Elizabeth Tai's Blog, page 24
January 12, 2016
Believing: The Accidental Christian
In her book, Faith Shift, Kathy Escobar said that every believer goes through a stage where they "fuse" with their faith (regardless of the religion). And in this stage of fusing there are three steps, and the first step is "Believing", the point where we come to faith.
I became a Christian by accident.
I was 18, and I was facing the Biggest Exam of my Life (SPM for you Malaysians old enough to remember it), one that would determine the direction of my entire life. Yet, I had no idea what I wa...
January 4, 2016
Blog series: My Shifting Faith
Faith Shiftwas a book I wish I had when I felt as if my faith was crumbling a few years ago. The book is written by Kathy Escobar, a pastor of a special gathering called the "Refuge" that is home to those who are on the fringes of Christianity (or other religions, really). (She has an awesome blog, by the way!)
People on the fringes of Christianity are called many things: The Dones, church refugees, the churchless. However, they all share one thing in common: They need a safe place to wrestle...
January 1, 2016
New Year resolutions for writers
New Year, new blog, new CMS! I've moved from Wordpress to Squarespace and I'm loving it so far. However, this blog is not just getting a new look - it's getting a new direction.
From now on, I will be writing about Social Media (as it pertains to writers) or the Writer's Life (craft and lifestyle issues) on Wednesdays. I will also be blogging about Faith and Wellness on some Tuesdays. (I've not decided on the frequency yet. Perhaps every fortnight to begin with.) For now, just look out for ne...
November 14, 2015
How to blog a book
Publishers have been compiling blog posts into books for some time now. However, veteran journalist Nina Amir says that “blogging a book” is a different thing altogether.
“Blogging a book means composing your manuscript on the Internet using blog technology. Basically, you write, publish and promote your book one post at a time on the Internet,” says the California-based Amir via e-mail.
Do read my article, Blog a Book, which is about the concept and on Amir’s book How to Blog a Book.
So, jus...
October 24, 2015
The 10,000 hour rule for writers
Have you heard of the 10,000 hour rule? It is said that in order for one to become skilled at something, one has to put in 10,000 hours of work to hone said skill.
Sci-fi writer Brad Torgersen could be an adherent of this rule. No, scratch that. I don’t think he believes in the 10,000 hour rule; I have a feeling he won’t stop at 10,000 hours. He’ll probably keep on chugging past the 100,000 hour mark.
In his blog post, On Not Quitting, he writes that writers must keep on plugging despite gett...
October 21, 2015
The last eunuch of China – a book review
THE LAST EUNUCH OF CHINA:
The Life of Sun Yaoting
By Jia Yinghua, translated by Sun Haichen
Publisher: China Intercontinental Press, 314 pages
ISBN: 978-7508514079
IN Chinese costumed dramas, the eunuch is often a hated figure; he flatters the top officials with his often falsetto voice but slyly plots their downfalls behind their backs.
But Sun Yaoting, a former eunuch in the court of Pu Yi, China’s last emperor, has a different story to tell in this engrossing biography. Although he mention...
October 14, 2015
Graphic quote
The post Graphic quote appeared first on Elizabeth Tai.
October 10, 2015
Pursue your dreams: How Danny Choo and James Sturm pursued theirs
Here’s the unglamorous side of journalism and fiction writing: You need to meet deadlines. All the time. Or else. Sure I pursue my dreams through my work, but it’s a lot of hard work most of the time.
I once wrote an article (Passion for Japanese Culture) about Danny Choo a “full-time otaku” who pursued his dreams until he is living it.
Danny was very systematic in pursuing his dream, taking up Japanese classes and even working in a sushi restaurant to immerse himself in his passion – Japanes...
October 7, 2015
Star Trek Enterprise: Last Full Measure review
Still going through a “nostalgic for all things Star Trek Enterprise” phase, so have been reading one Enterprise novel after another.
Story: Set in the third season of the series, we see the crew grappling with a near-impossible mission: Find and stop the perpetrators of a devastating attack on Earth which killed 7 million people.
We see Archer putting aside his idealistic view of the universe and using less-than-ethical ways to achieve his mission. We also see how the MACOs, the elite milita...
October 3, 2015
Don't listen to that inner critic!
Everyone has it. That little voice inside them that tells them that they're no good. That they better not even try at all because their efforts will be fruitless. When I interviewed Margaret Stohl a few months ago, she told me how she once went on a writing tour with many "wise writers". She asked them, "At what point did you stop saying that you're a bad writer?"
They responded: "We'll tell you when that happens."
"Everyone I know feels the hater. No one is immune," she said to me.
Yes, I can t...
