Tag Archives: writing

Blogging 101 and Writing 101: A Letter to my Visitors

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Welcome to my personal blog and I am so happy you dropped by. I was recently given the assignment to blog about “Why I write.” It is my hope that you find something that you enjoy here. I now have been blogging on this site for a little over a year. I use this blog site as an avenue of expressing myself through writing poetry and some stories. I also try to share some of my photos. I tend to be this very introverted person who is leading a very quiet life most of the time. I try to be more extroverted but that is often quite a challenge for me to do. I go to work almost every day and have contact with co-workers and some very close friends. I also keep contact with family and visit them when I can. But at times I will try to be more outgoing or something. If I do seem to become somehow too outspoken or say the wrong thing, it doesn’t take too much to knock me down and I just disappear for a while; sometimes a long while depending on the situation.

Anyway, about a year ago, I became very frustrated with myself being stuck in this shyness cocoon where I am too afraid to come out and just be myself.  I felt I had neat things to share and needed someone to share them with. So I got this great idea to try blogging. I set up my blog on WordPress but then didn’t know what to do with it. So I read and studied up on blogging to see what it was all about. I also visited other blogs to see how it was done. I found blogs on all sorts of subjects. I learned that a blogger needed to write with a purpose and maintain a consistent theme. That way, readers may become familiar the type of blog one writes and come to know what they may expect at one’s blog site. I then arrived at the idea of using my blog to share my poetry and to hopefully, be upbeat and encouraging to others. So I came up with the theme, “on a quest to find inspiration in everyday life.” It is often too easy for me to become downtrodden and discouraged. So,  I am on this personal quest to discover inspiration for myself and for others who might want to follow my blog.

Keeping up with the blog is very motivational for me as well as a challenge as I do go through dry spells. But overall, I tend to write poems and try to share interesting stories as a way to share a piece of myself. I write about my faith, things I find in nature that inspire me, and some personal stories. I continue to hope that all who visit find something that might encourage them. Blogging has become a winding and spiritual journey; I hope you enjoy seeing a piece of my blogging journey. Thank you again, for visiting my blog and may you be blessed in a very special way today.

 

Oh the Things My Fingers can do

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Clapping hands to music and

Snapping my fingers to a catchy tune

Are just a few things that

My little fingers can do.

Dancing up and down a keyboard;

Playing a rhythmic song

Or typing on the computer

A new story or poem.

Holding a friend’s hand or

Helping someone in need.

Writing down my thoughts and

Not hurry; no need for speed.

While walking through a forest

 And crossing a grassy meadow,

Smelling and caressing the

Soft and dewy wildflower petals.

Gripping the steering wheel and

Driving from place to place;

Journeying through this day while

Living inside of God’s sweet grace.

Then when the starry night arrives

And the glowing sun has gone down,

Folding my fingers in quiet prayer to

Thank the Lord for all he has done.

Writing 101 Day 19: My Ramblings in Writing and Poetry

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The Journey and Mystery in Writing Poetry

Somewhere along the line while I was still a kid running around on the farm and dashing through the woods, I became this quiet person who liked to sit and just quietly be. And as I reclined I sometimes felt inclined to read or write a bit of poetry. I can’t remember when it exactly started; I remember in school we sometimes had these creative writing courses. Just like reading, writing is an escape into another place of fantasy; whether I write action filled stories or rhyming verses in poetry. Writing is an outlet and creative fun where I can express myself to anyone; a friend, a family member, and strangers too who happened to see what I wrote as on my blog they like to scroll through. I know that what I write about isn’t to everyone’s taste and liking for we all are different in our preferences and our individual life journeys.  But writing stories and poetry is wonderful fun with some mystery. For each time I start a new piece, I don’t always know what the ending will be. It is an unseen adventure through the mind where ideas develop influenced by my perceptions and interesting discoveries I might find. My writings are also influenced by my internal and spiritual growth through faith as I draw nearer and nearer to Jesus with each passing day. Other times I am affected by the things in the world I see. I try to focus and learn from others who encourage and inspire me. In any case, as I write along constructing new verses in my head to the tune of an unknown song, I feel like I am on a journey where the end of the path I cannot see. So I keep writing these things in my heart and, at least, I know where my trail of thought had its’ start. So I just keep on scribbling and typing until I find the end where I discover the fitting conclusion to my thoughts; a meaningful ending that I and I hope others appreciate and comprehend.

 

Sunday Drive Roundup November 2, 2014

 

 

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Another late Sunday drive around the wonderful blogosphere where one can find many talented writers, photographers, and artists  displaying their creative and inspirational work. It is always a joy to see and discover something new.  It is a thought provoking journey to find that awakens a deep delight inside of me. Anyway, as I meander along two days, I soon stumbled some wonderful gems in photography, the art of writing, and  in hearing the children sing.

Photography

This blogger, Keeping up with Kailina, found gentle beauty in the deep gray skies:

http://kailinamills.wordpress.com/2014/11/04/my-maine-space-november-4-2014/

Another photographer and blogger, NJ Corporate Portrait Photographer, found a breathtaking scene when discovering a huge rock:

http://rjgreenphoto.wordpress.com/2014/11/04/a-giant-rock/

Writing and Watching TV:

And here is a blogger and factual fiction writer, Bob Mayer, who writes about the importance of learning about the art of writing by watching TV:

http://writeitforward.wordpress.com/2014/11/04/10-reasons-why-writers-should-watch-tv-part-i/

More on Writing:

Also another blogger at Lit World Interviews, writes a helpful and practical article on finding ideas to write a book:

http://litworldinterviews.wordpress.com/2014/11/03/how-to-come-up-with-a-book-idea/

Hear the Children Sing:

Here is a beautiful video on the ChristianBlessings blog site showing children of Myanmar singing praises to God:

http://ptl2010.com/2014/11/04/listen-to-the-myanmar-children-sing-to-the-lord/comment-page-1/#comment-24534

 

And there you have it, another Sunday Drive Roundup!! I hope you were able to find something here to encourage and inspire you today.

Sunday Drive Round Up October 5, 2014

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I haven’t worked on a Sunday Drive Round Up article so I thought it was past time that I did so. There are many interesting blogs out there and I am trying to carve out some time here to read more of them. I find it very interesting how you can find blogs on almost any subject that interests you.  So, I began my little Sunday drive by looking at articles related to the subject of writing. Since I am a writer, I often look to other writers and their inspirational and helpful articles:

Writing:

From New3Creation Writing:

http://new3creationservices.wordpress.com/2014/10/06/a-real-look-at-the-writer-within/

I am always encouraged by poets and inspirational writers and as I continued on my quest along the blogosphere I then came upon these inspirational and uplifting pieces:

Poetry:

From My Spiritual Breakfast:

http://myspiritualbreakfast.com/2014/10/06/the-bend-in-the-road/

From ForgottenMeadows:

http://forgottenmeadows.wordpress.com/2014/06/28/without-words-2/

From Source of Inspiration:

http://patcegan.wordpress.com/2014/10/05/4-x4-keys-of-living/

I also enjoy and am inspired by the work of artists and so I came across this beautiful blog:

Drawing and Photography:

From Maria Brinkley:

http://mariabrinkley.com/2014/10/05/self-portrait-drawing-springtime/

And there you have it, my latest and very belated Sunday Drive Roundup. I hope you find something here that is also an inspiration and an encouragement to you.

Sunday Drive Round Up August 17, 2014

 

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Once again, it is time to take a fun drive around the blogosphere and see what other bloggers are up to. So, to start off with, I went exploring for insightful posts about the art of writing and here are some helpful and interesting articles I discovered:

The Art of Writing

From Cristian Mihai I found this helpful article about finding your inner strength and writing for yourself. In another to words to write what you want to write about:

http://cristianmihai.net/2014/08/01/on-being-invincible/#more-5441

A Dose of Light Humor

Traveling further along, I also found a bit of humor along the way to brighten my day from a letter written to ‘Thing’.  I needed a little something to help me smile again. After all, laughter is often good medicine. This clever missive is written by Hugh’s News and Views:

http://hughsviewsandnews.com/2014/08/17/a-letter-to-thing/

Soothing Inspiration and Beautiful Music

And finally, I came across this gem of a post written by Meredith’s Musings about the true story of two ministers who sailed to America. In their eagerness to share along the way, they had to learn that salvation can never be earned. A beautiful hymn is also featured here which was soothing to my sometimes troubled and searching soul. It is a great post:

http://meredithlbl.com/2014/08/17/sundays-singing-soul-3/

Guest Blogger: Angie

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Some time ago, a fellow writer and blogger featured me as a guest on her blog. She featured me on her “Writing on the Sly” blog and here is the link for those who would like to see my guest spot:

http://writingonthesly.blogspot.com/2014/07/friday-guest-post.html

Angie is one of those wonderful friends in my life who is so loving and encouraging. She is an inspiration to me and to many others. And for being a full time mother with a large family, I just am baffled at how she finds the time to keep writing but she does. Oh and did I say blogs? Oh, yes, I did because she has several blogs. Like me I think she has the idea that a blog needs to have a purpose or theme and that the blog needs to remain true to that purpose. In my own blog writing, I have seen that straying from my main theme seems to throw the readers off. I am trying to be very careful of this. As I continue on my own writing journey, I am also trying to take time to learn from you the reader. What is important to you when you take special time to read my blog? I do hope you are finding something worthwhile and valuable on my page. In the meantime, I will keep on practicing and improving my writings so that my work is worthy enough to be read by others.  Another common thread that Angie and I share is that we both like to write children’s stories and have hopes of publishing them. I think she is further along than I am in that venture.

To begin with, I really like her “Writing on the Sly” blog in which she writes about her own writing journey. She has a number of interesting articles there about her own writing process.  And it is encouraging to me to follow her unique writing journey:

http://writingonthesly.blogspot.com/2014_08_01_archive.html

Angie is also writing the blog, “A Window into Grief” in which she shares her family’s journey of grief after losing a son. It is a very deep and touching blog which others who have also suffered loss can relate to. I did not have the opportunity to be a mom and so I have not experienced the loss of a child. I can’t fully understand the deepness of her grief but she shares about it in her own beautiful words as she and her family continue through this grieving journey one day at time:

http://writingonthesly.blogspot.com/2014_08_01_archive.html

 

Finally, Angie also started a “Grieving with Hope” message board shortly after the death of her son for others who are grieving to have a place to go and to be able share:

http://www.grievingwithhope.org/

 

I hope you find Angie’s beautiful writings to be an inspiration and encouraging today.

Sunday Drive Round Up for June 8, 2014

 

 

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Finding Hope and Inspiration in Poetry, Writing, and Genealogy

Oops!! A day late but I am determined to write a little round up of some interesting blog sites and articles I visited this past week:

Here is yet another touching and self-searching poem by Source of Inspiration. The writer reminds us to look to our Creator who wants what’s best for us:

http://patcegan.wordpress.com/2014/06/09/what-does-he-want/

In relation to the art of writing and publishing, I came across this very timely and interesting article written by author David Guaghran:

http://davidgaughran.wordpress.com/2014/06/09/whos-afraid-of-very-cheap-books/

Here is another interesting article about the fun in discovering family stories in genealogy research. It also includes useful links related to ancestry research:

Genealogy with Valerie:

http://genealogywithvalerie.wordpress.com/2014/06/09/they-were-only-farmers-take-the-challenge/

 

 

 

Writing 101 Assignment 3: More Ramblings by Becky

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Humm, I am to write about my 3 favorite songs. And I am supposed to write and write without correcting my spelling, punctuation, or grammar. That drove me nuts. I went back and corrected it all because I want readers to understand what I write. So here are my latest ramblings of my mind:

What are my 3 most favorite songs? I know a lot of songs and I like a lot of songs. This is hard. Let me think on this. Well, to begin with my favorite Christmas song ever is “Hark the Herald Angels Sing”. I like the majestic sounding music of that song and the words portray hope and peace on earth and may all nations be peaceable. And it focuses on Jesus who was born in Bethlehem, Jesus the hope of Christmas.

Humm let me think of another great and favorite song, oh I know, “The Circle of Life” song featured in The Lion King and sung by Elton John. To me that song inspires one to cherish the planet we all live on. I especially love the line, “sun rolling high in sapphire skies.”…that just captures my imagination as I consider the natural beauty of earth. And we’re to not take our days, our time on earth for granted.

Let me think, another very special favorite song is “How Great Thou Art”. A very old hymn and it too is very majestic sounding. Hearing a great rendition of it by an orchestra sends chills up my spine. The words also are beautiful. The first two verses focus on the beauty of our universe and earth. The last two verses focus on God and his son Jesus.  I have loved that song since going to vacation bible school when I was a kid. We rode our bikes there to an old one room school house where all the kids of the neighborhood met up to visit, learn, and play at this old schoolhouse. The teachers were kind and very interesting. There were from Chicago and the beauty of Wisconsin really captured them. They thought our hills were beautiful mountains. I guess they never been to California or Wyoming. Now those states have mountains, I have seen them and tried to climb them. Nevertheless, I enjoyed seeing those teachers every summer and I treasured that time in that old schoolhouse.

Finding Inspiration in Poetry, Photography, and in the Art of Writing

 

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As I dive further and further into the blog world, I have discovered some very hopeful and inspiring blogs to follow. I encourage you to look at these talented bloggers and writers:

Inspiration in Poetry:

To Begin with, I found several neat poems by some amazing poets: I happened to read these poems at a time when I needed a little encouragement and some comfort for my soul. Read, enjoy and may they lift your spirit too:

Source of Inspiration:   http://patcegan.wordpress.com/2014/04/29/fearless-love/

Shawn L. Bird: http://shawnbird.com/2014/04/29/poem-angel-2/

Inspiration in Photography:

This photo/poet writes beautiful poems and captures the most delicate scenes you can imagine in nature. His writing and photos are like precious gems. While I tend to focus on the bigger picture in photography, this photo artist captures the delicate and often unseen beauty of nature:

http://adabrowka.wordpress.com/2013/12/23/round-dance/

Inspiration in the Art of Writing:

This is a great blog article for us bloggers who are into blogging because we want to be writers. Whether we write poems, articles, or stories of any genre, we are looking to improve our writing skills and get ourselves out there and noticed. This article is about reading to be a good writer and lays out some keys ideas on how to do that.

Quoth the Wordsmith;

http://quoththewordsmith.wordpress.com/2014/03/31/reading-to-write/

And for us fledgling novel writers here is an interesting writing article from author Bob Mayer about taking one key idea as a basis for a novel:

http://writeitforward.wordpress.com/2013/04/15/no-matter-the-genre-many-great-books-start-with-a-one-sentence-idea/

I hope you find these blogs interesting, inspiring, and helpful as I did.