One day, an old man cheerfully pushed a wheelbarrow of manure down the bumpy road that led towards his house.
Author: vanessafowler
Marshmallows
Two brothers roasted marshmallows over a stove, or at least they tried to.
A short story without a title
Since I've been struggling to fully delve into writing a new novel, here is my back-up plan: a short story. In fact, based on the advice of an author I love, I'd set out to write one short story a week about three weeks ago. That hasn't happened. However, yesterday, after taking my dog for a walk on the beach, and after my daughter's work ended over an hour late, I forced myself to write: my goal was to scratch out a short story on paper, no matter how terrible it was. And I had a half hour to do it...read at your own risk.
When if feels like grit punches you in the face
Grit, with its intensity, diligence, perseverance, and passion-against-all odds qualities, is a character trait I most heartily pursue and value. I have tried, not only to apply grit to my relationships and dreams, but also to nurture it in the lives my children and students. At times however, it feels like grit punches you in the face. Some weeks, its not just one punch, but many-like grit's suddenly turned into Cobra Kai's John Kreese and is relentlessly driving fists into you without mercy.
National Suicide Prevention
September 6th through 12th was National Suicide Prevention week. Many times I've heard this about suicide: "how selfish." But during National Suicide Prevention week, a post from TWLOHA (To Write Love On Her Arms), really stuck with me and challenged that line of thinking. I forget the woman's exact words, but they went something like: … Continue reading National Suicide Prevention
To anyone who feels irritating…
Do you consistently irritate or disappoint people? Like you always do or say the wrong thing? I feel that way a lot. Even though that is such a discouraging feeling, I know God can use anyone. Hopefully, this video can be a little bit of encouragement to somebody. https://youtu.be/UTvVPmXO6Fo
Stay with me 10 minutes
Looking through old blog drafts, I found this one from when Maile was ten. Was that really almost six years ago? Wow! Hard to believe.
Writing Journey Update
Sorry for the lack of updates. Thank you to those of you who have asked about the blog, and encouraged me to maintain it. Since Nanowrimo last fall, this is what's happened: I've revised Mirror of Sparrows twiceI participated in a fantastic plot workshopI submitted what I have to my freelance editor This is what … Continue reading Writing Journey Update
#NaNoWriMo, again
It's Nanowrimo time again! For those of you who don't know, National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo) is a time when writers from all over the world commit to writing 50,000 words during November.
Scythe and Thunderhead, by Neal Shusterman
IIn many ways, these books are disturbing reads, and for that reason, I would not recommend them for most people. However, I find them worth commenting about because they tackle with death, artificial intelligence, God, and human brokenness; Shusterman has found a way to create a fascinating framework from which to wrestle with these subjects.
Vanessa Fowler 