Howdy,

“I got Jasper’s,” Titus said, “because Jasper not here.”

Except Ti Shalom is the younger brother, so what he said this afternoon sounded more like, “I got Japper’s, because Japper not here.”

The younger brother part is also important, because Ti was getting into Jasper’s stuff, from J’s desk, while Big Brother was away.

Titus commandeered the markers, out of the roll top desk. Jasper’s desk. Two reasons why I went with this: 1) The markers were washable (good thing, too, just saying), and 2) He was eager and excited to do his very first coloring in his brand new AWANA’s Cubbies book. (Ti’s a Cubbie! That’s where Jasper started in the Scripture-memory program four years ago …)

Three reasons: Jasper doesn’t yet read my blog, and we (I) put the markers away when finished; so I think it’s safe to okay the activity and publish this piece of evidence—and good thing those washable marker stray marks wash off.

It’s the Scripture that sticks—and that’s a good thing. A great thing. Call it the God’s Word will not return void principle.

“For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven and do not return there but water the earth, making it bring forth and sprout, giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater, so shall My word be that goes out from My mouth; it shall not return to Me empty, but it shall accomplish that which I purpose, and shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it. ‘For you shall go out in joy and be led forth in peace; the mountains and the hills before you shall break forth into singing, and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands’” (Isaiah 55:10-12).

—Billy

Reading. Coloring. Living.

Word Count: 182,078 / On Pace: 174,900 / Year’s Goal: 200,000

Howdy,

Yesterday I made mention of opening the FUTURE folder for writing ideas. So, I thought I’d give that a go.

I found a draft of 506 words (almost my daily need—and more than I require now, being ahead of pace) titled “The push, or patience?”

It was sitting there in a different font, which was striking—looking weird. “Cochin.” I have no idea why.

I thought I’d run with it now, because it’s intriguing to see what a different place I’m in now, from then. I wish now that I’d put a date on it (a reminder for FUTURE ideas), but I believe it’s from pretty early is this race to 200,000 words—so nearly a year ago or so.

It probably needed more development at the time, which I imagine is why I hadn’t published it yet, but at this point I’m more interested in what it was as is, so, here it is, “The push, or patience?”:

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Howdy,

I don’t have a great feel for what to write today.

Even as I have a wonderful (and so doable that I fully believe I will do it) opportunity to go over 7,000 words ahead of my word count pace. Even as I have totaled over 180,000 words in this writing goal for a year—with a likelihood of hitting 181K today if I accomplish even a percentage of my 550-daily-average—I don’t have a great feel for what to write.

Not right now.

I already wrote a free write worth 569 words, so keeping pacing isn’t the problem.

It’s kind of crazy, like the fact that I’m ahead now, that I’m less than 20,000 words away from the finish: I feel like I’m already done.

Just today. It’s a feeling. A sort of writer’s block, maybe, but I don’t intended to truly accept it as writer’s block or describe it as such, because I’m writing, I’m working, I was, as I mentioned, free writing just fine. Even as I write this, exploring a lack of topic due to an uneasy settling in of a lack of need ahead of time, I am not blocked from writing. This isn’t as dark and rigid as the dreaded opaque writer’s block.

The interesting part is the feel. And feelings, and how they affect a day’s work or approach. But that’s a major part of the process of this word-count writing project that I’ve been able to bore so far into this year, doing the work even when I don’t feel like it, when there’s not a great feel.

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Howdy,

My phone has pretty much been working this week—it died recently but I don’t clearly recall if that was this week or last—so as we come back around for a Sunday Scripture series post I have my ESV Bible app on my iPhone available for choosing a passage from my “FAVORITES.”

The pick? Malachi 3:16-17.

Clicking that favorite, I think of how meaningful it is in context (usually important, right?), because of how bad off, how far the people had strayed, and how much they had to go through as a consequence as well as all the trust and work required to put pieces of a life under God as a nation back together. It’s the story of a lot of the Old Testament, or the Hebrew Scriptures, and there’s more to come—a shift, a prophesied twist—with the next testament, the New Testament, because Christ will be coming next, since Malachi is the last book in the OT. There is a period of 400 years of silence in-between first.

But listen to what God leaves them with, under a subtitle submitted for the text: “The Book of Remembrance.”

God is good.

“Then those who feared the LORD spoke with one another. The LORD paid attention and heard them, and a book of remembrance was written before Him of those who feared the LORD and esteemed His name. ‘They shall be mine, says the LORD of hosts, in the day when I make up My treasured possession, and I will spare them as a man spares his son who serves him’” (Malachi 3:16-17).

My treasured possession, says the LORD—that always catches my attention. Amazing, and in context: incredible. We recognize those Old Testament stubbornnesses and repeated failings, though, don’t we? God comes and creates a treasure possession of that which was lost, those who were less.

Have a happy and treasured Sunday.

—Billy

Reading. Writing. Living. 

Howdy,

Let’s test it.

Test what, I would think you would ask?

I was thinking, What can I write in 10 minutes?

(Or 20, or 30? We’ll see what I settle in on, if I even use this approach at all in the future.)

What I did at this very minute is set the kitchen timer for 10 minutes and started typing. And, yes, it is a “let’s see” or “Let’s test it,” because I don’t know how far I will get or if what I do get will be anything, especially anything worthwhile for actually posting on my blog, but I was afraid to go for it—to give it a go. That much, at least, I’ve learned in this year of writing for 200K words and striving to publish (most) every day.

It’s a test because Sarah and I have talked about what will be next when I hit 200K words and my birthday rolls around again in October and I’ve completed this commitment and all this writing practice and blog publishing. Matt Garman and I talk about it as well.

Matt and Sarah, siblings, agree that I pick up working on my next novel as a priority, in an intensified way. And I agree with them that writing for a novel will be my focus. The test part of this post is, what will I do with my blog? How will I incorporate my blog and keep up with posting while working on a book? What sort of posting rhythm or regularity will I seek to maintain? (The beep—in only have a minute left!)

Two main thoughts on this:

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Howdy,

Recently, in writing a post, I extemporaneously made the famous line “I think, therefore I am” (a philosophical proposition, a Latin one: cogito ergo sum. Isn’t Google great?) into two paragraphs, with a twist:

“I think.
Therefore I am … not necessarily correct.”

Now I suppose that could go a myriad of ways: I think. / Therefore I am … pretentious; … prideful; … right; … helpful; … a bozo. And so on.

Positive, negative, lots of ways it could go—if you get outside of positive and negative, right?

Plenty of options for sliding away from a philosophical proposition.

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Howdy,

Well, it’s still August, September shortly around the corner, and pool season is slowing down already.

I don’t understand it, but that’s what I’m seeing in our condominium complex. Less people at the pool.

A couple of reasons: school has started and the nights have cooled slightly (as compared to the height of summer’s heat).

My opinion would be that the new, refreshed, routine of school is the number one factor, but for those that seem to only swim at the top of the thermometer the creeping in of some fall weather also plays into the equation, particularly the cooling overnight bringing the pool’s water temperature down a few degrees.

I’ll keep swimming.

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Howdy,

“I absolutely love it.”

I just heard someone say, “I love those. I absolutely it. I absolutely love it.”

I don’t even know what he was talking about. I suppose, it’d be more accurate to report that I just overheard someone say …

Because I don’t know what he was referring to in context of the conversation when I heard—overheard—“I love those. I absolutely it. I absolutely love it.”

But it doesn’t matter. Not even the grammar.

It struck me.

What a great thing to say.

“I absolutely love it.”

I mean, it caught my attention. All on its own.

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Howdy,

It’s under construction—or, a better description, a work in progress: WIP—but I wanted to bring some awareness to something new on my site that is in the works.

I’ve recently updated my BOOKS page, a banner menu option or subhead on my homepage, with the purpose of adding a list of recommended readings. Check it out.
(If you do jump in, you may get the sense that it’s not only under construction but underwater—and I’d count that a neat thing.)

Previously the page was designed for my debut novel in its various formats available and as motivation to write more books to post on my BOOKS page. Those two purposes remain very much in play.

But what will also add to the fun, and potentially provide a resource to those readers interested, is a growing catalog of great books for further reading. I envision, with most titles, providing a short summary writeup, that is hopefully helpful or humorous or something more than a hill of beans.

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Howdy,

The free write.
As a sea of undulating words.

The free write.
I’ve written some on my use of free write before, especially during this exercise and test to write so many words this year. Here’s a tossing of some further thoughts on why.

The free write.
Letting it get lost in this sea of undulating words, free to swish and swirl, free to write and wave, free to wish and twirl, without getting right or receiving rave.

The free write.
A chance to play. Splashing in the shallows. Stooping to scooping for sand crabs, crusty and crawling life skittering in the unlikeliest places. Throwing the handful of sand to the sky, following its fall, watching for patterns in the spreading sprinkles … splashing in the shallows.

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