Insecure Writers Create Amazing Support

Who can give better support to writers than other writers? Probably no one. That should come as no surprise to writers.

I have met some amazing writers through blogs on the Internet. They are writers who inspire through their words. They are writers who make me long to write better. They are writers who make me want to be a better person.

The writers I most admire strive to inspire through their words. That is evident in their choice of words and the way they use them.

Positive thoughts.

Insightful deliberations.

What about you? Do you seek to inspire through your words?

Writers can give amazing support. I'm glad to have met so many wonderful writers along the way.

--Mary Montague Sikes

Notes Along the Way Gets a Liebster Award

 

Thank you, Sharon, at Shells, Tales and Sails for the nomination for the Liebster Award which is for bloggers with fewer than 200 followers. (I'm at 173 followers now and hope to eventually cross the 200 threshold.)

Liebster Award Rules:

1. Thank the blogger who presented you with the Liebster Award, and link back to his or her blog.

2. Answer the 11 questions from the nominator; list 11 random facts about yourself, and create 11 questions for your nominees.

3. Present the Liebster Award to 11 bloggers, who have blogs with 200 followers or less, whom you feel deserve to be noticed. Leave a comment on the blogs letting the owners know they have been chosen. (No tag backs.)

4. Upload the Liebster Award image to your blog.

 Eleven questions from me:
1. What is your favorite form of recreation? Tennis and travel to beautiful, warm destinations
2. What kinds of books do you read? Biographies when I get a chance to read which is not often.
3. Why did you start blogging? Because I love to write. Some days, I especially like the opportunity to express what's on my mind. It's a little like writing an editorial giving my opinion.
3. Do you read books on an e-reader or prefer printed books? I prefer print whenever possible. I do see the advantage of having many books loaded on my iPad for travel.
4. Name two actors or authors you admire. Diane Chamberlain because of the quality books she writes that incorporate her knowledge of psychology. Mary Alice Monroe because of the extensive research evident in the stories she writes.
5. What makes you laugh? I don't laugh as much as I used to. The world seems a less nice place to be in. So much war, a Congress that can't get along, elected officials who spend too much time on vacations they have not earned--the list goes on. I'm happiest in my art studio creating paintings using happy colors.
6. Which do you prefer and why: dogs or cats? Cats. They have interesting personalities and are quite independent.
7. When or where do you feel most creative? Anytime I have a lot of consecutive hours in my writing studio, I feel creative (once I take care of the most important e-mails, check Facebook, etc.)
8. What is your favorite fast food or snack? Fried chicken
9. Do you have a special place you go to relax? Fitness classes at the gym
10. Do you have a favorite comic strip? No. I used to enjoy them in the Sunday newspapers, but that was long ago.

11. If you could travel back in time, where would you like to go? To Paris in the age of the French Impressionists.

Eleven random facts about me
1. As a child, I couldn't find enough books to read.
2. I still love to daydream about beautiful and exotic destinations.
3. In the summer, watching St. Louis Cardinals baseball on TV takes precedence over all else.
4. I enjoy visiting National Parks with our family.
5. I love looking at the water but don't like being on it.
6. I was girls tennis coach at a private school where I taught.
7. When I was a child, I would find figures in the clouds.
8. I used to write lots of rhyming poetry.
9. I spend too much time in front of the computer.
10. I've always wanted to be an artist.
11. I fell in love with my husband when I was 13.  

Eleven questions for Liebster Award nominees
1. Knowing what you know today, what would you choose to be (profession)? Why?
2. If you could live anywhere in the world, where would that be? Why?
3. Would you rather visit the mountains or the sea? Why?
4. Tell about your favorite dinner.
5. What part of your home most inspires you? 
6. Do you like to read fiction or non-fiction?
7. What is your favorite book?
8. Did you have a favorite subject in school?
9. How many vacations would you like to take each year? Where?
10. Do you prefer to fly or to drive?
11. Are you an extrovert or an introvert?  

I'm checking out blogs and gradually adding to make my list of 11. If you have time, I hope you will accept and follow the instructions for the award. Here is my growing list:
http://www.robin-hall-writes.blogspot.com/ 
http://apackalipsnow.blogspot.com/  
http://nicolemurraywip.blogspot.com/
http://celholloway.blogspot.com/
http://blonde-not-dumb.blogspot.com/ 
http://www.emilymoir.blogspot.com/ 
http://fatherdragon.blogspot.com/
http://the-clay-wheel.blogspot.com/
http://www.millerchris.com/ 

Tell Your Friends You Care

"Journey in the Sunset" ©MMSikes

Life is a fleeting moment in time. Things change. People go away. They die.

And it all happens so fast.

I think of how slowly time passed when I was a child. I wanted very much to be a grownup, and it took so long to happen. Now one Christmas turns into the next. Time flies.

We get swept up in the rush of life and forget to notice the people passing by. Then, all of a sudden, a job is lost. A friend dies. Change happens.

That's when we wonder about the passage of time.

It happened last week. Jean Keating, an author who along with three others and me wrote the book, Published! Now Sell It, passed away. She was bigger than life, and I can't imagine that her book event appearances, along with Puff her Pappion dog, will be no more. I admired her ability to get things done and her marketing savvy. I enjoyed seeing her and talking with her, but I never told her. Now it is too late.

Authors die. You lose more than the person, you lose the next book.

Change is one thing we have for certain. Wait a moment. Things will change.

Don't wait a moment to tell a friend you care. Don't wait to tell a writer or artist how much you admire his/her work.

You may not get another chance.

--Mary Montague Sikes

How Does What We Write Affect the World Around Us?

Last night, I viewed one of my favorite television shows, "A Person of Interest." During the course of the program, the young woman who was the lead character for the evening gunned down countless people. Her actions made a fast-paced production. But they also made me wonder. Are TV shows like this causing us to become insensitive regarding human life?

The main prime time presentations on the major networks appear to be crime shows that usually start off with a murder. The 11 p.m. news programs are filled with details and taped scenes from the latest murders. Our national news channels are dissecting the Oscar Pistorius crime from every angle. Are all these terrible events making us immune, or are they just making us paranoid?

I don't know.

Mystery/suspense are among the most popular fiction books on the market. We love to read stories filled with excitement, adventure, and danger. Since I've started at least three of my own books with a murder, I'm guilty as well. Fast-paced books are page-turners. They might even become bestsellers.

However, when I found a new review on Amazon today for one of my books, I started to evaluate the best thing for me to write. The review for Daddy's Christmas Angel was written by a former teacher, someone I don't know. She'd taught second grade like Angie in my story. She "loved the book" and "had a hard time putting it down." She cried at the end.

There is no murder in Daddy's Christmas Angel. It's just a sweet story about three people--a child and two adults--who are all lonely in their own ways. It's about people who need love and caring in their lives. We all need that.

I started to think that perhaps my next book should not start with a murder. Perhaps it should be just another love story...

After all, I have to believe that what we write does affect the world around us. That world already has too much murder and mayhem.

--Mary Montague Sikes

Symbolism in Writing - The Dragonfly

"Dragonfly Morning" (detail) ©Mary Montague Sikes

From the time I first started reading, I was captivated by symbolism. Of course, at a very young age, I didn't know what that word meant, but anything that brought pictures into my mind gave me joy.

These days, I enjoy creating images that symbolize or express an intangible ideal. I am especially intrigued by the dragonfly.

Did you know that certain cultures, like some tribes of the native American Indians, believe dragonflies are the souls of the dead? There are many other beliefs as well, such as they represent new beginnings, prosperity, happiness, and much more.

While I was working on my novel, Night Watch, we took a trip to Hilton Head, South Carolina. Upon our arrival, I heard a lot of commotion on the balcony outside our sliding glass door. Concerned, I went to see what was happening. To my surprise, a half-dozen or more dragonflies were flying around, bumping into the glass, with the light of the setting sun reflecting on their transparent wings. I was enchanted and in complete awe. It was like a sign because in my book, the dragonfly holds a special meaning. It is symbolic of the change taking place in my heroine's life. For many centuries, the dragonfly has been a symbol of change, so what better creature to be a part of my story?

Last week, I decided to make a painting with dragonflies in it. I then took a detail from my new art work and made a greeting card. Inside each card, I placed the following message on an insert:

"The dragonfly is a symbol of change, going beyond self-illusion to create new beginnings and happiness. Because their colors result from reflected and refracted light, dragonflies may be associated with color magic and illusion. For some Native Americans they represent the souls of the dead.

When Lily discovers the dragonfly necklace in Night Watch, she reconnects with a past she does not quite understand. The dragonfly represents all the change that has occurred in her life. It is a symbol of a new beginning for her, and it brings back a bit of magic into her life as well."

 

At my book signing, I focused on Night Watch and gave a copy of my new card and insert with each purchase of my books. The dragonfly represents magic and beauty to me.

Souls of the dead?

Perhaps. We know so little about life...

People are attracted to dragonflies. During the next few weeks, I plan to paint more of them.

--Mary Montague Sikes