R.A. Nelson's Blog, page 11

On Giant’s Shoulders: The Power of Music in Writing

Music has always been very important to my writing.

I finished my first novel, Gatekeeper I: The Finding, in one all-night writing session powered by instant oatmeal, Easy Mac, and U2’s Unforgettable Fire album on repeat – particularly the song “Bad”. I finally sorted out the true ending of Gatekeeper III: The Keeping (my outlining journal contains several previous, discarded versions of the climax and epilogue) on a 10-mile run listening to “Save Me” by Muse over and over and over...

Myth Matters

I am on a lifelong quest to read everything ever penned by J. R. R. Tolkien. *contented sigh*

I’ve read The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings many, many times, and the unabridged audiobooks are on a fairly constant rotation in my car. The Silmarillion, which was published posthumously and sets forth the mythology and history of Middle Earth, has become an increasingly foundational book for my philosophy as a reader and my work as a writer. Then, several years ago, I dis...

Easy Rhymes and Trashy Romances

Recently, my marketing/business manager (aka The Hubs) did some research on poetry books that are selling well on Amazon. He was hoping to learn how better to market my latest release (and first-ever poetry collection), Songs in the Gate. One thing he gained from this exercise was the disappointing realization that many of the popular and successful poetry books were full of feel-good, low-quality, mass-consumer poetry.

I was not surprised when he shared this with me, for I have mad...

Story-Baker

Author, Poet, Story-Baker.

That’s what it says on my business cards. 

Behold.

If you’ve been kicking around this blog for any length of time, you know that I love stories, and I love to bake. But, this appellation is not merely a whimsical attempt on my part to combine two of my favorite things into a legitimate-sounding job description.

Baking and writing actually have a lot in common. One tends to be a bit nervous when embarking on either as a venture. One may choose t...

O Frabjous Day!

A few days ago, I used the word “frabjous” in everyday conversation, and my husband asked me what it means. Delighted, I shared with him the “Jabberwocky” poem by Lewis Carroll (of Alice in Wonderland fame), in which a character utters this line in celebration:

“O frabjous day! Callooh! Callay!”

The dreaded Jabberwock had been slain, you see, and the character was very excited. Hence the need for a new word expressing hitherto unprecedented levels of joy.

Today, however, if you were t...

One Week More!

Friends. FRIENDS.

The launch of my first poetry collection is just ONE WEEK AWAY!!!

That’s right: on April 27th, you will finally be able to order your very own copy of Songs in the Gate: Poems from the Borderland of Now and Not Yet.

BEHOLD: So. Shiny.

It’s a great feeling. (Literally: I’ve been perusing my special proof copy this week, and this book just feels great in one’s hands.)

In case you missed last week’s post, April is National Poetry Month. To continue the cel...

Launch Date & Sneak Peek

It’s National Poetry Month!

In celebration thereof, I am pleased as punch to announce the official launch date of my first-ever poetry collection:

Songs in the Gate
Poems from the Borderland of Now and Not YetAvailable on April 27th!

If you feel like you can’t handle the excitement, you’re not alone. I’m fairly chuffed myself.

This collection has been fifteen years in the making. It includes poetry of all sorts, from rhymed/metered to free verse – and, as a special treat, my first long...

Now and Not Yet: Part II

Happy Easter, friends.

If you’ve read much of the blog at all, you know already that I like to write poetry as a way of observing different seasons in the church calendar. Poetry is, among other things, an exercise in spiritual meditation for me. That’s why my upcoming poetry book, Songs in the Gate: Poems from the Borderland of Now and Not Yet, contains three Advent cycles, a section of Holy Sonnets, and some individual poems for Epiphany, Lent, and Easter.

Hence, ’twas only natural...

Now and Not Yet

We are currently in Holy Week, the seven days leading up to Easter.

It begins with Palm Sunday, which commemorates the triumphal entry of Jesus into Jerusalem.

On Thursday, we remember the last supper and Jesus’s tormented prayers in the garden of Gethsemane, as he begged his Father to “let the cup pass” from him.

On Friday, we remember the crucifixion.

Saturday is the “holy vigil”: remembering that Jesus was dead – actually dead – and in the tomb.

And then, Sunday.

Resurrection .

Yet...

“Found Tonight” – with poetry

This week, my husband showed me this video of Lin-Manuel Miranda and Ben Platt doing a glorious mash-up of two of the most moving songs from their respective shows: “The Story of Tonight” from Hamilton and “You Will Be Found” from Dear Evan Hansen. (If you haven’t seen it yet, click on the video. The next three minutes of your life will be so much better because of it.)

Through tears, I watched these two profoundly gifted men reach out with...