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What I'm writing in YEAR OF THE DOG

I just finished writing Year of the Dog ! It had a massive plot hole that I had to fix which turned out to be more work than I expected. Here’s a snippet: “Hey, Auntie Nell.” He wrapped his arms around her, bussing her on the cheek and breathing in pikake flowers and shortbread cookies. And suddenly he was nine years old again, and her solid presence had made his chaotic world stable once more. “What are you doing here?” He usually took her to dinner on Wednesday nights, but today was Tuesday. The edges of her smile faltered a little before brightening right back up again. “What, I can’t visit my nephew?” She angled around him to enter his home. “Is this your new house? Looks lovely.” Which was a blatant lie, because the fixer-upper was barely livable, much less acceptable to a neat-freak like his aunt. She also left four matching pink and purple floral suitcases on the stoop behind her. Only then did Ashwin notice the cab driver standing slightly to the side of the walkway. “Can ...
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Lectio Divina and ARMS OF DELIVERANCE

Captain’s Log, Supplemental

Blog book giveaway:
To enter, go to the blog links below and post a comment there.
She’s All That by Kristin Billerbeck
Reclaiming Nick by Susan May Warren

Win books and an iPod Nano! Contest ends January 31st. Get more info on my contest page!

Lectio Divina: This was an interesting article in Radiant magazine about how this ancient practice of monks can help us to reconnect with God in our fast-paced life.

“Simply defined, lectio divina is a slow, contemplative reading of short passages of Scripture at a time. . . . For monks, lectio divina began with the reading of text on a page, but it led naturally to prayer, meditation and contemplation of God Himself. . . . It’s easy to get stuck in a rut in our Scripture reading or to fall into a legalistic mindset that says time with God doesn’t count unless you’ve followed a certain formula. Lectio divina breathes fresh life into Scripture and opens the door for God to speak to use clearly when our dulled perception has made His voice faint.” –Rochelle Buchwald, Radiant magazine, Summer 2006 issue

Some books recommended, which I’ve put in my wishlist:
Sacred Reading: The Ancient Art of Lectio Divina by Michael Casey
Lectio Divina: Renewing the Ancient Practice of Praying the Scriptures by M. Basil Pennington
Divine Intervention: Encountering God Through the Ancient Practice of Lectio Divina by Tony Jones

They didn’t mention this book, but it’s by the man who did The Message translation and it got a good review from PW:
Eat This Book: A Conversation in the Art of Spiritual Reading by Eugene Peterson

How about you? Any favorite ways you have of spending time with God?

Arms of Deliverance by Tricia Goyer

The fourth and final novel in this exhilarating series capturing the tales of men and women swept into World War II.

Two friends, Mary and Lee, land similar reporting jobs at the New York
Tribune on the eve of the war’s outbreak and soon they become competitors. Mary’s coverage of a bombing raid over Germany leads to a plane wreck and an adventurous escape attempt from across enemy lines. And when Lee hears of Mary’s plight, she bravely heads to war-torn Europe in an effort to help rescue her friend. Will there be enough time for diplomacy or will war get the best of everyone?

This week, the Christian Fiction Blog Alliance is featuring Tricia Goyer’s novel. Readers who loved the powerful From Dust and Ashes will enjoy this.
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Comments

Anonymous said…
I've got this book and blogged about it a while back. It's incredible...TRICIA is incredible--one of my absolute favorite writers! I've never been disappointed in her writing, and I'm rather snobby about writing. LOL
Wed Jan 17, 05:42:00 AM 2007
Anonymous said…
It's hard to this these days, but I love to get out in nature and just be. It's like God and I are heart to heart.
Wed Jan 17, 07:19:00 AM 2007
Anonymous said…
Congrats to Tricia!

I found the Lectio Divina and some of the other books/authors you mentioned to be eerily similar to the meditation/buddhist practices that I left behind after I became a Christian. Reader beware. Sift and test everything.
Wed Jan 17, 11:01:00 AM 2007
Shelley L. MacKenzie said…
I am so behind in reading, what with going to school and having tons of books that I have to read, my knitting, trying to write (though admittedly that has fallen way behind too) and life. I've got some books that I want to read and just need to sit down and do it...maybe I should get them on tape/cd or something so I can listen to them while I knit...
Wed Jan 17, 06:45:00 PM 2007
Anonymous said…
I think the books sound very interesting. That sort of prayer reminds me a lot of what I saw at IHOP (the prayer place, not the pancake place). I thought the repetitious prayer and worship quite moving and really helping bring about a deeper place of worship. There's not a lot of room to obsess about one's fat rolls, for example, when you're completely focused on the holiness of Jesus.
Fri Jan 19, 10:32:00 PM 2007
Anonymous said…
Camy, thanks for having me!!!

Also, I love reading about Spiritual Disciplines and practicing them. I love how they help me to connect with God.

xoxo Tricia
Mon Jan 22, 10:34:00 AM 2007
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