rj_anderson | Here I am now, entertain me!

OK--these may be too esoteric depending on how sick you are!

What do you think is the most reprehensible of human qualities? What is the best?

What, to you, is the essence of evil? How do you define good?

If you could give one quality or attribute to a child (a "fairy gift", if you will), what would it be?

And if you're still bored, I recommend taking the Reincarnation Placement Exam on HelloQuizzy, first as yourself, and then as various of your characters. :>

Wow, you don't fool around, do you? Let's see if I can answer these briefly without doing them a total injustice:

Most reprehensible: self-centeredness (because it leads to every other kind of reprehensible behavior -- there's a good reason that "pride" is the worst of the Seven Deadlies). Best: self-sacrifice ("Greater love hath no man...").

I don't think I'm up to debating the nature of good and evil in less than 5,000 words, so I'll just say that I believe good is that which conforms to and flows from the character of God and leads us back to Him, whereas evil is a rejection of God's order and authority that leads us farther away from Him.

One quality or attribute to give to a child: Wisdom.

I've actually finished the sequel to KNIFE and it's with my editor at the moment; I'm waiting for her to give me her revisions. So since November I've been working on the synaesthesia book, but it's been tough going -- I'm still not entirely sure why. Love the concept, love the characters, got a nice solid plot outline to work from... and yet getting the words down is like pulling teeth.

Which makes me feel really bad, because my agent is totally in love with the synaesthesia book and can't wait for me to finish it. And I'd love to see what he (and editors) think of it, too!

I am thinking of rewriting CASABLANCA as a Harry Potter fic, with Draco in the Ricky Blaine role. Am I out of my mind or just stupid?

Uh... since I have never watched Casablanca nor have I ever considered Draco Malfoy at all interesting as a character, I feel myself ill-equipped to answer this question. Next! :)

Sorry you are home sick!

Questions, questions...

Is there any dish you really want to learn to cook and have not yet tried? Have you read anything that is not amonth the young adult/theology/part of your research for new book reading of late? (Always love your book reviews).

LOL, I'm getting my Sunday morning workout here, aren't I?!

I will readily admit that giving answers suitable for four-year-olds (or seven-year-olds even) is not my forte! I think it would depend on the personality of the kid(s) in question how I'd answer this -- what aspects of not being able to see or hear God with their physical senses are most frustrating for them.

But anyway, trying to keep it simple:

If they're concerned that not being able to hear God talk means that they don't know what He's like or what He wants from them, then I'd point to the Bible as God's letter to us to help us get to know Him and understand how we should live our lives.

If they're concerned that being unable to see God means that maybe He doesn't exist, I'd use Christ's example from John 3 of how the wind blows and you don't know where it's come from or where it's going (and you can't see it), but that doesn't mean it's not real. You can see the effects of the wind, the way it moves the clouds around; and as Paul says in the book of Romans, since the beginning of the world God's existence has been evident by looking at the world He created. And of course when it comes to Jesus, we have the testimony of many, many people who saw Him and walked with Him and recorded His words for us to read.

Another thought that may or may not be of interest/help to them is that if God revealed Himself to us in a way that we couldn't possibly deny -- i.e. by letting us see Him or speaking to us in a voice we could hear -- then we would have no choice but to believe in Him, whether we wanted to know Him and seek Him or not. And God wants us to come to Him of our own free will, in faith, not because we have no other choice.

I don't know if this helps even slightly, but there it is!

Hmmm... I would really love to learn how to make good bread, but that whole yeast thing and the kneading and rising and whatnot scares me. I'd like to have somebody walk me through it who knows what they're doing, rather than having to try and figure it out myself. (I tried making hot cross buns once but the results were... discouraging.)

I'm not sure I know how to parse your second question ("amonth" is a typo for...?) so maybe you can clarify for me?

Once upon a time you said there was a good scone recipe somewhere online, for fluffy scones like the ones we had for tea -- do you mind sharing a link for that? :D

Oh yeah!

World's Best Scones (http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Worlds-Best-Scones-From-Scotland-to-the-Savoy-to-the-US/Detail.aspx)

*Red faced* Yep. Typo. It was suppose to say "among."

I guess what I want to know is have you read anything lately outside of the the books you normally blog about? :)

I tried hot cross buns once. The resultes were... disappointing. I can do an ok loaf of bread every now and again. Kneading is actually quite fun!

Hmmmm... well, other than the categories you mentioned (theological/young adult/research) I'd have to say... nope!

I've got a bunch more book reviews on my GoodReads account (and different ones) than I've posted here, though. Mostly YA and MG.

Sending you lots of colorful synaesthesia vibes... Sounds like you're having a hard time getting back inside? You say you have an outline--would it work to pick a random spot later in the book and write a scene from there? Sometimes spitting out an emotional turning point of the book out of order, without looking at what I've already got on the page, can pull me back in.

Yeah, I think what I need most is to find a way to stop treating it like work and start having fun with it again. And since forcing myself to write in order doesn't seem to be working... jumping ahead may be the only way to shake my creativity loose. Thanks.

Sorry you're sick. Our church schedule just changed from 9 am to 2 pm and it *feels* like we're home sick. So, some questions for you:

1. What is the most recent book you read that haunted you/stuck with you long after reading?

2. Favorite hymn?

3. What, to you, is the greatest cultural difference between Canadians and Americans?

1. Laurie Halse Anderson's Catalyst. Before that, Carrie Ryan's The Forest of Hands and Teeth (haunting in a different way, though!)

2. "My Song is Love Unknown".

3. American show patriotism by waving the flag. Canadians show their patriotism by eating at Tim Horton's. :)

Something Angie Frazier and I talked about once was also to take our characters on vacation to a place that was outside of our story. See what they did there. Give them a rest from the story. It doesn't go in the book, of course, but it gets the character talking again. Sometimes I write down author-character conversations as well; a sort of private e-mail discussion behind the public blog (er--do I have multiple personality issues? Don't ask... :)

Where is my mind?

In your Emergency Pants!

Well, there is one thing you can do immediately that will fill your day with enjoyment and possibly change your life: watch CASABLANCA. Really, it is the best advice you will get all day.

Why are you not in chat?

(hey, it's a question! :D )

Had to make lunch for the fam. Now I am slooooooowly eating a bowl of soup. And then I will lie down.

I was in chat around noon -- maybe see you later?

Get well soon!

How long does it take you between getting an idea for a story and knowing whether or not it's a goer?

As it's no longer anything resembling Sunday morning, I'll understand completely if you do not answer this. But I was curious as to your pick for best Doctor Who episode ever. Of any of the Doctors. I'm just now getting into the show, you see (I know, I know, but better late than never? :D?), and have watched two very excellent episodes with Ten, and I sort of wonder if maybe some of the previous episodes were even better. ^_^;;

Ok, here's my questions:

1. Which new TV show have you been watching and why?

2. If you could have written any book, which one would be your pick?

3. What advice do you give to those who still struggle with the whole querying thing?

Sweet, all I need are the currants. I predict scones in my future next weekend.

I had lousy results with bread until I tried the "no knead" recepie the came out about a year ago. You have to have a large cast iron pot, but you just throw the ingredients together and let them sit for hours, then bake.

Very nice! I hope you feel better soon!

With fanfic, it might be as little as a couple of hours; but with anything else, it's often months or years. I find that the best ideas need time to ferment before I'm ready to do anything with them.

There are lots of eps I like for one reason or another, but that's not the same as being sure that other people would be equally impressed by them (i.e. I love Five, but other people find him bland. Your mileage may vary).

Off the top of my head, though, I'd say that Steven Moffat's "Blink" (Ep. 3x10 of the new series) is definitely one of the best ever. Atypical as WHO episodes go, but sheer genius on the whole.

You're now the second person in a single evening to rec this one (and I've had it recced to me before, even) so I'll make it a point to see it next. Thank you!

1. Merlin, because it is cute and funny and I don't know what's going to happen next, which is somewhat of a novelty for me when it comes to Arthurian legend. Also because I am just a lifelong Merlin fangirl, in practically any form or medium he cares to appear.

2. That is... really a hard one to answer. I think for right now I'm going to have to go with the really obvious and say The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe.

3. I have no good advice about queries. My queries have all been terrible and gleaned me very little interest from agents. I got my agent through a referral rather than a query, or I'd probably still be searching right now!

what's the synesthea(sp?) book about?

CR

I would really love to learn how to make good bread, but that whole yeast thing and the kneading and rising and whatnot scares me. I'd like to have somebody walk me through it who knows what they're doing, rather than having to try and figure it out myself.

Rebecca, if you ever do a book tour, you need to make a stop in Wisconsin and then you can come to my house and we can bake together!

To learn to make bread from the Queen of Cinnamon Buns herself would be a great honor!

Fabio is right-- Casablanca is well worth watching. Not sure I see Draco as Rick, though.

My favorite hymn, too! Preferred tune?

Calkin (http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=wwpNLncNCQM).

I go for the Ireland one-- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bNN9DBobCdw (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bNN9DBobCdw).

Now, Snape as Rick, that I can see! ;-)

Mary Anne

Oh, that's lovely too. I hadn't heard that tune before.

Agreed. :D And I hope you don't might that I've abruptly become a rabid reader of your blog, hoping to steal some writing tips. :)

Well, I don't know how many tips I have to offer -- my writing method at present seems to consist chiefly of trying things and finding out they don't work -- but I'm always glad for more readers! Welcome!

Here I am now, entertain me!

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