More than Writers

Photo from Wikimedia Commons Are you entangled in things God never intended for you to do? How do you discern His best will for your life? It’s taken me a lifetime to figure this one out, and I still have a lot to learn! This past week, I was pondering whether to volunteer for something.  The job suited my skillset, and I quite fancied having a go, but I wasn’t sure I had the time. I struggle to get so many things ticked off my to-do list, that in one sense it was madness to think of taking anything else on. Rather than worrying about it, I decided, possibly for the first time in my life, that my peace of mind would guide the decision. I didn’t over-analyse it, but trusted my heart and decided to go ahead.  I recently purchased a new robot cleaner, Rocky. I've programmed him to vacuum and mop my large kitchen floor daily, first thing in the morning. This is a wonderful blessing, as it saves me so much work. However, every so often, I forget to pick a floor cloth up before I go...

Well… I have been somewhat preoccupied the last few weeks preparing to lead a ‘Knitwits for God’ knitting and spirituality retreat day in March https://www.wydale.org/events/2026/3/11/knitwits-for-god   Hopefully you will hear more about this in next month’s blog. If I’m not still lying down in a darkened room wrapped in my comfort blanket. 16 ladies (possibly more), all armed with knitting needles and crochet hooks. It could get messy… At times I’ve questioned what my preparation has to do with writing. And I’ve questioned my sanity (nothing new there) as I’ve sifted through hundreds of patterns (you think I’m exaggerating). Knitted and crocheted visual aids (Jelly babies are NOT me, and I can safely say I’ll never knit one again…). Wondered where all these half pairs of knitting needles came from. And more importantly where are their mates and are they lonely?   However in the last couple of days two things have been so helpful. Jane Walters’ new book: ‘Bless the work of our...

Over the past two weeks, three so-called “book clubs” have appeared in my inbox. Each one claimed to have thousands of eager readers, all genuinely interested in my books. Each email provoked a different reaction. The first message didn’t mention any of my titles. Considering I have nearly twenty books published, that should have raised a red flag immediately—but it didn’t. Instead, I replied with a simple question: “Are your readers interested in sci-fi fantasy?” The answer, unsurprisingly, was an enthusiastic yes. I was invited to send a PDF of my book and pay a small fee in exchange for the possibility that some members might leave reviews. I politely declined. I don’t pay for reviews—full stop. Next came Patrick. He was more convincing. He referenced a specific title, Strangest Christian Myths Squished , and even mentioned my background in youth work. That detail almost won me over; it suggested he’d done his homework. He assured me participation was “completely free of ch...

 A movement outside my window made me look up and there, strutting nonchalantly across the lawn in front of my French windows, was a brightly coloured pheasant. Bold fellow seemed supremely confident in his finery. It's not something I'm at all good at. Strutting my stuff. In other words, marketing and promoting my books. I know I need to put the effort in to let potential readers know that my books are out there, just waiting for them to buy and hopefully enjoy.  But all the stuff that goes with it - photographs of me in bookshops and at events, holding my book up and grinning foolishly at the camera - or caught unawares looking even worse... No, it's really not me! (I don't mind the events - in fact I love giving talks about my books and my faith.) Maybe it's the way I was brought up: we were firmly told that boasting was not permitted. And there are plenty of Bible verses about how God really does not like the proud! So it sounds as if blowing our own trumpets is...

  Do you find it easier to write something that matches the mood you’re in, or something that contrasts with it? Imagine you come home from an emotional hospital visit, full of sadness and pain. And you sit down to work on a story which focusses on joy. Does it give you a break from your own strong emotions? Or do you just give up, unable to get into the right headspace. Last week I was struggling to write the next chapter in my current work-in-progress. The main character is angry with events and feeling isolated. She needs to express her frustration to God. And I felt a real resistance to even attempting to write the chapter. I’m familiar with procrastination, with the reluctance to get down to work. This resistance was stronger than that. I wondered if I had misjudged how the character was feeling. Sometimes the aversion to writing a particular scene is because the story has taken a wrong turn. Or I’m trying to force a character to go where they don’t want to g...

  The  Writer As A Work in Progress  By Sheelagh Aston Do you remember how, on a racing-track, every competitor runs, but only one wins the prize? Well, you ought to run with your minds fixed on winning the prize! Every competitor in athletic events goes into serious training. Athletes will take tremendous pains—for a fading crown of leaves. But our contest is for an eternal crown that will never fade. 1 Corinthians 9:23-25   J B Philips New Testament I first started writing when I was about nine or ten. I started with poetry and had a lovely English teacher who encouraged me. If it had not been for her kindness to me at that time, I would probably have stopped. Instead, I found a lifelong source of comfort and a passion which I have never outgrown or got a board of. Anguished teenage poetry came and went to be replaced by drama sketches for school and student events, then short stories, and finally novels. Nowadays I write a combination of all. In the scri...

Photo by Kateryna Shevchenko on Unsplash On Wednesday afternoon, I was talking to students about communication. I told them that I became deaf in 2000. Then I looked around the room, realisation striking: “You weren’t alive in 2000, were you?!” They all shook their heads, and we laughed. They were a great group: listening, and participating, and asking excellent questions. The session added to equipping them for their future careers. And they received that equipping from someone who’d been around before they were even born.   What about us as writers? We, too, are equipped by Someone who was around before we were born. Before anyone was born.   He (Jesus) is before all things, and in him all things hold together. Colossians 1:17   How might knowing that we have been - and are - equipped by Jesus Himself shape our writing?   Perhaps those students, in years to come, will be in a clinic situation that causes them to remember our ses...

And it came to pass that a shy girl discovered the Internet, and there within was a chance to pursue writing with something called a Blog, which is to say a Weblog. And behold, the shy girl found that she could write about things that interested her. And, in the beginning, that included riveting things like nail varnish and whether the beans should actually ON the toast and whether sweetcorn is an abomination unto the Lord.  The shyest of the shy girls considered not that people would actually be reading the Blog and very quickly, she moved on from nail varnish, which she could never get to last for more than 16 minutes anyway, and she began to write about the deepest darkest questions of our time.  But I say unto thee that this is a lie because when she began to write about the solutions to the human condition, she found that she was rubbish at it. Indeed, her words were as dust. So, mainly, she stuck to her human condition and what the love of a good God could do about it. A...

     I’ve been dipping into the Winter Olympics, intrigued by some of the sports included. I still haven’t got my head round the intricacies of curling, and as for the luge doubles, I struggle to see how the person underneath can breath, let alone contribute to controlling the run! I'm amazed at the levels attained by some of the athletes, it is a world full of glory for some, disappointment for others. What they all have in common is a story of how they got the where they are, each one different but each with elements of sacrifice, singlemindedness, hard work and opportunity. When I tell you that back in September my son completed a 5k run, you may well be underwhelmed. It is the story behind this achievement though that makes it worthy of a mention. Two years previously he suffered an injury playing football. One of the main ligaments in his knee was torn (the ACL). This meant he could no longer use that leg properly. He was on crutches for months and living on his ow...

I have been making my way through Psalm 119, the longest Psalm in the Bible and was interested in the heading of the section I was reading: ‘Mem’. Research revealed that the Hebrew origins of this word are ‘sea, chaos, and unknown’. (Apparently, the sea was viewed as an unknown quantity to be feared.) I love the way this leads into His commandments being my constant guide. It makes me think about a map, how on a journey to an unknown place we need to know which direction to take. These days we hav e sat   nav systems or apps on our phones – with a voice of our choosing – telling us where to go .   But I’m a bit old-fashioned and not fully confident with technology, so I like to print out a route-finder. Sometimes, on a walk with a friend, we follow a guide that tells us to ‘turn up the track next to the big oak tree’, or ‘climb the stile and walk up the hill’.   There’s something comforting and reassuring in being able to read the directions – and re-read it if I think I ...

  Back in September I wrote a piece for MTW on Word Blending using the image of making wine and blending grapes.   It so happens that I am back in South Africa currently and have just had a relaxing holiday in the Robertson wine valley, two hours out of Cape Town.   Below the equator,  t he start of the year marks the harvest season for grapes.   Wine makers begin the challenging task of selecting the best grapes, choosing how to ferment them (oak barrels – first, second or third fill? – French for ‘oakiness’ or American for vanilla; stainless steel tanks; cement ‘eggs’) and how, or whether, to blend them and in what proportions for maximum flavour etc. As I walked through some of the vineyards here, I noticed that many of the vine rows have been wrapped in netting.   There are a number of reasons for this: To protect them from birds.   The closer to harvest, the more sunshine the vines have had which increases the sugar content of the grapes and there...

  The local writing group I set up comprises of; some complete beginners who know nothing about writing, a lady who has written many long novels but not yet published, a poet, a writer who can’t place herself but has written great drama in our meetings, those hoping to become memoir writers, and some who used to write and are finding their way back. At present, I am the leader of the group of twelve ladies. Most come to each monthly meeting. The preferred format is for each person to read out their ‘homework’, everyone to comment on it and then turn to the next subject, which is whatever I have prepared to talk about and discuss. Everybody reads and everybody discusses, the comments are encouraging and I am the only one who has missed a homework task. And the writing from everyone is thoughtful and of good quality. I can hardly keep up with their enthusiasm and it’s great fun. For the last session our previous homework had been on dialogue and this led quite neatly to talking...