Jan Marquart's Blog, page 9
September 8, 2011
Review of Counterfeit Gospels
I just finished reading Counterfeit Gospels. I received this book from the giveaway lists. I was not paid to write this review but am pleased to do it because this book is well-written, clear and makes good sense.
Author Trevin Wax lays out with detailed clarity the definition of a true Christian as it is defined in the Bible. Wax expands upon and defines six contemporary viewpoints of Christianity that not only lead Christians away from God but immerse them further into dysfunctional pathology.
Counterfeit Gospels is easy to read, well-written and practical. It is written with passion and conviction. I recommend this book for all who call themselves Christians-just as a challenge to put your money where your mouth is.
Author Trevin Wax lays out with detailed clarity the definition of a true Christian as it is defined in the Bible. Wax expands upon and defines six contemporary viewpoints of Christianity that not only lead Christians away from God but immerse them further into dysfunctional pathology.
Counterfeit Gospels is easy to read, well-written and practical. It is written with passion and conviction. I recommend this book for all who call themselves Christians-just as a challenge to put your money where your mouth is.
September 5, 2011
Aware Living
I have a new blog that will be solely focused on mind/body/spirit wellness. Please check it out. I will cover topics from health to the best foods to non-toxic cleaning -- whatever strikes my fancy in the moment. The header was designed by none other than our favorite Goodreads author, Shawn Kirsten Maravel. She is the author of Volition and Severance and has almost completed two more books -- that's right -- two more books.
http://www.awarelivingnow.blogspot.com/
Check out the site. I will be adding a credit at the end for Shawn as well as my bio (just in case you are wondering why they aren't there yet.)
http://www.awarelivingnow.blogspot.com/
Check out the site. I will be adding a credit at the end for Shawn as well as my bio (just in case you are wondering why they aren't there yet.)
September 3, 2011
Enthusiasm
When I speak to audiences about my books I am often asked: what keeps you inspired to write so much? This question always makes me stop for a second as my mind rushes to find just the right words to explain that writing manuscripts takes a lot more than inspiration. It takes hard work, self-discipline and focus. But even as verbose as I can get with my explanations, something is always missing. I just haven't been able to put my finger on it...until today.
Today I found this quote by Winston Churchill and something inside me clicked:
Courage is going from failure to failure without losing enthusiasm.
Ah, that's it. You can keep the word courage or change it to writing. Why didn't I see this before? I've been writing daily since 1979. Of course, it's enthusiasm. Inspiration only gives me the idea for the manuscript. Inspiration is only the spark that lights the fire; it is the switch that gives me a focus and reason to write. However, it is enthusiasm that keeps me writing. And you know, if you have written anything, that there are times when an idea seems to be directing itself, characters take over the page, stories end differently than you planned. Life forms of its own volition as you type like a crazy person trying to take back control of your words.
If an enthusiasm to work through those tedious, tiring, frustrating moments isn't there, what do you have left? Yes, how could I have missed it; it's enthusiasm that keeps me pursuing to the end. Thanks Winston.
Today I found this quote by Winston Churchill and something inside me clicked:
Courage is going from failure to failure without losing enthusiasm.
Ah, that's it. You can keep the word courage or change it to writing. Why didn't I see this before? I've been writing daily since 1979. Of course, it's enthusiasm. Inspiration only gives me the idea for the manuscript. Inspiration is only the spark that lights the fire; it is the switch that gives me a focus and reason to write. However, it is enthusiasm that keeps me writing. And you know, if you have written anything, that there are times when an idea seems to be directing itself, characters take over the page, stories end differently than you planned. Life forms of its own volition as you type like a crazy person trying to take back control of your words.
If an enthusiasm to work through those tedious, tiring, frustrating moments isn't there, what do you have left? Yes, how could I have missed it; it's enthusiasm that keeps me pursuing to the end. Thanks Winston.
giveaways
To the readers who won my many books. I'd love to hear what you have to say about the books you won.
Drop me a line.
Have a good reading weekend.
Drop me a line.
Have a good reading weekend.
September 2, 2011
Prepositions
When I was in middle school, the teacher instructed the class to memorize a long list of prepositions. You remember them, don't you...at, about, but, before...remember?
(You can google the word 'prepositions' to find the list. I tried four times to put the link here for you but my browser bar won't let me do it.)
Another flashback: when I was about 5 or 6 my mother handed me a thick book and a pencil. She wasn't feeling well that day and wanted to take a nap, and she also wanted to know where I'd be while she slept. So, she thought by giving me a task she could rest without worry. She asked me to circle all the 'to' words on the page. Always wanting to please my mother, even though it never worked, I set about looking at every word to find 'to' and then circle it.
Why do I tell you these seemingly disconnected stories of my childhood? Because they are good tips for writers.
1. Know the prepositions and when to use them. 2. Take a book that has been professionally edited, circle the prepositions and learn how they are used. Every manuscript I have ever been asked to edit has had incorrectly used prepositions. These small words may not seem that important but they do change the mood or intention of the sentence. To me, prepositions direct the reader into a particular flow.
For example:
I am going to take the garbage out 'but' the dog needs to go out.
I am going to take the garbage out 'and' the dog needs to go out.
Do you see the difference? Picky, picky, I know. In the first sentence it sounds as if the dog should be taken out first. In the second sentence it sounds like both the garbage and dog need to be taken out together.
By circling professional edited books writers can learn the power these words have.
Until next time,
Jan
(You can google the word 'prepositions' to find the list. I tried four times to put the link here for you but my browser bar won't let me do it.)
Another flashback: when I was about 5 or 6 my mother handed me a thick book and a pencil. She wasn't feeling well that day and wanted to take a nap, and she also wanted to know where I'd be while she slept. So, she thought by giving me a task she could rest without worry. She asked me to circle all the 'to' words on the page. Always wanting to please my mother, even though it never worked, I set about looking at every word to find 'to' and then circle it.
Why do I tell you these seemingly disconnected stories of my childhood? Because they are good tips for writers.
1. Know the prepositions and when to use them. 2. Take a book that has been professionally edited, circle the prepositions and learn how they are used. Every manuscript I have ever been asked to edit has had incorrectly used prepositions. These small words may not seem that important but they do change the mood or intention of the sentence. To me, prepositions direct the reader into a particular flow.
For example:
I am going to take the garbage out 'but' the dog needs to go out.
I am going to take the garbage out 'and' the dog needs to go out.
Do you see the difference? Picky, picky, I know. In the first sentence it sounds as if the dog should be taken out first. In the second sentence it sounds like both the garbage and dog need to be taken out together.
By circling professional edited books writers can learn the power these words have.
Until next time,
Jan
September 1, 2011
Words
Years ago I thought it was cheating to use a thesauras. That probably sounds silly, but I that a thesauras was like a cheat sheet and I wanted my writing to be original, creative and MINE.
But, in a writing workshop one winter, I sat with 60 writers who called out the tools they wouldn't do without. I was stunned when several stated they couldn't or wouldn't sit to write without a thesauras.
Listening to them threw me back on my own crazy thinking. At the time, I believed I had to depend solely on my own wisdown, learn from the bottom up so to speak and I wouldn't dream of using a book that told me the better word to use. Didn't good writers come up with everything on their own? Wasn't that an innate talent?
Now I can only laugh at myself. I had a strange and dysfunctional belief that the only way I was going to become a good writer was to dig deep and do it alone. Alone? Really? Then it dawned on me: I was raised believing that if I needed help I was deficient or weak. Are any of you relating to this? In fact, with any craft, craftsmen use tools -- tools refine the creative process. I thought I had to carve my own path with stone and chisel.
Over decades of furiously writing, I have learned that this pattern of thinking created more problems than it was worth, ones that I could have sidestepped if only I had opened and allowed myself to receive the tools of the masters. But there again, another old belief pattern of thought: it is better to give than receive. In my mind receiving help meant I was selfish in taking the time and energy of others and there was no way I wanted to be selfish. Everyone knows selfishness is a negative attribute.
I've met many writers during the years who wouldn't let anyone comment on their work because they too wanted to present their raw and original work. Then when agents wouldn't accept their manuscripts because they needed more work or had major errors in plot and characterization, the writers went home and wept. In so many ways, writing has healed, opened up and changed my life. It hasn't been just the written word; it has been the psychological, spiritual, emotional and mental process of it all. Being a writer demands self confrontation.
Accepting help or not has to do with your belief about yourself in the world and your relationship to it as well as to yourself. Yes, write your story with your own thoughts -- then let someone help you find diamond in the charcoal. That's what my thesauras now does for me. I too, at this point, depend on that handy dandy little book. It is a joy of a helper and it emboldens me to study and learn new words.
Just in case you want to learn a new word everyday, I thought I'd share this link with you.
http://www.wordsmith.org/words/today....
Keep the pen moving,
But, in a writing workshop one winter, I sat with 60 writers who called out the tools they wouldn't do without. I was stunned when several stated they couldn't or wouldn't sit to write without a thesauras.
Listening to them threw me back on my own crazy thinking. At the time, I believed I had to depend solely on my own wisdown, learn from the bottom up so to speak and I wouldn't dream of using a book that told me the better word to use. Didn't good writers come up with everything on their own? Wasn't that an innate talent?
Now I can only laugh at myself. I had a strange and dysfunctional belief that the only way I was going to become a good writer was to dig deep and do it alone. Alone? Really? Then it dawned on me: I was raised believing that if I needed help I was deficient or weak. Are any of you relating to this? In fact, with any craft, craftsmen use tools -- tools refine the creative process. I thought I had to carve my own path with stone and chisel.
Over decades of furiously writing, I have learned that this pattern of thinking created more problems than it was worth, ones that I could have sidestepped if only I had opened and allowed myself to receive the tools of the masters. But there again, another old belief pattern of thought: it is better to give than receive. In my mind receiving help meant I was selfish in taking the time and energy of others and there was no way I wanted to be selfish. Everyone knows selfishness is a negative attribute.
I've met many writers during the years who wouldn't let anyone comment on their work because they too wanted to present their raw and original work. Then when agents wouldn't accept their manuscripts because they needed more work or had major errors in plot and characterization, the writers went home and wept. In so many ways, writing has healed, opened up and changed my life. It hasn't been just the written word; it has been the psychological, spiritual, emotional and mental process of it all. Being a writer demands self confrontation.
Accepting help or not has to do with your belief about yourself in the world and your relationship to it as well as to yourself. Yes, write your story with your own thoughts -- then let someone help you find diamond in the charcoal. That's what my thesauras now does for me. I too, at this point, depend on that handy dandy little book. It is a joy of a helper and it emboldens me to study and learn new words.
Just in case you want to learn a new word everyday, I thought I'd share this link with you.
http://www.wordsmith.org/words/today....
Keep the pen moving,
August 31, 2011
Writing Pet Peeves
Everyone has a pet peeve when it comes to reading, right? It might be that you get irritated when an author writes 'effect' when the word should be 'affect'. Maybe your pet peeve is messy dialogue or commas not used or used too much in sentences. We all have those little things we expect writers, especially authors to know, right?
Well, here's mine. I am stunned when writers say, "I have entitled my book, blah blah blah. Doees it urk you as much as it does me? I've seen this error in The Paris Review (a literary journal I absolutely adore). I have seen this error in acclaimed newspapers too. I shake my head in amazement because these writers and publications are acknowledged as some of the best in the nation.
So, here is the rule: entitled means you have a privilege to something. For instance, I am entitled to receive courtesy from the checkers at the grocery store. But when you are speaking about the name of a publication, it is called a title. For instance, the title of my newest book is, Voices from the Land. The title of my book on writing is, The Mindful Writer. It is inaccurate to say, "my book is entitled, The Basket Weaver".
Okay, that being said, I now feel better.
Keep the pen moving.
Well, here's mine. I am stunned when writers say, "I have entitled my book, blah blah blah. Doees it urk you as much as it does me? I've seen this error in The Paris Review (a literary journal I absolutely adore). I have seen this error in acclaimed newspapers too. I shake my head in amazement because these writers and publications are acknowledged as some of the best in the nation.
So, here is the rule: entitled means you have a privilege to something. For instance, I am entitled to receive courtesy from the checkers at the grocery store. But when you are speaking about the name of a publication, it is called a title. For instance, the title of my newest book is, Voices from the Land. The title of my book on writing is, The Mindful Writer. It is inaccurate to say, "my book is entitled, The Basket Weaver".
Okay, that being said, I now feel better.
Keep the pen moving.
August 30, 2011
Daughters and their mothers
I am fascinated by the daughter/mother relationship. My mother died in 1984 so, you might speculate, why am I so interested in this relationship in 2011? Because I have found that even though my mother died so many years ago, our relationship, or rather my relationship with her, still lives.
Strange-you might say. Trust me, the relationship is a powerful one. We were born out of her body, she is our role model as her daughter whether we decide to be like her or not to be like her. For daughters who have daughters they want to parent like their mothers or not like their mothers. Even daughters who were given away by their mothers or who never knew their mothers are impacted by this powerful figure.
I love telling the story about my friend Shirley. When I wrote Echoes from the Womb, a Book for Daughters, www.createspace.com/3546083, I asked 100 women to fill out a questionnaire with only two questions on it. One was, how does your relationship with your mother impact your relationship with women and two, how does your relationship with your mother impact your relationship with men. Shirley wouldn't answer the questions because she thought, since her mother abandoned her at age 5, her mother wasn't relevant.
Years later she married a friend of mine and one day while we were having breakfast out on the peer watching the ocean, I told Shirley I loved her outfit. Shirley is a fantastic artist so colors are her things. Her husband mentioned that he picked out her outfit. Shocked, I asked why. He said since Shirley never had a mother to organize her clothing for school in the morning, she wanted him to do it. She said it would help her heal an old childhood wound.
I love that story not just because these are two very special people to me who love each other so much that they are willing to heal each other, but because it is a testament to the power of mothers.
Tell me your story. I love hearing how this relationship effects your life.
Strange-you might say. Trust me, the relationship is a powerful one. We were born out of her body, she is our role model as her daughter whether we decide to be like her or not to be like her. For daughters who have daughters they want to parent like their mothers or not like their mothers. Even daughters who were given away by their mothers or who never knew their mothers are impacted by this powerful figure.
I love telling the story about my friend Shirley. When I wrote Echoes from the Womb, a Book for Daughters, www.createspace.com/3546083, I asked 100 women to fill out a questionnaire with only two questions on it. One was, how does your relationship with your mother impact your relationship with women and two, how does your relationship with your mother impact your relationship with men. Shirley wouldn't answer the questions because she thought, since her mother abandoned her at age 5, her mother wasn't relevant.
Years later she married a friend of mine and one day while we were having breakfast out on the peer watching the ocean, I told Shirley I loved her outfit. Shirley is a fantastic artist so colors are her things. Her husband mentioned that he picked out her outfit. Shocked, I asked why. He said since Shirley never had a mother to organize her clothing for school in the morning, she wanted him to do it. She said it would help her heal an old childhood wound.
I love that story not just because these are two very special people to me who love each other so much that they are willing to heal each other, but because it is a testament to the power of mothers.
Tell me your story. I love hearing how this relationship effects your life.
August 27, 2011
Updates
Hi Everyone,
Here are some updates. One is an article on Novels Change Lives; the other is an interview I did with the brilliant life coach Tim Levy.
http://janmarquart.com/wordpress/?p=217
http://freethepen.wordpress.com/2011/...
Enjoy,
Jan
Here are some updates. One is an article on Novels Change Lives; the other is an interview I did with the brilliant life coach Tim Levy.
http://janmarquart.com/wordpress/?p=217
http://freethepen.wordpress.com/2011/...
Enjoy,
Jan
August 24, 2011
Editing
It seems I write something, then spend years editing it. So many things to remember: read it aloud, take out extra words, don't use cliches, keep the details fresh, don't overlook powerful adjectives, make sure dialogue is realistic, make sure characters are realistic, make sure your plot finishes with an ending that will keep your reader wanting more, make the reader want to cheer for the protagonist, give details without boring the reader, (not Thomas Hardy style, who by the way, I adore), the list goes on and on. Then, when it is all said and done, your piece has to be read by someone else, someone not in your head, preferably who doesn't know you. Someone who sends you back to the editing board to correct the flaws you missed the first thousandth times.
I buy pencils by the bulk because I use them each time I edit. I cannot edit on the computer; somehow it changes the way my pieces read. Don't ask me more about that because I don't understand it myself. Anyone else notice this? I know writers who write everything on a legal pad. Computers interrupt their creative process. They need to feel the pen and touch the paper. This happens to me, sometimes. Why only sometimes and not always? I simply don't know. I write my journals on paper with pens but my books on the computer. My thoughts race with ideas when I'm ready to write a manuscript and since I type faster than I write, the computer comes in handy.
I've been exploring my writing process for over 30 years. I'm fascinated by it. I'm intrigued by how much deeper my consciousness allows me to go as I continue writing, as if it makes sure it doesn't reveal itself all at once. Ah, the mystery of the muse...
When I write I feel the line bordering between wholesomeness and yet eccentricity. I touch the reality between real and other wordly.
I'd love to hear about your process. I'd love to hear how writing demands your blood, pays you diamonds yet has you begging for food.
I buy pencils by the bulk because I use them each time I edit. I cannot edit on the computer; somehow it changes the way my pieces read. Don't ask me more about that because I don't understand it myself. Anyone else notice this? I know writers who write everything on a legal pad. Computers interrupt their creative process. They need to feel the pen and touch the paper. This happens to me, sometimes. Why only sometimes and not always? I simply don't know. I write my journals on paper with pens but my books on the computer. My thoughts race with ideas when I'm ready to write a manuscript and since I type faster than I write, the computer comes in handy.
I've been exploring my writing process for over 30 years. I'm fascinated by it. I'm intrigued by how much deeper my consciousness allows me to go as I continue writing, as if it makes sure it doesn't reveal itself all at once. Ah, the mystery of the muse...
When I write I feel the line bordering between wholesomeness and yet eccentricity. I touch the reality between real and other wordly.
I'd love to hear about your process. I'd love to hear how writing demands your blood, pays you diamonds yet has you begging for food.
