Tag Archives: Tied in Pink

What an Amazing Adventure!

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OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERAToday our Write Life series guest is the delightful, hugely inspiring, and always encouraging Anusha Atukorala. Anusha is one of those people who brighten the world wherever they go, and even when life offers lemons, she not only makes lemonade, she drops in a couple of ice cubes and makes it sparkle. It’s an absolute pleasure to host her today and I’m looking forward to reading about her ‘write’ amazing adventure!

 

My “Write Life” has been a remarkable journey – not without its bumps and twists but also with a cartload of joy and fun thrown in. It has been one of deep fulfillment not because of the millions I have yet to earn! But due to the immense satisfaction derived from the writing process. So … what have I learnt during this exciting voyage?

First. About life. Writing has forced me to reflect on my journey and what it’s all about. It has been a teacher in its own right. Rather than having it all sorted out in my brain and then verbalising it – I find that the writing process helps me organise my thoughts and learn new lessons from life. Putting it down helps me know myself better. Interesting. Further, it has reinforced my life values. That of working hard, of persistence, of refusing to give up against the odds, of not expecting instant results, of being faithful.

During the past few years, I’ve been challenged by my own writing – like an injection which turns back on the nurse administering it, to pierce her own skin instead, (ouch)! Or like a boomerang that returns to bop one on the head. I’ve often blogged, confident I was living true to what I’d written about. However, no sooner was my blog published than I’d be urgently challenged. If I’d written about forgiveness, there’d come a difficult person to trip me up. If I wrote about trusting God – there’d arrive a tough scenario where trusting didn’t come easy. Writing has forced me to own responsibility over my life and my actions. It has also shown me that just like my writing, I am still a work in progress.

And then, I’ve learnt the value of doing what’s important in life – not pleasing others or doing what brings outward reward – but doing what feeds my spirit and honours God. I’ve discovered that there is an important common thread in fiction and in real life. The depth of a good story is often the element of mystery in it. ‘Things are not what they seem.’ Life is much the same. Things are not what they seem. What happens to us and to those we love might seem meaningless. It may look as if evil is triumphing over goodness.

Ah! But there is hope. We are all part of the one amazing story of God. All will be revealed at the grand ending to our story. Till then – we can but hold onto the handlebars and enjoy the ride – perhaps screaming all the way, like relishing a Disneyworld adventure ride. The end will be worth it. So yes, my “Write Life” has been an exciting, fulfilling one – not without its challenges – but it has helped me know myself and to know what it is to be human. To grow in character through the power of words and to reach out gladly in the process so I can touch and bless my world.

Tied in Pink_JennyAnusha Atukorala has been in love with the English all her life. She’s also passionate about Jesus, life, family, friendship, reading, writing, music and the beauty of creation. Her first book ‘Enjoying the Journey‘ contains 75 stories of little lessons from everyday life. Her latest accomplishment is her first fiction story to be published in an Anthology called ‘Tied in Pink’ launched just yesterday – raising money for breast cancer research. (Follow links to find out more or purchase a copy.) Do drop in at her website, Dancing in the Rain, to say G’day – she’d love to connect with you.

Herding Cats

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JeanetteOHaganWrites250This week’s ‘Write Life’ guest blogger is emerging author, Jeanette O’Hagan. Jeanette’s approach to writing is remarkably intellectual and detail focussed, yet incredibly imaginative. Make sure you’ve got your pre-orders in the day her novels spin off the press – that is, once she’s done wrangling felines into order. Thanks, Jeanette. 🙂

 

A random thought. Writing is a bit like herding cats.

Well, at the moment it seems a lot like it to me. Over the last six weeks I feel like I’ve been skating from one urgent task to another – from kitchen renovations gone AWOL, family responsibilities and visits, study commitments, conferences, camps, retreats, birthday celebrations (a 5th and a 94th) and NaNoWriMo. Not to mention doing final edits and proofs on my first published story (a short story in the Tied in Pink anthology), follow-up on editorial appointments, hot weather and storms. It hasn’t been all bad – in fact, a lot of it has been wonderful: like being cheered on as I finished NaNo at the Writers Retreat, looking forward to my first publishing credit, or spending time with my family. Even so, it has been frenetic, a tad chaotic and draining.

So as I sit down to write this post, my thoughts are scattering all over the place, heading off in a thousand and one different directions and tipping their feline noses in the air at the very thought of cohering into anything rational – let alone brilliant, scintillating or inspirational. And sometimes, being a writer is just like that – juggling the demands of life with the need to find the head-space to write or juggling different ideas and images that pull away in different directions.

And so I reflect that writing at times is about forgetting about herding and just letting go. Maybe letting go of some of those riotous ideas for now – and allowing space for others. Or maybe, letting go of the need to arrange the cats – ahem, ideas – into neat, orderly and perfect rows. Or letting go of the need to impress or to control and allowing the ideas to lead. After all, in the beginning of all this, I didn’t choose to be a writer. Rather, the stories chose me. They were my invisible companions through most of my childhood – a way of sublimating angst and uncertainties into fantastical adventures; a way of growing in understanding of the Great Storyteller who calls me to be a part of His story.

And then it occurs to me, that maybe ‘herding cats’ could apply to groups of writers as well. Writing is so often by its very nature a solitary pursuit. And while some writers are social loving extroverts, many of us are introverts. Perhaps we like doing things by and for ourselves. Yet one thing I have learnt over the last few years is that we are stronger as writers and go further and last longer if we are willing to boost up each other. Even cats can team up to achieve a goal worth pursuing.

Then again, maybe it’s just that life’s like that. However much we plan it, it has a tendency to take turns we never anticipated and sometimes we have to let go of our plans and trust that God knows what He’s doing.

Tied in Pink_JennyJeanette’s short story ‘The Herbalist Daughter’ is about to be published as part of the Tied in Pink anthology this month (profits from the anthology go towards Breast Cancer research). Jeanette has practiced medicine, studied communication, history and theology and has taught theology. She is currently caring for her children, enjoying post-graduate studies in writing at Swinburne University and writing her Akrad’s fantasy fiction series. You can read some of her short fiction here.
You can find her at her Facebook Page or websites JennysThread.com or Jeanette O’Hagan Writes.