Tag: Gifts

Categories
Writing with a Disability (Different Ability)

Gifted

Now that Christmas has come and gone, most of us are enjoying the new items we received as gifts during the holidays. I remember when I was a kid, I would spend the entire day playing with my new toys, it didn’t matter if I had anything to eat that day, I just wanted to have fun.

Gifts are useless if we don’t put them to use, isn’t that why we want them in the first place? What good is a new car or bicycle if we’re not going to go anywhere on them? We have each been blessed with gifts; some material, others physical. Even the simplest things in our lives can be gifts.

Disabled persons have unique gifts that most people don’t understand. Unfortunately, most of us don’t consider them gifts, because they make us different from average people.

  • Experiences
  • Expectations
  • Encouraging stories

In the brain injury community, there is a saying, “Every brain injury is different.” There are different forms of brain injuries, each with different effects on the body and mind: concussions, strokes, traumatic brain injuries, and acquired brain injuries. Each of these affects the individual’s ability to function. For the last 25 years of my life, I’ve learned to appreciate each day for the gift it is.

Gifted?

Most people look forward to and expect big things in life, as I stated before persons with disabilities understand that the simple things in life are a gift also. If you have ever gone through a health struggle, you have experienced this realization that we take for granted so much in life.

What most people take for granted, disabled persons cherish. We all have different gifts and abilities that we must learn to appreciate and celebrate. Even within the writing community, there is a diversity of experiences, voices, and even types of writing.

5 Basic Types of Writing Found in Literature

  1. Narrative writing
  2. Descriptive writing
  3. Persuasive writing
  4. Expository writing
  5. Creative writing

It is common for these categories to overlap as writers attempt to convey their message, but their purpose for writing remains. A writer’s goal is always to communicate, but these are the different ways we flex our writing muscles.

“Don’t try to figure out what other people want to hear from you; figure out what you have to say. It’s the one and the only thing you have to offer.”

Barbara Kingsolover

If you have ever broken a bone in your body, you know how quickly your muscles weaken; you also experience the agony of being limited to certain actions. A flexible writer is like a flexible muscle.

Flexible writers have the ability to flex their writing muscles and different ways to convey a specific thought. The gift of the written word is often taken for granted by many people.

Let me encourage you by saying this, if everyone wrote and communicated beautifully through this art, we would all be jobless because no one would need us.

“Writing is a hellish task, best snuck up on, walked on the head, robbed, and left for dead.”

Author Amory McDonald

Writers Write

In the early days after my accident, I spent a lot of time wanting to walk again, but I wasn’t able to even attempt it. It was then when I first heard the word ambulatory, which is the medical term for being able to physically move on your own.

If you’ve ever watched little children learning to walk, you know they don’t start out walking, they must first learn and be trained to walk.

Stages of learning to walk:

  • Creeping
  • Crawling
  • Stepping
  • Pulling up
  • Cruising

Each phase is meant to build up a child’s strength and muscle memory, the gift is when they finally pass each stage of the process.

A writing career works the same way; writers must first learn the craft and then begin writing. Writing a lot is the only way will build our muscles. But, as Jerry B Jenkins teaches, “Don’t start your career by writing a book or a large project, even the best writers have to start somewhere.”

Every writer must build their writing muscles, even if they are gifted!

Martin Johnson survived a severe car accident with a (T.B.I.) Traumatic brain injury which left him legally blind and partially paralyzed on the left side. He is an award-winning Christian screenwriter who has recently finished his first Christian nonfiction book. Martin has spent the last nine years volunteering as an ambassador and promoter for Promise Keepers ministries. While speaking to local men’s ministries he shares his testimony. He explains The Jesus Paradigm and how following Jesus changes what matters most in our lives. Martin lives in a Georgia and connects with readers at MartinThomasJohnson.com  and on Twitter at mtjohnson51.

Martin Johnson
Categories
Bestsellers

Interview with Award-Winning Author Paul Ellis

award-winning author

Can you share a little about your recent book?

The Silent Queen captures my passion for men and women to discover the gifts and talents God has hidden within them. Historically, society has determined that men and women should act a certain way, but look at what God said to us in the beginning and you will see that we are called to rule and reign in partnership. Women have been told they are subordinate and men have been told they must bear the burden of ruling alone, but that’s not what our Father said.

Jesus is the proof. In a world that treated women like property, he valued them. He listened to them, encouraged them, and befriended them. Before Jesus, women hardly figured in historical accounts. Even in the Old Testament, women hardly speak and many who do go unnamed. But after Jesus, women began to speak and men began to listen. At least for a while.

In our lifetimes, we’ve come a long way towards reaching equality. But there is still a long way to go, especially when it comes to the church.

Why do you write? Do you have a theme, message, or goal for your books?

I write for fun and because if I didn’t write I might burst. Writing is how I engage with my own thoughts and the world around me.

My message is to tell people that there’s no bad news in the good news. Your heavenly Father loves you as you are and he wants nothing more than for you to enjoy his love.

How long have you been writing?

As a university professor, my primary outlet was writing for academic journals. I did not publish my first book until I reached my late thirties.

And how long did it take you to get your first major book contract? Or are you published non-traditionally? How did that come about?

I have only sent out one proposal to a traditional publisher, and it was accepted. That was for my first book and although the publisher did a fine job, they picked a book cover that I did not like. I spent two years writing the book, yet someone in their marketing department had the final say on how my book would appear. That bugged me, and I resolved to never again give up creative control of my titles. All my subsequent books have been self-published with covers picked by me. One of those covers even won a design award.

Which of your books is your favorite?

It’s a cliché, but my favorite book is always the next one.

Tell us about an award you won that was particularly meaningful.

I was delighted when Stuff Jesus Never Said won a couple of awards because it is a sort of art-book and I’m not an artist. I was way outside my comfort zone on that one. Not only did we have the thorny issue of dealing with licensed artworks, but it was also the first book we printed in China.

How long does it take you to write a book?

It varies. I wrote the meat of The Hyper-Grace Gospel in about two weeks, but I also have a half-written children’s book that has been simmering for ten years. On average, a book takes about eighteen months of intermittent activity. I’ll knock out a complete draft in four to five weeks, put it aside for a couple of months, then repeat four or five times until it’s done.

What’s your writing work schedule like?

I’m creative in the evenings, ruthless in the morning, and next-to-useless in the afternoon.

Do you have an interesting writing quirk? If so, what is it?

My handwriting is so bad it’s illegible even to me. I’ll scribble down some notes then later have no idea what I wrote.

What has been your greatest joy(s) in your writing career?

When my daughter was eight years old, her school had a Book Parade where every student came dressed as their favorite fictional character. My daughter went as one of the children from my children’s book The Big House. Of course, nobody had a clue who she was, but this daddy was pretty chuffed.

Could you tell us about a dark moment in your writing career?

Half-way through the writing of The Silent Queen, I experienced every authors’ worst nightmare. I discovered that my book, or one very much like it, had been published several years ago. I was reinventing the wheel. Dismayed, I was ready to can the whole project. However, my wife convinced me that the topic was sufficiently important and my audience sufficiently unique, that there was room for both books. I left the book to simmer for a few weeks then came back with a fresh approach. The final book was completely different and much better than the earlier draft

How many times in your career have you experienced rejection? How did they shape you?

The beautiful thing about being self-published is you get no rejection letters. Kindle never says no!

Where do you get your ideas?

I get a lot of ideas while walking. I use the recorder app on my phone constantly. I’m also blessed to be in a position where I hear a lot of stories from readers.

Who is your favorite author to read?

Tough, tough question. No one has shaped my understanding of God like the Apostle Paul; few people have fired my imagination like C.S. Lewis; and no one writes more propulsive prose than Lee Child.

What advice can you give aspiring writers that you wished you had gotten, or that you wished you would have heeded?

The worst enemy to creativity is self-doubt. Give yourself permission to write a stinky first draft.

What are common mistakes you see aspiring writer’s make?

A common mistake is finishing the first draft and thinking you’ve finished the book. Well done for finishing an entire draft. Not everyone can do that. But now it’s time to swing the butcher’s knife.

Where/How do you recommend writers try to break into the market?

I am a big fan of self- or independent publishing. The rules of the game have changed. The power has shifted from the middleman to the author and the reader, and this is a good thing. Resist the temptation to hand over thousands to a vanity press; figure out how to upload a book to Kindle (it’s not hard); and go for it! There has never been a better time to be an author.

Bio

A scientist, scholar, and Bible smuggler, Dr. Paul Ellis is the author of books such as Letters from Jesus and The Silent Queen. Paul pastored a multicultural church in Hong Kong for ten years and was a professor at a leading business school. Ranked as one of the world’s most prolific scholars in the field of international business, Paul writes regularly about the good news of God’s grace at escapetoreality.org. Paul lives with his wife and their four children in Auckland, New Zealand. 

Connect with Paul on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, or Goodreads. 

For more information on his new book, click here.

Categories
Writing with a Disability (Different Ability)

Skill Set

The first thing I learned after my accident was every brain injury is different. You’ve probably heard me say it before but, this post should help you understand brain injuries better.  There are different factors involved in the life of a T.B.I. survivor:

  • Pre-accident status: this is our lifestyle before an injury.
  • Cause: not every brain injury is result of trauma; a hematoma is when blood clots outside of blood vessels, a hemorrhage is when a blood vessel ruptures and blood escapes, an cerebral edema is when fluid builds up around the brain and causes pressure, strokes occur when the brain doesn’t get enough oxygen from the blood, concussions are the result of trauma to the head.
  • Post-accident status: depending on the severity of the injury; there are varying degrees of side effects. Thus, each recovery is different.
  • Lastly, considering all the factors above, each survivor has different life goals and abilities.

Fortunately, I was able to walk with help within a few weeks of my accident, and there were no mental or cognitive deficits to consider. Being young, my main goal was to get back out on my own and achieve independence.

However, the effects of my injuries required me to tap into my creative side. It was in that season of setbacks I learned how to use the skills I had to survive. All of these years later I understand better about the gifts I have and how I can use them.

Gifts?

The dictionary gives two specific definitions for a gift and each is relevant to life: 1) A thing given willingly to someone without payment; a present, and 2) A natural ability or talent.”

We all have specific gifts or talents, skill sets that come naturally to us, abilities that not everyone can master. Often these gifts are passions, sometimes we don’t even notice.

A few years ago I interviewed my mentor for a book chapter about using our gifts. He shared about how he wanted to go into the medical field as the doctor, but after joining the Army, he was led into a business and administrative career.

Thirty-one years later he retired as a full Colonel in the Army with numerous business degrees. In  retirement, the military still contracts him to help with restructuring administrations throughout the military.

His passion was biology, but the Army saw that his gift was in business and administration. He was a born leader and didn’t realize it until after college.

Before my accident, I only worked out for superficial reasons. But afterward, I learned to concentrate on the health benefits of exercise, not to impress anyone, but do compensate for my physical impairments.

Now, years later I have the stamina of a twenty-year-old and the lab work to prove it. Exercising has become so natural to me that it doesn’t seem like work at all.

I have other friends who are great musicians, a fellow choir member is an amazing woodworker,   and I have a friend who is a computer geek who willingly works on my computers free of charge whenever needed.

And this brings me to the first definition of the gift: something is willingly given or done for others. Since our skill sets come naturally to us, we enjoy sharing them with others. This is why I often work with other brain injury survivors and even ordinary people seeking to improve their health.

Over the years I’ve learned the same is true within the writing community. Authors who have mastered the skill set of writing and the use of words to communicate are more than willing to help others on their writing journeys. I’ve been helped by countless writer friends, whom I could never repay for their generosity.

Within the writing community, we each have a specific area or genre that our skill sets help us excel in. Below are a few areas that fellow writer’s I know have expert skill sets. You may find yourself in one of these categories.

  1. Nonfiction
  2. Copywriting
  3. Devotionals
  4. Journaling
  5. Poetry
  6. Fiction
  7. Screenwriting
  8. Crime/Suspense
  9. Romance
  10. Songwriting

 I even know a rock star young adult author who lives not far from me. We tend to encourage each other on our respective writing journeys; occasionally pointing out each other’s strengths.

For me it’s like exercising, I like to focus on one muscle group at a time to help me get stronger. We each have our own strengths we tend to focus on. Have you learned yours?

Strengths?

Perhaps your passions aren’t just for writing. It is possible to harness the energy of your passion and focus it into your writing by applying the same principles to help you improve your skill set.

In the brain injury community, we call this lifestyle adaptation. If one body part is affected, then we learn how to compensate for it with what we can do. Again, each injury is different and requires an adaptation unique to our injury.

I’ve learned over the years that by focusing on my strengths, I am more motivated and passionate about what I’m doing, especially when writing. Focusing on strengths:

  • Builds our voice/perspective/brand
  • Gives us a sense of purpose
  • Feels more satisfying

When we focus on our gifts and skill sets, we become more confident in whom we are. We learn not to compare ourselves with others and that is a relief itself. Living with a disability has helped me see my skill set.

Martin Johnson survived a severe car accident with a (T.B.I.) Traumatic brain injury which left him legally blind and partially paralyzed on the left side. He is an award-winning Christian screenwriter who has recently finished his first Christian nonfiction book. Martin has spent the last nine years volunteering as an ambassador and promoter for Promise Keepers ministries. While speaking to local men’s ministries he shares his testimony. He explains The Jesus Paradigm and how following Jesus changes what matters most in our lives. Martin lives in a Georgia and connects with readers at Spiritual Perspectives of Da Single Guy and on Twitter at mtjohnson51.

Categories
Magazine and Freelance

Last-Minute Christmas Gifts for Writers

When checking to make sure you have gifts for everyone on your list, you may find that your author friends are the hardest to buy for. Here are a few suggestions to make the holidays merry for writers everywhere.

  1. A nice pen. I am not suggesting an expensive pen. Just something that writes well. Authors love pens and need them by their computers, by their beds, and to sign books. A writer can never have enough pens and the thrill of a new one never grows old.
  2. Time to write. If your writer friend or relative has children, offer to babysit or take the kids for ice cream so he or she can focus fully on his or her writing for an hour or two.
  3. Help him or her to tidy up the office. Although the office of a writer often looks like a cyclone came through, he or she probably knows exactly what is where. However, writers enjoy a tidy space and often find things cleaning up that that have been missing for months.
  4. Make a meal and take supper to the writer’s family. Here again, a gift of time to write.
  5. A briefcase. Like a new pen, a new briefcase is always welcome and makes a writer feel he or she is moving up in the world of publishing.
  6. A writer ornament for the tree or a piece of jewelry that identifies him or her as a writer.
  7. Help him or her attend a writers conference. This is the best way to help writers move ahead their careers. You could do this in several ways:
  • Provide funds for them to attend.
  • Offer your flyer miles to help with transportation.
  • Help care for children while they attend.
  • Buy a new briefcase for them to use at the conference.

One of the very best gifts you can give a writer is to help him or her feel validation. Brag to others about the writer’s accomplishments. Offer to suggest your book club read his or her book. Share news of published articles online. So many people think because writers work at home that their work is more of a hobby than a career. So any praise or recognition you can offer is always welcome. Everyone needs a little support now and then and applause makes a great Christmas gift!

Linda Gilden is an award-winning writer, speaker, editor, certified writing and speaking coach, and personality consultant. Her passion is helping others discover the joy of writing. Linda recently released Articles, Articles, Articles! and is the author of over a thousand magazine articles and 17 books including the new LINKED Quick Guides for Personalities. As Director of

Categories
Child's Craft

Goals for the New Year from A to Z

So the new year has come! Did you make resolutions of things to do or not to do? Will you eat less? Eat better? Walk more, work out more, complain less, pray more? Try harder? Spend less?

In searching the internet for why resolutions fail, I found an article on http://www.iwillteachyoutoberich.com/blog that states we would rather continue doing something that doesn’t work rather than try something new that COULD work — but also could fail. He goes on to say that “failing at our resolutions has implications…we start to distrust ourselves. If you’ve set the same resolutions for 5 years, and you never follow through, what makes you think you’ll be different this year?”

He encourages breaking down your goal into steps to improve chances of success. But all of that seems so secular, so ‘me’ oriented. It’s all about what I can do to try to achieve what I want to achieve. I don’t know about you, but I want to be less about me and more about Jesus. I know I can do nothing on my own. I don’t even want to set my own goals this year.  But what if we tried to be more the person God created us to be? To use our gifts wiser, better, to glorify Him? And what if we asked Him to help us achieve this? Maybe as writers, our goals for the year would look something like this: (I had to start with the letters of the alphabet because you know, I’m a writer and like the alphabet.)  Enjoy!

 Appreciate your writing gift.

Believe what God can do.

Count your blessings every day,

Draw closer to him too.

 

Enjoy the ride, the course, the view.

Find peaceful nooks to write,

Go freely where the Lord may lead.

Hold on to His hand tight.

 

Invest in workshops, conferences.

Join writers for critiques.

Keep focusing on Jesus Christ

Listen for when He speaks.

 

Make choices to be well and strong.

Nourish your soul and mind

Opt for healthy food to eat.

Pray for all mankind.

 

Quest for quite times with God.

Rest in His love each day.

Seek His perfect plan for you.

Trust His Perfect Way.

 

Use the gifts He given to you.

Volunteer and walk the walk.

Write what you’ve been inspired to write

X-out all harmful talk.

 

Yell words of kind encouragement.

Zone in with God’s name praised.

Let God direct your life this year.

Stand back and be amazed.

Have a great year! May God have His way with each of us this year and may He be glorified in all of our writing!