Category Archives: Seasonal Posts

NaNoWriMo: 5 best songs and soundtracks for writing fantasy novels

Posted in Creativity, Seasonal Posts by

Y’all know I simply cannot let November pass by without attempting the #nanowrimo hullaballo. (NaNoWriMo = National Novel Writing Month. It’s a lot of fun trying to write a full novel in one month!)

And whether you’re a plotter or a pantser, you know playing music that matches the themes you’re writing can really get you in the mood … for prose. 😉

So if you, like me, are writing a fantasy novel this month, here’s some musical inspiration to listen to while you write…

Image shows Fourth Wing fan art 🎨 by Jesslyn @jrtart on Twitter X.

Image credit: Fourth Wing fan art 🎨 by @jrtart_ (Jesslyn) as featured on X (Twitter)

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Best books and media I’ve found in 2016 so far

Posted in Book Reviews, Creativity, Seasonal Posts by

We’re only a few days into 2016 but I have found some AMAZING reads in my first days of 2016, which have also been my last few days of annual leave.

As a writer and editor, my “to read” list is too long for me to ever actually read, if it’s really true that you can only get through about 3,000 in the average lifetime. In my Google Docs “Books” folder, the list of all the books I’ve read in my life (only about 600 that I can remember so far) is far smaller than the list of books I would like to read (about 1 million). So I’ve told you how I chose the books I read last year, and I can definitely say I’m sticking with that strategy in 2016.

If you don’t know what to get yourself in the Boxing Day sales, and you have money left over after purchasing some truly meaningful gifts from Gifts of Compassion, TEAR’s Useful Gifts, Christian Blind Mission’s Meaningful Gifts, or some other world-changing charity … then please consider the following reads for belated Christmas gifts to yourself.

Get ready.

They’ll knock your socks off.

…

Best books made of paper and stuff in January 2016

My January 2016 reads lined up. Image source: My camera.

My January 2016 reads lined up. Image source: My camera.

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How I chose which books to read in 2015

Posted in Book Reviews, Seasonal Posts, Words of Faith by

The long road to Fort Scratchley lighthouse at Nobby's Beach, Newcastle. Image source: My camera.

The long road to Fort Scratchley lighthouse at Nobby’s Beach, Newcastle. Image source: My camera.

The end of the year is a great time for reflecting on our habits from the year and how they changed us as a person. Here is just one snippet from my reflections on my habits in 2015: How I chose which books to read during the year.

It’s an important topic. The books you read are part of the inspiration you get, and that shapes who you become as a person over the course of a year. We’re always changing, and the input we choose for our hearts and minds is a huge part of that.

What does the Bible say about the input you should give your heart and mind?

Proverbs 4:23: “Above all else, guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of your life and everything you do flows from it.”

Philippians 4:8: “Finally, brothers and sisters, think about whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable. If anything is excellent or praiseworthy, think about those things.”

(author’s paraphrase)

So in short, in 2015, I let God choose.

While standing at the shelves of my favourite bookshops or poring over new releases on my favourite online bookshops, or even leaning against my own bookshelves and wondering what to read next, I asked the Holy Spirit. I asked that God would reveal what book would help me the most in this season, or what book would give me encouragement, give me a laugh, show me afresh His power, or give me the key to spreading His power to others with my life.

Here’s my list of books read, how the let-God-pick method went, and the themes that emerged in what I read…

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Vote on your favourite blog rebrand ideas

Posted in Creativity, Seasonal Posts by

I’ve identified the major themes that I’d like to write about in the future, so I made a survey so you can vote on your favourites among these blog ideas!

It is here: Survey Monkey TJ Withers-Ryan

I can’t say the survey results will make my decision for me re blogging, but I would 100% appreciate reader feedback on what you are most interested in reading about.

God bless,

TJ

Image source: TJ Ryan photo, icanhascheezburger lolcat builder

Image source: TJ Ryan photo, icanhascheezburger lolcat builder

Why I’m not doing NaNoWriMo this year

Posted in Creativity, Seasonal Posts by

I was very touched to look up my blog statistics today and see that, gosh, pretty much as many people are reading my blog this month – when I’ve posted literally nothing – as any other month. In my head, this could be caused by many possibilities, all of them fairly positive – you actually find what I wrote in the past interesting, so you came back to reread it, or you told other people about it; or new people found the blog on Google and read something; or you all missed me and kept checking the blog daily to see if I’d written anything new yet.

Well, I haven’t written anything new. But I don’t feel bad about it – and here’s why you don’t need to feel bad about it either.

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What self-care looked like for me this winter

Posted in Creativity, Seasonal Posts, Words of Faith by

Some of my self-care helpers.

Some of my self-care helpers.

I’ve been reading about self-care. Here’s what it looks like for me this winter.

In the picture above, you can see some of my dedicated self-care helpers: Aloe vera tissues, cuppa tea, soy cheese crackers, inspiring documentary about miracle healers, a trip to the movies, a big, warm, fluffy blanket, and in the background, you can just make out my adorable baby CD player.

This year, I just read this post by Mrs Modern Darcy on what self-care can look like, this post on The Peaceful Wife about taking care of yourselves to love others better, and this post on Propel Women on how women in leadership can make time for self-care.

These posts are good reminders that self-care – taking care of yourself and doing a few things every day just to make yourself happy – is not just for you. It’s for everyone around you who needs your love and attention. You can’t give anyone love and attention when your needs haven’t been met and you feel out of sorts.

And the things that wear you out don’t need to be bad things. Even good things like serving, caring, and giving friendship, can all take energy. If we’re not recharging, we soon run out of love to give.

Stress from doing too many good things is not a new thing. Even Moses in the Bible got told off for trying to do too much at once without taking care of himself. His father-in-law Jethro warned him, “The thing that you are doing is not good. You will surely wear out, both yourself and these people who are with you, for the task is too heavy for you; you cannot do it alone.” (Exodus 18: 17-18, NASB)

Remember how on the plane, they say to put on your own oxygen mask before you put on your kids’? They say that because if you don’t save yourself, you cannot save your kids. It’s not selfish. It’s essential.

And creativity? Forget about it! If you’re stressed, you are waaaaay less creative.

So I was inspired me to write out my own list of what helps me stay sane and productive on a daily basis, and helps me to love and work better. I hope it inspires you like it did me!

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The joys of May the 4th

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May the 4th be with you. Image source: Something from Chelsea, Michigan

Image source: Something Chelsea, Michigan

I like May in Australia because it’s autumn so the weather is cool but not freezing yet; three of my favourite people have their birthdays this month; and IT’S STAR WARS MONTH.

But I feel like this post should be more than just “May the 4th be with you”. Because depending on where you live, you may not be reading this on May the 4th anyway.

So as the resident Grammar Lover, it is my happy duty to add some educational information to today’s post.

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