A World Through Her Heart: June 2017

Goodbye June, Hello July!

Hello my wonderful peeps! <3

I am still struggling to understand how June is over and I'm certain I'm not the only one! So what's going on this month for me? Lots!

* Summer Swim Camp

This is insanely fun and a huge challenge! So basically every single morning minus weekends I wake up at an insane five and go to morning practice for two hours, then come back in the afternoon for one hour or more of land practices/clinics. This is all in preparation to compete with local leagues. INSANE.
But so, so much fun! I've made some great friends and really challenged myself beyond what I though I could ever do, also my siblings and I have grown so much closer and more team oriented through this experience. Plus the added bonuses of getting tan, plenty of vitamin d and not feeling like a vegetable. Try writing after intense exercise, it leaves you with a clear, open mind.

*Writing my novel/Camp Nano
Read more about The Spirit Girl here. As far as camp nano goes I can't wait for it to start and I wonder how it will go, to be honest I really have never done this before. *nervous smile of anticipation* .

*Birthday!
I'm turning seventeen in eleven days! Eeeek!!! Where does time go?

*Rebellious Writing
Am currently working like crazy along with teammates to get this website out to the public by August 9th which is national book lover's day! Look up #RebelliousWriting and support the movement on your own blogs and social media :).

*Tbr's and all the other little insanities that come with summer.

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And those pictures of the beach trip I promised. :) May your summer be even more beautiful than mine has been ;)

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It started out when I was sitting on my bed, bedecked by the usual stack of crumpled papers, notebooks, binders, and planner scattered across the comforter. I had started the month with high expectations which by the mid of June... *whispers* crumbled. It happens dear reader, it happens. We plan ambitious lists and plans, we dream big and aspire highly and then one little bad day can bring our high and mighty aspirations down to grovel before us in mockery. It was at that point that a voice in my head spoke loud and clear "True hope doesn't lose with the battle!". And right then I threw down my pen and stared up at the sky through my bedroom window in awe because I was hit with a whole lot of thankfulness to God for that realization.
Plans fail. Things happen. Circumstances bring you down. But dear, if you have true hope deep down in your heart, please don't let it die out with your battle. He fights your battles! Give your burden to Him, His yoke is easy and His burden is light. <3 He has so much more for you than you can ever know. Remember that.

1. Book/Author of the Month

Terri L. Fivash. This author is incredible and has played a huge part in my life. Her historically accurate biblical retellings have never failed to leave me with tears and laughter and teach me about what it means to "walk with the Lord". As well as being huge lessons, they are written with plot twists and OMW moments. Begin with "Joseph" or "Ruth and Boaz" and work your way down her series. You will be left amazed! Her books are truly amazing and have taught me a lot. Do know that as these are accurate to the Bible, there will be some gore as well as marriage related parts that are meant for older audiences. However I can vouch for the tastefulness of the content and its masterful handling.

2. Song or Artist of the Month
"Oh God, Forgive Us" by For King and Country. A needed message in our overwhelming lives to remember who we serve.

3. Food of the Month
Guacamole! I have the most stellar recipe below, it changed me from someone who hated guacamole into guac obsessed.

4 Ripe Avocados, mashed.
3 Small campari type tomatoes, diced.
Half a small red onion, diced.
A bunch of cilantro, chopped.
Two limes, squeezed.
Salt and optional pepper to taste.

Mix together and bring on the tortilla chips!

4. Question of the Month

Why do we have hope in tomorrow? (this is the upcoming poem/short story contest subject, so if you are interested in entering than you may write those and keep them private in preparation for the contest! :)

What do you think? How's your summer going? What have you learned this month? Share Below! Whatever you have to say I always really appreciate the messages you leave on my page! <3 :)

Take my yoke upon you and learn from me,
for I am gentle and humble in heart,
and you will find rest for your souls.
For my yoke is easy
and my burden is light.
(Matthew 11:29-30)

25 comments

, by Anna

WRITING

The Spirit Girl Book Update

Hey guys!

Whew life has been busy for me lately...and it's not about to get any more quiet, so don't be surprised if I disappear for long periods. My summer is currently sand, waves, sore muscles, swimming, LOTR movies. AHHHH LOTR!!!!! *fangirl moment* Can you believe I didn't watch the movie until now? For once in the long history of book to movie adaptation I am satisfied. Legolas <3 Legolas <3 Legolas <3. I don't like the actor himself, I JUST LIKE HIS CHARACTER. XD.
Ok, I honestly think it might be time to move on...or you might be stuck with my fangirling for a while. ;)

What is your book about?

Well...I could give you the synopsis, but since that's already up on 'My Writings' page then I'll explain beyond that. The Spirit Girl is about voices. Voices we have all heard, the not good enough voice, the stupid voice, the loser voice, the taunting voice. The Devil's Voice. But above all that it's about a much louder voice, God's voice. His Love that roars louder. So basically to summarize it...this is a book about a girl who's lost. She knows she's been forgiven, but she can't forgive herself. She keeps taking it back on her shoulders and it gets her in trouble. She thinks she has to face her mistakes alone but she often fails to realize He's right there to help her. That's the whole underlying theme.

Tell us about your MC?

I always love talking about my main characters. :) <3 In this case...River Naomi Montgomery. Her name combined would literally mean "River of Joy". Interestingly enough, my name and hers kind of have correlation because we were both named for things we should accept but struggle to. By the way...if you put my names together, it would come down to "Heavenly Grace". River is a fun, smart, introspective kind of person. But in all ways she is an extrovert and has a really pure heart. She's the kind that would get easily hurt and uncomfortable. Basically she really feels everything she does, she puts her heart in it, even if she doesn't really feel it at the moment. I would tell you guys more concrete, fun stuff, but I'm saving that for a character questionnaire so PLEASE comment questions to "ask my character" below. :) You can ask trivial things like favorite colors or deep things like "What is your greatest fear?". You can also ask what-if questions, that would make things REALLY interesting. Well anyway...I'm sure you all get the idea :)

How many pages are you hoping to get and what genre is this book?

Currently I am at 56 pages and 14,379 pages. :) I am hoping to get to about 13 chapters that are each twenty something pages so it should be a decent length but not TOO long. I have a nice bullet list which is the best I have ever done for planning. I have never planned out my books before, but I feel like that's what was holding me back. I don't like outlining *whines guiltily* but I know that it's the best for me!

So as far as genre goes, it is Christian and I guess I didn't want it to come across as a romance but there is a romance in it. It is really clean and River is hard headed when it comes to starting a relationship so it's a lot of fun to write and think about. She is definitely not the easy type but I love what happens in the end. I surprised myself coming up with it, and guess where it came from? *cheers* PINTEREST! See? Pinterest is not THAT bad. XD Yes, yes *grumble, grumble* it wastes your time but here I miraculously end up thanking pinterest for inspiring the best plot turn ever!:P

Snippets? Pleasssseee...

YES! I would love to share snippets with you! (what shameless questions I seem to ask! XD) *slight blushes*

I'm putting in the "fancy" ones and then the simple text. It's a lot easier to read that way. (but I just couldn't resist adding in the fancy ones shhh )

I don’t speak much. I hear, I think, I see. Boy do I see, I see so much it confuses me. Words, actions, feelings, and relationships get mixed up in my brain like baking soda with vinegar. I’d like to portray seeing inside as a pleasant artistic thing, but it isn’t. It’s torture, pure torture. The more you know, the more you wonder and the more you doubt. Be careful what kind of knowledge you wish for because many of those wishes come back as curses.

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As we walk along I notice the changes. Desolation eats the country space, weeds and tall grasses overrun the cracked sidewalks and road signs begin to turn lopsided and broken. Houses crumble, doomed by abandonment; their glass panes shattered or fallen in, their roofs caving, their walls falling apart. The sight brings a tinge of sadness to me. The place feels desolate. Final flashes of sunlight shimmer over the atmosphere slowly dying out to the stars that begin to peek their heads out above.

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“When you finish your work this evening, Mike will be wanting you in the back.” She says her voice cold and smooth. The implications break my last resolve into distress and the demons inside break loose, tormenting me to a physical point where my whole body is fighting to keep it in. My eternal scream sounds inside wakening the greatest fear of all, and that’s when I realize. I’m scared of myself.

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How is the writing itself going?

Awesome! I usually lose motivation in writing and get discouraged but this time is quite different. I can credit that to my two AMAZING Alpha readers: Cheryl and Gray! Cheryl has a degree in English and has the best technical and literary advice ever and Gray has self published two books and has super helpful visual and content related advice, so I am covered! Please follow these two! They are dear friends and have awesome blogs <3

Visuals, Aesthetics?

*instantly rushes to get them*

That is exactly the way I imagine River except a little more raw, like in the above collage. I wish I could have gotten a smiling picture, that's more her but this is as close as it gets. As far as Eli that is exactly the way I imagine him except not so buff and his hair is more brown then blond. He looks plain when he doesn't smile, but when he does it lights up a room. The adorable husky's name is Storm. <3
Do you get me with getting realistic character pics? I love to look for them but I feel like many times expectations are unreal. :/ I want my characters to be relatable and raw and real. My guy characters are definitely not all going to be buff and handsome and perfect. My girl characters are not all perfect, gorgeous, and skinny. I want beauty and charm but I seek for realism, for simple everyday characters. I like to focus in the inside, not so much on the outside. But of course dreaming about a character is what makes writing so much fun, so I do plenty of that too :). So the above pics are...let's say the characters at their BEST. :)

Conclusion...

Well I believe I've reached the end of the update! :) There isn't much more to share for now but I will definitely keep updating and answering questions. Coming up I would love to host a cool "Short Story/Poem" contest on my blog so look for that in the future as well as a character questionnaire.

Thank you all for making it so far with my tired, choppy manner of writing and bad formatting. You guys are saints for coming this far <3. I am currently sitting at the beach library, sand still all over my back and tangled in my hair yuck and my eyes are drooping from saltwater and exhaustion from awaking at 5 and earlier each morning for a month now. So now you can understand my tiredness. XD *yawn*

So! What do you all think? Share with me! I absolutely love your comments and shares, they always make my day! Comment questions for my MC to answer too! :) What are you guys writing? How are your projects going? Let's all chat below!

But the Lord is faithful,
and he will strengthen you and protect you
from the evil one.
(2 Thessalonians 3:3)