Bethany Kaczmarek

Writer. Editor. Sojourner.

About Me

About

I am a sojourner. So far, I've just explored Earth, but my love for adventure and old stories make me yearn for a chance to wander in other realms in the not-too-distant future. Author of Strains of Silence (Summer 2017) and ACFW finalist for Editor of the Year, I enjoy tales that take a guess at what's out there. And I love to add my own ideas to the mix. Other job titles: Wielder of Red Pens, Grammar Ninja, Wiper of Tears and Milk, Indie Music Connoisseur, and Friend.

Favorite Posts

Debut Release Day

Jul 21, 2017 | No Comments

My debut novel, Strains of Silence, hit the virtual shelves today. Release day. I knew this day was coming, prepped for it even. But after seven years, after four complete rewrites, it’s live. My friends are telling me it showed up on their Kindles at midnight. Reviews are appearing. And I am blown away. Humbled […]

Strains of Silence – Cover Reveal

Strains of Silence – Cover Reveal

Oct 3, 2016 | 32 Comments

My debut novel Strains of Silence has an actual cover! A cover that will be on the front of a book that I wrote. That I (and you, if you like) will get to stare at in person in less than a year. Friends, it’s completely surreal. I started this book eight years ago. When […]

Humanity, Color, and Admiration: A True Story

Humanity, Color, and Admiration: A True Story

Aug 8, 2016 | No Comments

To me, a white woman with white kids, black lives matter.   I hear you. Some of my friends, right off the bat are saying, “ALL lives matter.” And they do. But it’s okay to say that we recognize — especially right now — black lives matter. To my black friends, I hear you. I […]

The Power of Story and the People Who Believe in It

The Power of Story and the People Who Believe in It

Aug 2, 2016 | 6 Comments

A well-written story can pull me in for hours. I love linking arms with the main character and facing dangerous foes. To be swept away, engulfed in a sensory-rich story world is a wondrous thing. We all need new adventures. The best stories of all fill my mind with wonder and with fear, with joy […]

Kurt Vonnegut’s 8 Rules for Writing

Kurt Vonnegut’s 8 Rules for Writing

Jul 29, 2015 | No Comments

Were I to have the privilege of sitting somewhere in time past and listening to Kurt Vonnegut, I’m sure I would leave unsettled.   Shocked probably. Maybe irked. Moved, I think. But I guarantee you this.  I would be uncomfortable with Things as They Are. Mr. Vonnegut knew how to write, how to speak, how to engage […]

Beauty from Brokenness

Beauty from Brokenness

Feb 21, 2013 | One Comment

Someone once said I live a charmed life. I’m not sure, even now, how to respond to that except to laugh. It’s not a bitter laugh, but it would’ve been once upon a time. My childhood bordered on blissful, if you discount the fact that I’ve always been hard-headed. I was loved fully and unconditionally, […]

Pressing in When it Feels Impossible (Part Two)

Pressing in When it Feels Impossible (Part Two)

Nov 6, 2012 | 10 Comments

So that night, I knelt on the floor at the foot of the bed where my little man slept, and I offered God my son’s life. I knew He understood the pain of a parent letting go of their child. And I wrapped myself up in that knowledge. . . When I left for the […]

Pressing in When it Feels Impossible (Part One)

Pressing in When it Feels Impossible (Part One)

Nov 2, 2012 | 18 Comments

Sometimes, the God Who created us for relationship isolates us. I’m talking pitch black isolation. The kind of darkness that is so alive it has its own heartbeat. If we didn’t have moments (sometimes years) like that, we’d lean on others. The thing is, we’re meant to press in to HIM. So, when He sees […]