Tag: experiences

Categories
Writer Encouragement

UNIQUE Times

I won’t state the obvious about the unique situation the world is in. It’s not every year we get to fight a pandemic. Nor is it every year that writer’s conferences—the mega booster to encourage and direct writers—are cancelled. While they are tentatively rescheduled for later in the year, in the back of our minds most of us are thinking, I wonder if they will be held this year at all. I certainly hope so but none of us can foresee the future.

I think about writers of old such as Louisa May Alcott, Jane Austen, Emily Bronte, Nathaniel Hawthorne. As far as I know, they were not attending conferences aimed at their passion. Yet they still wrote. The fruit of their labors is still sitting on our book shelves.

As much as we love the camaraderie of our fellow writers in person, it is not an essential to our word crafting. I have to gulp when I write that because I LOVE meeting my fellow authors up close and personal. But this year has to be different. We have to rely on our connections elsewhere (thank the Lord for social media!) and especially, on the One Who called us to write in the first place.

Years ago, our family experienced a flood in Iowa where we lived at the time. The water treatment plant was contaminated and we had no fresh water for over a week. The National Guard came to filter river water for us. “Potable water” they called it. My pre-teen daughter thought the soldiers were cute. 😉 I had to prepare myself for THAT new phase in our lives!

My memories include incessant rain that felt like we needed to build an Ark. Sandbag filling in attempts to keep the flood waters at bay. Transporting water to a local nursing home in our mini-van. Sweat and dirt in my every pore, and longing for a shower in the heat. These are the memories of that time that persist so many years later. It was a time of community caring.

We are in such a time here and now. You can use this opportunity to help your community. Volunteer at a food bank. Sew masks and donate them to whoever needs them. Deliver meals to the elderly.

This is a time for new experiences that will make you become a better writer. In the life of a writer, these times of challenge stretch us from our comfort zone. That’s not a bad place to be.

Carry on. And wash your hands.

Elaine Marie Cooper has two historical fiction books that released in 2019: War’s Respite (Prequel novella) and Love’s Kindling. Love’s Kindling was recently named a Finalist in the 2020 Selah Awards. It is the second book in the Dawn of America Series set in Revolutionary War Connecticut. Cooper is the award-winning author of Fields of the Fatherless and Bethany’s Calendar. Her 2016 release (Saratoga Letters) was finalist in Historical Romance in both the Selah Awards and Next Generation Indie Book Awards. She has been published in Chicken Soup for the Soul and HomeLife magazine. She also penned the three-book historical series, Deer Run Saga. Her upcoming release, Scarred Vessels,” is about the black soldiers in the American Revolution. Look for it in October 2020. You can visit her website/ blog at www.elainemariecooper.com

Categories
Write for His Glory

Magnets or Vacuum Cleaners?

One morning I asked the Lord for a verse reference.

Exodus 20:15 – Thou shalt not steal (KJV).

Really? Have I stolen something lately?

I pondered. Well…

  • I just took a picture of a page from a book and Tweeted it. But I gave credit to the author.
  • I haven’t taken any office supplies.
  • I give back extra change when I get it by mistake.
  • I use pictures from Bing Images in my blog posts. But I only use those labeled “free to share and use”.

So what was the Lord’s message?

I had no clue so I moved on with my morning. The verse must be something I need but maybe not at this moment.

As I logged on to my computer, random thoughts of things I admire about others came to mind. You know, those others who are popular in the writing world and have many good book reviews.

  • I like the way he responds on Twitter
  • I like the way she writes
  • I like the format of her blog
  • I like the way…

Wait, that’s it!

Vacuum Cleaners

Subconsciously, I not only appreciated the gifts of these people, I wanted to appropriate how they act and make it part of me. I wanted not only to learn from their methods, I wanted to be like them so I could be popular like they are.

I’ve been subconsciously stealing parts of them so I can have what they have.

No wonder I often find myself confused about who I am! I don’t look FIRST to my Creator, and thank Him for creating me exactly like me. I don’t boldly step out from the inside and go with what’s on my heart, in my own way, as the Lord leads. I measure what I’m about to do by what I think will be acceptable, or by whether or not anyone else has done it and succeeded.

No wonder I’m so worn out before I even get started. I’m worn out just thinking about it!

Magnets

Yes, we all need role models, and it’s good to learn from others. It’s also helpful to try, and then apply, practices that are proven successful. Truthfully, each of us is a product – and accumulation – of the people we’ve met, the places we’ve been, and the things we’ve experienced.

But first and foremost, we need to fill ourselves with Him alone instead of trying to take in what He never intends for us. Then, out of that relationship, we need to be fully who God created us to be and appreciate how He made us.

We need to be magnets, not vacuum cleaners.

Interesting picture, isn’t it?

Be thankful for the awesome person you are – the one God created and loves, warts and all – and step out into a very blessed day!

 

Mary Graziano Scro, a graduate of Christian Communicators Conference, is an inspirational author, speaker, and blogger who intuitively weaves analogies and personal testimony with practical biblical teaching. Whether “live” or at the keyboard, Mary loves sharing what God has done in her life to encourage others about the awesome life God has planned for us, IF we are willing to choose wisely in our everyday lives (John 8:31-32). And it’s not only about us – the more we invest in our own unique relationship with Jesus, the more visible He is to a world that desperately needs Him.

You can reach Mary on:

Facebook: Mary Graziano Scro
Twitter: @marygscro
LinkedIn: Mary Graziano Scro
Blogs: Life Is Not A Formula

 

Categories
Child's Craft

Childhood Memories Made New

Inspiration for the stories we write often comes from our own childhood experiences. But, times change; cultures change; technology changes. So, those stories from twenty, or forty, or sixty years ago must change if they are going to speak to the hearts of 21st Century children.

Try this exercise to help you make those funny, sad or frightening stories from your childhood come to life for today’s readers.

Pull out an old photo from a childhood event. If you don’t have a photo sketch the scene on plain paper. (No one’s judging your artistic abilities here.)

It’s usually easy to remember the who, the where, the when, even the what. But for this exercise we want to dig deeper.

Close your eyes and try to remember every detail of the event. Then, remember how you FELT when that photo was snapped.

Was it a special occasion? A surprise occasion, maybe? How did you feel while anticipating it?

How did you feel if the event didn’t turn out the way you had hoped? Or, was it such a terrific thing that it far exceeded your expectations?

What if this was a sad event? Just how sad did you feel? How did you act? Did you cry? Did you run and hide? Did you get angry?

How did the people around you react to you? And how did you react in turn?

The key to re-writing our childhood events as contemporary stories is to remember, capture and effectively SHOW our feelings from that past event.

It’s okay—even advisable—to change the details, even exaggerate them—but to keep the emotions you experienced.

It is the emotions in our stories that beckon to today’s children—not the exact details.

Jean Hall lives in Louisville, Kentucky. She is represented by Cyle Young of Hartline Literary. Her premier picture book series Four Seasons was recently signed by Little Lamb Books. Jean is a member of the SCBWI, Word Weavers International, and the Kentucky Christian Writers. Visit Jean at jeanmatthewhall.com, on Facebook at Jean Matthew Hall, and on Twitter as @Jean_Hall.

Categories
A Pinch of Poetry

Poetry From Odd Places

I don’t know about you, but once in awhile my poetry springs from the oddest of inspirations.

Not too long ago I was driving home from judging a high school poetry competition, and I was in a very poetic mood.

As I came around a curve in our neighborhood, I noticed someone had placed an old toilet by the road. For some reason I thought it sad and humorous at the same time to see the commode on the curb.

Don’t ask me why.  I’m not making this up.

[bctt tweet=”Sometimes poetry springs from the oddest of places. #poets #poetry”]

And then I realized so many words rhymed with commode and road that it kept going from there.

By the time I pulled into my driveway, I had “Ode to a Throne” rambling through my brain.

I highly doubt it will ever get published anywhere else, but for your entertainment, I’ve decided to share it below.

 

Ode to a Throne

 

Against the green, green grass you sit,

abandoned and alone—

a symbol of our progress

thrown beside the road.

Maybe you malfunctioned

and coughed up a filthy load,

or maybe you refused to swallow

the refuse that you bemoaned.

Throne of Plain White Porcelain,

how you long for a loving home,

But never shall you have one—

Oh woeful commode, dethroned!

 

I’d never claim that this is my next award-winning poem, but it was fun to write—a break from reality. And that’s all that matters.

A note on rhyming

Rhyming is not a technique I use often because to make it work effectively, you have to have patience, an extensive vocabulary and a good sense of syntax (word order). The exception would be children’s poetry which lends itself to rhyming much more easily.

A challenge of rhyming is that many beginning poets make the mistake of forcing rhyme which makes it sound contrived rather than natural.  You’ll see when you try to use rhyme.  It’s really not that easy.  And it will give you a new respect for William Shakespeare, Emily Dickenson, and Robert Frost.

Also note that I use approximate rhyme to make it work. No, that’s not cheating. Poets have done it throughout history, including the ones listed above.

Assonance is another technique I used for the purposes of rhythm and rhyme. So many words have the long “o” sound. And conveniently, a number of those words related to my subject.

Despite the Oddity

This poem was meant to be written despite its ridiculous subject.

Therefore, the point is that you don’t have to look far for inspiration. Poetry can morph out of everyday life experiences and from places you’d least expect.

So the challenge is to find out where your next poem is hiding. The trick is to pay attention to what inspires you even if it seems bizarre at the time.

[bctt tweet=”Poetry can morph out of everyday experiences and from places you’d least expect. #poetry #poets”]

Have you ever been inspired to write a poem or story by an absurd object or event? Tell me below.