A Melodious Sonnet - Page 19 of 58 - Notes from a word-chaser

The Five Minute Tip

January 16, 2020 by Esther Filbrun · Leave a Comment

16 Jan

One of the most lasting things I learned from NaNoWriMo in November was how much writing I could accomplish in just five minutes. So today, I’d like to share a simple tip that you’ve probably heard before, but I was reminded of again and have found it so very, very helpful over the past few months!

Set a timer for five minutes, and write as fast as you can in that time.

One of this morning’s tasks was looking for new replacement book covers for a project that I’ve been working on for the last 3-4 years—a complete upgrade and refresh of my book reviews website. It’s a massive job, and I haven’t gotten nearly as far with it as I would have liked, but that’s one of my goals for the year, so I’m tackling it again. Over this last week, I’ve gained a bit of clarity as far as what I can do now while I wait for several other things to fall into place, so I have a bit more steam to push ahead.

While I was looking for covers, I happened to see a search result come up from the current website—and the description of that particular result was my author bio. Which reminds me that I need to put together a quick description for that particular search function on the new website, to be more helpful to the end-user searcher . . . . #SolopreneurDoesItAll

Okay, that’s noted in my ever-increasing list of things to do before launch day.

We’ve had some gorgeous sunsets this last little while thanks to the smoke from the Australian bushfires!

Now, where was I? Oh, yes. So this bio said something like “I’m the girl who decided to write uninspired reviews instead of inspired fiction.” Something along those lines, anyway—and when I saw it, I remembered how it was something of a personal joke to me at the time. That was my trade-off then, as I put all my writing energy into the website and left the side of me that loves writing fiction in the dust.

But, when I saw that, I realized that’s not me anymore. I’ve come to the place where even though we’re still posting at least three reviews per week on there, and I’m still writing quite a bit for it, fiction writing has its place in my life again.

It’s not big, or grand, but it’s there—and like I proved to myself last November, it’s still vastly important to me. It was important enough to keep writing even while I was taking three trips, losing sleep in preference to writing, and trying to balance my other responsibilities here at home and on the reviews website. Some things fell through the cracks, yes, but this is one thing that isn’t as much on the back burner now as it used to be.

And I’m so very, very thankful!

At this point, I have a daily commitment to write at least a little each day in or for a fictional story. One thing that has helped me with this is a five-minute timer.

This morning, before I sat down to write this blog post, I set the timer for five minutes and wrote in my Biblical historical fiction story. I only got about 160 words in that time, but often I can get up to about 210 or 230 words—I had a bit of research to do before I could continue with that particular scene. I didn’t particularly want to do it then, because I wanted to get on with other things, but since that’s my daily commitment, and told myself I only had to write for those five minutes, I was able to get it done.

Little things, people. Change those little things to give you momentum for the big. You never know—you might end up with a novel at the end of it—as I’m expecting to have in another month or two when I finally get this thing finished! I’m at 60k now . . . and am a little scared to think of how much it will likely be before I’m done!

So yes, I’m writing fiction again—more than I ever used to. Along with trying to keep up with reviews for the website. And I’m thankful to have been given the chance to do both!

Now I need to figure out if it’s possible to edit a novel in just five minutes per day . . . (I think it must be).

Let’s discuss: What little tips like this have made a big difference for you? Are you trying to prioritize something a bit more now than you have in the past, or have you had to put something on the back burner for a while?

Videos from the Interislander

January 13, 2020 by Esther Filbrun · Leave a Comment

13 Jan

I had some videos I wanted to share with last week’s post about going to Hastings, especially the part of the trip spent on the ferry. I didn’t get them stitched together in time, though, so you get to see them today.

I took the videos with the intention of just showing them to my brothers, but then I thought others might be interested too. So here you go—the highlights from the ferry part of the trip! It was a fascinating ride for me, and I’m so thankful I don’t get seasick. The Marlborough Sounds are beautiful. If you’re needing to get from the South Island to the North, I highly recommend this mode of transport! Unless you want to get there quickly…in which case, take an airplane, and forego the scenery.

But in my opinion, the ferry is the best.

(See the pictures from the trip here.)

Hastings, North Island Trip 2019

January 9, 2020 by Esther Filbrun · Leave a Comment

9 Jan

I finally got around to getting these pictures sorted out this morning! Back in the middle of November, smack-dab in the middle of NaNoWriMo, when I was more than half distracted with trying to get those 1,667+ words done each day, my brother, Simon, and I decided on the spur of the moment to take a 15- or 16-hour trip up to the North Island to help some friends move down to our area.

8 am on the West Coast highway—a beautiful time of day to be out driving!

We decided to go on a Thursday evening, after arriving home late from a trip across to Christchurch (which in itself was a 3-hour drive home!), booked our ferry tickets that night, and took off about 8 am on Saturday. It’s a good 4 hours up to Picton, where you meet the inter-island ferry, then you have to wait for a while until the ferry takes off, and once you do, it’s a 3-4 hour ride.

Boarding the Interislander in Picton around 1 pm

I was so thankful to be out of the vehicle, even if it did mean I was on a boat! I’m not one that necessarily enjoys traveling, but it was fascinating to explore the Kaitaki, the Interislander ferry we took from Picton, on the South Island, to Wellington, on the North Island.

Bluebridge ferry—the other ferry company going between the islands.

Once settled in on deck, Simon and I had fun exploring the top story (level 10), where we had a great view of Picton and the surrounding harbor! This boat had lots of outdoor seating (you can just see that on the right of the below picture) for fine days—unfortunately, it was far too rainy to want to be out there long the day we went. The two big orange things in the middle of the picture are lifeboats, and in the distance on the middle left, you can see a white warehouse with “Edwin Fox” on it. If you are ever in Picton, I’d highly recommend you go there!

To our right, there was a little sailing club of some kind. All the white sails are people learning how to sail; it was fascinating to watch them learn to tack with the wind! They balanced the one-person boats by shifting their weight from one side to the other. Several almost capsized while we watched, then they quickly slid over to the other side and turned the sail to get them back on course.

Finally on our way! The Marlborough Sounds were absolutely beautiful, even if it was an overcast, rainy day.

A mussel farm:

There was also an outdoor viewing platform that ran almost all the way around deck 7, underneath the lifeboats on deck 8 (we saw the tops of them from deck 10). Simon and I spent a lot of time exploring around there, too, and it was nice to be sheltered a little from the weather while still having a clear view of the scenery.

There were LOTS of houses dotted among all the different islands and formations in the sounds! I was somewhat surprised at the number, but I think it would be lovely to have one of these secluded places as a summer holiday spot.

We saw quite a few salmon farms, too:

And more mussel farms . . . I didn’t count, but I know there were a good number of these, too!

Wellington harbor, at last! Once you disembark at Wellington, there’s approximately another 4-hour drive up to Hastings, where our friends lived.

Coming into the dock . . . Wellington was a bit sunnier than Picton had been!

Even though it was a bit early to eat, Simon and I got fish and chips in Upper Hutt, then wound our way up into the hills toward the Remutaka Pass, looking for a place to pull off to eat. We found a nice quiet place overlooking the Macaskill Lakes—what a lovely spot! Water from the Hutt River is pumped up into these lakes when the river water is clean, and then it is held here for use as Wellington’s water supply when needed. It was quite the view to enjoy after driving or riding the ferry all day, and we felt quite refreshed when we hit the road again by 5:30 or 6.

We finally arrived in Hastings about 11 pm. To say we were bushed feels like an understatement! Sunday, we got to rest, then Sunday afternoon and evening, we loaded up.

Then on the road again Monday morning by 7 am, and down to the ferry in Wellington by noon! It was raining fairly hard Monday, but from our place in line, we still enjoyed our view of the Kiarahi, the Interislander ferry that took us from Wellington to Picton.

Just a tiny portion of Wellington, our nation’s capital, here:

Pulling up the ropes and casting off—farewell, Wellington! I wasn’t so sad to be leaving. I much prefer our quieter roads here on the South Island!

The second sailing was slightly rougher at first than our sailing Saturday. But about half-way across Cook Strait, the waves smoothed out—I was thankful for that! Can you see the two white specks in the middle of this picture, just above the water on the hillside? Those were the guiding markers to help us enter the Marlborough Sounds.

The markers closer up, once we were in the sounds:

We met several ferries coming out of the sounds as we were winding through them. I think this one was the Kaitaki, which we took on our Saturday sailing.

And Picton harbor again—with the sun out this time! I was excited to be back on the South Island again. Only four hours to home from here!

In all, it was a great trip. Although I didn’t take any pictures up in Hastings, I loved being back up there again and worshiping with the congregation on Sunday. I spent three weeks there a year and a half ago, so that area has a special piece of my heart. I’m not sure I’d recommend taking such a rushed trip up there and back again, though. 😉

What was the last big trip you took?

2020 Reading Goals (+ #ReadingChallenges!)

January 6, 2020 by Esther Filbrun · Leave a Comment

6 Jan

It’s a chilly, rainy day here on the west coast, and someone got our fire going for the first time this year. Usually, we’re having warm (if not hot!) sunny days this time of year, but due to a combination of the smoke coming this way from the Australian wildfires and the normal cold fronts that move through from time to time, we have a cooler day today.

I just finished a cup of tea, and am about ready to tackle some other projects—but I though it would be fun to first sit down and drop a line to you!

Last year, according to my on-paper tracker, I read 55 books. Although I didn’t get Goodreads updated in time (something I’m hoping to rectify this week!), it was a very good reading year, surpassing my yearly goal by five books. I’m hoping to do more than that this year, although my “official” goal is to read 50 books.

One change I’m planning to do this year, as opposed to last year, is to participate in four different reading challenges!

As an avid reader, I’m really excited about these! I feel like I tend to get stuck in the Christian fiction genre a lot, so I’m hoping these will help me get out of that rut a little bit—besides the fact that, well, they’re just so fun! Of the 55 books I read last year, 37 (67%) were Christian fiction, and 15 (27%) were non-fiction.

So, in no particular order, here are the four challenges I’m looking forward to doing this year:

1. Netgalley/Edelweiss Reading Challenge

Last year, I read 12 books that came from NetGalley, and I still have 3 I haven’t read, besides some OLD ones I’m not sure I’ll ever read. I know there will likely be lots of other good books from here coming out in 2020, so I’m aiming for the Bronze (10 books) level, which may end up upgrading to Silver (25 books) before the year is out, depending on how many books I end up with.

2. Tim Challies’ 2020 Christian Reading Challenge

I was aiming to do this challenge two years ago, but only ended up reading one book for it. #epicfail This year, I have it printed out and pasted into the diary I use daily, so hopefully I’ll remember to refer back to it regularly this year! I’m aiming for the Avid (26 books) level, although I’d love to get to Committed (52 books) if I can. Depends on how many books I can find that would work for multiple lists!

3. Modern Mrs. Darcy’s 2020 Reading Challenge

I picked this one because it’s a short challenge AND one that I don’t think I’ll have too much trouble finding books for (well, maybe the “local author” one…might need to scope out our local library for that)! We’ll see. I’ve printed out her super-cute bookmark, and am looking forward to filling it up with the different titles as I read.

4. 2020 Christian Fiction Readers’ Challenge

Even though I would like to have a fairly balanced reading diet (which means, ideally, that I will be reading a good number of non-fiction books this year), if I am going to read fiction, I’d rather it be Christian fiction of some kind. I do enjoy some historical fiction that isn’t Christian, but not a lot. Some of the ideas here are fun—as in, I’m not sure how many “Esther” fiction writers I’ve come across so far (may need to fudge for that one…any ideas?). I’m aiming for Teir 2 (26 books), although I’d love to get through Tier 3 if I can!

Here’s my current to-be-read-next list:

Right now, I’m almost done reading Stories Behind the Songs and Hymns About Heaven by Ace Collins, but I’m not sure if I’ll be able to fit it into any of the challenges besides the NetGalley challenge. My next two, though…I think I’ll be able to manage!

Now, I need to go try to finish the 12 (!) book reviews I need to catch up on!

Are you doing any reading challenges this year? If so, which ones? What do you have up next on your to-be-read list?

NaNoWriMo 2019

December 13, 2019 by Esther Filbrun · Leave a Comment

13 Dec

I have a little picture filed away above a list of many other memory-inducing snapshots on my computer.

It’s from the first day of November, the day I was supposed to start NaNoWriMo*. Instead, my room got a thorough clean out and tidy up! I did end up writing to my word count that day, I think, but it still makes me laugh—that’s so typical of day one for me, the excitement and trepidation as one stands at the edge of a cliff, wings ready to glide, but unsure yet if the winds will be strong enough to keep you aloft.

After that initial day of procrastination with a little writing on the side, the rest of the month blurred into writing in every little tidbit of time I could snatch, sometimes staying up until 11:30 at night or later just so I could finish.

Day 1: Cleaning day!

I didn’t intend to stay up late, on October 30th or 31st when I signed up for the challenge. “I’ll only do what I reasonably can,” I promised myself. “It’s okay if I don’t win. I’ll only write as much as I have the time for.”

Ha. And ha! again.

I tend to be the type to really appreciate a challenge, and try to win the game—no matter what it is.

And despite taking nine days off throughout the month due to one reason or another, the Lord was gracious and gave me enough words to make it through.

Otherwise, through the month, we held a fun birthday party/cookout for one of my brothers, I was away for seven days (one a three-day trip to the North Island—I must share some pictures from that!), and some friends of ours moved down into our area.

Day 20: When things really started to get serious on the writing front.

It was a lovely month, overall. I’m so grateful to have been able to write again. I write a little each day, a habit I’ve tried to develop just to keep my writing “muscles” toned somewhat and hopefully grow as a writer, but I feel like you can grow a lot more as a writer by doing more all at once.

I’ve had a hard time even explaining to myself why I wanted to do NaNo so much. Part of it, I know, is the camaraderie—the knowing that thousands of other people around the world are trying to reach the same goal you’re aiming for, many succeeding, but others falling back. Part of it is the sense of accomplishment—the feeling that you actually got somewhere in that short amount of time. And part is the creative challenge, although that’s the hardest. Sitting down each day and pouring your heart and soul into the story takes far more energy than I’d ever expect.

But it’s so worthwhile. I don’t feel myself growing as a writer from one scene to the next, or chapter to the next, or really even one story to the next—but I know I am. Little by little, I’m getting better. Info-dumping scenes are occuring a little less often and I’m experimenting with adding a bit more description, bringing a bit more color with words and characters and dialogue.

It’s not easy.

But it’s worth it.

And I hope the experience can continue far beyond NaNo this year! I haven’t been writing as much in December, but I am still averaging higher daily wordcounts than normal, which is nice. Even so, I’m looking forward to (maybe next month? or February?) when I can do something like this again. 1,667 words per day aren’t that difficult—a couple of hours, max—and the way the story comes together so much better when you invest that daily time really makes it worthwhile.

What have you been working on lately? If you’re a writer, have you ever done a writing challenge before? If not, what was your favorite part of your November?

*NaNoWriMo = National Novel Writing Month; a writing challenge that runs through the month of November with the goal of ending the month with 50,000 words or more written in a new book.