A Christmas Treat: My First LRACW Meeting

By Dorothy Hill

Today was a first for me; my first meeting with other Christian writers in Little Rock. A friend on Facebook posted the meeting announcement for LRACW and I immediately started looking through the announcement for time, address and what to expect at the meeting.

When I arrived I was escorted to the meeting room, which really put me at ease. There is nothing worse than getting lost, being late and disrupting whatever might be going on when you finally figure out where you’re supposed to be. I’m so grateful that wasn’t my lot today.

And what do you know? Refreshments. Finger sandwiches (with no crusts!), chips and a fabulous dip, individual tart-sized ‘pies’ complete with whipped cream! Chex Mix, oh – and caramel corn. Such an unexpected bounty and so appreciated by all.

The writers at the meeting were so welcoming and friendly. They each made it a point to speak to me and introduce themselves. What a courteous and kind thing to do, to make a stranger feel so welcome. (Of course, without name tags next month, I won’t know who you are. And likely you wouldn’t know me either!)

Our speaker was Linda Scisson who talked about her new book, One-of-a-Kind Christmas Quiz. The book was available for purchase, which I did and now I can’t stop reading it. Clearly Linda knows a lot more about Christmas than I. This is an enjoyable read in a well organized book. The handout she provided for each of us was a glimpse into her book.

Linda spoke about her book and some of the decisions she made during the writing process. Very enlightening! Getting good counsel from an attorney was an excellent decision! She shared some publishing information that I think was very appropriate and useful. And I felt her pain when she mentioned the seemingly endless end-notes. I know who I’m going to talk to when I feel I’m ready to take that step toward publishing.

Linda’s book has 112 questions with multiple choice answers provided. I’m taking this book to our family Christmas morning brunch…and I’m going to Quiz my hubby and kids. I’m so glad there is an answer key in the back of the book. Without it I would be sunk.

I’m so looking forward to meeting on the 2nd Tuesday of the month. And oh yes, I’m going to the writers’ conference on May 18th at Summit Church in North Little Rock. Hope you’ll come join us!

Christmas @ LRACW: An Interview with Linda L. Scisson

Since our very own Linda L. Scisson will be sharing about her book, One-of-a-Kind Christmas Quiz at our LRACW Christmas party (tomorrow, December 11), we thought we'd share a little more about her with you. Read on to discover more about this Little Rock writer and her exciting Christmas book...

How long have you been writing?

I’m 62 years old, and I’ve enjoyed writing most of my adult life. A major milestone was in the early 1980s when I shared my poems with a psychiatrist, and she suggested I enroll in a poetry class. I’m so glad I took Dr. Rosemary Brandt’s suggestion. Those early poems eventually led me to a heightened appreciation of the things of God. That is, God started showing up, in some form or fashion, in my poems, and I recognized a deep longing to get to know Him. He is called “Wonderful Counselor,” you know, and He does not charge for therapy sessions.

Two decades later, I submitted my first article, sort of on a lark, to an online Christian magazine called Excel Online, which was an outreach of Fellowship Bible Church in Little Rock. “Seeing Ourselves in Seabiscuit” galloped into cyberspace in August 2003, and I received compliments from the editor, along with encouragement to continue to write and submit.

Are you originally from Arkansas?

 I grew up in Crossett, a small paper-mill town in Ashley County. I moved here after college graduation: The small-town girl moving to the big-city theme, as did my twin sister Brenda Scisson.

           Is One-of-a-Kind Christmas Quiz your first book?

One-of-a-Kind Christmas Quiz (Mustang, OK: Tate Publishing, 2012) is my first book to be marketed by someone other than myself. My contract with Tate included a marketing contract, and a marketing representative who gave me pointers and a gentle push to promote this book. I prefer the writing and research, rather than marketing, and Travis King understood that and did not push me into a place that would have been highly stressful for me.  

Yet, my first book —that I also had self-published, elsewhere — is Durables: Articles, Poems, and Reviews. I had a grand total of 230 copies printed, starting back in 2007. There was no official marketing, and I gave many copies away as gifts.

What inspired you to write this book?

I remember at my sister’s dining room table on Christmas Day, 2010, sharing a few Christmas quiz questions. And I knew I could compile all my questions from several years, and add some more, and turn it into a book. I had the desire to do so, and I chose to pursue it.

Also, I had a sense of failure with Durables. While I have a revised and expanded manuscript, I have not had the energy or the emotional stamina to do any more with it. And I translate that lack of mine as God’s prompting to close the door of Durables, which revised manuscript is a few yards from me (as I type my responses to these questions), housed in a three-ring, durable notebook.

So I turned to something lighter in scope.

And I had a sense there would be something unique about my Christmas quiz book: that it is one-of-a-kind, but ultimately the reader will determine that.

Have you used One-of-a-Kind Christmas Quiz with your own family?

I will speak about its use with family, in pertinent part, at our meeting on December 11. The basic answer is: Yes, I have used this book with family members.

Without a doubt, it has generated family fun and bonding. I recall one day after sharing one of the spiritual questions in One-of-a-Kind Christmas Quiz, one family member asked me a deeply theological question, and I had to suggest the inquiry be addressed to a pastor. I had little or no idea of the depth of this relative’s spiritual quest.