Doing As Expected

The Point of the Gospel

Parable of Two sons {Matthew}

Jesus was teaching in the temple courts and said, “There was a man who had two sons. He asked the first to work in the vineyard, but he refused. Later he changed his mind and went. The father asked the same of the second son who said he would go but did not. Which of the two did what his father asked?”

“The first,” the chief priests and elders answered.

Jesus said, “The tax collectors and prostitutes are entering the kingdom of God before you. John came to show you the way of righteousness, and you did not believe him, but the tax collectors and prostitutes did. You saw this and still refused to turn from unrighteousness and believe.”

Parable of the Tenants {Matthew, Mark, and Luke}

“Listen to another parable: a landowner planted a vineyard, built a wall around it, dug a winepress in it, and built a watchtower. He rented it to some farmers and went on a journey. Near the harvest, he sent his servants to collect his share of the fruit. {Mark and Luke} He sent one servant whom they beat and sent away with nothing. They struck the second one sent on the head and treated him shamefully. They killed the third man sent. {Mark} Many others were sent and either beaten or killed. {Mark and Luke} At last the owner sent his son whom he loved.”

{Matthew} “He sent three servants. The tenants beat on one, killed another, and stoned a third. The owner sent more, all treated the same way. {Matthew, Mark, and Luke} He sent his son, thinking they’d respect him. But the tenants said to each other, ‘This is the heir. We’ll kill him and take his inheritance.’ They threw him from the vineyard and killed him. What will the owner do to those tenants?”

They answered, “He will kill them and give the vineyard to other tenants who will give him his share of the corp.”

Jesus said, “Have you not read in the Scriptures: ‘The stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone. The Lord has done this, and it is marvelous in our eyes.’” (Psalms 118: 22, 23) {Matthew and Luke} “The kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people who will produce its fruit. He who falls on this stone will be broken to pieces, and he on whom it falls will be crushed.”

Books I've Read

Quick Update

In the midst of sending out seven queries. It takes six to eight weeks on average for a response if one is given. I’ll send more out as rejections come in unless someone kindly gives me constructive criticism that I’ll put to use before sending out anymore.

Books I’ve Read

Read Brad Meltzer’s Fifth Assassin, the second book in the series begun with The Inner Circle about the Culper Ring, a group of deep undercover operatives meant to protect the Presidency, not necessarily the President. In fact, the President in these books is decidedly evil. The story’s murder mystery was solved but lots of story lines left open for another book. I enjoyed the historical facts and speculations on past events.

Close to Home by Lisa Jackson is a romantic thriller, though the thriller part is much more pronounced. The romance all together would have taken up less than a chapter. Lots of repetition and characters were on the cardboard side.

Victoria Holt was a well-known writer. The Captive was written in 1989 and was a major disappointment to me. I can’t remember the names, but I think I read her a lot as an adolescent and liked the stories. This story, told from the perspective of an eighteen-year-old woman, has her captured and put in a harem and solves a murder mystery, but she tells the story as if she’s telling a grandchild a bedtime story—kills the tension. Storyline was not the least plausible.

The Catcher in the Rye by J. D. Salinger is often on writing gurus’ lists of books everyone should read. Written in 1945, it stands up really well as an expose of a teen boy on the brink of mental illness. No real solution or ending—sad.

Finally, J. D. Robb, aka Nora Roberts, is back at the helm. The latest in death book, Obsession in Death, had that crisp, snarky voice I missed in the last couple of books and just plain better writing. I’d be amazed if she doesn’t use ghostwriters with the output she maintains—at least two in death books and who know how many Nora Roberts books every year. The plot and villain were actually better than usual, but I like the books for the family of characters and there hasn’t been any growth or major upset or event in any of their lives for a while. If that doesn’t change, I think she’ll lose readers.

Fairness and Forgiveness

The Point of the Gospel

Parables con’t

The Unforgiving Servant {Matthew}

Jesus said, “The kingdom of heaven is similar to the story of a king who wished to put his accounts in order with his servants. He called in one who owed him a great deal but hadn’t the means to repay it. The king ordered him, his wife, and his children sold to make up the debt. The servant begged his master to be patient and give him time to pay everything he owed. The king decided to be merciful, canceled the debt, and let the servant go.

“The servant went out and found a fellow servant who owed him a small amount. He grabbed him roughly and demanded the money the fellow owed him. The harassed man begged for time to repay the debt but the other servant had him thrown in prison. The rest of the king’s servants, greatly distressed, told their master all that had happened.

“The master rebuked the servant he had just forgiven. ‘Should you not have had mercy for your fellow servant when he asked, as I had for you?’ Angry, the king turned the servant over to the jailers to be tortured until he paid back his debt.

“This is how my heavenly Father shall treat those who refuse to forgive their brothers.”

The Workers in the Vineyard {Matthew}

“The kingdom of heaven is like a landowner who went out first thing in the morning to hire workers for his vineyard. They contracted to work for one denarius for the day. A few hours later, the owner went out and saw others standing idle and hired them. He did this several times throughout the day. At the end of the work day, the owner had the foreman call the workers to pay them their wages, beginning with the last hired, and on to the first hired.

“The workers hired later in the day received one denarius. Those first hired expected to receive more but also received one denarius and complained, saying, ‘Some of these laborers worked only one hour, but you made them equal to the workers who did most of the work and bore the heat of the day.’

“The owner answered. ‘How am I being unfair? Didn’t you agree to work for a denarius? Take your pay and go. Don’t I have the right to pay what I wish from my own money? Or are you jealous because I am generous?’

“The last will be first, and the first will be last.” Personal Thought: I suspect we, especially we Americans, will have a tough time reconciling God’s justice with our human notion of it. We have a much tougher time being objective and generous.

The Dreaded Synopsis

The Dreaded Synopsis

Thought I was ready to send out those query letters, but in reading the synopsis—four hundred pages of a novel smushed into two pages (yeah, right)—to a few people, it became clear that the synopsis wasn’t. People looked very confused. I think I fixed it, though much of the novel couldn’t be fit in. I kept to the most important inner conflicts of the main character, her journey to overcome a self-reliance stemming from distrust rather than a healthy need to be independent and put in only the main antagonist and the plot points concerning him.

Agents and publishers look at the query (one page only) to see if they are interested in reading more, the synopsis, which supposedly tells them whether the novel is something they’d be interested in and helps them decide if they want to read the few pages they allow you to send of the story itself. If they feel hooked by the first few pages, they may ask to see the entire manuscript. Don’t quite see how the synopsis can be much help when you have to leave so much out to fit their page requirement.

Basically, I think it gives them an idea of your voice, the tone or feel of how you write, and of your skill level. Some recommend hiring an editor to go through your novel before submitting it, but I can’t afford that. I’ve done my best to learn everything I can about grammar, sentence structure, and story structure. I hope it suffices or that my writing shows enough promise that the agents reading my material will send back specific constructive criticism rather than a form rejection.

The Goal

Being asked for the whole manuscript is like hitting the jackpot. While no guarantee that the agent will decide to represent you or that the novel will be accepted by a publisher, it is rare to be asked and proof that you are at least on the right track. Of course if someone wants to represent you, you are likely to jump at the first chance in fear that no one else will offer. Best thing is to do your homework on the agent before submitting to them to get an idea if you might be a good match. There is also good advice out there on questions to ask to help you decide. Wouldn’t it be something to have more than one interested?

Prayers appreciated.

The Lost Sheep

The Point of the Gospel

Parables con’t

Parable of the Lost Sheep {Matthew and Luke}

{Luke} Tax collectors and sinners gathered to hear Jesus, and the Pharisees and teachers of the law muttered against him for sitting with them. {Matthew} Jesus said, “See that you don’t look down on the little ones. I tell you, their angels in heaven always see the face of my Father.”

Personal Thought: wonder if this is one of the passages where the idea of guardian angels comes from.

{Matthew and Luke} “If a man owns a hundred sheep and one wanders away, don’t you think he will leave the ninety-nine on the hills and go look for the lost one? {Luke} And when he finds it, he joyfully drapes it over his shoulders and goes home to tell his friends and neighbors, ‘Rejoice with me. I have found my lost sheep.’ {Matthew} He is happier over the found one than the other ninety-nine who did not wander away. In the same way, your Father in heaven is not willing that any of the little ones should be lost. {Luke} There is more delight in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who never strayed and therefore have no need to repent.”

Parable of the Lost Coin {Luke}

Jesus continued. “Suppose a woman who owns ten coins loses one. Will she not light a lamp, sweep her house, and search carefully until she finds it? And when found, she calls her friends and neighbors to rejoice with her. Just so, the angels rejoice when one sinner, sorrowful about his sins, changes his behavior.”