For a while I've wanted to have a section at the top of Mari's website the lead to import posts or pages that someone might be interested. My hope is that it will be helpful. If you ever have any suggestions for her site please do not hesitate to let me know. I appreciate all input. I want to thank all my followers. I know you may not always comment but I know you are there reading what I write. To know my words have touched others warms my heart. And just think, all of this is because of my … [Read more...]
Missing my writing
Here recently my writing has been on my mind a lot. However, I've been so busy as the new school year has started. I've spent the past couple of month planning out the following school year for my niece/daughter as she is in the 5th grade this year. She is such a bright, smart little girl. She is very young for a 5th grader as she is only 9 and won't turn 10 until the end of October, but you won't know it if you knew how smart she is and how well she handles most of her subjects (history, well … [Read more...]
Day 119: Stillness
For me, I like to write in complete silence. No TV on. No music playing in the background. This is what works for me. My mind is clear. The words flow forth. I tend to get distracted if anything is happening around me. Writing in silence helps me to be a better writer. It’s the stillness around me that helps my creative juices to really flow forth. Sometimes as a parent we need that stillness, or quiet time, away from our children. It’s not that we don’t love them or don’t want them. We just … [Read more...]
Day 118: Infusion of Hope: The Circus Rider
The circus rider who stands on top of the horse as the horse gallops around the arena stays focused. He doesn’t allow those around him to distract him. If he did he might fall. This holds true in our writing. If we allow those around us to influence us to either change our writing to what others say it should be or those around us don’t support our writing then we won’t write or we change our voice which becomes lost in who we really are as a writer. We have to remember to always be true … [Read more...]
Day 117: The Loneliness of the Long-Distance Writer
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...]
Day 116: Why Writers Get Scared
As writers we have to be willing to pour ourselves into our writing. It’s what makes a good story. I think the reason why my daughter’s hospital story has touched so many is because the words written came directly from my heart. I didn’t hold anything back. At the time I only thought of them as updates for friends and family. But over time they have become so much more. Some of the comments I’ve received have been such a blessing for me. (To read the comments others have left, click on “Her … [Read more...]
Day 114: The idea That Won’t Go Away
Have you ever had one of those moment when you're writing where your characters just won’t shut up. They continue to talk and talk and talk. They won’t quit until you write what they're telling you to write down. This has happened to me a few times with the fiction novel I’ve been writing to the point I have a major rewrite in the works that will need to be completed when we get more settled in Anchorage. If you aren’t a writer you may think that we have something mentally wrong with us if … [Read more...]
Day 112: Getting to Denver by 4:00
The basic gist is this: Procrastination. How often do we say or think, “Oh, I can wait to do ________ until tomorrow (or whatever time you put). Fill in the blank with whatever it is you are putting off. For me, it has been so many different things. I think we can all say that about something that we needed to do but didn’t feel like it so we pushed it off until the last possible minute and then it’s crunch time. I admit that I have procrastinated a few times with my writing. I know it will … [Read more...]
Day 111: Authors on Pedestals
I really like this. As writers we have so much at our disposal to write about. Every life today is different from someone else’s life. Think about it. We all have our own unique way of looking at things. We can look at two people and think they are living the exact same life. However, if you were to step into the shoes of each one you’d find out that while there are some similarities their lives are different. Think about identical twins. When I was growing up my mom became friends with a … [Read more...]
End of Another Month
It's hard to believe that another month on my quest to write for 365 days has gone by. This month has been so different for me and my family this month. We have officially moved to Anchorage, Alaska, from Fort Knox, Kentucky. For those who don't know, my husband is currently serving in the Army. Last August my husband was offered a position at MEPS (Military Entrance Processing Station). His order came in September and thus started the countdown until we moved. We started our cross-country … [Read more...]
