Book Review: Real Artists Don't Starve

It's Book Review day!

I have read each of Jeff Goins' books. I started with You Are a Writer (So Start Acting Like One). It came as a recommendation from my friend, Stacey Thacker, at a time when I was just beginning to explore writing with intention instead of just as a sort of online journaling practice. At that time, I had one two year old, and that is all. How different life was then! If only I had capitalized on all the time I didn't think I had! Regardless, Jeff's words gave me a good, forceful kick in the pants. I began to play with what it would feel like to actually CALL myself a writer.

Every book of his after that has inched me forward in my knowledge and calling of being a creative and, specifically, a writer. Wrecked helped me process passions and "discovering yourself" while still developing responsibility. It helped me think about a sense of calling and the things that I am inexplicably impassioned to do. The Art of Work helped me think about my life as a whole - and how every piece of it - even, maybe especially, the stretches that feel like stumbling around - are contributing to my calling and place in this world.

When I discovered the title of his newest book, Real Artists Don't Starve, I immediately placed my pre-order. We are at a place when I really need to contribute to the family income but I also still need a flexible schedule that allows me to be available to my kids. Additionally, I want a job that I don't hate. I'm doing a few odds and ends things, but I really want to be able to create for a living. So, if Jeff had a plan for helping me do that, I was game.

The point is not to make a fortune or become famous, but to do the work. We are all looking for a way to share our gift with the world without worrying about making a living. That means getting paid more than once for our creations. It means building a life that allows us to keep creating. - Jeff Goins, Real Artists Don't Starve

The reason I love Jeff's writing style is that he manages to motivate without sounding like a motivational speaker. I don't have anything against motivational speakers, but they really aren't my jam. Jeff manages to weave compelling stories with helpful advice, creating a very easy read that makes you honest-to-goodness want to get moving...and have a reasonable idea of how to take the first step. This, as a writer, I know to be a rare gift set!

In this particular book, Jeff takes us on a journey through the centuries, uncovering the stories of ancient, successful artists from all sorts of fields as well as "average Joe" creatives who have managed to make art and not starve in today's "New Renaissance." It's enormously interesting and inspiring - as well as unexpectedly practical.

If you have ever wanted to be a creator in any form or fashion - or suspect that you just might be a creative deep down inside - go get this book. It's a fun, inspiring, and most importantly, thrillingly practical. You will fly through it and then want to get started making art and not starving!

Book Review: Where'd You Go Bernadette

I promised you a book review this week, and a book review you shall have!

Where'd You Go, Bernadette? made its way to my "To Read" list more than a year ago. I had heard it recommended a few times but the clencher was on The Happy Hour with Jaime Ivey podcast. She was doing an interview with Jen Hatmaker who, without hesitation, recommended this as one of her favorite books at the time. She makes me laugh so if she finds a thing entertaining, I take it seriously.

The book, particularly the first half, is primarily written in the form letters between A LOT of different people. So, it takes a little getting used to at first. I kept thinking, "Wait, who is this person again?" But Semple does a good job of keeping things interesting without overwhelming you with characters. There is an air of mystery in the plot, but nothing terribly gripping to tell you the truth. I mean you really want to know where Bernadette went, but don't go into it expecting some sort of nail-biter.

The truth is, I love a good character. I care far less about plot lines and climaxes. Give me a character I can love and relate to and believe, and I am putty in your hands. I'll read until you stop giving me words. Bernadette is a fantastic character. She's just the right amount of crazy - the amount that you are pretty sure you have within yourself, and her daughter, Bee, whose voice is the primary one in the story, is this sort of perfectly adorable, pure, and appropriately snarky fourteen year old who takes life as it comes until her mother goes missing.

It is a story about finding yourself again but doing so without abandoning what's already there. I think you'll enjoy it so very much. You can borrow my copy if you want!


Don't forget to come back on Monday for The Down and Dirty Truth about Marriage. The first kiss is on the agenda for Monday, and you will, without a doubt, enjoy that one thoroughly! See you then!

Book Review: The Road Back to You

The Road Back to You: An Enneagram Journey to Self-Discovery by Ian Morgan Cron and Suzanne Stabile

I feel like I need to begin by saying that I find self-discovery fascinating. To understand myself better is like an exciting treasure hunt that leads me around bends and into, admittedly, some dark, frightening spots. I emerge, though, in the end with the prize of awareness, better coping mechanisms, and a clearer understanding of my strengths and weaknesses. Through the years, these have granted me the freedom to be who I am, not who I think I am supposed to be. Additionally, I prize understanding people - where they are coming from, what makes them tick, and why they behave like they do. It's the first thing I set about doing when I move to a new place. It helps me feel connected when I understand people.

This is because I am a two on the Enneagram (The Helper). For those of you who have read the book, that means I'm the most relationally driven number on the nine point circle. This is the quote that began my chapter:

I want you to be happy, but I want to be the reason. - Unknown

If you aren't looking to feel very uncomfortable in your own skin for a chapter; if conviction and facing your most hidden (to you) sin tendencies is not what you want to do, then don't read this book. If, however, you want to wade into the waters of being made more whole and more holy, while also, surprisingly, finding yourself entertained, go get this book and read it ASAP. It's easy and fun to plow through aside from the chapter that pegs you. That chapter IS prickly but also freeing. For example:

At their best, Twos are warm and generous, and at their worst they're resentful martyrs. 

Ouch. Alternatively, I discovered I'm a Two with a Three wing:

Twos with a Three wing (2w3) are more ambitious, image-conscious and competitive. Extroverted and sometimes seductive like the Three (the Performer), they are more concerned about relationships and connections than Twos with a One wing. These Twos are more confident, so they achieve more; being seen as successful is a close second to being known as loving and generous. In this space Twos with a strong self-image can shape-shift like Threes to become whatever is called for to achieve the desired result.

After a thorough and easy to read chapter on what the Enneagram is and how to read it, Cron dives into each number. He provides a list of self statements that identify the number at hand, a story or two about real life Numbers played out, the Number's biggest sin tendency, what the Number looks like in relationships, at work, and as children, and what the Number looks like with wings (or Numbers around it whose traits it takes on) then he provides positive steps toward spiritual transformation for the Number.

In the end, it's helping me dig deep in my own life to identify where I've gone wrong over and again, and how I can avoid those same pitfalls again and again. It's also helped me hone in on how God has wired me individually, in positive ways. In the end, though, I feel most excited to employ this new knowledge in relation to Josh, my kids, and the people I'm in close relationship with.

I'll leave you with this quote from the final chapter that sums up the heart behind the whole book:

The beginning of love is the will to let those we love be perfectly themselves, the resolution not to twist them to fit our own image. If in loving them we do not love what they are, but only their potential likeness to ourselves, then we do not love them: we only love the reflection of ourselves we find in them. - Thomas Merton

I love, loved this one. I honestly believe it is beneficial to anyone who is looking for ways to improve as a human being, friend, and/or follower of Christ. Add it to your list!

If you read the book and have trouble identifying your number, you can take the test here and it will help you narrow it down. I took the test before I read the book and it pegged me EXACTLY!

What if reading is as important as cardio?

Can I tell you the truth? I grow so weary of having my senses flooded with "eat healthier" and "exercise" and "make sure your kids are eating this and this and this but not that or that." It exhausts me. Do you know why it exhausts me? Because physical wellness is not my jam. Please don't misunderstand. I firmly believe that there is great value in staying active and making wise food choices in moderation. Firmly. But consuming a salad feels the exact same to me as eating grass out of my backyard, and I think working out is torture akin to root canals.

That's the truth.

Exercising my mind, though - ahh. There is no greater high or release for me. Give me a good book that sends me sailing through oceans I'll never see with my eyes or enlightens my mind with new thoughts and ideas, that breed my own new thoughts and ideas - that sweep me up in wonder of a God who is always more, who is in it all, who is over it all. Yes, give me that and you'll see me ride a high not unlike the one all those crazy-brained runners describe.

So, I try to respect all the "Eat good food" and "Exercise a lot" shouts and nudges that fly at me from every direction, because if it means to them what reading and learning and experiencing mean

to me, I have to consider that maybe it's all important to our big, good Father - who allows pieces of His passions to be reflected in all of His creation!

Why, though? Why is it that important?

Reading breeds compassion. We can enter worlds, cultures, and lifestyles that we would never normally come in contact with or even begin to understand otherwise. This is invaluable for us as human beings and followers of Christ.

“You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view." - Atticus Finch, To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee

Reading breeds self-awareness. When we fill our mind with information that better helps us define who we are and what we believe as individuals, we are better able to interact with the world around us - particularly the relationships we find ourselves in. All truth is God's truth and, in my experience, reading is one of the most effective ways to explore truth.

“The truth will set you free. But not until it is finished with you.” David Foster Wallace, Infinite Jest

Reading breeds rest. Reading is not unlike exercise. While you are doing it, if it is a thing you do not do regularly or do not particularly love doing, you might hate its guts. Truly - I believe you about that. I do not understand you, but I believe you. However, reading - or even listening to an audio book - forces our minds to slow, to hear/read the language, and to formulate thoughts and images of our own. It forces our brains create images and ideas that were not pre-formulated for us visually, which in time increases our ability to think creatively and engage with the world arounds us. And just like a good workout, it might help you sleep better at night.

"Reading forces you to be quiet in a world that no longer makes room for that." John Green

Reading breeds reading. The most important thing you can do to help your children become life long readers is model reading as a priority in your own life - even if reading isn't your jam like exercise isn't mine. Facebook articles and Internet scanning are the fast foods of reading, y'all. Treat them as a now and then option but not as your main method of feeding your brain and creativity! Let your kids see you reading or hear you listening to an audio book. It matters!

"A child who reads will be an adult who thinks." Anonymous

That being said, I'm on a quest this summer to do some reading like it's my glorious, make-a-million dollars job. My kids are old enough now that time is not COMPLETELY eaten up with diapers changed and sippy cups refilled and boo boos kissed. There is a little more margin, and I'm filling mine with books - in an alternating Non-Fiction/Fiction pattern. I'll be posting reviews as I finish them - hopefully every Thursday! Stop back by to find out what's great and what's good and what's probably for book-y people only - like the burpees of the workout world.

And now without further adieu, my summer reading list in chronological order. #englishmajor

What WILL happen...

"...But it wasn't my fault anyway, was it?" 

 The Lion looked straight into her eyes. 

"Oh Aslan," said Lucy. "You don't mean it was? How could I - I couldn't have left the others to come up to you alone, how could I? Don't look at me like that... oh well, I suppose I could. Yes, and I wouldn't have been alone, I know, not if I was with you. But what would have been the good?" 

Aslan said nothing.

"You mean," said Lucy rather faintly, "that it would have turned out all right - somehow? But how? Please, Aslan! Am I not to know?" 

"To know what would have happened, child?" said Aslan. "No. Nobody is ever told that." 

"Oh dear," said Lucy. 

"But anyone can find out what will happen..."

I absolutely love The Chronicles of Narnia. This particular excerpt is from Prince Caspian, when Lucy meets Aslan again for the first time. She saw him calling her to follow him earlier in the day but did not obey because her brothers and sisters did not believe she actually saw him. As a result, their party went a different direction and nearly suffered tragedy and also lost a great deal of valuable time in reaching their destination from which they would make a plan to save Narnia.

So often I fail to do the thing or delay doing the thing and I give God a whole mess of bad excuses. About how it was impossible. Or awkward. Or intrusive. Or already taken care of.

And then after He has looked into my eyes and I have confessed that He is right and I am wrong, that I could have done it and should have done it with His help, I can't help but wonder in my heart of hearts if tragedy could have been averted. Or if I could have reached my next destination sooner without this nasty little pitfall. Or if my marriage would be richer. Or friends more abundant. Or my year more pleasant. You just wonder what might've been, you know, when you realize you made the wrong choice.

"You mean," I said rather faintly, "that it would have been better - somehow? But how? Please, King-Friend! Can't I know?"

"To know what would have happened, child?" said my King-Friend. "No. Nobody is ever told that."
"Well crud," I said.
"But anyone can find out what will happen..."

Let's find out. Keep on keepin' it down and dirty, folks!