writing

Rosemary B. Althoff’s August 2025 Newsletter

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This morning I asked the question, “What makes my book stand out from others in its genre?” It took quite some thinking to come up with a reason why people should buy my Soul’s Warfare sci-fi books more than others in the YA sci-fi genre written by equally—at least!—competent authors. 

Like other YA and adult novels, my stories are fun to read. Reasonably well-written. Recently, I listened to the Audible version of The Horned Edge. I liked it. Last night I listened to the Audible version of The Cave Chamber. At some parts in the books, I shook my head at the mistakes of a novice author. At other parts I glowed at my brilliance.

Overall, I was entertained. That’s good. But what makes my books outstanding?

I finally thought of some reasons why people should buy my books in particular more than other choices.

  • The books’ science is real, and it advocates God’s creation rather than random evolution.
  • I openly show my characters wrestling with Christianity and the concept of Jesus as Savior and Lord of the universe throughout their adventures.
  • I proclaim a real hope both for right now and for our universe’s future.

So, in my marketing, I can emphasize these reasons to buy and read my books.

NEXT:

Here is the link to the entire August 2025 Newsletter. I describe my idea for a Church Thriller series, and more.

Newsletter Link

In the newsletter, besides reading my monthly report, you can also sign up to receive my free monthly newsletter.

I do not share your email address with anyone.

I respond to you when you reply to any of my newsletters or blogs.

You are loved!

Managing Your Multiple Projects

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If you have much to do, with multiple projects in hand, here is a bit of advice.

First let me tell you a story.

© 1998 The Mead Corporation http://www.meadweb.com

My Floundering Experience

Some years ago, I worked as the composition manager for a law-publishing company called Business Laws, Inc. (It has since been sold.) I was in charge of quality control of about 120 publications and nine composers. There were at least nine projects to manage the process and physically review before publication at any one time.

At first, I was swamped. My boss suggested that I “feather my projects,” but I had trouble doing that. because the workload was so huge and everything was IMPORTANT and URGENT! My desk piled up and I was under constant pressure. The stress almost overwhelmed me—and the people under my supervision.

However, I began to learn how to manage it all.

Learning to Manage

First, I noticed what people did right, and I told them about their good work. The company had a goal of 97% accuracy and 3 months of processing supplement books; more time if it was a completely new volume. But, due to the great flow of incoming projects, many were late. I withheld criticism of lateness, but noticed the average length of time it took to complete each type of project.

I leaned on the editors to submit their work to the composers as clean as possible. They did! Yay—less time to correct errors!

My boss analyzed the average completion time of the project, and she set due dates accordingly. I toughened my reviews while continuing to talk to the staff and—although I was tough on errors—I saw their willingness to pursue excellence, and showed my gratitude for my great staff.

Results!

The tension in the whole company eased. Editors were happy, because they knew what to do and how. Composers were happy because they knew their reasonable expectations and knew they could succeed. I taught some skills and kept up with consistent types of errors.

By the time I left, the 120 or so projects “feathered” easily and were cumulatively 99% accurate plus on time to the very Day projected.

The Key to Managing Multiple Projects Without Falling Apart

So, the key to good work on multiple projects includes:

  • A mindset of excellence in work
  • Encouraging everyone: superiors/supervisors, employees, staff, editors, and nonjudgmental correction of errors
  • A reasonable analysis of due dates
  • Rewards for good work, including verbal encouragement, small gifts, attention, compliments, nonjudgmental critiques, additional responsibility to anyone capable of more projects or managing more people, and, finally, raises based on excellent performance.

I’m currently handling a big load of personal writing projects. I need to analyze my reasonable completion goals, and maintain an encouraging attitude toward myself.

May you, too, find excellent and satisfaction in your projects.

Rosemary B. Althoff

Speaking the truth in love. (Ephesians 4:15 ESV)

Website: https://rosemaryalthoff.com

Keep in touch with me …
Subscribe to my monthly newsletter HERE.

See my books HERE.

Escaping a Double Bind

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Ever been caught in a double bind? Are you bouncing between the wall of “this absolutely needs to be done” and “I’m gonna get in serious trouble if I move to get it done”? Living in the middle of a double bind makes you crazy, depressed, and spiritually immobile.

A psychologist told me that the only way out of a double bind is to take action. It can be to absolutely get the thing done (and face the trouble—if it comes), or it can sometimes be to do something new altogether. But a person in a double bind must take an action toward his or her deepest God-given goals.

I recall a time when I finally got the courage to take action out of the black hole of a double bind. For a while I didn’t do anything except stew in the situation. Finally my dear husband took me tenderly aside and said, “Rose, you’ve got to get help.”

I went to a counselor. I saw the threatening walls of my double bind and named them. One wall was “I need to get a job.” I wanted to be a professional author, but wasn’t making any money from writing and so my “dream job” did not seem to be an option. The other wall was “Care for your family.” I had children to care for, and I was afraid that getting a job would mean that they would not be okay.

I took action. The opportunity opened up right away (thank you, God!). I got a part-time job writing a newsletter for a Bible society. So, I was writing and making a little money. But I began to see that a bigger income was necessary. The double bind threatened to close on me again, so I investigated my action options—and enrolled in graduate school to gain the skills I needed to write and understand science. At first, I was taking one class at a time and using the budget plan. It was a difficult stretch. Then, God opened another opportunity: I received a paid assistantship. I could get paid to do something I loved: Learn communication, learn science, and write a lot.

Hard choices continued to come up. My family had to move. Should I stay in graduate school and commute an hour each way? Yes. Then I got very sick. Should I drop out of school? No. I stayed in school, I graduated, I got a job doing work that I loved (teaching college courses in communication and writing skills) … and my family was okay.

Now years have passed. Life’s joys and difficulties continue onward, with choices to make at every turn. But I’ve learned the important truth: Don’t stay stuck in the double bind. Take ethical action with prayer. The Lord will close doors and open them—sometimes dramatically. Jesus will forgive you if you make a choice you have to un-make. He’ll uphold you and bless you and guide you through the next action.

My prayer for you is Psalm 143:8. Tell the Lord what you are experiencing. Then say, “Let me hear You in the morning, because I trust You. Let me know the way to go, because to You I lift up my soul.”

NEW YEAR’S RESOLUTIONS … IN DECEMBER

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My theme for the end of 2023 going into 2024 is Rest.

Rest means choosing to take care of myself while loving others. So, I have challenged myself to moderate eating, increase exercise by inches rather than miles, and schedule days off. I love my work of writing, and I choose to reward myself for getting writing done with things that help me rest. I may be active when I’m resting—for instance, riding my bike in the park and then going out for ice cream. I may sit and read. I may hang out with friends and family.

A book I heartily recommend to help people make their New Year’s decisions is The Next Right Thing by Emily P. Freeman.

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