A while back, I acted as the builder in an improvement project on our house where, among other things, we added 900 square feet to the existing dwelling. I had never done anything like this before. I learned so much from the two year experience, that it has greatly impacted my life. This is part 2 of what I learned...
The second thing I learned was how to listen to God's voice in day to day things.
Kerri and I had each come to the conclusion that God had pointed us in the direction of doing this addition inexpensively and acting as builders ourselves, so we could stay in the house we loved and afford the extra room we needed. We pulled our own permits and had a builder friend help us with tough problems along the way.
Having no experience in carpentry, plumbing, roofing, etc., I found the need to pray...a lot! One day while I mowed the lawn, I remember asking God about a back deck project and, in particular, how to build steps. (Let me say, that I also bought books on these subjects and studied very hard later on) I hadn't started any projects yet or pulled our first permit, and the prayer was a casual kind of prayer. Kind of like, "God I don't know how to do this. What do I do?" I got a picture of a set of steps in my head that would work in the spot off the deck I needed to fix up, so I bought some power tools and some treated lumber, and built the steps. The job wasn't the best in the world, but it was solid and the steps fit. I built two more sets of steps for two other outer doors using the same pattern and did a better job. Those two sets of steps are still there and sturdy ten years later.
Until the day I prayed that prayer, I hadn't realized that God had been answering similar prayers and I didn't know it--usually He'd do it with an image or an idea. later on I had to build real stairs for the second story of the addition. These stairs I built by studying builder's guides and making my own stringers, but the lesson I learned that first day stuck with me--ask God about tough problems and expect he''ll answer, because He will.
I use the same spiritual technique when it comes to writing books. When I don't know how, I ask Him and look for the answer. Along with being studious and professional, this has helped me greatly in my growth as an author. In this manner writing has become an intricate part of my spiritual journey in this life.
Sunday, May 31, 2015
Saturday, January 10, 2015
Book 3 of the Guild Saga is now in formatting!
With Return of the Crimson Witch about to be released by my publisher, I suggest you read books 1 and 2 first, These Guild books rock! Here's the trailer for Book 1, The Wonk Decelerator:
Tuesday, October 28, 2014
Saturday, August 23, 2014
Sunday, July 27, 2014
Sunday, May 25, 2014
Things I Learned From Rebuilding My House...Part 1...Concentrate On the Forest One Tree At a Time
A while back, I acted as the builder in an improvement project on our house. I dug out the foundation and framed it, framed the new house, resided the old house, replaced all the windows, put on a new roof and did quite a bit of the plumbing (of course my family was there to help). It's incredible how impacting the experience of remodeling our house and adding on 900 square feet has been on my life. I really came to know God in a deeper way than anything else in my life up to that point--except the day I came to know Christ as my Savior.
I thought it would be helpful to others to pass along some of these lessons as they apply to the art of writing, and maybe, in some small way, help out other writers. I'll do this in a series until I've said what I want to say.
The first thing I learned was to see the tree and not the forest.
The job of refashioning our house was enormous and I found out I got discouraged real fast if I thought about just how much work was ahead of me, because there were no building crews--I was the crew. As a matter of fact I didn't realize I was developing high blood pressure until after I'd been working on the house for about a year. I came in one night with a headache and checked my blood pressure and it was way higher than it should have been. My blood pressure was high because I had become the kind of person who looks at the forest and not the first tree. It wasn't just my house, it was everything in my life--I was always looking at how big something was, how much was left to do, how much work I had ahead of me. It kept me unhappy.
If you look at writing this way you'll be unhappy too--you won't enjoy it. I believe God gives us gifts to enjoy and writing is a gift from God. It's not a gift of the Spirit, it's a gift of the heart. If we approach it right, we'll be happy and fulfilled. If we approach it wrong, we'll be unhappy and worried.
One night I was framing under the stars--I sometimes came home from work and then worked on the house until eleven or twelve o'clock (my neighbors loved it!) under my portable lights. I took the time to look up at the stars and for a moment I just enjoyed being there. It was a breakthrough moment for me. I realized I'd been robbing myself of enjoying working on my house. I learned to enjoy each job I had before me, just by making up my mind I was going to live a thankful life before God. Instead of complaining to Him about how much work I had to do, I thanked Him for each job I had to do along the way--building the walls and setting them, building the individual headers for the windows and doors and then framing them--I even cut the stringers for our new staircase. I thanked him for the smell of the wood and the feel of it in my hands. When I finished framing the big addition (there were two) and began on the sheathing, I stood on the peak one night, arms stretched up and fists pumping, like I'd just conquered Everest. Then I moved on to the next job. But it happened one small job at a time.
Writing is no different. A sentence becomes a paragraph, a paragraph becomes a scene, a scene becomes a chapter, a chapter becomes a draft, and a draft becomes a book--then on to editing, and it all starts over.
Take writing one tree at a time and enjoy the trip through the forest. The day will come when you'll finish and move on. The question is, did you enjoy the view along the way?
I thought it would be helpful to others to pass along some of these lessons as they apply to the art of writing, and maybe, in some small way, help out other writers. I'll do this in a series until I've said what I want to say.
The first thing I learned was to see the tree and not the forest.
The job of refashioning our house was enormous and I found out I got discouraged real fast if I thought about just how much work was ahead of me, because there were no building crews--I was the crew. As a matter of fact I didn't realize I was developing high blood pressure until after I'd been working on the house for about a year. I came in one night with a headache and checked my blood pressure and it was way higher than it should have been. My blood pressure was high because I had become the kind of person who looks at the forest and not the first tree. It wasn't just my house, it was everything in my life--I was always looking at how big something was, how much was left to do, how much work I had ahead of me. It kept me unhappy.
If you look at writing this way you'll be unhappy too--you won't enjoy it. I believe God gives us gifts to enjoy and writing is a gift from God. It's not a gift of the Spirit, it's a gift of the heart. If we approach it right, we'll be happy and fulfilled. If we approach it wrong, we'll be unhappy and worried.
One night I was framing under the stars--I sometimes came home from work and then worked on the house until eleven or twelve o'clock (my neighbors loved it!) under my portable lights. I took the time to look up at the stars and for a moment I just enjoyed being there. It was a breakthrough moment for me. I realized I'd been robbing myself of enjoying working on my house. I learned to enjoy each job I had before me, just by making up my mind I was going to live a thankful life before God. Instead of complaining to Him about how much work I had to do, I thanked Him for each job I had to do along the way--building the walls and setting them, building the individual headers for the windows and doors and then framing them--I even cut the stringers for our new staircase. I thanked him for the smell of the wood and the feel of it in my hands. When I finished framing the big addition (there were two) and began on the sheathing, I stood on the peak one night, arms stretched up and fists pumping, like I'd just conquered Everest. Then I moved on to the next job. But it happened one small job at a time.
Writing is no different. A sentence becomes a paragraph, a paragraph becomes a scene, a scene becomes a chapter, a chapter becomes a draft, and a draft becomes a book--then on to editing, and it all starts over.
Take writing one tree at a time and enjoy the trip through the forest. The day will come when you'll finish and move on. The question is, did you enjoy the view along the way?
Saturday, March 22, 2014
Interview with author, Geoff Wright
Geoff Wright is a fellow eTp author and writes under the pen name Miles Wright
Too sick to attend regular school, the sixteen-year-old is home-schooled.
His third such teacher and her husband, who is the leader of a local cult,
deliver a solution to Joshua’s condition and take him to their “church,” to be
exorcized of his demons. But Josh’s condition worsens and when his friends
suggest he jump from his window, he is hospitalized. There he meets another boy
with schizophrenia and he and Michael become fast friends—determined to escape
and make a life for themselves. On a day trip, the boys disappear from the
group and embark on a dangerous and exciting journey where they encounter all
manner of characters, creatures and situations in an attempt to find a place where they will be safe. As Joshua recalls
stories from his sister’s “God book” along the way,
he finds the “Garden of Eden”, a sinister old man, a talking snake, and an
enormous angel with a deadly sword. He and Michael learn to survive outside on
their own—without medication, discovering the meaning of
true friendship and the unexpected truth that the only really
safe place for them in the whole world is the Angel tree.
Geoff lives in a small seaside village on the beautiful far
south coast of Australia, with his wife and children (and his fish.) Right from
an early age he fell in love with the outdoors; especially the sea. When he was
very young he lived on a small farm, and spent many happy hours searching the
creek for small fishes, tortoises and other make-believe creatures. He learned
to ride a horse at the age of four, and sometimes rode his horse to school. When
he was eight years old his family went to live on a river. There were no roads
or cars down by the river, making it a very secluded and idyllic place to live.
After school he spent many happy hours fishing, and sometimes hiked with
friends up the river to exciting and unexplored places. These magical
experiences and places have helped form the backdrop for some of the settings
in his books.
He began reading books at an early
age, and started writing short fantasy and science fiction stories, which his
teacher would read to the class. His favourite subject all through school was
English, and he won a Commonwealth Scholarship before going on to university to
study English Literature and Marine Biology. He also has spent time studying at
Moore Theological College. He is also a member of YALITCHAT, an organization
for those who write Young Adult books. He is a keen environmentalist, and
supports the local zoo for endangered species. He owned a Christian bookstore
for several years, and would like to use the sales from his own books to
support the Salvation Army, and help those less fortunate in society.
Title of Geoff’s books:
THE ANGEL TREE/ DRAGONFLY
Genre: YA Urban Fantasy
Email Geoff: jnel2@bigpond.com
Q) What is Angel Tree about?
Joshua Sharpe is being terrorized by a giant tree creature
with snake-like limbs capable of snatching stars right out of the
night sky and yet—no one in his family believes him. Almost every night the
enormous monster comes right up to his window, shakes the house and tries
to grab him from under the covers where he hides sweating and shaking from
absolute terror. His only comfort are his invisible friends who warn him when
the creature is enraged, where to hide and whom to trust. If it were not for
his friends, Joshua would be all alone. And so, he does everything he can to
keep them around—including throwing his medication out the window.
Q) Why did you write this book?
After selling our Christian bookstore in 2003 I
decided to start writing again. Several novels later, THE ANGEL TREE
arrived.
Q) How long did this project take you?
From first writing to publishing, three years.
Q) When will this book be available?
Now.
Q) You actually have two books coming out. Tells us about the
second one, DRAGONFLY, and when we can expect to see it?
Michael knew Maddie was sick, but not this sick.
As his only friend in
the institution where they are both patients, Michael is determined not to
leave Maddie when he escapes. At first, she seems happy to go with him, though
she does an awful lot of rambling about the moon. But when they hole up in an
empty vacation house, Michael is forced to accept that Maddie was sicker than
he thought. Now as she lay staring up at the sky, he can tell she is gone. Gone
to the moon.
Desperate
to revive her, Michael takes Maddie to the angel tree in his friend Joshua’s
back yard. Michael is convinced the tree holds special magic that can bring
Maddie back, but his hope is dashed when it becomes obvious Maddie is truly
dead.
After
the funeral, Michael can’t get Maddie out of his head. He must find a way to
the moon to be with her. He thinks the answer lay in a medallion depicting a
dragon in flight with the moon in the background. If only he can find a dragon
and catch it, he can fly to the moon! But where to find a dragon?
Then
Josh shows him a special book all about dragons. The two boys steal away with
it, taking refuge in a local swamp where Michael finds a reference to the Dream
Weaver, a mythological creature that grants wishes. But when the creature
begins visiting him in different forms, things go awry. While Michael is
asleep, trying to decipher a cryptic message from the Dream Weaver, Joshua is
bitten by a poisonous snake. By the time Michael wakes up, Joshua is at the
point of death.
Now,
torn between his loyalty to a living, breathing friend and his desire to make
things as they once were, Michael must choose; Continue his search for a dragon
and a past he can never truly recapture, or help his dying friend.
The Dream
Weaver can show him the way, but the choice is up to him.
Q) What is your favorite book?
The Bible.
Q) Which is more
dangerous? Standing between a politician and a news camera, or being a writer
seeking reviews for your book?
I
don't fear either.
Q) What’s your
favorite movie?
The
Godfather.
Q) What is the first creative thing you wrote? When did you
write it?
Science fiction stories when I was about eight.
Q) Who is the person you most admire?
Jesus Christ.
Q) What is the most important thing in your life? What’s the
second most important thing?
God and then my family.
Q) Who is the greatest writer to ever live?
C.S.Lewis.
Q) What is your favorite thing about Australia?
The quality of life.
Q) What’s your least favorite insect and why?
I like them all. I used to keep funnel web spiders
in jars.
Q) What can we expect next
from you, after, Dragonfly?
I am currently working on a YA Paranormal novel
called SINISTER THINGS.
Thanks for dropping by Geoff.
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