Trying to keep my eyes on Jesus - with or without clouds

The life of a Christian poet-writer is often clouded with interruptions and disturbances – some desirable, some not!

After a wonderful sisters’ cruise to the Bahamas in mid-March, I came home with a head cold aka sinus infection, both of which kept my eyes looking behind me as I tried to move forward and catch up.

Then, the very day my book of contemporary psalms and free verse poems PRAISE! was to be released by Cladach Publishing, my computer refused to work in total disregard of my plans for promotionals.

As soon as a new keyboard solved my pc problem, I resolved to blab about my book all over the Internet – a smart marketing approach for Christian poets and writers who hope people will actually read what they have written.

New book….
Fun time with siblings….
Head cold….
Fritzed keyboard….

Each caught my attention. Each clouded my focus, and yet each drew me back to prayer and a greater appreciation of the Lord in my life.

Praise the Lord for keeping life lively!

Praise the Lord for scriptures that draw us closer to Christ.

Praise God for speaking to and through us in what we’ve been given to write:

Cloud bank

Around us a cloud –
witnesses
of the faith –

and our faith rising
like cloud wisps
forming Jesus’ face –

a reminder of The One
toward Whom we run

as we leave behind
all hindrances –
obstructions, interruptions –

and open our own
luggage
to be searched by none
but Christ on the throne.

by Mary Harwell Sayler, © 2017, poet-writer who based the above on Hebrews 12:1-2, today’s Bible verse in a variety of translations from Bible Gateway

…

Coloring your parachute and finding a job that pays the bills so you can write

The most popular book on job-hunting ever, What Color Is Your Parachute? by Richard Bolles, began because of clerical cutbacks in his church! When he and other pastors lost their pulpits and church staff lost their jobs, Dick Bolles toured the country collecting information to find out what made a job search most effective.

As people talked about bailing out of their jobs, he playfully asked “What color is your parachute?” giving birth to the title of the first edition, published in 1972 by Ten Speed Press. To keep up to speed since then, Rev. Bolles has updated the book every year and revised according to the changing times, technology, and job-hunting techniques.

Years ago, for example, personnel offices, personal connections, and/or job placement agencies helped most people to get a job. Today, “It’s a Whole New World for Job-Hunters” as the title of the first chapter says and explains before closing on this note:

“He or she who gets hired is not necessarily the one who can do that job best, but the one who knows the most about how to get hired.”

That might not be exactly as we expect! Yes, many of us know about social sites, such as LinkedIn, that can help us to make professional connections, but have you recently Googled yourself and considered what you can find from an employer’s perspective? You will be Googled! And, the fact is, almost no one in charge of hiring will be eager to see foul language, sexist remarks, lewd photos, or radical views aired on the Internet!

Potential employers, however, will be glad to find job candidates who show, not only evidence of skills but a well-rounded résumé, including special achievements, volunteer work, community service, recommendations, awards, and, especially, clear evidence of responsibility, reliability, and readiness to do the job for which you’re applying.

We hear a lot about the decline of the current job market, but a better approach, according to Dr. Bolles, is to ask what, where, and how. As he goes on to suggest, ask:

WHAT are your skills that you most love to use?
WHERE would you most love to use these skills?
And finally, HOW do you go about finding such places?

For example, you might:

“Go after new small organizations with twenty or fewer employees, at first, since they create two-thirds of all new jobs.”

Regarding WHO:

“…once you’ve identified a place that interests you, you really need to find out who has the power to hire you there for the position you want…”

Then

“Basically approach them not as a ‘job-beggar’ but humbly as a resource person, able to produce better work for that organization….”

To assess how resourceful you are can be tricky as some have a tendency to over-estimate their abilities while others under-cut themselves to the core! To be fair to yourself, the book suggests doing a worksheet, listing what you know from previous jobs and from areas outside of work.

Also in that chapter on “You Need to Understand More Fully Who You Are,” a page provides a checklist of adjectives to identify your strongest traits, from “Accurate” and “Adaptable” to “Versatile” and “Vigorous.”

In a somewhat surprising turn, another chapter says “You Get to Choose Where You Work,” after you realize “You Need to Learn As Much As You Can About a Place Before Formally Approaching Them.”

You might be wondering, though, why we’re discussing this In a Christian Writer’s Life blog.

For one thing, I requested a review copy of What Color Is Your Parachute?, which Blogging For Books kindly sent in return for an honest review on my blog, so I’m committed to discussing this somewhere. Although I have several blogs, I chose this one because writers often need a job to support their writing habit. At least, that's what occurred to me initially, but as I read the book, I realized that many of the suggestions can be translated into approaching traditional publishing companies or church denominational headquarters about writing assignments and/ or freelance work.

And then I got to “The Blue Pages.”

At the back of the book, several appendixes have been printed, yes, on blue paper, setting them apart for a quick find. For example, Appendix A discusses “Finding Your Mission in Life,” which totally makes sense if you remember Rev. Bolles began his job search when his pastorate ended. Therefore, he knoweth of what he speaks when he says that figuring out your Mission in life “is a learning process that has steps to it, much like the process by which we all learned to eat.”

In the first step, we “seek to stand hour by hour in the conscious presence of God, the One from whom your Mission is derived.”

Second, we do what we can to make the world better by “following the leading and guidance of God’s Spirit within you and around you.”

And third, it gets personal. It gets unique. It gets you:

a) to exercise the Talent that you particularly came to Earth to use – your greatest gift, which you most delight to use,

b) in the place(s) or setting(s) that God has caused to appeal to you the most,

c) and for those purposes that God most needs to have done in the world.


©2014, Mary Harwell Sayler, reviewer and poet-author, is on a mission to help other Christian Poets & Writers through blogs, writing resources, and e-books such as the Christian Writer’ Guide.


What Color Is Your Parachute? 2015: A Practical Manual for Job-Hunters and Career-Changers, paperback





I received this book for review from Blogging For Books.


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Dancing on the Head of a Pen: book review

The enticing title, Dancing on the Head of a Pen: The Practice of a Writing Life by Robert Benson, drew me to request a review copy from Blogging for Books – a site that provides review copies of a variety of books in exchange for an honest assessment. Fortunately, that's what I aim to provide, whether I'm discussing a new edition of the Bible or reviewing a traditionally published poetry book or a book about the writing life in general, as happens here.

Published by Waterbrook Press, this particular book also appealed to me because the author knows how to write! That might seem to be an obvious prerequisite, but I’ve discovered a new world of newbie writers who blog about writing and sometimes pass along assumptions, rather than reliable information. Conversely, Robert Benson has written many books and knows the in’s and out’s of writing and publishing. So, believe him when he says: “Most of the time, writing a book more closely resembles digging a ditch than participating in some transcendent creative experience.”

How we go about “digging” depends on what we dig. As Benson says, “Any of us – writer, designer, potter, painter, sculptor, architect, and on and on – wisely studies the habits practiced by the artists who inspire us in the first place. Those habits can guide us as we try to learn to do the work ourselves.”

For each of us, the work and surrounding habits will differ, not only from one another but also our own earlier selves as we experiment, pick up ideas, and find workable ways to write and continually improve our work. Most of us, though, will do well to heed Benson’s call to be quiet.

As he explains, “Solitude is likely necessary to be in touch with the things deep inside you. Silence may be required for you to hear what those things are saying to you. Do not be afraid to be quiet. Never be afraid to be alone./ Wandering around in wide-open spaces, especially spaces offered by a blank page, may be the key to making some art of those things found in the silence and the solitude.”

By now, you may be wondering if this book provides a devotional guide or tips on writing or suggestions for establishing your own routine or more than the sum of those parts, and to all, the answer is: Yes!

Once we’ve heard ourselves think enough to know what we’re to write next, we have to decide what type of writer we want to be. Like Benson, “I want to write. I may even need to write. But I want to be read as well.”

Knowing this about ourselves helps us to know whether we want to write for publication. If so, we need to have some type of reader in mind and some idea of whether anyone else might be interested in our chosen topic.

The author says, “When I begin to write a book, I ask myself some questions. Who do I think might read the writing I am about to do? Who do I expect to be interested in the stories I am trying to tell? Who do I hope will discover and enjoy and be moved by them?” And always, “Write for those you love.”

As Benson also says, “A writer has three jobs. Write the work. Make the work as good as possible. Find the work a home and a crowd of folks to love it.”

More than this, however, Robert Benson tells us, “I spend most of my time, metaphorically speaking, as a kind of explorer, out wandering around in the philosophical dark, lost in the spiritual words, searching for a deep something I often cannot even name, following trails leading to dead ends and darkness as often as not.” But then, “The spiritual life is not so much about answers as it is about better questions. Writing can be the same.”


©2014, Mary Harwell Sayler, reviewer, authored 26 books in all genres, primarily for Christian and educational markets, before writing the Christian Writer’s Guide e-book on Kindle.


Dancing on the Head of a Pen, hardcover



…

Turning stones into building blocks and bread into bread

A Bible reading for this first week of Lent takes us into the wilderness where Jesus had to decide whether to turn stones into bread. He certainly had the power to do so and would have settled an empty stomach right away, but the temptation for the immediate and expedient had no long-term appeal. Why? Jesus knew where He came from and knew where He was going, so hunger pangs, though uncomfortable, did not throw Him off course or trip Him up.

If we trip over stones, maybe we can write about overcoming obstacles.

If we trip over stones, maybe we can write about making a barbecue pit.

If we even see a stone (in Florida they’re rare!), maybe we can find the kind of flat, round, pita-bread-shaped stones that our readers can use to skip-toss across a pond.

Stones of all shapes and sizes can be great tools. Many have a hefty purpose, but if people need bread, they need stones mainly to grind the corn or wheat.

Jesus knew that stones can be a solid foundation for building, but not for making meals. He fed hundreds of hungry people, for example, by turning fish and bread into more fish, more bread.

If you fish around your Idea File or main areas of interest, what fish do you have to share with other people?

If you have even a little bit of anointing oil or oil used for healing or oil of gladness or oil to stop a squeaking door, might it be enough to lubricate a thought, a worry, a spiritually dry spot your readers have?

What grains of truth can you write about to feed someone who's hungry?

What natural God-given ingredients do you have to make hearty loaves of bread or books or poems or stories?

Thank God, Lent gives us time to give who we are and what we have and where we’re going some time and thought and prayer. No hurry, but just so you’ll know: Our readers may be famished for something wholesome, something nourishing, something they can really sink their teeth into, preferably without breaking their incisors on a stone.



(c) 2011, Mary Harwell Sayler, all rights reserved.

Artistic, creative people get creative at any age

In high school days of English lit, teachers of teens loved to extol boy-or-girl-wonders such as the poet William Cullen Bryant, who reportedly wrote Thanatopsis at the young age of 18. Thanks to the Internet, a little research not only showed this information to be verifiable and true, but the kid actually published poems years earlier!

Now decades past my expiration date for being a wonder, I wondered what happened to Bryant. Not much went on with his poems, but the boy-poet advanced into his 80’s as an editor and writer of prose.

I’ll take that as an encouragement and hope you will too, because, at any age, creative people can and do find outlets for creativity.

What interests me even more than age or art genres, though, is how one artistic endeavor often leads to another. Take Thomas Hardy, for example. He started out as an architect and somehow that visual art helped him to write artistically in all literary genres.

Or consider the Reverend Gerard Manley Hopkins, who, besides studying theology, studied art and music – all of which he then combined into poems still loved and bought by the book-load today.

In investigating how one art informs another, I also discovered that W.B. Yeats studied art too, whereas G.K. Chesterton reviewed books about art. In and on other artistic stages, James Joyce sang professionally, and Dylan Thomas tried writing movie scripts.

How successful those creative acts were, I do not know, but each of those poets and writers wrote memorable manuscripts for years, some even into old age – timeless, tireless poems and stories still studied, collected, and recollected with ageless honor. What a wonder!


~~

(c) 2010, Mary Sayler



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Writers Write. Writers Learn. Writers Work.

Writers need to write.

“Real writers” have to write, but getting published is not the starting place if you want to become established as a freelance or assignment writer. The first step comes, plainly and simply, in writing. However, publication is a natural step toward improving your work.

That might not be what you expected to hear, so I will say what I just said in another way in hopes of being clear:

Getting published can help you to improve your writing.

Notice that I did not say writing for publication brings you closer to the fame-and-fortune fantasy that distracts many writers from the real adventures of the writing life. Thanks to everyone’s overnight Internet potential for renown, writers may be more likely to become poor and famous!

So, at first anyway, forget about money. Forget about a celebrity life. Forget about marketing and developing a platform, and simply focus on what it takes, realistically and professionally speaking, to get really, really good at your job:

Writers write. Writers learn. Writers work.

If you keep on writing and revising, your work will improve with practice, and getting published will help. How? Why? Besides activating, energizing, and employing your writing skills, publication encourages you to:

Thoroughly investigate topics that actually interest you.

Develop resources you can count on to be accurate, update, and precise.

Develop the discipline of a regular working schedule.

Research “the other side” of almost anything.

Find a balanced perspective beyond beliefs or unsubstantiated opinions.

Find your voice.

Find your preferred genre – the one in which you’re “a natural.”

Find out what’s being published and still needed in your field.

Become more aware of what publishers, editors, and readers seem to like.

Become acquainted with print and Internet markets for your chosen genre.

Follow writers guidelines with no amateurish demands to be the exception.

Meet deadlines with the same professionalism people usually show in being on time for an important engagement or business appointment.

Get input, including constructive criticism, from potential editors.

Get feedback from readers.

Get the encouragement you need to keep on writing.

Give your writing career the respect you'd show for any worthwhile endeavor.

Give yourself specific, manageable goals adjusted to fit you first as a person, then as a writer.


~~

(c) 2010, Mary Harwell Sayler

Writers and stress

Everyone knows what stress is. Without it, fiction would have no plot. Most of us would be bored, and nothing much would change. Sometimes, though, poets, writers, and other sensitive people perceive stress as, well, a burden.

In the last couple of postings, we discussed (okay, I did) the importance of sitting in a neutral position at your desk but also leaving your computer or dropping your laptop (not too forcefully) and walking away to exercise your muscles and bones, to flex your joints, and to strengthen your whole body. But sometimes that’s still not enough.

At any desk at any age, the body of a writer is more than a machine, more than a computer, more than a body of writing. Separating ourselves from our work can be difficult, but the simple act of doing something different will often bring a new perspective or a burst of creativity.

Without exercising that healthier outlook, stress becomes a culprit, rather than an interesting plot. The body clamps down in a protective mode that can be self-defeating and not at all creative.

So, what’s a body to do? Change intents. For instance, consider:

Stress may be a sign we’ve taken on more than we can handle.

Stress may be a sign we’re working on a project to which we are not drawn.

Stress may be a sign of exerting our own importance into our worries or work.

As a writer and poet, I still get caught up occasionally in productivity and deadlines, not because of the demands of editors or of readers but because I want to share what I have learned. I want to make a difference. I want to inspire readers. Or, to put it another way, I get caught up in my own sense of self-importance.

Poets and writers seem especially hopeful of helping the whole world become its better self. Ironically, though, my outlook and my writing seem to improve dramatically when I become a conduit for words, writing them down, as I am now and seeing where they lead. Because I’m a Christian as well as a poet-writer, I suspect that leading has to do with the power of God, whose importance can not be overstated, but who puts up with me, stress and all, just waiting – waiting for me to take a breath and listen, stress-free, and hear.


~~

(c) 2010, Mary Harwell Sayler, all rights reserved.













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Sedentary writers need to exercise self-awareness

Spending a lot of time at your desk can produce many manuscripts but, often, many neck or backaches too. If you use a laptop instead of a desktop, you might get comfy then feel achy later. So, next time, check to see if your neck and spine remain in a neutral position as described in the last posting.

Besides keeping your back and joints neutral as you sit, practice self-awareness. Most writers and poets get so caught up in their work, they don’t even notice when fatigue sets in or aches begin to nag, but if you train yourself to listen to your body, you can give more attention to weaker areas then work to strengthen them. How?

Take a break every hour (two at the most) and notice how you’re feeling.

Stir around.

Swing your arms.

Roll your shoulders.

Notice which muscles or joints ache or have tired the most.

Concentrate your exercises on those areas.

Most exercises requires at least enough energy to get out of bed, but some work well on a mattress. For example, rest on your back with your arms at your sides. Lift one leg and hold that position for a count of 10. Do this five times then repeat with the other leg. This exercise will help to strengthen your hips, tighten your stomach, and ease stress in your lower back.

If you have a backache, rest on the bed with your knees bent and your feet flat on the mattress. As you cradle your neck in a pillow, bring your knees toward your chest. With your knees bent, lower your feet to the mattress again. Repeat this exercise five times.

Forget the adage, “No pain! No gain.” Use movements that do not strain.

Throughout the day, stretch like a cat to increase flexibility.

Maintain correct posture.

Assuming your doctor approves, find activities you enjoy.

Swimming and bicycling do not provide enough resistance for strength-training or weight-bearing, but they exercise the body in general and are fun.

To tone muscle and strengthen bones, carry a small weight in each hand as you walk around your home or a mall.

For general strengthening, climb stairs, jog, play ball, or dance around instead of just sitting at a desk, waiting to be inspired. A fun exercise or activity will strengthen your body and increase overall circulation, helping your good mind to find its peak performance too.


~~

(c) 2010, Mary Harwell Sayler 

Also see the related article, "On the Ball: The Ergonomic Writing Life."

 
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On The Ball: The Ergonomic Writing Life

Sitting at a desk too long can be a big pain in the downside of your writing life. So get on the ball - a medicine ball, Swiss ball, exercise ball, Pilates ball, or one of those big blue balls kids play with – sort of like a thick-skinned beach ball for giant babies.

Regardless what you call the thing, the idea is to get on the ball then sit there, using those tiny little muscles, which might otherwise be unbeknown, to keep your balance. Strengthening those muscles will help to strength your back, which, if you’re in a poorly fitted chair, will hurt more and more as your writing life gets rolling. (I speak from experience!) Some people also use a ball to sit at their computer, but I prefer an ergonomic chair with lumbar support and knobs to adjust the height, arm width, and, especially, the tilt.  

Besides my tendency to sit way too long at my desk, my own back and spine problems caused me to research the subject and write The Encyclopedia of the Back and Spine Systems and Disorders for Facts On File. The same company also published my book The Encyclopedia of the Muscle and Skeletal Systems and Disorders, which the American Library Association honored as a nonfiction academic favorite for the year. I’m not mentioning that to brag (okay, maybe I am) but to let you know that I know backs and back pain, and the two do not automatically go together.

A well-fitted, ergonomically correct chair improves your desk posture, which helps you to avoid those backaches caused by fatigue. As you adjust your chair to fit you and your work station, notice each joint of your body. Then think in terms of right angles or an L-shape to ensure a neutral position.

In a well-adjusted chair:

Your knees will be at 90-degree angles while the bottoms of your feet hold down the floor.

Your back and thighs will form a capital L as you sit in a neutral position.

Your neck will not bend or stretch toward your monitor or twist to one side.

Your elbows will rest lightly against your waist.

Your wrists will be straight as your fingers cup the keyboard.

After all of those gyrations, however, you still might not be able to tell whether you’re in a neutral position. If not, check a reflective surface or ask someone to look at you squarely and see if anything needs adjusting to sit you comfortably upright.


~~

(c) 2010, Mary Harwell Sayler

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The Poetic Power of Dyslexia

Most poets and writers draw on experience, talent, skill, personality, and the power of observation to find something fresh to say in their fiction, nonfiction, and poetry writing. If you do that too, great! Keep up the good work. However, the traits you think of as a disadvantage or even a handicap might be the ones that help you to develop your own voice or distinctive style. Take, for instance, dyslexia.

Like many poets and career freelance writers, I began writing as a young child but, in my case, backwards. One way or the other did not matter to me, but this stressed out my teacher so much, she made me stay after class on my very first day of school. For years I thought Mrs. Smith called Mother to come in, too, to see how sloppily I wrote as my left hand smudged the soft pencil across the lined paper in my notebook, but no. I had perfectly copied everything the teacher wrote on the blackboard (which actually was black then), and I had formed each letter of the alphabet correctly. I had just written everything on the blackboard backwards.

For fun, I still like to spell ippississiM in my head, and I must warn you not to even try to beat me at word games like Boggle or Wheel Of Fortune unless, of course, you’re also a bit dyslexic. Most of the time, though, inverting letters and scrambling words or thoughts has gotten me into trouble, especially when I’m tired. If someone happens to spew double-negatives then, I can almost guarantee my brain will not follow.

In writing poetry and poetic manuscripts, however, dyslexia can come in handy. Word scrambles often lead to word play, and scrambled thinking can connect this to that in a previously untried but true way. Such “mistakes” might add a note of humor to fiction or nonfiction too and, in some cases, bring about a fresh idea, insight, or observation.

For example, as a Christian writer I often write nonfiction articles and devotionals. In one short article I wrote for other Christian poets and writers, I talked about the importance of double-checking facts and speaking with a loving voice whenever we write in the name of Jesus. Since Christians pray in Jesus’ name, my point was to encourage that thought also as we write. However, instead of typing “in the name of Jesus,” I wrote, “in the amen of Jesus.” Same letters, you notice, just scrambled. When I finally noticed this myself, I thought, wow! That better said what I wanted to say anyway. i.e., Anything we write (or pray) in Jesus’ name needs Jesus’ amen or affirmation.

I certainly do not pray for my dyslexia to increase or for you to catch it! But I do pray that you use your talents and “flaws” well. I pray you begin to see your “mistakes” or “handicaps” or “shortcomings” or “disadvantages” as a means of making your writing distinctive, inimitable, and one of a kind. Do I hear an name?

~~

(c) 2010, Mary Harwell Sayler, all rights reserved.

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Writer’s Block In A Box

If you’re staring at your keyboard and would rather wipe than type, this might be a sign of writer’s block. Will it last forever? No. Is there anything you can do about it? Sure.

It’s like being boxed between cars in a parallel parking space. Tight, but you still have choices. So what do you do? You can wait until the owner of the other car comes along to free you. Or you can inch your vehicle by increments until you wiggle free.

Trying to think of something new to do sounds like an experiment in frustration when your thoughts already seem blah and fuzzy or singularly uninspired, but don't fret. Just remember: Wiggle.

Do something different. If you can’t go anywhere, stand on a chair or stretch out on the floor, but get a fresh perspective. Look up and notice the texture of the ceiling. Look down and describe your feet. Look around and notice the sound, smell, sight, taste, or feel of objects you’re around every day. Sip soup slowly and identify the flavors or compare. Listen to the hum of the heater then fill in words to fit that beat.

Getting away from your normal surroundings can help you to get out of the box sooner, which is why even a mini-vacation depends on vacating your home. So use writer’s block as your impetus for visiting that museum in town you keep forgetting. Or go to a movie with sub-titles. Check out a library book of poems totally unlike anything you usually read or write. Check out DVDs, too. For instance, look for a video of that country you hope to visit or, better yet, one you would never dare to set a foot inside. Pick up a travel magazine, and look at photographs of other places.

Get the picture? Writer’s block is a box that every poet or writer steps into occasionally, but you don’t have to stay there. Even if you’re really boxed in, you have choices. Jump out. Take a nap. Find a different view.


[If you need objective feedback on your work, you might find what you're looking for on The Poetry Editor website - http://www.thepoetryeditor.com .]