Monthly Archives: November 2011

NANO: Day 28

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Okay no witty words of wisdom today. I have been in a funny place since Saturday when I hit 50000 words. Not that I don’t want to inspire you or give you any words of wisdom to keep you moving toward the goal. But I find myself strangely lacking those words at this point. The best I can tell you is keep writing, even if you don’t reach 50k you have done something that most people do not do, you have written. You have put your thoughts and ideas on paper in some semblance of order. You have accomplished so much in this month and should be proud.

As previously mentioned I hit my number on Saturday the 26. This has been a strange year for me. I started out not knowing my character or having any ideas for a plot (even though I did the plot workshop) and I spent the first weeks struggling and being afraid that the story would never achieve lift off. As you know at the end of the first two weeks I did achieve it, but then bogged down again when my characters quit talking to me. So in midstream my storyline shifted as I fired my booster rockets and realized I was actually writing two books in a new series and the characters in what will be the first book wanted me to write about them. Needless to say I still struggling coasted into the 50k with different characters than I started with.

Still throughout the up and down tribulations of two stories, I fought through. I kept sitting at the keyboard, visiting the chat room and write-ins, doing word wars and incorporating the challenges till I reached the vaunted number at 5:00 on Saturday November 27, 2011.

For now the stories rest, while I focus on family and projects that I neglected for the last month. Soon the characters will call me to come back, they may have to fight other characters, but a time will come when they win and I pick up their tales and finish them.

The moral of the story: Sit and write. They will come and they won’t let go until the story is finished. But first you have to sit in the chair and write. Keep striving for that goal. It will come.

Now I will sit on the sidelines and cheer you all on. There is still time and I know you can do it.

Happy Writing and God Bless,

Christina Weigand

Myrria’s Journey: The Dragon Knights

Word Count: 50000+

Last Sentence: I will not kill you.

Ruth: The Loving Daughter-in-Law

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  1. Boaz answered her, “I have had a complete account of what you have done for your mother-in-law after your husband’s death; you have left your father and your mother and the land of your birth, and have come to a people whom you did not know previously. (Ruth 2: 11-12)

Read and ponder:

  1. Ruth 2:11-12, 20

When Boaz finally meets Ruth, he knows all about her, especially how she has cared for her mother-in-law. Boaz is attracted to Ruth’s devotion to Naomi and her commitment to God.  He blesses her and agrees to take care of her. When Naomi realizes whom Ruth is working for she see the opportunity to make a better life for her daughter in law.

Question to Ponder:

  1. Would God or someone else be able to see my self-sacrificing nature or would they see someone who only thought of himself or herself?

Prayer:

Lord Jesus, Make me more like Ruth, willing to listen and heed my elders and extend a helping hand to those in need. Let me see past my own selfish needs to consider others. Amen.

All for the Glory of God,

Christina Weigand

Excerpted from Women of the Bible: A Study by Christina Weigand


NANO: Day 21 Move Past the Hurt

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Why do kids play football? They can get hurt on any play, can’t they? Yet they can’t wait until Saturday comes around so they can play on the high-school team, or the college team, and get smashed around. Writing is like that. You can get hurt, but you enjoy it. (Irwin Shaw)

This past weekend almost dealt my novel a fatal blow. I was at a write-in and making great progress, except for the fact that I wasn’t sure what I was writing. If you remember last week I mentioned that although I had achieved what I thought was lift-off in the past weeks, that my characters had gone silent. My goal for the weekend was to take every challenge, use every prompt and let my story loose.

That was starting to happen Saturday afternoon going into the end of the write-in. I was breathing a little easier. Then it struck, the last writing sprint I got 500+ words, my best numbers of the day and I was cruising in to get the last prompt: seige. Darlene, our fearless leader says times up. Okay cool, I didn’t get the word but things seemed to be moving again. Little did I know there was about to be a seige. I have this routine. I have been doing my typing on a Scrivener document. My routine as soon as the sprint is finished, copy it and paste it into a word document. Save it twice in word and then go back and save it twice on Scrivener. Right about now you are probably saying too much work, but I guess this is one of my obsessive/compulsive traits. I have a huge fear of losing my work.

Anyway, somewhere in my convoluted process, a wrong button got clicked, or my computer was hungry (I’m voting for the latter) my most wonderful words of the day, maybe of the month or even my entire writing career (I know a little extreme, just my thoughts at the moment of distress) disappeared. They were no where to be found. Me along with two other writers searched my laptop in every corner, nook and cranny we could think of. But alas no file

I left the library in a sad state. Writing anymore seemed impossible. I turned on my computer once I got in the car and hoped that my miracle worker husband would find it when three writers could not. As much as I love him he was no help, he ran into Home Depot while I searched and mourned.

Writing seemed beyond me for the remainder of the evening.

Sunday morning: I don’t write usually on Sundays and especially not before Church, so my lack of inspiration seemed to not be an issue until we got to church. (Please don’t share this story with others) My characters invaded my head during the sermon, and would not leave. This became the catalyst that would haunt me the rest of the day until finally around 8:00 I could sit down and write. Throughout the duration of the morning and afternoon ideas bombarded me like a siege. I realized the scene that disappeared from my computer was not complete. There was so much more that needed to be added to it.

So last night around 10:00 the scene that had been 500+ words became 900+ words and a much better scene. With my flagging engines I was able to fire my booster rockets and recieve a second lift off. Some may call this a coincidence, for me I will call it a God-incidence.

The moral of the story: Don’t let the little losses stop forward movement. There may be something better waiting on the other end. Regroup and move on.

Happy Writing and God Bless,

Christina Weigand

Myrria’s Story: The Dragon Knights

Word Count: 36256 words

Ruth: The Loving Daughter-in-Law

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Naomi said to her two daughters-in-law, “Go back, each of you to your mother’s house! May the Lord be kind to you as you were to the departed and to me!” Again, they sobbed and wept; and Orpah kissed her mother-in-law good-bye, but Ruth stayed with her.

“See now!” she said, “Your sister-in-law has gone back to her people and her god.” But, Ruth said, “Do not ask me to abandon or forsake you! For wherever you go I will go, wherever you lodge, I will lodge, your people shall be my people, and your God my God. Wherever you die, I will die and there be buried. May the Lord do so and so to me, and more besides, if aught but death separates me from you!” (Ruth 1: 8, 14-17, NAB)

 

Introduction:

Ruth was a Moabitess, married to an Israelite, She believed in different gods than the Israelites. When her husband died, she could have chosen to return to her people and her religion. Instead, she chose to stay with her mother-in-law, Naomi, and face an uncertain future in a foreign country.

I am often guilty of putting my needs ahead of others. However, that is not what God wants. He wants me to consider the needs of others first.

May the Lord grant each of you a husband and a home in which you will find rest. (Ruth 1:9)

 

Read and ponder:

Ruth 1: 9-17

 


Naomi tried to convince Ruth to stay inMoabwith people of her own faith. Ruth refused, believing she could help Naomi, and insisted on accompanying Naomi to her homeland. She could have just as easily chosen as Orpah did to stay. That would have been the easiest and most practical decision. However, Ruth did not choose the easy way. Out of a true and deep love for her mother-in-law, she chose the hard road. She decided to step out in faith and this decision became her commitment to God.

 

Question to Ponder:

  1. Could I be as self-sacrificing as Ruth or would I choose the easy path?

 

Prayer:

Lord Jesus, Make me more like Ruth, willing to listen and heed my elders and extend a helping hand to those in need. Let me see past my own selfish needs to consider others. Amen.

 

All for the Glory of God,

Christina Weigand

Excerpted from Women of the Bible: A Study by Christina Weigand

NANO: Day 17: Be Conceited

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I have always felt that the first duty of a writer was to ascend– to make flights, carrying others along if he could manage it. To do this takes courage, even a certain conceit. (E.B. White)

You have passed the halfway point. You have been courageous and kept writing even when everything in you and about you has told you to stop. You are doing it, making the attempt.

For the next two weeks, keep writing, but do it with conceit. Let your story take flight and soar into the home stretch. You have already proven you have what it takes. So be conceited and finish.

Happy Writing and God Bless,

Christina Weigand

Word Count: 29076 words

Myrria’s Journey: The Dragon Knights