Introducing ‘Ole Bill’

| Sandra Pavloff Conner

 

cartoon-writer-yell-spikey-hair-2You all know — well, at least all my readers who have been around a while know — how much I love to introduce new bloggers and channel visits their way. Today I’m really happy to tell you about a blog called “Pen In Hand.”  It’s hosted by a delightful man and good friend named Bill Murphy (hence the “Ole Bill” handle in his Internet address).  And let me hasten to add that I’m not the one who started referring to him as “Ole Bill.” That’s his own choice for handles, and it just about sums up his fun personality.

Bill and his wife hail from Mississippi, USA, but they now live closer to me in Illinois. He has written most of his life — and is quite good at it — but only recently decided to jump into Cyberspace with his talent. He writes about all kinds of things — both fiction and non-fiction — and he often draws on his real-life personal experiences for material.

If you enjoy sitting back, propping up your feet, and just enjoying life, you’ll like visiting Bill’s site. Just follow the link in the blog title above and pay him a visit. Be sure and tell him I sent you.

 

 

~~~

Share Your World 2/6/17

| Sandra Pavloff Conner

If you’d like to join the “Share Your World” fun, you can find the details here at Cee’s site.

BOX OF CHOCOLATES

Question # 1: Regarding your fridge, is it organized or a mess inside?

Exactly what is the definition of “organized”?  If it means that my milk is always on the left side of the top shelf, and my butter is always in the butter compartment, and my cheese is always in the cheese drawer, then it’s organized. However, if it means that all the other things in there are neatly placed in their own specific place — or that there are no left-over containers that have been sitting there for a few weeks, getting pushed farther to the back every day — then I would have to confess to the “mess.”

Question # 2: Do you prefer your food separated or mixed together?

I want all my food on the same plate so I can enjoy it all together. That doesn’t mean that I stir it all up together. But I eat some of all of it throughout the meal. To me the flavors of any food are made better by the complimentary flavors of all the accompanying food. I know a few people who eat only one item at a time until it is gone and then start in on the second item. When it is finally gone, they move on to the next and the next. Seems like a boring, miserable way to eat a meal to me. I went to grade school with a girl whose parents insisted that the whole family eat that way. I always felt sorry for her.

Question # 3: Do you prefer reading coffee table books (picture), biographies, fiction, non-fiction, educational?

Yes, yes, yes, yes, and yes.

Question # 4: Close your eyes. Listen to your body. What part of your body is seeking attention? What is it telling you?

My tummy, my brain, and my palate are all talking at once. They are saying, “Give us some chocolate!!!”

Bonus Question: What are you grateful for from this past week, and what are you looking forward to in the week ahead?

I’m grateful for all the celebrating I got to do for my birthday, and for the load of presents I received.

Next week, I am going to be working hard getting everything in gear for the next Healing School, which begins February 21. It is one of my favorite parts of the ministry the Lord allows me to do, and I’m really looking forward to it, and to seeing many people receive healing from the Lord during those 6 weeks.

~~~

‘Releasing the Creative Writer in You’- Instruction in the Craft of Writing

| Sandra Pavloff Conner

releasing-the-creative-writer-in-you-coverToday’s prompt from the Daily Post gives me the perfect opportunity to introduce a new series of articles I’ll be offering on this site. I’ve taught creative writing for years, and I am currently gearing up to begin an online instructional course (via e-mail) that I can offer to people who want to take my writing courses but who don’t live within commuting distance. While preparing for that online project, I decided to offer a series of instructional articles here on my website as well.

Of course, the articles here won’t include any editing or feedback for people who do the exercises or write stories connected with the instruction. That service will be part of the actual online e-mail course only. But I thought there might be several readers who would like to glean from the information, suggestions, and experience that I can share from this venue.

The material will come primarily from my writing curriculum Releasing the Creative Writer in You (2013, St. Ellen Press). Some articles will simply be encouragement in certain areas, but many of them will offer specific suggestions that can lead us to keep making our writing better.

I know for certain that I am a much better writer today than I was 10 years ago. In fact, there’s such a difference that I rarely go back and read any of the novels I wrote the first couple years of my fiction writing because I always want to change way too many things, and I’m frustrated because the books are already in publication. But my improvement in writing was primarily the result of writing.  As simple as that sounds, it’s the truth. The more we write — and the more we challenge ourselves to stretch out into new territory and experiment in areas beyond our comfort zones — the better we become at our craft.

So I’ll be posting some segments of my curriculum on here once a week for several weeks. Some of my readers are brand new writers, who can glean something useful from all of the posts. However, I know many of you will already be very familiar with the skills and techniques I’ll be discussing. Hopefully, even for the very experienced, the articles will still give a lift and maybe a new surge of energy. The first couple of posts will be articles that I’ve posted in the past, but they are the best way to introduce the curriculum, so I’ll begin with them.

My plan is to post the instructional articles on Saturdays. I hope they are a source of real help to any readers who are just beginning to delve into their own creativity and writing skills, and an encouragement to several of you out there who already enjoy practicing and maturing your craft.

I love teaching my creative writing classes, and I’m excited about sharing more of that same material here.

 

Daily Post Prompt: The Scent of You

| Sandra Pavloff Conner

 

woman-looking-up-for-profileThe scent of you:
It calls me from my worried place
And draws me into quiet peace
As your essence gently folds
Around my soul.

The scent of you:
It fills my senses with delight
And stirs the embers of desire
Into a lavish, living fire
That satisfies.

The scent of you:
It causes me to seek to know
My inner self, my deepest soul,
And then to strive to be the best
That I can be.

 

Take part in today’s prompt by visiting the Daily Post.

 

~~~

Daily Post Prompt: Yellow

| Sandra Pavloff Conner

Well, this is a another oldie that I pulled from the archives, but it fits the prompt so perfectly that I couldn’t resist.

CLIP ART SUNSET

 

YELLOW

Yellow sun, yellow moon,
Yellow ribbon on yellow balloon;

Yellow crayons for coloring,
Yellow bird that chirps and sings.

Yellow squash ripe on the vine,
Yellow daffodils — all mine.

Yellow hair, with cheeks so pink,
Yellow lemonade to drink;

Yellow duckies, yellow chicks,
Yellow grapefruit freshly picked;

Yellow butter drips and drops
From tender, yellow corn-on-cob.

Yellow curtains, crisp and bright,
Yellow anti-bug porch light;

But yellow has its ugly side:
Yellow fever; could have died;

Yellow-bellied, yellow streak,
Yellow-livered, backbone weak.

And sometimes yellow can’t be seen:
It hides in blue and turns to green.

If you want to participate in today’s prompt, you’ll find the details here.

 

Friday Fictioneers 1/27/17 – The Date

| Sandra Pavloff Conner

This week’s Friday Fictioneers 100-Word challenge was hard for me. I just couldn’t get “connected” with those antique cars. But finally, thanks to Orville and Julie-Bell, I managed to come up with something. If you’d like to join the fun follow the link and get the details.

My story is below Al’s photo prompt.

PHOTO PROMPT © Al Forbes
Copyright Al Forbes

THE DATE

 

“Orville! Stop pretending we’re out of gas, and get me home!”

“But – ”

“Stop. Aunt Pearl always said never trust any man who drives a crank-up machine with no top.”

“Oh, Julie-Bell … Honey,” Orville cooed, wrapping his arms around her. “Just one little kiss.”

Julie squirmed, blushed, fluttered her eyelids. “Well …”

“That’s my girl.”

Just as Orville’s lips settled firmly in place, the sky burst open, and drenched the lovers.

“Now look what you’ve done,” Julie wailed.

Orville hopped out and went to crank the motor. “Well, at least I can skip the cold shower when I get home.”

 

 

~~~

Prompt Nights – Glimpse Into the World of Edgar Allen Poe

| Sandra Pavloff Conner

This week on “Prompt Nights” Sanaa has challenged us to get our inspiration from Edgar Allen Poe. I’m super pressed with my regular teaching this week, so I don’t have time to write a brand new piece, but Sanaa assures us that previously written work is welcome. So since the theme immediately brought to mind a story I wrote some time ago — and since it’s a story I think even Ol’ Edgar himself would appreciate — I’ll share it this week. (Those of you who have read it previously have my permission to skip it this time.)

THE FOG

LIGHTHOUSE WITH FOG
The fog’s especially heavy tonight. I can’t see three feet past the door, so I guess it’s a good time to stay inside and write this letter. The lighthouse on the island has sounded the foghorn every two minutes for hours now.

I haven’t been back to the island since that night. In some ways, I wish I had moved away when you did. I’m sure it’s a lot easier on you not having to look out across the water and see that island every day. I know the spot is overgrown now, but I can still pick it out as clearly as if we’d left a marker. And hearing that blasted horn blow every time the fog moves in really gets on my nerves.

Tonight it’s as thick out there as it was the night we buried him. I often wonder what would have happened if the fog had lifted in time for someone to see us digging the grave. But, of course, that wasn’t likely to happen. Once the dratted stuff moves in, it clings to us like a shroud for the whole night.

I wish you were sitting here with me, sharing a bottle of our favorite whiskey. I hate being alone with my thoughts. I’m always chilled and shaky when there’s fog. And it feels as if something’s choking me. I wonder if that’s how he felt as we tightened that rope around his neck until he stopped breathing.

I sure wish you were here with me. I hate fog.

~~~

Daily Post Prompt: Successful

| Sandra Pavloff Conner

I decided to respond to today’s prompt with a picture. It’s one of the most “successful” pieces of photographic art I’ve seen in many years. And, of course, it’s from my wonderful photographer/artist friend, Terry Valley.

midnight-swan-full-size

~~~