NaNoWriMo Day 30 Leave A Mark

It's the last day of NaNoWriMo.
I thought I leave you with a video based on a children's book titled The Dot by Peter H. Reynolds.
I love this book in fact it's part of my small collection of chrildren's books.
It's about making your mark and I think it's a good story for every creative spirit out there.
And all the people who tried NaNoWriMo have left a mark of words somewhere no matter how small. Like my 6,0000 and something words.

Today's thoughts Salvation

Last night at the coffee club (where we meet to talk about biblical topics) the question or the thought was voiced, what's salvation?

At the time God didn't urge me to voice my option but now He's urging me to share.

The simple answer: Jesus.
Accept Jesus as Christ - the Savior of the world.

Matthew 7:7 keep running through my head.
"Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you"

Ask for Jesus to be in your life that day to guide you.
I once said I think God can create a better life then me. (I was trying to plan out my life and I was worried and I realized I was not trusting God. Still have a hard time trusting God and not making my own plans)

Seek his salvation, grace, and guidance everyday.

Knock on Jesus's door (pray) and see what happen.
Have you knock on Jesus's door today? Go ahead pound on that door with all your emotions even thanksgiving and joy, not just pain or anger.

So.... Salvation to me is Jesus and His Love. He did died on the cross to show that love.

What do you think is salvation?

A servant of Christ,
Annie Laurie

NaNoWriMo Day 27 "Rethink Possible

Only 4 more days counting today, before the end of NaNoWriMo and I nowhere near the goal line.
Yesterday I was watching tv and not paying any attention to the commercials when I heard the words rethink possible. It made me pause to think. Of course I wanted to know who's commercial you might already know... I ran the recorder back it's AT&T.
Here the thing with only a few days left of NaNoWriMo I need to rethink possible with my novel and finishing my novel and to wonder if it's what God want me to write this or is it me who wants me to write this story?
If I write this I need to think about what's possible.
This rethink possible could apply to life as well.
And God.
Nothing is impossible WITH GOD.
And I don't know about you but with Christmas coming I'm thinking more about God, Jesus. I can't help it every time I turn on the radio it's a Christmas song.
The song either about Jesus or Santa.
What are you thinking about this Christmas season?
What does the AT&T phase mean to you?

NaNoWriMo Day 23

Today I read Scott Westerfeld's pep talk for NaNoWriMo.
It's about how things are a lot messier then what we think.
And I realized for one that this apply to more then writing and plots and second my story is too simple.

Here the link to Scott Westerfeld's pep talk

I forgot that I'm writing about a family, not just the heroine and her grandmother.
Her grandmother is sick.  What are her children feeling and how are they showing those feeling.  I'm not telling the story from their point of view but its still going to be there, in how they act, and treat the other characters including the heroine.

When dealing with family as many people know from going through yesterday with their family, it's messy, can be very messy.  Its why we either love or hate Thanksgiving.  Yeah our family can drive us nuts or keep us sane.

Really need to remember that as I write this story, and a family that nuts and drive the heroine nuts make a more interesting story. Now I have more food for thoughts and more food then my fridge can hold thanks to good old Thanksgiving.

What are your thoughts?

Have a wonderful Christmas shopping season and happy writing,
Annie Laurie

Poem:

I doubt we're the same,
but we react the same,
I guess we're both strange,
so who going to take the chance and change?

If you thought I couldn't
hear, you're right I couldn't
But you could have said hi
And so could have I.

By Annie Laurie Gray

Poem: Thankful For Perfect Timing

Thankful for perfect timing,
my brother showed me a ultrasound,
announced you're going to be an aunt, his smile shining,
with wide eyes I'm astound.

But then astound grow to excitment,
finally new life, new joy to fill the void,
my mama's cheeks pink with delightment,
she going to be a grandmother - overjoyed.

All at once Thanksgiving week is thanks-filled,
instead of pain and dark-filled,
thanks God for my brother, sister-in-law, and baby,
I want laugh over and over - finally a baby!

by Annie Laurie

Today's Thoughts Made Up Messages

A few days ago (maybe a week ago) I thought a tweet was about me.
Then I saw a tweet about this song.  Carly Simon You're So Vain.
What a wake up call... I started laughing.
Dear Lord I repent and I'm thankful for forgiveness.
So here the song I feel is about me at the moment.



(by the way the song a few post ago was about you and I now feel funny about going to rivertown, as if you look at this blog.... talk about being vain.... 0_o)
I had fun wondering about what I now call the made up messages.
Annie Laurie

NaNoWriMo Day 16 Write Like

Write like this is the only chance you’ll ever get to tell your story. Write out of your comfort zone. Write to challenge and surprise yourself. Write like you have everything to prove, even when you don’t. Especially when you don’t. Write with heart. Write with passion. Write as often as you possibly can.

Jason Aaron 

I found this quote (on twitter I think) in December of last year when I felt I had to prove (to myself mostly) that I was meant to write. 

Jason Aaron is a comic book writer and from Alabama I think I'm more impress that he's a comic book writer from Alabama who made a name for himself, then anytime. 

Anyway...

What I ended up proving was:

I need to write.

I will write no matter what.

I have some writing skill.

I can make through the dreaded middle of the book.

I can make it to the words "the end"

More importantly if I'm meant to write I will write.

Praying before I start writing can't hurt, will help, really is a must.

This whole NaNoWriMo I have forgotten all of these things.

I need to pray or I'll end up staring at the blank white space wondering what to write. 

~Annie Laurie

Poem: Shyness

Shyness

Is my shyness a game?

I don't mean to play a game,

I lose my nerves, can't reclaim,

voice get stuck in throat is to blame.

Should I give you my number?'

Would you even call?

Even that I think I'd blunder,

after I greet you I feel silly and small.

Scared,

Do I dare?

Would you care?

NaNoWriMo Day 15 Mark Twain's Quote

"You cannot depend on your eyes when your imagination is out of focus" Mark Twain

The last few days I've felt my writing out of focus. When I open my laptop I end up staring at the blank white space of the word document.
I have written a little here and there in my notebook. But no where near the daily 1666 word goal for NanoWriMo.
I hate that I'm only posting about how I'm not writing...
I plan to have a good report tomorrow.

NaNoWriMo Day 12

Today I attended my first write in.  Turn out one of my friends was the one who suggested the coffee shop, I didn't even realized he wrote, but least that he was attempting NaNoWriMo too.

At 6,085 words so far.

No line from the novel tonight maybe another night.

~Annie Laurie

NaNoWriMo Day 10 (An hour late)

NaNoWriMo Day 10

I have been thinking a lot about crushes lately.  For one thing my main character in my story has a crush. 
Yes, it's now fiction no longer about me but there are elements basic on some things I went thougth last year. It's easier to write now that it's fiction and I'm not trying to recall memeries I don't really want to recall.
I wanted to write a romanic comdey but that didn't work out.  Not sure what it's going to turn in to.
I watched Definitely, Maybe a few weeks ago and the song "I've got a crush on you" keep running through my head as I write explain why my MC has a crush.   Also "Call me, Maybe" keep running through my head too but that for another post.

Here is "I've got a crush on you." with Will and Rachel from Definitely, Maybe. (by the way this song is on my NaNoWriMo novel play list)

NaNoWriMo Day 7

I didn't get any writing done today.

NaNoWriMo Day 6

This going to be a very short report of my NaNoWriMo journey.  I finally started turned my experiences with Gran into a fiction story.  With the decision to change the setting to home instead of S.C. And to blur the timeline a story started building in my head.
Good Luck to the rest of the Wrimos and happy writing

NaNoWriMo Day 5

For NaNoWriMo I'm still way behind barly wrote a word today.  My aunt ran over from Ga, to get a table out of Gran's house.  We had lunch, helped her and my uncle get the table and they left.

I'm thinking if I can just get my experinces story written, maybe I can use it as an outline for a fiction story.  Maybe I'll write the fiction story better but I got to write the real story first.  Like the Hemingway quote "There nothing to writing but to sit at the typewriter and bleed."

I think I have to find my emotions, my feelings, and find the voice (my voice) to write them.

In a way I found it in poetry, now I need to find it in prose.

All I know is it hurt to write, and when I "come out" of writing I am in  a daze. Also I notice I can't write it at home, alone in my room so I came to the coffee shop (full of people at the moment.) where there are people.

Here is a line from what I've written yesterday and today.
"The morning after this decision , in the small quiet eating area, all the business man and families have had their  free complimentary breakfast and come and gone. Natalie sat at one of the small white round drinking her sweet creamy coffee and picking small bits of a banana muffin, unaware that the decision had been made."

 

Poem: Do You Look For Me?

All last month I wrote a poem at day, and I miss that so I'm going to try to post a poem a week.  Here is this week's poem.

 

 

Do you look for me?

Wonder in what yellow bug I be?

Truly,

I look for you

wonder in what car,

you are.

 

by Annie Laurie Gray

 

What do you think?

Please comment.

NaNoWriMo Day 4

For NaNoWriMo I'm writing about my experiences after Gran's stokes, inspired by my poetry last month.  Turn out its hard to write but I'm going to keep going I just don't think I'm going to write 50,000 words this month.
Come Dec. 1 I'll have pages written I didn't have written Oct. 31.
Oh speaking of Dec. 1 and writing.
A friend of one of my aunts wrote a play making fun of my mama's family, it's titled Alabama Rain and it playing at UNA either Nov. 30 or Dec. 1.

NaNoWriMo Day 3

Yesterday I wrote about the ER visit after my grandmother had a stoke in our hotel room.  I wrote at the coffee shop, got a headache for my trouble.

  Today I tried to jump on into the book, to what I'm calling part 2, after Christmas and the New Year.
Writing about what happened to Gran is draining.

I'm still behind so far I wrote 1,855/5,000 (the NaNoWriMo's goal for today)

NaNoWriMo Day 2

Yesterday I started my NaNoWriMo novel. Working title is Proof of Life. I started with the night I watched my grandmother have a stoke in our hotal room in South Caralina. Only the two of us in the room at the the time, Mama had gone to pay the room bill since we planned to leave early the next morning.
(I would leave you a link but the server is very busy right now and the site's not coming up.)

We had buried one of my uncle-in-laws that morning. He never seemed like an uncle-in-law to me. He was onIe of the few people in my life I could talk to about God and say anything and he cared and listened. I miss him.

Yesterday I wrote about how the worst day of my life got even worst. Today I'm writing about the ER visit.

Here is the fist line of my story (could change after I edit it later) (BTW I named the charater based on me Natalie.)

"Over and over again it played in Natalie's mind like a bad western movie."

734/50,000 words

Annie Laurie