our life’s plans when we least expect. Instead of being directed towards children or teens, the story is geared towards adults. This looks like it’ll be a permanent move as well. So….the website will be changing soon. God knows what He is doing and He will continue to direct my future as I trust in Him. All glory to Him.  Jeremy D Vance

        Do you cheer for heroes when they experience “the dark before the dawn?” Do you keep reading? Then perhaps like me, you believe in hope. Hope is what keeps me going when things are dark.       Sometimes life throws at us difficult things like conflict or sadness and others don’t seem to want to help us. We may appear to be very alone. Yet for me, my hope is not in my circumstances because they always change. At times, they even worsen. My hope is in something that does not change or even better, a someone.       This someone for me is God. I’ve been through job loss and other rough things, but the constant has been that God has never abandoned me. Yes, I have not seen him, but I know deep in my heart, without a doubt, he has always been with me. I’ve even been angry at him. He took it and patiently waited for me to talk to him again. I have learned to rely on him when dark circumstances descend on me.       When we may be different than others, people can tend to reject us, but

       With technology advances racing ahead like a child with abandon, we can become enamored with them to the point we lose sight of what is necessary.       Aglow with the wonders on our screens, our eyes might mislead us into thinking everything is fine. Yet in the midst of these advances, face to face interaction with others lessens. We stare at videos and memes that for the sake of entertainment become in reality a wall between us. When others suffer, we may find a clever poem to lighten their spirits, but we may forget our actual presence is what they need.       No matter how far we reach with our technology, let’s not forget to reach out to each other.  

      This bestselling book was a bit of a disappointment for me. The best takeaways I received were two points. First, the bird by bird illustration demonstrated the need to focus on writing one thing at a time, rather than becoming overwhelmed by the thought of a whole book. Second, the advice to ignore the two different voices in your head is spot on as well. On one side, you have the voice tearing down your writing and on the other, the voice that says your writing could never be better. Instead, focus on your writing or these voices will mess you up.       On the disappointing side, I felt Lamott overly focused on her thoughts and feelings to being a distraction from her writing advice. Granted, I’ve read a number of straight writing craft books so being pushed out of the rut could’ve been a little jolting to me as she writes about her life. Yet, perfecting my writing is what I wanted more than learning her particular likes and dislikes.       Also, I had given up on reading more

       A couple weeks ago, I vacationed with my family in Missouri and took a week off from writing. Within two days, I was chomping at the bit to write again. Now I held off for my time with family, but the need to write increased.       By the time I returned home, I needed to write in my WIP asap. Isn’t that a good sign? I believe all writers should have an experience like this, where you become anxious to write if you leave it alone too long. It must be a sign you were meant to write.      Even if you’ve had writer’s block for weeks, the fact that you agonize over it, means you’re a writer. Even worrying about a period of resistance to writing means you’re meant to be a writer. Others, who have writer’s block or resistance and don’t care, might not be in the right hobby or profession. I’d urge them to reconsider their reasons for writing.      It took me four years of writing to finally reach becoming anxious about writing. If you’ve been at it for a couple months and still haven’t

       After reading many craft books, we writers may believe we’ve arrived. We know all about grammar, voice, plot, research, etc and we’ve even published some manuscripts.       Why keep growing?      Because we owe it to our readers.  They deserve the best of our writing. We need to keep delivering quality stories to capture their imagination so they may forget the stress and junk of life.       Because even widely published authors do it. I know of examples where authors of many books keep attending conference workshops or continue within a critique group for outside input. If they continue working on their craft, why shouldn’t we?      We can’t let our work stagnate. We need to stay up-to-date to maintain a freshness in our work so that when the art changes, we can change with it to grow our readership.  May we all progress as writers. Press on!

       “What are you working on?”      A common question when I explain to someone I’m a writer. I’m usually more than happy to talk about the book I’m currently writing but listening lately to a popular author has me wondering if that’s the right course.       She mentioned her practice of NOT talking about her current writing project. She felt too many authors tell all about their stories and lose the drive to keep writing as a result. They have finished their storytelling and move on to writing a new story.       I think about a couple half planned projects in my Scrivener app and frown in realization. I talked about them but never finished. Loose lips sink not only ships but stories too.       I will now answer briefly when asked about my current story so the Muse and I can enjoy a long and happy working relationship. The momentum must continue. 

           As a writer, I can certainly struggle with attitude when putting pen to paper. Perhaps I am resistant to writing or haunted by self-doubt. As I wrestle with these thoughts, hours can pass by without any words on the page. This can pile on discouragement and lead to giving up the day’s work.                     So how can i have the right attitude so the day is productive?  In my opinion, conquering resistance and self-doubt comes by wielding the choice for a positive mindset. Today I struggled with my attitude for writing the blog. Instead of putting off its creation, I chose to be positive about it before starting. I put away my resistance and chose to look forward to its completion. As I wrote, the positive feelings arrived and the day became productive.        I know it seems pretty simplistic to just choose the right attitude. It might take some time to overcome the negativity, but in my experience, it is possible. A productive day of writing can come if I choose to pers

       The pursuit of money and fame can be a big lure for you to write a book. If you set this as your purpose, you most likely will become discouraged and even give up when it is discovered that writing and publishing a book is genuinely difficult. Popularity and cash do not come from simply putting your words on a page.       In my opinion, you must find a deeper purpose for crafting stories or even non-fiction. Such a purpose will be the rudder that keeps your writing on course in the storms of self-doubt and rejection.      My purpose in writing speculative fiction for children and teens has been to help them walk through life’s difficult moments as well as to prompt thinking about deeper issues. After my period of distraction, I had to re-examine and renew my purpose so that I may continue on this epic writing journey. Once firmly in my grasp again, I look forward to the future laid before me and so  Whether I reach a few or thousands with my stories, it will all be worth the eff

           If you are a writer who avoids sharing smaller word counts, this is a great book!      In the introduction, DeSalvo states, “In our rush-rush world, if we allow ourselves to slow down our lives and our writing process, we’ll discover that we’ll connect—or reconnect— with the wellspring of our most profound work.”      Whether you are a fiction writer or memoir author like DeSalvo, this book is worth the look. From tips to connect with your Muse to creating a process journal, good writing wisdom can be mined here. The author also backs up this information with similar practices by popular authors showing that you are not alone in slow writing and that you can learn from good examples.      This book drew me in for a little over a week. It sure kept my interest and I’m sure it will keep yours too.

      Zoooom!!!! My fingers flew over the keyboard one day crafting my fantasy novelette. Determined to beat my personal best, I made my fingertips almost smoke. By the day’s end, I shattered my record.       Fast forward two months, I sent my story to a beta reader after a period of reflection and revision. Her prompt reply? “Clunky writing.”      Granted, my writing experience was low at the time, but the critique demonstrated that a high wpm doesn’t equate with quality. Now I’m not slamming any speedy writers because there are those who do produce great works. Kudos to all who accomplish such a feat. For me, slow writing allows for reflection and care not always available in a rapid pace. Attention to craft also comes to the forefront as I slow down. It doesn’t mean I edit as I write, but I put more thought into what goes on the screen.      I believe slow writers shouldn’t be embarrassed of their pace but instead embrace it as one way to put their talents into practice. Gifts can’t

      I’m returning to my site after a hiatus of distraction. During this time, it led me away from weaving good words and ideas into stories for younger readers.       While some distraction may be entertaining, it dissolves into nothing of substance like cotton candy in a toddler’s mouth when compared with a tale of value. Seeing a child’s or young adult’s eyes brighten at the plot twist or gaze far off at imagined worlds full of unique inhabitants make me one happy and satisfied writer.       Look for more spinning of tales from this site on a weekly basis as we adventure throughout star systems with interesting alien populations!