(While the following post is much longer than normal at almost 2,000 words, please read the entire thing. I reveal some very person things going on in my life at the time. Thank you.) Today is November 6, 2015 and I am on week 4 day 1 of the study guide. During my quiet time, I talk about some very personal stuff but just how much God has been working in my life. When we think of the Bible, it's like the ultimate guide book. It shows us the kind of person we should strive to be. How to act … [Read more...]
Motivation… Or the Lack There of
Motivation. I can be a tricky thing to conquer (especially when all motivation has failed you thus far). You know in your heart you want to do this (whatever it is) and nothing you say or do moves you forward to do it. It's rather irritation quite frankly. For me, I have a couple of things I want to be continuously motivated to do but I'm simply not: Writing and a Personal Quiet Time After Mari died writing became cathartic for me. I had constant ideas floating around my head. However, … [Read more...]
The Journey with Cathy Elliott #acfw #thejourney
Please welcome this week's guest Cathy Elliott for The Journey. She answers the question: How have you seen God work in your writing journey? Bloom Where You’re Planted? When I finally answered the writer call, it was with the words, “What shall I write?” The desire had long been nestled inside, popping up every so often, tapping me on the heart. But the nudge seemed playful, without purpose. Now, at-the-ready, I felt lost before my journey even began. At my first writers group meeting, … [Read more...]
Book Review: Ties that Bind, C.J. Darlington
Book Blurb: Newly released from prison, Brynn Taylor is determined to find her father; a man she’s never met. Her only clue to his whereabouts is the address she finds in a rare volume of Jane Austen’s Sense and Sensibility which he inscribed to her years ago. Armed with a bus ticket, a backpack, and her grandfather’s gun, her search leads her to Elk Valley, Colorado where her plans and her life begin to unravel. Brynn, a young homeless woman, hits bottom when she losses … [Read more...]
The Journey with Stephanie Prichard #acfw
Please welcome this week's guest Stephanie Prichard for The Journey. She answers the question: How have you seen God work in your writing journey? Riding the Emotional Roller Coaster When my love of writing became an earnest intent to publish, I had no idea I was mounting a twisting, looping roller coaster. Please note that from my perspective a roller coaster is NOT an instrument of fun and delight. Chugging to a peak is no problem, but the other side of that peak? Uh-uhhhh. Not a matter of … [Read more...]
Review for Darcie J. Gudger’s Spin By Jean Ann Williams
Jacket Blurb: Sophomore Kisrie Kelley longs to fit in. Instead, she’s always been a misfit, a fact her nemesis Wendy won’t let her forget. At least she’s got color guard and photography, right? She almost feels normal when she’s out on the field performing or behind the lens. Truth be told, they’re the only reasons she even shows up at school, though her professor mom thinks they’re both a waste of Kisrie’s time. Add a serious affinity to Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups that has her battling the … [Read more...]
The Journey with Martha Rogers #acfw
Please welcome this week's guest Martha Rogers for The Journey. She answers the question: How have you seen God work in your writing journey? Journey with God Although writing and telling stories have been a passion since I was a child, publication never seemed to be an option. I had no idea how to even begin the process. Teachers in high school English and college professors told me that I had gift for putting words on paper, but I still had a bit of a problem with mechanics. That problem led … [Read more...]
The Journey with Jaime Wright
Please welcome this week's guest Jaime Wright for The Journey. She answers the question: How have you seen God work in your writing journey? I quit writing for two years. Those were the months I agonized as I lost three babies, underwent three surgeries, and spent weeks with nails bit to the quick wondering if my current pregnancy would last to fruition. My fourth pregnancy landed me in the ER with a pre-confirmed miscarriage only to result in a miraculous heartbeat that went on to be an … [Read more...]
Day 128: Learning to Swim #acfw #365days
I normally don’t like to quote from the book but I like what this had to say: “I learned to swim from a magazine article I read when I was eight years old. It told me to grab my knees, duck my head, form a tight little ball in the water, and then float. The next step was to stretch out and continue to float. I did exactly what the article said to do, and lo and behold, it worked. I got my arms going at some point, and I was a swimmer. It’s kind of like writing: get a paper and a pen, start with … [Read more...]
Day 117: The Loneliness of the Long-Distance Writer #acfw
I love this. Here is what the author said about loneliness: “Writing can be a lonely business. But gradually your characters, or the scenes and people from your past, begin to rise up around you, and you find yourself writing your way out of loneliness, writing your own company. And you’ll find yourself at dinner some evening telling your family or friends, “Well, Natalie really made a mess of things today” or “I can’t believe what John said about Kathryn’s dog.” And everyone will look at you … [Read more...]
