Lisa Rector's Blog: Writing and Beyond, page 3

Because I'm Happy

by Lisa Rector
When I was a young single adult, I had a friend who constantly told me I wasn’t happy. This shocked me. I couldn’t comprehend, for one, how he could determine this in me, and two, I didn’t see how I wasn’t happy. Maybe, because I was a big flirt, he thought I was seeking for happiness in all the wrong places. The truth was, when I was single, I was living it up and enjoying life. I had so many pressures and stressors while I went through nursing school that on the weekends, I was a hopeless flirtatious bomb.
I didn’t care.
Then I married. Then I had children. I became a hostage to hormones running amuck in my body. I hated my daughter for the first six months of her life. I resented my husband for some unknown reason. All because chemicals told me I was unhappy. Until I experienced seven years in a mix of chemical and postpartum depression, I didn’t know what happiness truly was.
From the darkest abyss and wishing for death, to indescribable, the-only-way-to-understand-would-be-to-plug-your-spirit-into-mine-with-some-sort-of-mind-meld happiness. It’s not something you can express. When you’re happy, you feel it throughout your whole soul.
What’s my secret? I can explain it in a few phrases that will make you want to throw your tablet across the room, because you will say, “Duh. I’ve heard all this, but it’s not working for me.” Well, until the moment when you experience the change from unhappiness to bliss, you won’t really know what it means to be inexplicably happy.
Ready to throw your device?
The Light of ChristThe AtonementThe Plan of SalvationEffortEnjoy the momentFind your purposeLet it goCount your blessingsIf my God is with me, whom then shall I fear?
The formula is different for every single soul. But I will tell you. Because of the atonement, I conquered chemical depression. Because of my testimony in the Savior, I live each day with hope and peace. Because of the atonement, I am clean and light and free. Because I work my butt off every day to be still and let peace and beauty soak through me, I can breathe. I don’t fear evil. I rejoice in all that is good in life. I have purpose, even if it is only to get up every morning and hug my daughters. Even if it is just to lay beside my snoring husband and listen to his heartbeat.
My soul—my heart and spirit—want to rupture on occasion. The feeling is so hard to contain.
My daughters scream in embarrassment when I crank the music loud and dance in my kitchen, when I roll the window down and wave at everyone who drives by. When I make silly faces or when I start in on a lecture about how amazing the sunrise looks or how the rain makes everything look like a fairyland. Or how the squirrels and the rabbits bounce through the yard. I tell them to look at every good thing, look at every small moment, SEE what God has given us.
My only regret is that not everyone sees and not everyone feels this happiness.
The world would be so different if they did.
“Men are that they might have joy.” Be in that joy.
Now watch this.

Dragon Week! Introducing Derog

Derog has only a small part to play in Master of Time. He appears in the beginning and end of the novel where we hear his thoughts through his rider Meuric. He has a brief, non-speaking cameo in The Two Masters.

A majestic, navy blue, silver-flecked dragon, Derog has a pale blue, spiked ridge descending his snout. His hide is the exact color of the dragon stone he was born with, a stone Meuric now wears around his neck, forging the telepathic bond between them.
Derog’s a fierce dragon who’s fought in many battles with Meuric while he was the Dark Dragon Rider’s leader. In Master of Time, Derog is separated physically and mentally from Meuric when he’s thrown backward through time. (Dragon stone connections work over a vast distance and even between worlds, but not across time.)
When faced with a difficult or dangerous situation, Derog’s known to dive right in. As no nonsense dragon, he’s kicked Meuric into gear more than once and encouraged him to have patience. Derog is a strong voice of reason to his rider, having been joined as dragon brothers for many millennia, but honors their bond and doesn’t overstep. For all Derog’s pursuits as a Dark Dragon, he’s as honorable as they come.
Derog’s hope is that his rider will to return to the present, or his dragon bond will be void, as well as Derog’s immortal life that goes with it.


You can find Derog in Half-Emrys: The Two Masters (The Emrys Chronicles Book 2)
This novel is Reader Rated (RR) for ages 15+ for mild sensuality, violence, and torture; also contains brief (nonsexual) nudity.What Dragons will you find within?A young, goofy dragon can’t grab the attention of a mature female, who just happens to be the enemy.





Find Derog here in Half-Emrys: Master of Time (The Emrys Chronicles Book 3)
This novel is Reader Rated (RR) for ages 16+ for moderate violence, torture, and non-detailed fade-out sensuality.What Dragons will you find within?Two dragon riders lose their telepathic connection with their dragons when they are thrown backward in time.
Check out possible versions of Derog.
http://orig15.deviantart.net/cae8/f/2010/302/5/4/frost_dragon_by_pixelcharlie-d31q1d7.jpg
http://img13.deviantart.net/4a52/i/2004/297/d/d/blue_dragon_by_irulana.jpg
http://img14.deviantart.net/e63f/i/2012/345/9/2/e_s_blue_dragon_by_elevit_stock-d5npbqn.jpg

Dragon Week! Introducing Cephias

Cephias is a garnet-colored dragon who’s fiercely loyal to his mate. When Seren wants to enter the mortal realms to rescue her dragon rider, Cephias refuses to let Seren go alone, even if leaving with his rider could possibly result in his exile. A noble and brave dragon, Cephias is eager to be a hero in a new adventure after living in the dragon realm for nearly half a millennium.
He tends to be the voice of reason for his rider. When Aneirin is deep in conflicting thought, Cephias is usually in Aneirin’s mind, by the power of their dragon stone, talking Aneirin through his anguish.
Occasionally Cephias, who’s the most mature of the pair, ribs his rider, who is unfamiliar with love, or “tender feelings,” as Cephias politely refers to Aneirin’s emotions. But the teasing is good-natured, because they’ve been together for so long that they refer to each other as brother. Their bond is typical of many dragons and riders, where they feel as if they are one soul. Separation is painful.
A bold dragon, Cephias isn’t afraid of a fight and enjoys quite a bit of chaos. He doesn’t mind torching a rooftop, or ten, if it means saving someone he hasn’t even met. And he’s not a bit squeamish, considering a few interesting things that happen between Aneirin and his love interest while flying on Cephias.
The big question is what will happen to Cephias and his rider when they enter the mortal world where evil lurks. When faced with the dark power, will Aneirin and Cephias conquer? Not all will return from the mortal world unscathed, and those who are spared will be forever changed. 
Check out this image. This is how I picture Cephias.

Find Cephias in Half-Emrys: Master of Lies (The Emrys Chronicles Book 1)
This novel is Reader Rated (RR) for ages 14+ for mild sensuality and violence.
What Dragons will you find within?
Dragon mates, with an immortal emrys, set out to rescue a dragon rider, but they don’t anticipate the enemy’s power.

Dragon Week Giveaway!

It's #DragonWeek! Let's Have a Giveaway
The Fellowship of Fantasy is taking over shark week to celebrate the true top predator: DRAGONS! As lovers of all things dragon, we are giving you a chance to win this awesome set of dragon prizes: a dragon candle holder, a dragon hair clip, and a collection of 13 dragon centric ebooks by the awesome indie authors of The Fellowship of Fantasy.





a Rafflecopter giveaway


You can win the following ebooks ...

Dragon's Heritage by Kandi J. Wyatt

Magic is to Dance by A. J. Bakke

The Midsummer Captives by Lea Doué

The Dragons' Chosen by Gwen Dandridge

Yorien's Hand by Jenelle Leanne Schmidt 

Through the Mountains by Malinda Andrews

Fallen Emrys by Lisa Rector

Deception by Kara Jaynes

Mercy's Prince by Katy Huth Jones

Temptation of Dragon by Chrys Cymri

Aerisia: Field of Battle by Sarah Ashwood

Submerging by C. S. Johnson

Cora and the Nurse Dragon by H. L. Burke

God's Hand: The Nonflat Tire

Let me see if I can sum up this highly emotional day. While on 15 north, heading toward Gettysburg, my low tire-pressure light comes on. I’m not driving bumpy so I proceed to the next exit and get off. There’s no gas station so I pull into an RV place to check my tires.
Right away I see a screw in my rear tire. It doesn’t even look low so I am baffled as to why my tire light came on. I consider driving on or using the can of air in the back (but the tire wasn’t really flat), but decide to call AAA, feeling slightly stupid.
The AAA lady sends someone anyway, which was fine. Better safe than sorry. Guy comes, changes the tire, and tells me how to get to a tire place so they can patch my tire so I don’t have to drive like a turtle on a donut. Great.
Get to car place. Dude removes screw. Tire is not flat. Screw didn’t go all the way through.
What? What the heck?
I’m beyond tired, so I’m like, whatever. They put the tire back on, check the air in all the tires and send me on my way.
I have no idea why the strange detour in my life today happened. I do know that after being away from home for a week, traveling, and having jet lag that I was beyond my limits emotionally and physically. I probably shouldn’t have undertaken the short 40-minute trip I had planned today. I do know that in our family prayers this morning, my daughter asked that we be safe in all our travels today. So even though I have no idea why things played out the way they did, I know God was watching over me. I had an hour less to spend with my cousin, but as I reflected on things on my way home, I’m just so grateful that, once again, Heavenly Father was mindful of me. He kept me safe as I followed the promptings to exit where I did. Everyone was super helpful and efficient. Even though I was a mess and cried, everything was okay.

The mysterious nonflat tire could have been a way of avoiding further calamity up the road or it could have been to remind me of God’s hand in my life. Either way, I know He’s there.

Writing Through the Pain

Last night my restless leg syndrome was so bad that my left arm was also antsy. Anyone who suffers from RLS knows that the unstoppable desire to move your legs and arms is neither pleasant nor to be ignored. My legs thrashed on my sheets, and my arm ached with ferocity so much so that I jumped out of bed in the middle of the night and started dancing around my bedroom, trying to give my legs and arm the relief they sought.
I felt as if I had ants marching one-by-one, up and down, inside my veins. The feeling was more unpleasant than you could imagine. I also wondered what I had done wrong with my day that resulted in such an attack. Did I sit too long because of the epic board game I played with my children, or did I eat too much sugar because my daughters insisted on eating s’mores before bedtime and I had already indulged in sweets earlier in the day?
I eventually exhausted my spastic limbs enough so that I could sleep, but vowed, as I drifted off, to take better care of my body. Starting with exercise the next day.
The following morning, after being prompted by the Spirit to rise early, after breakfast and an hour of scripture study, I put in a 10 minute DVD of body sculpting. I became so weary and my hips throbbed so horribly after my work out that I crumbled in tears. (This after I learned my daughter left my flexible, rice ice pack out of the freezer last night, so I didn’t have it to apply to my hips.) I choked down a protein bar while pulling out my church magazine; I could think of nothing else to do in my run-down state.
As I read I prayed. I couldn’t deal with my hip pain anymore. I couldn’t deal with the weakness in my body anymore. I was sick and tired of being sick and tired. I poured out my sorrows to my Father in Heaven.
And of course, the words from one of God’s chosen spoke to me and comforted me.
Even the Savior asked for relief as He suffered in the Garden of Gethsemane. “If it be possible, let this cup pass from me. Nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt.”
It is okay to ask for relief (even if the relief doesn’t come) and then submit to God’s will (whether we are healed).
The Spirit also whispered that though I ask for relief, I must do all in my power to take care of myself. Which I had vowed to do the night before, which I had vowed in the past. But I needed to revamp my efforts because I was failing.
I also learned that I could still receive spiritual refinement despite my suffering, and because of my suffering—because it will humble me and draw me closer to the Lord.
I even had a crazy thought that I would still carry on through my suffering. An image of me crawling to the dishwasher to unload the dishes came to my mind. As odd as that seemed, it gave me comfort to know that I wouldn’t give up, and I knew that God would help me do the seemingly impossible.
And I could ask for help as I needed; I don’t have to struggle on my own.

I haven’t been able to write steadily because of my declining health, but I haven’t completely given up. I do what I can. I know God knows me and my struggles. He doesn’t have to prove these things, but He shows me daily as He answers my prayers and sends peace to my heart.

Having the Power of God with Us

It is paramount that we draw near to the Spirit each and every day. Our lives become drowned with the noises of the world. Satan whispers every second into our minds and hearts. If we don't remind ourselves of our eternal perspective and the blessings that come when we are obedient, slipping into worldly ways becomes too easy. Contention will spring forth like a caustic fountain.
We can have access to the Priesthood power, which is God's power. "Personal righteousness is imperative to having priesthood power." (Linda K. Burton) Don't let life distract you in your righteous pursuits. Keep reading your scriptures and other religious articles to bring light into your life. We must remember our divine nature and our birthright. And we must stand with our personal standards branded on our souls so we do not falter and always have the power of God with us.

How to Stay Underwhelmed in an Overwhelming Author World.

I haven’t been able to write steady for about six months. Too many author voices are in my head and bogging me down. It’s not that they are telling me I can’t measure up; it’s just that everything seems too much. Social media has added demands to my author life that I never thought possible. How do I get back to writing and not letting the world overwhelm me?
I’ve considered quitting Facebook and Twitter altogether, but don’t want to abandon them. I don’t mind retweeting. I’m in a Facebook book club, so I want enjoy that. But suddenly I’m finding my beta-reading group and other writing groups too exhausting. My Facebook feed and Twitter feed will never stop. I’m also in charge of setting up blog posts for an up-and-coming LDS beta reader group, so I have to stay connected for that.
Here’s what I’ve been doing, other than taking a break from the world and hiding in a corner.
I’ve unfollowed many friends and family on Facebook. I follow those who don’t share every. single. thing. I stay away from people who post recipes. I follow those who offer great interaction and posts that help me as an author. What’s great about FB is that you don’t have to unfriend people. Just unfollow them for a time. You can always hop over to their profile if you want to catch up.
I don’t scroll my Twitter feed. Often porn pops up, despite my attempts to block it. I created lists of people who I want to engage with and who I want to retweet and scroll those. I click on followers to see who else I want to follow, and I post maybe once a day.
I just don’t have time for anything else in the social media world.
About the author voices in my head. Every author I’ve engaged with seems to have their own opinion about how to do things as an author, and they seem to think they are right. I just stopped listening for a while. Yes, I surface for critiques and feedback, but when I start scrolling posts about other authors and what they are doing, I get overwhelmed, thinking I have to do what they are doing now or learn what they are learning now. I had to stop and tell myself I’m in a different place. And that’s ok.
There’s a time for engagement and a time to work things out on your own. When I’m drafting, I have to turn everything off. I can’t focus if someone is spouting story structure over here and character arcs over there. Write the story first, without the other voices. Revisions are the time to get opinions.

As always, write for yourself, and only write the parts people want to read. That is the best writing advice above all.

Being Steadfast and Immovable

I’m a firm believer in being able to find a lesson or reason for every chapter of scripture in the Book of Mormon, even the war chapters. It’s the same with fiction; only write the parts people want to read, so there must be a reason God wanted some parts included in the scriptures, even if we think they are boring. If we prayerfully seek, we can find hidden meanings.
I had to look carefully to find the meaning for me in Alma 1. The chapter is about Nehor, who goes about teaching false doctrine. His teachings led many in the church astray, and they started persecuting their own brethren of the gospel because of their pride. The hearts of many saints hardened, and they withdrew from the church. 
Did the trial of their persecution cause their hearts to harden because they were unable to bear their afflictions? What could have been done to prevent this?
Many saints remained steadfast in the faith. How?
Alma 1:25 says, “They were steadfast and immovable in keeping the commandments of God, and they bore with patience the persecution which was heaped upon them.” The rest of the chapter goes on to tell how the saints were blessed for their selflessness and obedience.
We can have peace, despite persecution. Our steadfastness will lead to blessings and prosperity, but our persecutions can harden our hearts if we are not careful and don’t humble ourselves.
The key is being steadfast and immovable in keeping the commandments. The saints also worked hard, laboring to have the necessities of life. And through their efforts, they were blessed.
I feel comfort in knowing that, though trials in life may come, my determination and diligence in keeping the commandments of the Lord gives me peace. Everything I do is an extra buffer of protection; my heart is less likely to harden when faced with overwhelming adversity. And patience with persecution is not something to frown upon. It is a blessing beyond measure.

Christ Arose Blog Tour

Faith Blum has a new book! She wrote, edited, and published a short story in just three short days and you can now get it for free! Read on to learn more about it and to read my review.
About the Book

And, behold, there was a great earthquake: for the angel of the Lord descended from heaven, and came and rolled back the stone from the door, and sat upon it. His countenance was like lightning, and his raiment white as snow: And for fear of him the keepers did shake, and became as dead men.
No longer could I say I was lonely. But oh, how I wish I could! Who could have done such a thing to the Creator of the world? Who had so much hatred for Him?

Available for free on all eBook vendor: http://books2read.com/christ-arose

Review of Christ Arose: A Tomb’s TaleWhat I like about this short story was that it was a unique perspective on such a historical and sacred moment, the resurrection of Christ. I was a little mystified during the first paragraph, but as soon as the second paragraph explained that the narration was coming from the perspective of the tomb, everything made sense.

This short story demonstrates and emphasizes the author’s faith. She’s passionate about her faith in Christ and wishes to share it with her readers, and I commend her for that.
Although the story is an intriguing idea and concept, as a Christian, I didn’t quite connect with the emotion and spirit of the story. But nonetheless, it is written with beautiful emotion, care, and sacredness. It was just hard for me to put myself in the place of an inanimate object.
I recommend this story to other Christians who would like an uplifting fictional point of view of the Savior’s resurrection. The story is creative writing in a way that’s meant to uplift, and I believe readers will find enjoyment in its merit and perhaps be able to share the simple truths of the resurrection with others because of the way a story can open the heart of the reader.
About the Author Faith Blum is a 20-something author of multiple books in various genres. She loves to write, read, play piano, knit, crochet, sew, watch movies, and play games with her family. She lives in Wisconsin with her family on a small family farm where they raise goats, chickens, turkeys, ducks, and have 2 dogs and a varying number of cats.

Faith’s goal in her writing is to encourage Christians in their walk with Christ. If you enjoyed this book, go to her website to sign up for her Monthly Newsletter so you can get an email with fun facts, giveaways, and so much more every month. You will also find links to her other Social Media sites on her website. She loves to hear from her readers, so feel free to contact her. 
Giveaway


Faith is offering a really neat giveaway for this tour. The ParLaGrace etsy seller has an April special right now for a really beautifully made block that says He Lives. Isn’t it pretty? You can enter the giveaway here: 

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Tour Schedule 

April 22 Bookish Orchestrations-Intro PostLetters from Annie Douglass Lima-Book SpotlightWritten Rest-Book Spotlight and Review
April 24 Leila Tualla-Book SpotlightGod's Peculiar Treasure Rae-Book Spotlight
April 25 With a Joyful Noise-Book Spotlight and ReviewWritings, Ramblings, and Reflections-Book Spotlight
April 26 Frances Hoelsma-Book SpotlightPerpetual Indie Perspective-Book Spotlight and Review
April 27 Bookish Orchestrations-Giveaway Winner