NaNoWriMo

Note: Yes, this is really me. I've been on a long haitus. Life swamped me with responsibility. I'm still swamped but I've decided that the topic of this post is the way I can jump back in to the pool of writing again.

 NaNoWriMo.  WHAT????  What kind of baby talk is that? Oh, maybe it's another language. That's what I first thought several years ago when I heard about NaNoWriMo. A few of my friends participated. Then the next few years, they participated again.Me. I watched with wonder and felt unworthy for the task. I still do but I'm putting on the hip-waders and jumping in this year because--well--this year is different. It's not because I have any less responsibility weighing on my schedule but because I decided I'm tired of not pursuing my dreams and I'm just gonna go for it, no holds barred.

So... this year is the year. I am going to sign up for NaNoWriMo. Here's some info on it. http://www.nanowrimo.org/eng/whatisnano

Who else is with me?

The Big Blue Screen of Death

That's right. My laptop died. The ancient computer I was using after that crashed too and we had to do recovery work on it. This has made being online for long difficult. The laptop, however, (my baby) has bit the dust. We are searching for the correct recovery disk but the outlook is not promising. It appears I will have to make weekly trips to use the library computer if this old PC doesn't keep up with me. We shall see--and some of my books will have to be re-written. Of course, I save in several formats often but this time, I had not gotten that far. I had tons of research on various subjects stored in my laptop. I should have learned from the crash I had two years ago where I lost most of a book. Well, there's nothing like a fresh start. God-incidentally, I watched a great Netflix movie this weekend called, "The Ultimate Gift". The concept related to losing the familiar to gain better, yet unfamiliar things. The timing of this was incredible. So I'm all ears to this.

Meanwhile, I'm rekindling some old loves and resting from some of my old obsessions. I've discovered a few things during this process. I will soon share them but for now, I simply write to wish you a Happy Thanksgiving (belated) and a blessed first week in December.

Pray for me to be able to fix or replace my laptop soon. I need it for several projects and writing commitments. For now, I will work on Plan B. Stay tuned for an update in a week or sooner. Thanks. See ya soon.

Writing From the Shadows

Those who live in the shelter of the Most High

will find rest in the shadow of the Almighty.

This I declare of the Lord:

He alone is my refuge, my place of safety;

He is my God and I am trusting Him.

For He will rescue you from every trap and protect you from the fatal plague.

He will shield you with His wings.

He will shelter you with his feathers.

His faithful promises are your armor and your protection.

Psalm 91:1-4

NOTE: I've not been writing on here everyday as usual because I am juggling many things at this time. But don't worry, I'm not far away. I am resting in the shadows for now. Until then, enjoy a few words that are not my own.

Superior Scribbler Award

Wow! I'm so amazed and blessed. I was nominated for another blog award. Woo Hoo! I would like to thank Rebecca from Living a Life of Writing at http://rebeccasbook.blogspot.com/2009/09/award-time.html for nominating me for this award.

Now it is my turn to nominate people. Here are the rules:

The Super Scribbler

1. Each Superior Scribbler, must in turn, pass the Award on to 5 most-deserving bloggy buds.

2. Each Superior Scribbler must link to the author and name of the blog from whom he/she has received the Award.

3. Each Superior Scribbler must display the Award on his/her blog and link to this post which explains the Award.

4. Each blogger who wins the Award must visit this post and add his or her name to the Mr. Linky List at the Scholastic-Scribe's blog. That way, we'll be able to keep up-to-date on everyone who wins this prestigious Award! http://scholastic-scribe.blogspot.com/2008/10/200-this-blings-for-you.html

5. Each Superior Scribbler must post these rules on his/her blog.

Here are my nominations.

1. JoJo Tabares at http://artofeloquence.com/blog/. Her purple blog won the "Kreativ Blogger" award last week but she is better known for her Christian ministries and business at Art of Eloquence and Communication Comedy Network, a weekly blogcast of comedic proportions based on communication. You can listen to her very funny show on Thursdays weekly at: http://www.talkshoe.com/tc/19736.

2. Terri Tiffany also won a "Kreativ Blogger" Award last week on her personal blog but this week, the credit goes out to her for another blog that is always packed with market leads and great ideas for Christian writers in her Clermont Christian Writers Group (of which I'm blessed to hold membership. ) http://clermontchristianwritersgroup.blogspot.com/

3. Olivia from Inspired By Grace, http://inspiredbygrace.blogspot.com/ She always has amazing photos, heartfelt, inspiring words and poetry. Be sure to check out her professional photography page as well. She is an award winner. Anyone can also see that she is a genuine Christian!

4. Of course, I would re-nominate Rebecca who referred me, even though she has had two nominations already. See the link above. She has the amazing ability to carry on writing about the same topic for days and keep it interesting and educational. Great job, Rebecca, and thanks also for nominating me. :>)

5. Last but not least is Ray Thombs. He is a songwriter/singer turned blogger. He writes short and concise blogs but there is always something good in the posts. Check out his website and blog. (Scroll down to the bottom of the webpage for the blog link or listen to the lyrics he wrote on his main page-he has some mystery woven through here and there that one must ask him about to find the full meaning. It's "evoktional" as he puts it.) http://jenr8tmusic.com/

Kind Kids

A little over two years ago, I was a co-writer on a Kind Kids Curriculum written for children in daycares and preschools from Birth to Age Five, preposed to pilot in Lake County schools and/or VPK. The program is extensive and includes parenting help for teenage or young mom's in how to nurture and teach kindness to their children as well as opportunities for people in the community to encourage acts of kindness in society in general. It will include puppetry, cartoons, games, stories, songs and more. It's still in the development stage as it was put on hold due to funding issues.

This week, I received an email informing me that the project is back on the front burner as we are working on the filming of videos for corporate funding of the pilot. At this time, we are looking for local families with three year olds who would like to be filmed as part of this volunteer effort to create a kindness curriculum that will help combat the violence and apathy of today's society and turn the hearts of parents toward their children.

The organization with which I work that is founding this program is Kindness Works International. http://www.kindnessworksinternational.org/ My initial involvement with this project was in co-creating characters, skits, and games to help promote kindness. I also wrote and recorded a song that was filmed for an introductory video. Feeble, mind you, but original, LOL. I have not been super-involved with the project over the last few months but I do know of the original intent. If it has stayed true to it's original track, then I support the cause-whole heartedly and expect to be involved again soon with more curriculum writing. It's very exciting.

Although KWI is a secular organization, there are many people of faith working cooperatively with them to promote the traditional values to future generations through this curriculum and other ventures, such as college scholarships they handed out based on Kind Acts and more. A spokesman for the organization is contemporary Christian singer named, Norman Lee. You can view one of his KWI videos and listen to his music here.

http://www.normanleeprayon.com/home.html

Another wonderful participant in KWI is my friend, the very kind-hearted painter/photographer, http://www.myronleggett.com/ About two and a half years ago, he painted a portrait of Rachel Scott (Columbine victim) for her mother and helped KWI launch it's One Act of Kindness project. His actions did cause a giant ripple and we were touched by it's reaches.

It was through his project that our middle son was brought to our attention as a young person who needed an adoptive family. To sum it up, one act of kindness led to another which led to another and here we are with two teen boys we didn't know we were going to adopt. That happened after I became involved with the curriculum-writing end of things. It was a beautiful story. While writing the scope and sequence for the courses, my son's public school teacher, a Christian who had been praying for God to bring her student a family, came in to the room and the shop owner where we were meeting asked her opinion of the curriculum. Then she told us about this boy who needed a family. She described him and I began bawling. I knew she was describing my future son. My husband and I had prayed for specific things and God answered by dropping in our laps this boy with his list matching our prayer list. Wow. When we finally saw a picture of him, we saw our other son as well and began praying about him. We adopted the first child by himself and then a while later, after months of prayer, we adopted the second son-not related. Now we have a house full. We have an opportunity to show kindness to those who've not known it much in their lives. It is our hope that our acts of kindness to them, spurred by the acts of kindness by which we found them, will also ripple into more kindness and love from them to others. And who knows how our adoption of them will affect those around us and them? Only God knows. Now you have a part of our story of how KWI touched our lives.

Meanwhile, if you are a local family who wishes to contribute to KWI through filming, donations or volunteer hours, please contact me via email at rjeremiah2911@embarqmail.com. Thanks. Help start a ripple in your life and that of others today.

Correction

I accidentally posted that Dr. Word Wielder will arrive here this evening, but that was an error. He will arrive at Rather Be Writing late Wednesday evening. I suppose with all the new happenings, I was so excited about him coming again that I wanted to bring him early. Oops.

Writing from a Bubble

You know those little bubbles that comic strip characters have popping up from their heads to describe their thoughts? Well, I feel like I'm caught in one this week. Every time, except for once, that I tried to write anything, I either had an interruption or a semi-tragic event occur. (Bread burning in the kitchen, spilled food or drink by the kids, a knock at the door by someone who needed me to come right away, a phone call, and numerous other things.)

OR

I've tried to write about something but had too many thoughts that were taking different directions and

THEN...

I had yesterday's calamity. Read about it here: www.leadlearners.blogspot.com

To quote a song, "so I'll let my words be few". Come back after I find my way out of the comic strip bubble. I will have something more intelligent to say.

Until then, maybe I could just be comic relief in the story of life.

Writing Reviews

This is a shameless plug. The last few days, I've been busy reviewing some E-books and We-ebooks. To read them, visit one of my other blogs at:
http://www.leadlearners.blogspot.com/ or www.homeschoolblogger.com/thelearninghome

I'm taking advantage of free or cheap resources to sharpen my skills. Real writers are those who don't let their lacks keep them from learning how to be better writers. I'm an aspiring real writer. I want to do whatever I can to hone the writing craft.

What are you doing to improve your writing ability. Share with me, please, any tips and ideas that will help other writers on this pubishing journey!

Thanks and have a great day.

Writers Take Notice!

Attention All Writers!

LAKE FAMILY MAGAZINE is looking for writers!

We are looking for writers to take over these departments on a monthly basis:

Bits and Pieces
Your Happy Home
Lake Family Health Page
Inspirational Article Submissions

Monthly submissions of inspirational articles along the lines that you see below should be Appx 500-750 words. This can be faith based but NOT overt since we are distributed through public school. The attached article is a good example but may even press the faith issue. We are trying hard to get a good message out but we must walk the line lest we lose our ability to do so. Please see Becky Joie for a copy to peruse these departments. You can see how each one is written. LFM prefers a conversational yet intelligent tone in its writing. Please contact Stephanie Clunn at info@lakefamilymagazine.com for more info or to submit an example of your writing. LFM does not remit monies for any writing but does offer a bio at the end of submissions and will also credit the author who writes a department.

The Invisible Woman by Nicole Johnson

It all began to make sense, the bland stares, the lack of response, the way one of the kids will walk into the room while I'm on the phone and ask to be taken to the store. Inside I'm thinking, "Can't you see I'm on the phone?" Obviously not. No one can see if I'm on the phone, or cooking, or sweeping the floor, or even standing on my head in the corner, because no one can see me at all. I'm invisible. Some days I am only a pair of hands, nothing more: Can you fix this? Can you tie this? Can you open this? Some days I'm not a pair of hands; I'm not even a human being. I'm a clock to ask,"'What time is it?" I'm a satellite guide to answer, “What number is the Disney Channel?” I'm a car to order, "Right around 5:30, please." I was certain that these were the hands that once held books and the eyes that studied history and the mind that graduated summa cum laude-but now they had disappeared into the peanut butter, never to be seen again. She's going, she's going . . . she's gone! One night, a group of us were having dinner, celebrating the return of a friend from England. Janice had just gotten back from a fabulous trip, and she was going on and on about the hotel she stayed in. I was sitting there, looking around at the others all put together so well. It was hard not to compare and feel sorry for myself as I looked down at my out-of-style dress; it was the only thing I could find that was clean. My unwashed hair was pulled up in a clip and I was afraid I could actually smell peanut butter in it. I was feeling pretty pathetic, when Janice turned to me with a beautifully wrapped package, and said, "I brought you this. "It was a book on the great cathedrals of Europe. I wasn't exactly sure why she'd given it to me until I read her inscription: "To Charlotte, with admiration for the greatness of what you are building when no one sees. "In the days ahead I would read-no, devour-the book. And I would discover what would become for me, four life-changing truths, after which I could pattern my work: (1 ) No one can say who built the great cathedrals-we have no record of their names.
(2) These builders gave their whole lives for a work they would never see finished. (3) They made great sacrifices and expected no credit. (4) The passion of their building was fueled by their faith that the eyes of God saw everything. A legendary story in the book told of a rich man who came to visit the cathedral while it was being built, and he saw a workman carving a tiny bird on the inside of a beam. He was puzzled and asked the man,” Why are you spending so much time carving that bird into a beam that will be covered by the roof? No one will ever see it." And the workman replied, "Because God sees." I closed the book, feeling the missing piece fall into place. It was almost as if I heard God whispering to me. "I see you, Charlotte. I see the sacrifices you make every day, even when no one around you does. No act of kindness you've done, no sequin you've sewn on, no cupcake you've baked, is too small for me to notice and smile over. You are building a great cathedral. But you can't see right now what it will become. At times, my invisibility feels like an affliction. But it is not a disease that is erasing my life. It is the cure for the disease of my own self-centeredness. It is the antidote to my strong, stubborn pride. I keep the right perspective when I see myself as a great builder. As one of the people who show up at a job that they will never see finished, to work on something that their name will never be on. The writer of the book went so far as to say that no cathedrals could ever be built in our lifetime because so few people are willing to sacrifice to that degree. When I really think about it, I don't want my son to tell the friend he's bringing home from college for Thanksgiving, "My mom gets up at 4 in the morning and bakes homemade pies, and then she hand bastes a turkey for three hours and presses all the linens for the table." That would mean I'd built a shrine or a monument to myself. I just want him to want to come home. And then, if there is anything more to say to his friend, to add, "You're gonna love it there." As mothers, we are building great cathedrals. We cannot be seen if we're doing it right. And one day, it is very possible that the world will marvel, not only at what we have built, but at the beauty that has been added to the world by the sacrifices of invisible women. God bless you as you build your cathedrals!
"Excerpt Reprinted by permission. The Invisible Woman, Nicole Johnson, 2005,Thomas Nelson Inc., Nashville, Tennessee. All rights reserved. For moreinformation, check out the author's Web site at www.freshbrewedlife.com";

Writing Contest Re-scheduled

Due to personal situations in my life, the writing contest has been put on hold.

Other Reasons:

1. Not enough volunteers to staff it

2. Not enough interest shown by participants yet.

UPDATE TO BE ANNOUNCED AT A LATER TIME.

CONTEST

COMING SOON....

Children's writing contest. Categories and prizes to be determined. This will be for children by children. I'm in the process of recruiting volunteer judges who are writers, editors, or show an aptitude through their own writing or critique of a piece I choose. It can be done in person or through email.

I'd like to launch December first and with a January 31st deadline but I am weighing interest at this time to determine details.

STAY TUNED.