Mary Harwell Sayler's Blog: In a Christian Writer's Life, page 22
March 6, 2017
The Poetry Editor and Poetry: Communion of Saints: poems by Susan L. Miller
The Poetry Editor and Poetry: Communion of Saints: poems by Susan L. Miller:
In Communion of Saints from Paraclete Press, who kindly sent me a copy to review, poet Susan L. Miller writes of present-day people who reflect saintly individuals of the past.
'via Blog this'
In Communion of Saints from Paraclete Press, who kindly sent me a copy to review, poet Susan L. Miller writes of present-day people who reflect saintly individuals of the past.
'via Blog this'
January 30, 2017
January 25, 2017
Relearning how to think
The Bible encourages us to have the mind of Christ, but how does that happen? How do we trade dark thoughts for light or exchange ill thoughts for good?
Effective change comes about through the grace of God, prayer, and reliance on the Holy Spirit. Nevertheless our own choices and actions have a part in this too. For example, Philippians 4:8 tells us what we can do to reshape and reform our thinking as this prayer-a-phrase will hopefully show:
From now on,
think about
what’s actually true –
which may require research,
study, and an open mind –
free of prejudice to find out.
From now on, notice
whatever is honorable –
and honestly worthy
of time and attention.
From now on, think about
whatever is just –
right, fair, equal, unbiased.
From now on, be attentive
to whatever is pure –
as shown by pure motives,
selflessness, and empathy
toward others.
From now on, contemplate
whatever is lovely –
beautiful sounds in psalms,
poetry, prayer, music –
beautiful art and religious icons
with which to meditate –
beautiful variety in God's creation.
From now on, put your thoughts on
whatever is commendable –
of good repute, of good report –
of Good News.
Finally, if you see any
excellence anywhere,
anything worthy of praise,
think about those things –
dwell on the excellent,
inhabit the virtuous,
live in God’s praise.
Philippians 4:8 prayer-a-phrased by Mary Harwell Sayler, © 2017, using translations found on Bible Gateway
…
Effective change comes about through the grace of God, prayer, and reliance on the Holy Spirit. Nevertheless our own choices and actions have a part in this too. For example, Philippians 4:8 tells us what we can do to reshape and reform our thinking as this prayer-a-phrase will hopefully show:
From now on,
think about
what’s actually true –
which may require research,
study, and an open mind –
free of prejudice to find out.
From now on, notice
whatever is honorable –
and honestly worthy
of time and attention.
From now on, think about
whatever is just –
right, fair, equal, unbiased.
From now on, be attentive
to whatever is pure –
as shown by pure motives,
selflessness, and empathy
toward others.
From now on, contemplate
whatever is lovely –
beautiful sounds in psalms,
poetry, prayer, music –
beautiful art and religious icons
with which to meditate –
beautiful variety in God's creation.
From now on, put your thoughts on
whatever is commendable –
of good repute, of good report –
of Good News.
Finally, if you see any
excellence anywhere,
anything worthy of praise,
think about those things –
dwell on the excellent,
inhabit the virtuous,
live in God’s praise.
Philippians 4:8 prayer-a-phrased by Mary Harwell Sayler, © 2017, using translations found on Bible Gateway
…
January 23, 2017
Guidelines for WEN/FFWA Writing Competition
Guidelines for WEN/FFWA Writing Competition:
I've chaired the poetry category for many years and am honored to work with Writers-Editors.com, who sponsors this well-run writing contest.
'via Blog this'
I've chaired the poetry category for many years and am honored to work with Writers-Editors.com, who sponsors this well-run writing contest.
'via Blog this'
January 20, 2017
The Word Center: Praying for our leaders
The Word Center: Praying for our leaders: This Inauguration Day has been dreaded by some and longed for by others. Regardless of our personal choices or opinions, 1 Timothy 2:2 clear...
January 19, 2017
The Poetry Editor and Poetry: Observation makes a poem
Capture the moment in a memorable poem as you notice – really notice – what’s around you. This post shows what I mean.
The Poetry Editor and Poetry: Observation makes a poem:
'via Blog this'
The Poetry Editor and Poetry: Observation makes a poem:
'via Blog this'
December 31, 2016
Keep Your Eyes On
Learning to play softball, most kids need to hear, “Keep your eyes on the ball,” meaning:
• Pay attention to the ball and every move it makes.
Learning to drive, teens often need to hear, “Keep your eyes on the road,” meaning:
• Be aware of the lines and edges of the road.
• Notice what’s coming toward you and behind.
• Pay attention to signs, lights, and the rate at which you’re moving.
Throughout life, Christians often need to hear, “Keep your eyes on Jesus,” which means:
• Read, read, read God’s Word to get to know The Word.
• Notice how both testaments point to Jesus.
• Observe everything Jesus did as reported in the Gospels.
• Pay attention to everything Jesus said.
• Let the Lord be the road-map for each step to take or avoid.
• Stay focused on Jesus, regardless of those circumstances inclined to make faith swerve.
• Pray like Jesus prayed.
• Love like Jesus loves.
Mary Harwell Sayler, © 2016
...
• Pay attention to the ball and every move it makes.
Learning to drive, teens often need to hear, “Keep your eyes on the road,” meaning:
• Be aware of the lines and edges of the road.
• Notice what’s coming toward you and behind.
• Pay attention to signs, lights, and the rate at which you’re moving.
Throughout life, Christians often need to hear, “Keep your eyes on Jesus,” which means:
• Read, read, read God’s Word to get to know The Word.
• Notice how both testaments point to Jesus.
• Observe everything Jesus did as reported in the Gospels.
• Pay attention to everything Jesus said.
• Let the Lord be the road-map for each step to take or avoid.
• Stay focused on Jesus, regardless of those circumstances inclined to make faith swerve.
• Pray like Jesus prayed.
• Love like Jesus loves.
Mary Harwell Sayler, © 2016
...
December 15, 2016
10 Ways a Writer’s Work Has Changed
Back in the different old days (neither good nor bad) a writer’s life didn’t focus on marketing or building a platform or connecting with other writers.
1. We had no Internet to build a platform. We did no marketing. We “got known” if we wrote well, consistently placed manuscripts with publishers of books and periodicals, then waited for word to get around – mouth-to-mouth or through ads, book-signings, or other events our publishers planned and paid for. For example, one publisher flew me to company headquarters to talk about writing with school children who approximated the ages of my readers. On another occasion, the publisher of my 7-book devotional series sent a make-up artist and photographer to my modest home for a photo shoot! The picture chosen became a huge poster placed beside my books in bookshops and now in my basement.
2. No Internet also meant no social sites, so those of us who lived in small towns or rural areas almost never had contact with other poets and writers except through writing conferences or by reading publications for poets and writers. Basically, we lived in a vacuum, worked in isolation, and, in solitude, prayed a lot.
3. To find potential publishers, we went to libraries, bookstores, or newsstands to see who was publishing what – a task I highly recommend poets and writers continue to do today by visiting Internet bookshops. This still goes on the “different” list, however, because, once we had found potential publishers, we had to write letters via snails (known then as “first class mail”) to ask for writers’ guidelines. If we ever wanted to hear from them, we included an SASE (self-addressed stamped envelope) to ensure a reply.
4. Few of us could afford to buy each magazine that interested us or every new book a book company published, so we had to request sample copies of periodicals and current catalogs of book titles – again enclosing an SASE with every request. We would then study, study, study each publication to see where we might fill a gap in their line yet stay in line with that particular company’s needs and requirements – a practice I still recommend for anyone who wants to be published by an established publisher, but now, by studying the samples and information on their websites.
5. In the days when libraries had only books, we would read, read, read everything we could find in our favorite genre. If our writing required research, that, too, meant hanging out in a public library, checking the card catalog index to see if the book or journal needed was on file and, if so, where it was located. Since we weren’t always allowed to check out reference materials to take home, we had to ask the librarian to find the publication for us and let us see it long enough to take copious notes and document the name, title, and page number(s) of each source. Another option was to pick up the phone to call on the expertise of an expert, who inevitably lived in another town. Often, this resulted in a horrendous long-distance charge on our next telephone bill, whether the book or article sold or not.
6. Our biggest expenses, though, were office equipment and supplies: a desk, an electric typewriter, well-inked ribbons, reams of 20 lb. paper, carbon paper, and postage.
7. Working on an electric typewriter meant using white-out to correct a mistake then trying (and never succeeding) to erase the same mistake on the carbon copy. If we had too many typing errors on a page, we had to retype. Worse was revision! If we added a full paragraph or scratched through lines, not only did we have to retype that page but those following as the pagination changed.
8. Since most editors wanted an approximate word count, we had to count words – now done by clicking “Review” and “Word Count” in Word software. Then, it meant the ole one, two, three, four, which got tedious if a contract required 100,000 or more words! (Usually, I shortened the process by counting the number of lines and average words per line then multiplying the two.)
9. Writing assignments came with very specific instructions on how many characters were allowed per line. When writing church school curriculum, for example, I had to count – not just the words for the whole manuscript – but the number of letters on each line.
10. Writing freelance also involved querying the editor of the first publishing company on the list, and if s/he wrote back with interest, mailing the article or book manuscript – with SASE – first class. If the editor approved the work, a contract followed – also by mail. If the manuscript was rejected, it came back dog-eared and smudged, which, yeah, meant retyping the whole thing. That alone was an incentive to do the best we could do the first time out. Praise God, I managed to place several books and a few hundred poems and articles that way until my computer and the Internet made my work much, much easier. But working in cyberspace altered everything forever – at least until the next big round of changes.
Mary Harwell Sayler, poet-writer, © 2016
….
1. We had no Internet to build a platform. We did no marketing. We “got known” if we wrote well, consistently placed manuscripts with publishers of books and periodicals, then waited for word to get around – mouth-to-mouth or through ads, book-signings, or other events our publishers planned and paid for. For example, one publisher flew me to company headquarters to talk about writing with school children who approximated the ages of my readers. On another occasion, the publisher of my 7-book devotional series sent a make-up artist and photographer to my modest home for a photo shoot! The picture chosen became a huge poster placed beside my books in bookshops and now in my basement.
2. No Internet also meant no social sites, so those of us who lived in small towns or rural areas almost never had contact with other poets and writers except through writing conferences or by reading publications for poets and writers. Basically, we lived in a vacuum, worked in isolation, and, in solitude, prayed a lot.
3. To find potential publishers, we went to libraries, bookstores, or newsstands to see who was publishing what – a task I highly recommend poets and writers continue to do today by visiting Internet bookshops. This still goes on the “different” list, however, because, once we had found potential publishers, we had to write letters via snails (known then as “first class mail”) to ask for writers’ guidelines. If we ever wanted to hear from them, we included an SASE (self-addressed stamped envelope) to ensure a reply.
4. Few of us could afford to buy each magazine that interested us or every new book a book company published, so we had to request sample copies of periodicals and current catalogs of book titles – again enclosing an SASE with every request. We would then study, study, study each publication to see where we might fill a gap in their line yet stay in line with that particular company’s needs and requirements – a practice I still recommend for anyone who wants to be published by an established publisher, but now, by studying the samples and information on their websites.
5. In the days when libraries had only books, we would read, read, read everything we could find in our favorite genre. If our writing required research, that, too, meant hanging out in a public library, checking the card catalog index to see if the book or journal needed was on file and, if so, where it was located. Since we weren’t always allowed to check out reference materials to take home, we had to ask the librarian to find the publication for us and let us see it long enough to take copious notes and document the name, title, and page number(s) of each source. Another option was to pick up the phone to call on the expertise of an expert, who inevitably lived in another town. Often, this resulted in a horrendous long-distance charge on our next telephone bill, whether the book or article sold or not.
6. Our biggest expenses, though, were office equipment and supplies: a desk, an electric typewriter, well-inked ribbons, reams of 20 lb. paper, carbon paper, and postage.
7. Working on an electric typewriter meant using white-out to correct a mistake then trying (and never succeeding) to erase the same mistake on the carbon copy. If we had too many typing errors on a page, we had to retype. Worse was revision! If we added a full paragraph or scratched through lines, not only did we have to retype that page but those following as the pagination changed.
8. Since most editors wanted an approximate word count, we had to count words – now done by clicking “Review” and “Word Count” in Word software. Then, it meant the ole one, two, three, four, which got tedious if a contract required 100,000 or more words! (Usually, I shortened the process by counting the number of lines and average words per line then multiplying the two.)
9. Writing assignments came with very specific instructions on how many characters were allowed per line. When writing church school curriculum, for example, I had to count – not just the words for the whole manuscript – but the number of letters on each line.
10. Writing freelance also involved querying the editor of the first publishing company on the list, and if s/he wrote back with interest, mailing the article or book manuscript – with SASE – first class. If the editor approved the work, a contract followed – also by mail. If the manuscript was rejected, it came back dog-eared and smudged, which, yeah, meant retyping the whole thing. That alone was an incentive to do the best we could do the first time out. Praise God, I managed to place several books and a few hundred poems and articles that way until my computer and the Internet made my work much, much easier. But working in cyberspace altered everything forever – at least until the next big round of changes.
Mary Harwell Sayler, poet-writer, © 2016
….
December 12, 2016
December 5, 2016
Contacts & Critiques - Mary Harwell Sayler
If you plan to self-publish, get professional feedback before your work sees print. For minimal fees and information, see the newly updated page below: Contacts & Critiques - Mary Harwell Sayler
In a Christian Writer's Life
Discusses the Bible, Christianity, the church in all of its parts as the Body of Christ, and the work and play of a Christian writer. For discussions on poetry, see my blog the Poetry Editor & Poetry
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