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Dianne Neal Matthews
East Central Illinois
Dianne is a freelance author who has published magazine articles,newspaper features, devotionals, and nonfiction books.
Recent Activity
Glad you found it helpful, Marti. And thank you for reading and commenting.
Tips from the Pros: Dianne Neal Matthews
Greetings from Sarah Sundin on a drizzly day in northern California. As the year draws to a close, we begin to plan for the coming year. What a wonderful time to feature Dianne Neal Matthews, the author of four daily devotionals! Her newest offering, Designed for Devotion: A 365-Day Journey fr...
Thanks, Karen! I've never watched Biggest Loser, but that sounds like some great advice for writers. Think I'll get up right now and unload the dishwasher.
3 Words to Live By
Dianne Neal Matthews here, with a word of encouragement for your second Monday of the month. In order to share this message, I’m forced to admit something—and I hope it won’t lessen your opinion of me. Hello, my name is Dianne and I am an American Idol addict. In my defense, I didn’t give the...
Thanks for the feedback, Karen. I can't get that image out of my mind.
Newsworthy
Dianne Neal Matthews here, hoping to encourage you with a Christmas-related message—even though it’s the second week of January. About a month ago, I heard a story at church that has stuck in my mind. Our youth pastor, who is known as J.C. (not kidding), paid a visit to a church member in the ...
Thanks, Marja.
Pure Christmas
Dianne Neal Matthews here, hoping to encourage you with a true Christmas story. Last December was a bittersweet time for our family. At Thanksgiving we had all gathered for the last time in the house where my husband and I had lived for twenty-three years. By the next week, our belongings wer...
Thank you, Richard. Her doctors were amazed--but she did finally retire.
Pure Christmas
Dianne Neal Matthews here, hoping to encourage you with a true Christmas story. Last December was a bittersweet time for our family. At Thanksgiving we had all gathered for the last time in the house where my husband and I had lived for twenty-three years. By the next week, our belongings wer...
Great post, Winnie. As a little girl, I loved nothing better than speaking in front of a group; as an adult, I went to any extreme to avoid it. When I kept hearing that writers need to be speakers too, I went to CLASS training and joined Toastmasters. Through them I overcame my fear. I highly recommend these resources.
Speaking Engagements - Butterflies Anyone?
Hi, Winnie Griggs here again, back with the next post on speaking engagements. As promised in my last post, today I’m going to talk about working through the fear. In my last post I mentioned that fear of public speaking is very real and very prevalent. Mark Twain said it best, "There are t...
Thanks, Ava, for this gentle kick in the seat of the pants. I'm a lurker, through and through, even on groups like CAN. (If there was a 12-step program, Lurkers Anonymous would be fitting, wouldn't it?)
My problem is that I think about comments I would like to make but usually don't get around to posting them. Maybe if I cured my procrastination, I wouldn't be a lurker. Or maybe it would help to think of a blog comment the same way we think about a "first draft".
Whew! After posting this long comment, I think I need to lie down.
Don’t Just Read a Blog - Comment!
Hi, all! Ava Pennington here, to talk once again about additional ways we can market our books. Marketing isn’t restricted to convincing people to make a purchase. Good marketers will tell you that successful marketing is dependent upon relationships – building them and keeping them. One w...
Great ideas, Cherie! I will definitely reread my book to get ideas for marketing. That will be especially helpful for a daily devotional, because by the time I get to #365 I have no idea what all I've written about! Thanks for your insights.
I finally took the Pinterest Plunge: tips
Cheri Cowell here. I've been a lurker for several months. There were several reasons for my reluctance 1. I didn't want to spend time on a fad that would fade, 2. I couldn't see adding one more social media need-to on my list of must-dos, and 3. I just didn't get it. I didn't see how I'd use...
Jan, thank you so much for this message--one that I especially needed to hear. I just finished writing a daily devotional book and am getting ready to start another one. I've been shocked at how easily I can spend all day studying the Scriptures and writing about God while neglecting to spend time with Him. Hopefully, your illustration of POV will help me keep my focus in the right place this year. I think I'll post those three letters above my computer as a simple but powerful reminder.
POV, the Psalmist, and the Writer
Jan here, writing as 2009 is drawing to a close about a recent prodding I received through another look at Psalm 23. As writers we seek to factor in the best point of view (POV) for the piece we are writing. We make intentional choices or shifts to bring out nuances of meaning or story directi...
I loved this story, Janice! What a great reminder.
Noel, Noel!
Happy Tuesday, everyone! This is Janice Thompson, your CAN vice-president. Let me start by thanking those of you who've been promoting the CAN blog through twitter, facebook, etc.Keep up the good work. Our goal during the month of December is to remind people that this blog is our gift to the...
Thanks, Karen. I hope youre having a blessed Christmas season.
Joy in the Midst of Messy Situations
Dianne Neal Matthews here, taking a break from decorating the tree. Last night I helped with a Christmas party for the women in my church. Since the theme was "Christmas Memories", we invited the ladies to write down and turn in favorite Christmas memories to be read throughout the evening. A...
Great message, Jeanette. I can relate--wish I'd read this years ago.
When Words Won't Work
Hello from CAN Secretary Jeanette Hanscome. Like most CAN members, my writing life is often complicated by . . . well . . . life. As I write, edit, and teach I am also dealing with some stuff that will eventually provide riveting material for a novel or devotional book but for now is just pl...
Thank you, Jeanette, for letting me be part of this team.
The Burden of "Maybe"
Dianne Matthews here, with my maiden First Monday of the Month blog post! It's amazing how quickly feelings can change, isn't it? I'd tried to sell that proposal for a couple of years. A few houses had voted on it, but no luck. Finally, a publisher had not only accepted, but they'd offered a t...
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