Logocentric (adj).Regarding words and language as a fundamental expression of an external reality (especially applied as a negative term to traditional Western thought by postmodernist critics).
Sometimes I just write whatever I feel like. Other times I respond to prompts, many taken from the following places:
I have always enjoyed the longer distance running and skiing. The Marathon in Summer Olympics and the 50km Mass Start in the Winter. My wife can't understand how I can watch the same race for several hours. But they are fascinating to me. I like the Downhill Slalom, Bobsled and Luge sports. Attending a Winter Olympics remains on my bucket list.
My favorite sporting events in the Winter Olympics are the Luge, Bobsled, Figure Skating and curling. Initially, I thought I would be bored with curling but I'm not. It's fascinating how they determine each glide's angle and potential score.
When my children were younger we built them a luge course, they loved it. We were lucky that winter to have lots of snow to build up the walls and with some help with pallets that we covered with snow, it kept them and the neighborhood kids busy until it warmed up and melted. I was a lot more at ease with the luge course than I was when they decided to try arial jumps off our house roof. Never a dull moment when you live in Maine.
I am reading ESV through the Bible this time. Like you, I've explored a bunch of translations. My church uses NIV but my women's Bible study group (part of the same church) varies based on what Bible study we're doing.
Hope you enjoy the Olympics! I agree that the every four year thing makes them feel more special.
I read the New American Bible, which is a Catholic Bible. (NABRE) They include Tobit, Judith, 1 & 2 Maccabees, which generally aren't included in other versions of the Bible. I would be curious to read an orthodox bible or the Ethiopian Bible as I hear they have differences as well.
As for the Olympics, I love the Winter Olympics. I'm just crossing my fingers I have time to watch!
In terms of the original texts the NASB has the best reputation among conservative scholars. It looks at more translations, has a sensible hierarchy of text selection and the best principles for approaching the translation task. It favors original texts when possible. The ESV and NKJV are on a similar level. The Net Bible gives the best overview of the discussions in its commentary. The NIV renders the original text to make it more readable. It is a more functional text which is why many churches use it but it is also less precise. Greek or Russian orthodox are more Septuagint orientated and there is a considerable amount of ethical or emotional rendering to the text.The disadvantage of the NASB is that it loses much of the Hebrew poetical style in its effort to be precise as this does not translate into the English
I'm very fortunate to have met some practicing and humble Christians. Truly humble people seek to serve, not attain power and influence. The actions of many Christians make me run the opposite way... as fast as I can.
In his book, Sit, Walk, Stand, Watchman Nee states: "Nothing has done greater damage to our Christian testimony than our trying to be right and demanding right of others. We become preoccupied with what is and what is not right. We ask ourselves,' Have we been justly or unjustly treated?' and we think thus to vindicate our actions. But that is not our standard. The whole question for us is one of crossbearing".
Jeff, this is an excellent book. Perhaps one for your reading list?
NONFICTION PROMPT for 1/1/17: Anaïs Nin wrote that, "The role of the writer is not to say what we can all say but what we are unable to say." Write about an author or piece of writing you feel does a particularly good job of saying what others have been unable to say. If you haven't read anything yet, write about an author or piece of writing you'd like to read that fits that description.
Last year, I really enjoyed Counting by 7s by Holly Goldberg Sloan, which was a fantastic book that told the story from the perspective of a child with special needs. The main character, Willow Chance, like many children with special needs, is remarkably competent, even gifted in some areas (numbers, nature, medical conditions) while simultaneously really struggling in others (social norms, interacting with others).
My wife is a special education teacher and often talks about how misrepresented this population is in fiction, if it's represented at all. Kids with special needs are either shown as deficient, or as some kind of savant. It was refreshing to see a character who acted like a normal person... someone who has a sharp mind for things that keenly interest her, and has trouble understanding why other people think her behavior is odd or unusual when that's just how she sees and interacts with the world.
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NONFICTION PROMPT FOR 1/2/17: What are your writing desires? Take the time to put those goals in writing. Or better yet, write an entry for the "Dear Me: Official Contest" and put yourself in the running for a lot of gift points while you're at it!
Fortunately, I already did this one earlier this week: "Dear Me (2017)"
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FICTION PROMPT FOR 1/3/17: person about to pawn an heirloom, neglected sibling, wish comes true, wrong side of the tracks
I wrote a little limerick inspired by today's prompts: "Fishful Thinking"
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NONFICTION PROMPT FOR 1/4/17: Do you consider yourself a good editor of your own work, or do you prefer to have someone else do it?
I consider myself a good developmental editor and an okay copyeditor. I like to think that my years of reading and reviewing scripts, books, and other creative material has given me a good sense of story, character, dialogue, and the other elements of creative writing, and I've got a pretty good eye for crafting a good sentence. That said, I fully recognize that everyone benefits from outside opinions, especially because writers are so close to their own work, and I know I have a few technical issues that I always seem to muddle (lay vs. lie, tense shifts, unnecessary punctuation).
My thoughts on editing my professional work can pretty much be summed up as "prefer to have an outside editor, will do it myself if necessary." There isn't always time or money to do all the things you want, so I'll do everything myself if I have to, engage a copyeditor if at all possible, and maybe a developmental editor (or at least alpha or beta readers) when schedule and circumstance permits.
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NONFICTION PROMPT FOR 1/5/17: Have/would you ever consider using a pseudonym for your work? Why or why not?
The only time I would ever really consider a pseudonym is if I were to self-publish drastically different types of work. I've heard a lot of people say that it can be more difficult to establish a presence and build a following if your author identity is all over the place with multiple genres, both fiction and nonfiction, etc. because people coming to you for your nonfiction, for example, are suddenly wondering why they have to sift through a bunch of mystery novels... or a sci-fi/fantasy author might confuse their following if a bunch of literary fiction titles are popping up alongside their space operas and sword and sorcery epics.
I don't think I'd ever adopt a pseudonym in order to keep my work a secret or separated from my real life, but I would definitely consider one to make it easier for audiences to find my work. I still haven't decided whether I'll actually use pseudonym(s) or not since I do have aspirations in multiple different genres and types of writing, but I suppose that's a bridge I'll cross when I get to it.
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