Posted on Monday, September 2, 2013

Writing In Action #4: Us

“Who do I write for?”

That’s a good question. I asked myself many times. Who do I write my posts for? Who is my audience? The answer is you and I.

I write for you, as an encouragement. I pray for this all the time. Also, I would like to share what God has put in my heart to motivate you and share with you about the mission works and the needs in Southeast Asia specifically.

I write for you because I need your help, suggestions, critiques and even whatever God put in your heart to share with me, please do leave any comments you want on every post I wrote.

I write for myself, too. Why? Because as I write, I remind myself again whatever God put in my heart. I remember better when I write it down over and over again. It kindda stick in better in my mind 🙂

And I write for the next generation who will find my blog in 5 years, or 10 years, or 20 years later. I don’t know when.

So…. who do you write for today?

======================================================

I am learning how to write using the book from Denise J. Hughes. This is an amazing resources for you if you are a new blogger like me, or thinking that writing is not my thingy. She shares practical ways of getting to start a blog and to write. You can read her blog here and get her book here.

THANK YOU!

Posted on Monday, August 5, 2013

Writing In Action #3: Where To Start

This week I learned about where I start to write or what I write about. It seems simple but it is not to me. Denise explains that we all begin to write with a blank page or screen but the word will come. The written words not only reveal themselves, they reveal something about the writer, too.

They tell us who we really are and what we value the most. Writing leads to discovery… in order for our words to inform us, we must first write them down.

So… where do I begin to write? what do I write about?

Some tips from Denise:

Write what you know
Write what you feel
Write what you are passionate about

At previous chapter, she also mentions about it starts with Write-Based Prose (words just for me) and we can turn it into an idea for Reader-Based Prose (words for others/readers).

In this chapter she also gives us 3 practical Ways to Begin:

Tell a story
Join a conversation
Answer a question

I am going to start with the first.

I write to tell a story of my life, one wrecked girl, found and saved by God’s grace, have a new life in Christ and to live the given life with trust and obedience to Jesus’ lordship. I write to tell the story unchanging everlasting God, who so loves the world, sent His one and only Son, to died for its sins and rose from the death on the third day, defeated the death and won the battle. He is Jesus Christ, the Lord and King of kings, the Son of God, the Way, the Truth and the Life. I write to declare this News to the world. I write to let them know there is HOPE in Christ Jesus. I write to testify.

I write to represent those who are Bibleless, the story of what it’s like not having a word of God. I, my own language, does not have the whole Bible. I am thankful to have 5 partial books of the Bible, but there are about 2000 languages in the world who don’t have one single word of God, 209 million people speak those languages. Imagine how your life would be when you don’t have the God’s word.

If my life is a book, I wanna start with those story.

What would you want to write in your life story book?

Posted on Monday, July 29, 2013

Writing In Action #2

“Why do I want to write?”

I’ve been thinking this question for over a week.

But I am still thinking about it. I wrote down some reasons, revised it again and again.

I came up with these 4 reasons: to testify, to encourage, to motivate and to mobilize.

That is why I have a blog. That is why I am improving my writing skill. That is why I am here.

Denise says in her book that there is no wrong answers to that questions and our reasons why we write blog might be change later.

But for now… Those are my reasons. I pray God wil lead me as I write, give me wisdom what to write and understanding how He wants me to testify, to encourage, to motivate and to mobilize.

Posted on Monday, July 22, 2013

Writing In Action #1

I am not a write and never dreamed to be one. Few months ago, I remember I got a writing e-book. My original though was to develop my writing skill, not only to write a blog but also because every other week I have to compose our ministry with Wycliffe prayer letter and newsletter.

The e-book’s title is On Becoming A Writer: What Every Blogger Needs To Know, by Denise J Hughes. For a 2 weeks I’ve been reading this book (finally I got to this book!) and I wish she was the teacher at my writing class when I was at collage. She lives in Southern California with her family, a lovely Christian woman (who is one of those who inspire my life!) and a composition teacher at a collage.

On her first chapter, she mentions that she would encourage her students to write a blog, so that they would experience writing process outside the context of school assignments. I think that is a great idea from a teacher. Again, I wish my writing/composition teacher would ask us to do that.

I’ve been blogging (on and off) since 2006-ish, and I am still not confident enough to write and share my stories in English. A lot of reasons behind my unconfident feeling. But after reading her first chapter, I decided to try again, to start from the very basic of what is writing, what should I write and just flow with it. English is not my first language, it’s my 4th language. So YES, I will make many errors, but now I know that is part of learning process.

I will try to “push” myself to be discipline to share my experience here using this assignments, Writing In Action, from Denise’s book. This is the first one.

=============================================================

I went to Atmajaya Catholic University, Jakarta, Indonesia to study to be an English Teacher in 1999 and graduated in 2007. There where I got my bachelor degree on education. I took about 2 years off the collage for some family reasons.

When I was at collage, one of the main subjects I needed to take was Writing/Composition. They had 3 classes for that subject, Writing 1, Writing 2 and Writing 3. I learned to write in English, in hard ways. It was very difficult for me to understand the whole concept the lectures taught at the time. We sticked to whatever they assigned us to write. I didn’t like that classes! My thought as long as I could get a C, I passed the class. I was satisfied with C! I just didn’t do my very best to try to get the best grade for Writing classes.

And I got the point when I experienced the hardest time when I had to write my last paper to graduate. But I was so thankful to God that he brought me through the process when I totally rely on Him, wisdom and He even sent helps through a group of American students who were in Jakarta at that time, the group I helped with their Indonesian language and culture class for 2 weeks. They helped me a lot with editing and helping me to understand some terms that I didn’t understand the meaning. After the group left, God sent a couple of missionaries to help me with the last editing for my paper.

Around the same time, I started to blog in English (I wrote blog in Indonesia in 2006). And through all that, I found out that writing a blog in English was more what I would like to do, but had not enough confidence to do so. But I just kept writing simple posts up until now.

I pray that through this learning process, God will help me to discover what He wants me to write, how and use it to inspire and impact other’s lives so that they may come to know Him and His glory!

=============================================================

I will be so thankful if you, my friends and readers, would leave any comments/critiques/corrections on my writing/post. Your comments/critiques/corrections will help me to grow and improve my writing! THANK YOU SO MUCH for being so awesome for taking time to do so!