I’ve never made use of the Friday’s Feast (a buffet for your brain) questions, but as I’ve had a difficult week on the home front (no comment) and I’m in the "getting revved up and ready to write finally after too many days away from the manuscript" mode, I thought I would do so this morning.
Feast #37
Cruelty and injustice.
Soup – Who is a musician you enjoy listening to when you want to relax?
Oooh, tough question. I have many favorites. I have my iTunes and iPod jam-packed with all kinds of music. Right now, this very moment, I am listening to Dino (pianist). And I absolutely love the Finding Neverland soundtrack and have used it when getting my last two massages. Very soothing.
Salad – What was the last book you purchased?
I just placed an order for 25 copies of Heaven
by Randy Alcorn for my mom to give as gifts to people she loves.
(Amazing book if you haven’t read it.) For myself, the last book I
purchased was What the Wind Picked Up (see my previous post).
Main Course – If you could live one day as any historical figure, who would it be, and what would you do?
Oh,
wow. If I took time to think about this, I could come up with a long
string. History is one of my interests (which is why I’ve written more
than 30 historical novels). But I’ll go with the very first thought
that popped into my head when I read the question: I would be Peter on
the day he walked on water. I would love to experience a miracle like
that one, and I would love to feel Jesus taking my hand to rescue me
when I cried out. Well, since this is a wish, I guess I would want Him
to take my hand without me losing faith and starting to sink.
Dessert – Tell about a time when you were lost. Where did you end up? How long did it take you to get back to where you were going?
Gads,
I cannot think of one single time I’ve been lost. I have an innate
sense of direction and a love of maps and ability to understand them.
I’m sure I have been temporarily lost in the past, but it wasn’t to a
degree that made it store in my memory banks.
Of course, that
was a physical answer. I have been lost spiritually. I ended up in a
lot of trouble while I walked in a period of rebellion. It took me
about four years to get back to the foot of the cross which is my
permanent destination while I walk this earth.
Okay, now it is time I get to work on my book.
Happy Thursday,
-rlh-
Hi Robin,
I just discovered your site. This is the first time I’ve ever talked to an author of a book I’ve read. It’s nice to see that some authors are approachable like this.
I’m 23 and I would like to be an author someday, but I’m struggling with that desire. I wonder if it is a selfish desire and not in God’s plan for me. Ideas, plots and characters are something I would have to work hard at. I’m wondering if that’s an indication that I’m not inspired and shouldn’t try. Do you (and authors you know) always seem to have a lot of inspired ideas? My desire is strong and I know that God gives us the desires of our heart. But the writing part, Robin! Does He give you ideas, plots and characters?
I know that some days writing must be effortless, and some days it’s hard. I’m not asking you to determine whether it’s God’s will for me to write – that’s a bit much. But I would really like to hear any thoughts or encouragement that you would have. (My e-mail address is my work address; I work at Houghton College, a small Christian liberal arts college in western NY – http://www.houghton.edu.)
Christie, I just wanted to encourage you — if you love to write, then write! The Lord will direct you as you move in your gifts…and that’s not a selfish thing. There are many different kinds of writing, not just fiction. I’ve written a few articles published in Highlights for Children and a Christian magazine called “Pray!” And though they haven’t been the fiction I would still love to write (and am still trying for), they do have elements of storytelling that bring them to life like fiction. I believe that the Lord wants to inspire us in our writing, but first we just need to keep writing and praying for His anointing on our words. I even think He has increased my creative ideas through working day to day as a copywriter of some very dull insurance copy, amazing as that sounds! 😉 It’s just the act of writing each day that helps us to improve, find our style etc. I also took a course in writing for children once that had some good writing exercises that help with creating characters by using your own memories — one I remember, for example, was the exercise of writing a brief memory of when you were in a favorite room as a kid by thinking of yourself back there. As you remember yourself there, what does the room feel like, what are the sounds you hear, how does the sunlight look as it spills through the windows and dapples the table? Writing short pieces like that can help you to develop the ideas for longer stories. Above all, keep praying and seeking the Lord and I know He’ll lead you. I love Jeremiah (in the beginning of the book) where the Lord tells him not to worry that he is too young, but that He will put His words in his mouth… I think that’s God’s promise to us as writers when we give our gifts to Him, too. 😉