A daydream takes the mind upon a flight
of visions dancing ‘cross the brain of sight,
imagine if you can a tale of weeds
clawed and deep within the flowers of seed,
choking out such beauty to die and bend
never to grow up but meet its end,
but fingers claw and pull out from the muck
life’s problems sewing in and now are stuck,
yank once then twice and thrown aside and out
of God’s garden that man has strewn about,
at last sun’s rays uplift His color wheel
of blooms with sweetest scents that touch and heal
our body, mind, and soul from evil’s clutches,
blessing all who bow, and Jesus touches.
Category: Fiction
Hanging by His Hand by L. M. Montes
The present is but a wave
creeping toward the shore,
then in a breath it’s gone–
backwards evermore.
In life our friends and family,
warm our hearts and stay,
in our minds and in our soul,
then gone to our dismay.
Time’s wind blows at vicious speeds,
our memories we take hold,
that is all we have one day,
when we are growing old.
Alone we feel when most are gone,
as to the grave they go,
where does one lean in nothingness,
no one is there, you know.
But Christ is here and looking down,
and sees our pain that stands,
His love surrounds and comforts,
as you’re hanging by His hand.
by L. M. Montes
World Building
What’s in the world around you? Do you at times cringe at what you see? Do you take pleasure in what beauty befalls your eyes at various times? Or do you turn your back on it and say “BAH”? Well, I say there should be a happy medium of both good and bad and then make it what you will.
When we as adults are learning something (whatever it may be), be bring to this new knowledge our prior experiences so as to make comparisons. In turn this brings understanding. Plus, we can use the prior experiences of others to learn from as well. What you are doing here is building your knowledge, increasing it even, so you can draw upon it later and use it.
In creating a fictional world, we are doing essentially the same thing. We draw upon what we know of our everyday world around us and places we’ve traveled to and fictionalize them, or we use bits and pieces of it and create a world of fantasy and magic.
Use what you see. Take notes of it. Brainstorm ways you can use it. Draw a map of your created world. But don’t stop there. There is more to world building than its looks/appearance. Made up world have their own government, gods, religion, beings, environment, etc. Below are some links to some great books on world building.
Villanelle II by L. M. Montes
Dancing along the grass of day
The breeze does waltz in step,
Whistling a song in a joyous way.
Sandy beaches, lush and light, on you I lay,
Arms of waves roll in with gentle stretch,
Dancing along the grass of day.
Cliffs afar loom as if to say,
Do not climb me now you little wretch,
Whistling a song in a joyous way.
Horizons brag a darkening sun that lays,
Adrift and buoyant and sleep is next,
Dancing along the grass of day.
Clouds aloft do witness in dismay,
All that was and is on oceans decks,
Whistling a song in a joyous way.
For you I give this rose in May,
With a ring of old and I thee wed,
Whistling a song in a joyous way,
Dancing along the grass of day.
by L. M. Montes
A Day at the Beach by L. M. Montes
Smooth water,
turquoise blue,
sunny sands,
lie under you.
A far away voice,
and seagulls call,
to anyone out there,
where waves do fall.
A palm tree bows,
your cheek it tickles,
in breezes pushing,
from an ocean’s cold prickle.
A setting sun,
clouds fade to dark,
stars peek out,
the day is done.
by L. M. Montes
Gimme a Break
Sometimes the words don’t come. They are there but stuck inside your head. They press against your brain, they even knock against it. But they don’t know how to make it to the page. Ahhhhh!! What do you do? I mean, yeah, you can see in our head what you want to write (we’re talking about fiction here, story writing). You see the scene. You might think it would be easy to write it out because you see it so clearly. But no.
How does that happen? Why do writers get stuck like this? I’m not talking about writers block. Writers block is when you can’t think of anything. There is nothing running through your brain. Nothing. But, with the situation mentioned in the above paragraph, the story is there, the words are there. They are just in your head rolling around.
- Perhaps you are trying too hard to get the scene just right.
- You are having a difficult time choosing the right words that will have the greatest impact on the reader. Well, you can come up with what you think is the best way to write something and someone will still be disappointed. Why? Because we can’t please everyone.
A free write is the best way to get passed this word stuckness. Just write everything down as it comes to you without worrying about the best way to say what you you want to say. Spill it all out there. When you’re done, walk away from it for a little while. Then go back, read through your free write. You will be amazed at how easy everything comes to you. You will know what to keep, what to change, and what to add.
Me? I like to think about it. Roll the scene around in my head and try out different ways of starting it (or continuing it if I’m in the middle of a scene). I have taken time off of writing for a few days, so I can think my story through. I am most comfortable with this option. I do the free write too sometimes. It just depends.
Full Rainbow
I was on a walk and happened to look up. This is what I saw. One of God’s beautiful rainbows.
Types of Conflict (Part 4)
Person vs Technology
This type of conflict is where a person(s) go up against the perilous effects of technology moving in a forward direction. Someone had a great idea that sounded great at the time, but when the idea was tried out or an experiment done, something went very wrong. A classic tale that depicts this is the book by Mary Shelley, Frankenstein. Some other examples are 2001: A Space Odyssey, The Terminator, The Giver, The Matrix… The list goes on.
Types of Conflict (Part 3)
Person vs. Nature
This type of conflict would be any story with a plot where a person or people are going up against nature. What immediately comes to mind is a story with a husband and wife who go hiking up into the mountains and an unexpected snow storm hits. They are prepared for cold weather but not for a storm. They try to get back down the mountain to safety before it’s impossible to do so. But they continue to run up against set back after set back…..
Books with Person vs. Nature Conflict:
Into Thin Air by Jon Krakauer
To Build a Fire by Jack London
A Walk in the Woods by Bill Bryson
Deliverance by James Dickey
Movies with Person vs. Nature Conflict
Cast Away (2000)
Life of Pi (2012)
Meek’s Cutoff (2010)
The Call of the Wild (1972)
Grizzly Man (2005)
A-HA
That moment when you’re writing. You stop to think about your main character and brainstorm ideas about what you can do to make him/her a more in depth person. You wonder also about what the major issue will be that he/she must struggle with and in the end will allow him/her to grow.
