B.J. Hoff's Blog, page 8

This Christmas ...

May this be the Christmas when the world greets Him, not as a stranger to be swaddled in a manger, but as the sovereign King of everything, the Prince of Peace. May this be the Christmas when all the world becomes a Bethlehem, with every heart an open inn where Christ, Emmanuel, may always dwell as Lord of Lords.

Merry Christmas to all!

BJ

 

Little Known Facts about our Favorite Christmas Carols

Although "The First Noel" wasn't published until the 1800s, it's most likely one of the oldest Christmas carols in existence—at least 500 years old. Because few people could read when the carol began to be sung, the words were probably based on stories told over the years about the birth of Christ. It was a custom during the middle ages to cut and fill a large log (the Yule log) with oils and spices, lighting it on Christmas Eve and allowing it to burn through the twelve days of Christmas. Families of English peasants often sang "The First Noel" as they lighted the Yule log.  

 

 

 

Little Known Facts about our Favorite Christmas Carols

The Christmas carol recorded and sung most often is "Silent Night." A number of stories have circulated about the carol (written in the early 1800s by Joseph Mohr and Franz Gruber) over the years, one having originated during World War 1. Supposedly on Christmas Eve of that year, fighting on several fronts in Europe was halted while people listened to their radios as opera star, Ernestine Schumann Heink, sang the beloved carol. For a few minutes at least, peace settled over the war-torn nations.  Schumann Heink, incidentally, had one son in combat with the Germans and another fighting with the Allied forces. 

 

One Night in Bethlehem

 

One night in Bethlehem, beneath a singing sky, 
A royal Prince gave up His throne,
A Shepherd came to seek His own,
The Savior of the world was born
One night in Bethlehem. 

BJ (from Songs of a Christmas Night)

Christmas Peace

Peace must be more than a word embossed upon our Christmas cards, echoed in the season's carols, or painted on a storefront. It can be found only in a Person, experienced only in a Presence ... for Christ, and Christ alone, is our Peace.

BJ

 

Pearl Harbor Day

A day we should remember ... and respect ... as a nation.

 

 BJ

 

"Writerly" Gifts

This is the season of the year when we spend a lot of time thinking about gifts, even before we get around to making them or purchasing them. Naturally, our first thought during this festival of giving should be of the greatest gift of all: the Child Who changed history and brought hope to a hopeless world ... the gift that will always be, for His followers, the incomparable, shining, enduring gift, the only gift that could reflect the love of God in all its glory and wonder and splendor.

As writers, we often speak of our "gift" when we refer to our what we do. But what does this gift of writing encompass? What's it made of? How, exactly, has God "gifted us" for the work He placed upon our hearts? And not just our gifts--the "writerly" ones--but the gifts that enable each of us to do what we're called to do. He gives different gifts to teachers than to surgeons, different gifts to musicians than to artists, and different gifts to writers than to scientists. As writers, how aware are we of those gifts that work together to form the abilities and skills, the artistry and rhythms, the stories and word pictures of our craft?

Surely imagination would rise to the top of any list. Without that inexplicable, elusive, and at times the seemingly mystical ability to think and imagine--how would we ever begin, and continue, to write? No one can actually define it, nor can we ever hope to understand it. Because imagination is a gift. A part of who and what we are, certainly--but a gift all the same.

What  about patience? And perseverance? The will and the willingness to "keep on keeping on," to remain steadfast when it would be so much easier to stop and rest, or to quit altogether.

And can you imagine how difficult it would be--if it were even possible at all--to go on writing if no one in the world cared whether we ever penned another word? If we had to labor without the love and support of our families and friends--and, yes, our editors and publishers? Sometimes that faithful, unflagging support group is the only motivation we have to continue on, especially in the early years when it seems as though no one is ever going to want to read anything we write.

Gifts. Each and every one of them, all of the above...they're special gifts.

So in the midst of making lists and choosing gifts, I'm also trying to take a moment when and where I can to say thanks for the loved ones for whom I purchase every gift ... and especially for the One Who gave me everything He knew I'd need in order to imagine, to be patient, to persevere and be encouraged and sustained all along the way in this journey of being a writer.

BJ

 

Happy Thanksgiving

Every year I post the following before I sign off to spend the week with family and friends, preparing for our yearly "festival of blessings." This year it seems especially important that we remember just how rich and precious those blessings really are, as we pray that God will continue to shed his goodness, His kindness, and His grace upon us.

-----

I'm thankful ... for the God who saved me, the family who loves me, the home that shelters me, the friends who believe in me, a church that welcomes me .... For seasons that change and truth that doesn't ... For music that stirs and soothes and heals and speaks of feelings beyond those I can voice ... For a country that values freedom and is willing to pay the price to preserve it for ourselves and others .... I'm thankful for countless books to read, and for those readers who read the books I write, for the editors who make the books better, and for the publishers who make the books possible .... I'm thankful for small furry creatures that make me smile when nothing else can, for the sturdy oak trees in my back yard that grew up with my children and now shade my grandchildren and give sanctuary to my memories .... I'm thankful for every gift of goodness that brings me gladness, every trial that takes me to my knees, and every prayer uttered in my behalf that made a difference, though often unknown to the one who cared enough to pray ....

And I'm thankful for you, every one of you, that you trust me enough to ask me for an answer to a question or offer a word of encouragement or a prayer. You bless me again and again with your caring hearts. 

I wish you a bountiful, prayerful, joyful Thanksgiving and a holiday season that blankets you and those you love with amazing grace and enduring peace.

God bless you.

BJ

 

Q & A

It's been long enough since I've answered some of your questions on Grace Notes that I now have a growing collection to keep me busy. I thought I'd take a stab at a few today. Thanks for your emails and your interest.

Q.    What are you currently working on?

A.    The third book in the Riverhaven Years series. Note a title change: at the back of Book Two the title for Book Three was listed as Gideon's Hope, but the actual title is River of Mercy. 

Q.    Do you have a favorite Bible translation?

A.     I use a number of different translations, mostly to clarify certain passages. More and more for my own devotional reading I turn to the NLT and the ESV. 

Q.    Do you choose the titles for your books or is that done by the publisher?

A.    We usually work together on titles. I send some ideas to my editor, and we brainstorm back and forth until we come up with a few we both like. He then takes them to the publishing committee and they give their input until a consensus is reached. Sometimes it's an easy effort, other times it takes more back-and-forth discussion.

Ideas on cover art are worked out much in the same way. I give them my ideas, based on scenes I've completed or have in mind, and we often float other ideas as well until final decisions are made. I find both processes fun to work through. While I always appreciate the consideration given to my ideas, I realize that in the long run the publisher is in the best position to know what will work best. 

Q.    What do you consider the best book on writing novels?

A.    There are several excellent books on writing fiction, but it would be difficult to label any one of them as "best." Writing fiction covers way too vast a territory for one book to stand alone as the ultimate. My personal favorites, though, are four titles by John  Gardner: On Writers and Writing, On Moral Fiction, The Art of Fiction, and On Becoming a Novelist. There's a list of some of my other favorites on fiction writing in a sidebar at Grace Notes, under the heading "A Writer's Bookshelf."  

Q.    What's your favorite ice cream?

A.    LOL! Dark, dark, darkest decadent double chocolate fudge. 

BJ

Veterans Day, 2010

Thank you for your service and your sacrifice.

        May it never be in vain.

BJ