Reading, Writing and Rambling

A little over a year ago, I posted about a Successful Experiment that Failed. Basically, I was gaining readership through a formula I'd learned from a best-selling author. But in the end, it was less than fulfilling. I didn't want readers just to have readers. I simply wanted to blog whenever I wanted to and if anybody took notice, it was a bonus. Much of my attention reverted to easier places like Facebook, where one-sentence thoughts are more acceptable than on a blog. Obviously, it's an easier pastime.

But I'm still a writer, and I still like to ramble...pretty much about anything. Which can be, at times, more appropriate in a blog setting. So today, the topic is books. Not my books, though.

When I was younger, I couldn't get enough of reading. I don't know how many times I walked to the library to check out more books. I remember picking out the illustrated children's books, later graduating to the chapter books in the young adult section. I can still smell the basement floor. You know - the musty pages smell that only comes from well-used books. Back then, I had to learn how to find books by sifting through literal cards. Books weren't scanned - they were hand-marked by the librarian.

When I started writing my own books, I began using most of my spare time to write, not read. If I had ten minutes or ten hours, I wanted to get in all the writing I could, so I didn't make time to read, unless it was a book I was really interested in. So for a handful of years, I rarely read any books.

Then the bug bit me just recently and I've fallen in love all over again. Granted, now it's a mix of novels and educational material, but either way, I'm rediscovering my love of reading. Books. Real books. Not intangible files I've downloaded on my computer, but real, honest-to-goodness books that have actual pages that I can feel and smell and dog-ear. I can scribble notes, underline, highlight and thumb through pages to find my place. I can take books wherever I go without worrying about running out of battery or having internet access. I can put them all on my shelf in any order I please, and I don't have to perform searches to find them again.

I'm not saying I don't read on my computer or smartphone. Actually, I read quite a bit on my smartphone. But when I really want to sit down and enjoy a good story, or I want to dive into the study of a topic in which I'm interested, I'll choose the paperback version over digital any day.

We may have entered a digital age, but mark my words (you can print this out and underline and highlight if you want), printed words will always have a place in the hearts, hands and homes of true readers.

How about you? Do you prefer digital reading or printed?


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A Long Journey

I just made the official announcement on Facebook that my new devotion book, God at the Reins is now available to purchase. It has been...a long journey. And for my shortest book (just 112 pages), you'd think it wouldn't have taken me this many years to finally see it in print.

To be honest, it's been a struggle since the very beginning, with the first question of, "How many devotions do I include in this book?" It wasn't long before I landed on the number 52. That meant I had a lot of work to do...but also far less work than if I'd gone for a daily devotional of 365 - I wanted to create a new project, not a goal I couldn't accomplish.

Thinking up a total of 52 parallels between lessons learned with horses and life lessons as a Christian really wasn't as daunting as I'd first thought it might be. It was fun to actually put on paper what I'd discovered through years of horsemanship. Putting three passions together (writing, horses and my faith) was a good experience as always.

But then...I started running out of steam when I got somewhere around devotion number 30, and the project was set aside to make room for my other writing addictions. My novel, Discovering the Dawn, was published (while my devotion book was still waiting on me), as was my collection, Smatterings of an Analytical Loner, and my writer's guide, Under Construction. Somewhere in between all of that, I did manage to complete all 52 devotions ("complete" as in having them typed out). There were many, many long pauses between the first editing process, the second editing, the hunt for applicable Bible verses (which I finally "outsourced" to my mother [who is the editor of Daily Devotions for the Deaf, and a Bible guru] because by that point, my brain was all but fried completely).

Eventually, I had all of my text and all Bible verses together in one file. For all practical purposes, the manuscript itself was "done." I needed to start formatting - laying out all the pages, picking fonts, making everything look neat and tidy, etc. And...my heart just wasn't in it.

During the fall of 2013, my life changed in a way that affected this particular project - or at least the portion of my heart that was attached to the book. For the first time since childhood, I was without a horse. My life had evolved, and I was moving into town without the possibility of keeping my horse. She went to a loving home, and I knew it was for the best - I was very happy with where I was now living and my activities outside horsemanship. But whenever I would think about finishing my devotion book, it just hit a little too close to home. I missed horses too much to worry about completing the book.

Yet, it was an unfinished project, and if there's one thing I can't stand, it's leaving something unfinished. I eventually set a new goal. The fall of 2014. That's when this book would be released. And... it didn't happen. I was able to find enough motivation to have the text proofed and to make all the final revisions that needed to be made. But the motivation was short-lived, and the book once again was left to sit. Until now.

Maybe it was the start of a new year. Maybe it was the frustration that I'd not yet met my goals with the devotions. Or, maybe it was simply the right time - God's time. No matter the reason, I knew I needed to finish God at the Reins. I set to work on all the layout and design elements - formatting all of the inside pages, creating a cover, and producing a graphic to spruce up the text. And for the first time since the idea's birth, it felt right.

Here's the thing: I left the devotions with their original perspectives. This means that when I talk about my horse, it's in the present. She is my horse on those pages, not was. I thought about rewriting all of the text to indicate I no longer have a horse at this current date. But even though God at the Reins is published in 2015, the devotions were written several years ago when I was much more involved with horses. And even though I may not have ownership of a horse right now, I have no idea what the future holds. I will forever be a horseman at heart, whether I'm able to feel the mighty animal move beneath me on a daily basis, or only on rare occasion.

The purpose of God at the Reins remains as it always has (regardless of whether or not I currently own a horse) - to provide some hope and inspiration to those who are curious about horses, those who simply enjoy the beauty of horses, or those who are actively involved with horses. The book is about life. About faith. About taking simple experiences with an animal and turning them into lessons that stick with us for a lifetime.

Each book I write takes me on some kind of journey. Maybe that's why I'm so addicted to this art. Each time I produce a newly published project, it is simply evidence of new ideas, inspiration, creativity and growth in some way, shape or form. Each book is covered in my fingerprints...and God at the Reins is no exception.


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