Live in Balance: On finishing what I started

Last night I scrolled through my unpublished writing projects. And there are many of them. I got disheartened when I saw how many of them are still unfinished first drafts. Some may never be finished. I only let a story go if I don't like it anymore.

I have, however, several first drafts that are finished. They need editing, for sure, but the story is done. So why did I feel so negative when I saw the list of files of projects not yet done? Time seems to be the answer. I explore a little of the history of time in tomorrow's post, in the A to Z Challenge.

Time, yes, the one limited resource over which we have no control. But we can control how we spend it, yes? When I read about an English Premier League soccer player who died last week at the age of 44, I felt sad even though I have never met the man. He was so incredibly young. I am in no position to judge how he lived his life, but it again made me think about the way I am spending my limited resource. Am I using all of it without regret and waste?

We will explore the Value of life (and time) in this last week of the A to Z Challenge. And I have to say that through my research into exploring Happiness through Journal Writing, maybe it is time for a change in direction in my own journey to happiness.

I hope you have enjoyed exploring journal writing on this journey of Happiness with me this month.

Next month I will be back to my usual posting schedule (once or twice a week) and I look forward to your company then.

Until next time!

Linzé

The A-to-Z Challenge letters for the coming week are as follows:

Monday: Letter T…for Time

Tuesday: Letter U…for Unique

Wednesday: Letter V…for Value

Thursday: Letter W…for Weapon

Friday: Letter X…for Cross Out

Saturday: Letter Y…for You (art prompt)

Sunday: Letter Z...for Zero

If you missed any of the previous letters, here is a quick recap (just click the letter!)

A    B    C    D    E    F    G    H    I    J     K    L    M

N   O    P    Q    R    S

Live in Balance: A to Z Challenge - S is for...

Share what you learn

Yesterday, Friday, I had a migraine and didn't get to do everything that I wanted to. Since I am on leave, my todo list is flexible, but I also have a few things that I want to do. The migraine put me in bed for a few unplanned hours. While the pain wasn't so bad this time, I usually try not to think too hard. So I let my mind drift in whatever directions it wanted to go without pausing to explore any thought that might occur.

Until I fell asleep, thankfully, I realised that I have been reading a lot of non-fiction books recently. It is not unusual to do that when doing research for a new book or blog series, but somehow my research turned into more - I was reading for me.

Why read non-fiction in the first place

In my book, Negotiating the Maze, there is a section on reading and reviewing books, and how doing that for fiction differs from reading and reviewing non-fiction books.

What struck me in particular, was the way the recent books made me think. After almost every chapter, sometimes even after reading a paragraph, I had to put the book down and think about what I had read.

Often there was a Wow! moment, or even a hmm moment. These books have affected my thinking in some way. Changing one's thoughts could change one's way of life. It might have been the intention of the author, but unless I let it change me in some way, I might as well not have read the book at all.

Of course, this is not the case for all non-fiction books. But it again comes back to the intention of reading the book. Although I think some books are meant to change your life, no matter what your intentions were for reading them in the first place.

Share the surprise

Have you read a book that impacted your life although you did not plan it that way?

Live in Balance: A to Z Challenge - R is for...

Rambling roses

You have a date with your journal, and you really love the time you spent writing down your thoughts, but you have no idea where to start. Happens to all of us. Novice or experienced journal writers.

You have a peek at a daily prompt or pick a letter from this blog, but there is nothing that speaks to you. Is there any advice to help? Yes, there is.

Think shallow to dig deep

Sometimes we know what we need to ponder, but it is difficult to get going. So the approach not difficult to manoeuvre, you start by using the simplest writing technique known to man: word association.

Take a dictionary (book works better, but some online dictionaries will give you a random word) open it and use the first word you see. Write it down. If you don't know the word, learn the meaning and make a sentence with it. Write down the next thing that comes to mind. And the next thing. You can write a sentence about the word that pops up, or just jump to something new.

Keep on doing this for a few minutes or until the words you need to write flows out of your pen.

If nothing happens, relax, ramble some more, but don't force yourself. Your mind may need a little time to process the thing you need to ponder, but until then, pick a word.

Ramble on dear friend

When I need to ramble, revive, repress, rhyme or ring, I pick an object on my desk and whine about needing to put it away, or clean it, or replace it. My favourite is the small fish tank that I bought a while back. There are no fish but I love the sound of the water while I am writing or reading. You can also pick from 6 prerecorded sounds of nature, but I just love to hear the sound of the water.

It can be powered by a USB port. This is a feature I like because I can plug it into my backup battery pack, and use the bright 6 LED light when the power is down.

See? Rambling already and about an empty fish tank.

Today's prompt is to get you going when you feel that words fail you. What other tricks do you use to get going on your journal entry?

Live in Balance: A to Z Challenge - Q is for...

My favourite Quote

Don't you just love words starting with Q? In English there are quite a number, but in Afrikaans, my home language, words starting with Q are rare indeed.

But when it came to the challenge this time, there was no doubt that my Letter Q would be for Quote. So here is my all time favourite quote:

 I have it printed in large font and stuck up on the cupboard door in my office facing me. All I have to do is look up and over my computer screen and there it is. My inspiration, if you like. The essence of what I feel I could become: dream plus action equals goal...in sixteen words.

What is your all time favourite quote?

Live in Balance: A to Z Challenge - P is for...

Physical challenges

Do you set physical goals for yourself? If you take part in competitions I am sure you do, but what if you have no interest in competitive sports? Or at least not want to take part at a competitive level, what do you do to keep moving?

To journal or not to journal

It is easy (relatively speaking) to use your journal for issues related to emotional issues and challenges. But setting yourself physical challenges, with your journal, can be a challenge in itself.

So what do we mean by physical challenges? Losing weight? Sure. Doing something creative? Always. But what about a sport-type of activity, such as t'ai chi? Um...yes?

I think you can do anything you want to apply your journal too. Because it is about a journey of life experiences to find your happiness.

You might need a calendar for taking part, or learning a new activity, when you are taking classes or join a club. But your journal can be there too...

It is a journey after all

Why do you want to learn Spanish? Or take up painting? Or master t'ai chi Sun Style? Something drove you to make that choice in the first place. Whether you were bored, or wanted to challenge yourself, you made a choice to step out of your comfort zone.

That choice places you on a new path in your life experiences. And your journal is the companion you need to take with you on that journey.

Your feelings will range from excitement at doing something new, to frustration at not learning fast enough, or self-doubt at choosing something that seems to be beyond your capabilities. But persistence is the key and noting your development in your journal will be the guide to the achievement of the goal.

We live in a world of instant-gratification. We want everything now; it is the same with new skills or challenging goals. But achievers are not people who give up, they are people who persisted until they have mastered the goals they set for themselves.

When you go back to the read the start of your journey, you will see how much you have grown in your happiness experiences and will feel more motivated with your next goal.

Book Feature: Provocative (White Lies Book One) by Lisa Renee Jones

Provocative (White Lies Book One) by Lisa Renee Jones Release Date: April 18th
Genre: Contemporary Romance

Book one in the sexy and intense new White Lies duet by Lisa Renee Jones!

There are those moments in life that are provocative in their very existences, that embed in our minds forever, and sometimes our very souls. They change us, mold us, maybe even save us. But some are darker, dangerous. If we allow them to, they control us. Seduce us. Quite possibly even destroy us.

The moment I walked into Sonoma’s Reid Winter Winery and Vineyard and made eye contact with Faith Winter for the first time was one of those moments. Provocative because I know at least one of her secrets, of which, I suspect she has many. Provocative because she believes I was a stranger to her when we met, but I am not. Provocative because I sought her out, with no intention of touching her. But now I have. Now I want her. Now I have to have her. But that changes nothing. It doesn’t change why I came for her.

A NOTE FROM THE AUTHOR:

Hi everyone!

I’m so excited that PROVOCATIVE is available now! Just a few notes: if you order PROVOCATIVE this week only you will get $1 off and it will only be $2.99 - I will be increasing this price at the end of the week! You’ll also receive the FREE novella Rebecca’s Forgotten Journals (these are NEW journal entries) in the back of your copy!

PS - if you missed your chance to receive any of my bonus scenes from Amy & Liam, Chris & Sara, or Ella & Kayden, this is your last chance to get them! Register your order of PROVOCATIVE here - http://bit.ly/2pkQ49b and you’ll receive them early next week!

Check out the Trailer: http://bit.ly/ProvocativeTrailer

READ CHAPTER ONE ➜ http://lisareneejones.com/duet

Read PROVOCATIVE Today!

Amazon US:

Amazon UK:

B&N: http://bit.ly/ProvocativeBN

iBooks: http://bit.ly/ProvocativeiBooks

Kobo: http://bit.ly/ProvocativeKobo

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/34602810-provocative

Book two: SHAMELESS will be out on July 11th!

Amazon US: http://bit.ly/ShamelessAmazon

Amazon UK: http://bit.ly/ShamelessAmazonUK

B&N: http://bit.ly/Shameless_BN

iBooks: http://bit.ly/ShamelessiBooks

Kobo: http://bit.ly/Shameless_Kobo

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/34602828-shameless

GIVEAWAY

Prize: $100 Amazon gift card

a Rafflecopter giveaway

About the Author:

New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Lisa Renee Jones is the author of the highly acclaimed INSIDE OUT series. Suzanne Todd (producer of Alice in Wonderland) on the INSIDE OUT series: Lisa has created a beautiful, complicated, and sensual world that is filled with intrigue and suspense. Sara’s character is strong, flawed, complex, and sexy - a modern girl we all can identify with.

In addition to the success of Lisa's INSIDE OUT series, Lisa has published many successful titles. The TALL, DARK AND DEADLY series and THE SECRET LIFE OF AMY BENSEN series, both spent several months on a combination of the New York Times and USA Today bestselling lists. Lisa is presently working on a dark, edgy new series, Dirty Money, for St. Martin's Press.

Prior to publishing, Lisa owned multi-state staffing agency that was recognized many times by The Austin Business Journal and also praised by the Dallas Women's Magazine. In 1998 Lisa was listed as the #7 growing women owned business in Entrepreneur Magazine.

Lisa loves to hear from her readers. You can reach her at www.lisareneejones.com and she is active on Twitter and Facebook daily.

Connect with the Author:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AuthorLisaReneeJones/

Amazon: http://amzn.to/2kWFra1

Twitter: @LisaReneeJones

Stay in touch with Lisa by joining her mailing list:

http://lisareneejones.com/newsletter-sign-up/

Website: http://lisareneejones.com

Live in Balance: A to Z Challenge - O is for...

Open to new experiences

If you have recently started to keep a journal, you have already opened yourself to a new experience. It is easy to start something, a new hobby, writing a novel, keeping a journal. But few people persist to gain the long term benefits of doing anything new.

Hobbies take time to learn the new skill or technique. Writing a novel is not an overnight exercise (trust me, I know!) and writing the first draft is just the beginning of a fairly lengthy process until it can be published (irrespective of the publishing route you choose).

But journal writing is a different story. With no end goal in place (like a published novel, or a finished model aeroplane) it can be difficult to continue with the practice.

Experience the new

Don't leave out other things or other experiences in your life, when writing in your journal. If you have an unresolved issue, leave writing about it for a while. Do something new - and allow yourself to live in the moment of that experience.

Find a new restaurant? Pick a dish you have never had before and take your senses on a new journey during the meal. What did the dish smell like? What new flavours have your tasted?

Volunteer to look after a friend's pet if they go away for a weekend. How did you feel about looking after something that doesn't belong to you? Did you feel more attuned to the animal's needs? Were you scared that something might happen to it?

A change in direction

Often we feel frustrated or unhappy in our jobs and look around for something different. If you have made such a change, how did it make you feel to leave the familiar behind? You will always find difficult colleagues no matter where you work. How are you dealing with your new situation? Has the previous job taught you things that you can better use now with new people?

New is not always nice

Many people resist change and often fear what those changes could bring. Use your journal to help you identify the things that you fear when it comes to change. Allow yourself to be more open to the opportunities that may come your way.

If you are more open to new experiences, you might find that they were not so scary as you thought they were going to be. There is happiness in understanding new things about yourself. Using your journal to record the new journey you will be better prepared for the next new thing that may come along.