The Hocus-Pocus of Focus - Bruce Atchison

 I can't help but notice that my story-telling desire has been focused on the things I loved. That makes sense as we all love to talk, or write, about what we love.

I was unpopular in school. To gain some favour from my peers, I often told jokes or funny stories. The boys were busy playing sports so it was the girls whom I entertained.

Once I had a computer with a synthetic voice to read what I wrote, I began writing about my long-time love: electronic music. Two fan magazine published my reviews of CDs and cassettes of musicians who weren't popular except with my friends. I also had a few articles published in underground "zines" before I decided to go professional.

Since my freelance writing teacher said to write what I know, I tried querying magazines about what I knew. But most publications weren't interested in electronic music, radio listening, or house rabbits.

Undaunted, I quit freelance writing and wrote 3 memoirs. The one about my house rabbits sold moderately well but the books about my time at a school for the blind and how a cult-like house church messed me up didn't sell at all.

While all that happened, I blogged on the topics I was writing in my articles and books. My hope was that people would read my posts and decide to buy my books. That only helped me sell a few copies.

So I retired from writing in November of 2021. Because Canada Pension Plan kept a watchful eye on me, presuming me guilty until proven innocent, I felt compelled to promote my books and blogs. Now I'm free of the pressure and enjoying life. I do plan on writing and perhaps publishing two books I was working on but I'm in no hurry

Be Not A Self-Starter - Bruce Atchison

 It's a reoccurring pattern in my life. I'm invited to participate but nobody mentors me when I do. Mrs. Blacklock didn't disciple me after I gave my life to Christ at her vacation Bible school. VE6BOS had no time to "Elmer" me when I studied for my amateur radio exam. And freelance writers were too busy to coach me. Consequently, I wasted a lot of time, money, and effort trying to be a self-taught writer.

Twenty years of trial and error have taught me much. One important lesson is to find and join a writers' group. Members are more than willing to help novice scribes since they were once in that situation.

Reading writing magazines is another must for new writers. We all thought we were good when we began but in retrospect, we stunk. I still cringe when I open files from years ago and realize how poorly I wrote. So the price of those magazines proved to be a bargain after all since they taught me so much.

Self-publishing also gave me much to learn. Helpful editors not only pointed out my errors but explained why what I wrote was incorrect. Though they were busy, they did point me in the right direction.

Writing courses are also valuable to new writers. Instructors give relevant feedback and often correct our misconceptions on various writing styles.

The best advice I can give to beginners is that it isn't as easy as it looks. You need to listen to other writers and read guidelines thoroughly. Magazine and news paper editors are swamped with work and have no time to critique your submission. They often don't even bother to reply if your work is clearly wrong for their publication.

Don't be shy. Join a writing group for support and critique. Chances are that people will help you to write powerful and mistake-free prose or poetry. Persistence pays off in the end but you need others helping you to become skilled at the craft.

A Just Weight - Gloria Guest

At a recent job interview I was asked to give my definition of integrity. What I said was, “Integrity to me is what I do when nobody is looking. It’s choosing to deal with a situation honestly, when there is nobody there watching.”

Although nobody is perfect, to me integrity is something that needs to be an integral part of who I am in every area of my life. It is not something to just put on and take off when I feel like it. I once had a Christian friend who was starting her own business, say to me that maybe she should think about developing some better ethics. But as Christians we are called to be ethical at all times, in all things.

 “A false balance is an abomination to the LORD, but a just weight is His delight. Proverbs 11:1

 During my times as a newspaper reporter/columnist, I have had numerous opportunities to choose to do something dishonest that nobody would know about. One of the temptations that comes to us is, ‘But you deserve it. You’ve worked so hard and your employer doesn’t treat you fair.” It’s true. Sometimes our employers, our editors, those who are above us, do not treat us fairly. Sometimes we can be treated with disrespect or taken advantage of.

When I was freelancing as a reporter/columnist I was paid by the word. My editor did not give me a word count, so I had free reign as to length. A longer column or story would of course give me more revenue. Often, after I deducted my gas and my time, I found I was making very little money an hour. Sometimes it was less than minimum wage. It would have been easy to decide to let my column and articles run on with extra words so I could earn more money. However, I knew that was not right. Due to working under another newspaper editor, I had learned to cut out unnecessary words, to be concise; in fact I knew that in a newspaper most people won’t read an article past five hundred words. So I let God direct my word count and my articles and columns were usually on the shorter side. I wasn’t making much money per word! However, my heart felt right and that was worth more than to me than gold.

“Better is a poor man who walks in his integrity than he who is perverse in speech and is a fool. Proverbs 19:1

However as Proverbs 11:1 states, God delights in a “just weight,” so He actually does want me to be treated fairly. That is why I felt it was okay to ask my employers to increase the amount that they paid me by word and to give me a gas allowance. Both of which they did. There are also other things I learned while reporting to help me to earn a living with my words, one of which was that as June 2010 it became the law for both parties in a freelance writing agreement to have a signed contract. This is beneficial for freelance writers as it protects their time and investment and also is helpful to the employer in knowing exactly what they can expect. It is just good business for all.

Soon I hope to be sending my writing out again for publication in various forms. I am thankful for my time spent in the Reporter trenches where I learned that as I go about the business of writing with integrity it is God ‘who gives the increase.’ I Cor. 3:6.

“As for me, You uphold me in my integrity, And You set me in Your presence forever.” Ps 41:12

... But Deliver Me From Bureaucrats by Bruce Atchison

In spite of my being almost blind, I consider myself wondrously blessed. Thanks to the heavenly Father, I have a beautiful house in a tiny hamlet. It's so peaceful here that I feel like I'm on a permanent writing retreat. Furthermore, I get up when I feel like it, eat when I want to, and I have no physical boss breathing down my neck.

So what's wrong with all that? When I was laid off from the federal government in 1995, the personnel worker placed me on unpaid leave for two years. I received disability pension cheques each month from Sun Life and the government. The reason for the unpaid leave was so that I could have two extra years of pensionable income.

Since I'm still permanently disabled, having lost my left eye to a hemorrhage in 1988, Sun Life sends me a letter each year to confirm that I'm still disabled. Canada Pension Plan, on the other hand, audited me in 2003. My case worker wasn't happy with my doctor's note and the tax forms I had to send in. I never did find out why that was. After ten months, my case worker said in a letter that I was approved to remain on CPP disability BUT warned that I could be audited again at any time without prior notice.

The sword of being investigated hangs over me, even though I haven't received that dreaded telephone call again in more than eleven years. As a result, I worry that I could be cut off from half my pension money at the whim of a distant, dispassionate bureaucrat.

I'd love to be free of that worry but it's the price I pay for being on disability. When I was laid off, a job skills counselor suggested that I should take up freelance writing after I showed him tear sheets of fan magazines which published my music reviews. I also showed him the government newsletters in which my articles about recycling appeared. This seemed to me a golden opportunity. I could write at home while doing what I loved.

Freelance writing and being an author hasn't paid well. Nevertheless, I'm glad I have the freedom to create without the pressure of making a living. Even so, I still live with the haunting suspicion that the next phone call will be my case worker in Ottawa with bad news about my pension.

While I can, I'll spend the next seven years and two months searching for writing work, writing short stories, and promoting my books. I shouldn't worry but I do. Even so, I know intellectually that the heavenly Father will work something out for me. Now that knowledge needs to work its way into my heart.

... But Deliver Me From Bureaucrats by Bruce Atchison

In spite of my being almost blind, I consider myself wondrously blessed. Thanks to the heavenly Father, I have a beautiful house in a tiny hamlet. It's so peaceful here that I feel like I'm on a permanent writing retreat. Furthermore, I get up when I feel like it, eat when I want to, and I have no physical boss breathing down my neck.

So what's wrong with all that? When I was laid off from the federal government in 1995, the personnel worker placed me on unpaid leave for two years. I received disability pension cheques each month from Sun Life and the government. The reason for the unpaid leave was so that I could have two extra years of pensionable income.

Since I'm still permanently disabled, having lost my left eye to a hemorrhage in 1988, Sun Life sends me a letter each year to confirm that I'm still disabled. Canada Pension Plan, on the other hand, audited me in 2003. My case worker wasn't happy with my doctor's note and the tax forms I had to send in. I never did find out why that was. After ten months, my case worker said in a letter that I was approved to remain on CPP disability BUT warned that I could be audited again at any time without prior notice.

The sword of being investigated hangs over me, even though I haven't received that dreaded telephone call again in more than eleven years. As a result, I worry that I could be cut off from half my pension money at the whim of a distant, dispassionate bureaucrat.

I'd love to be free of that worry but it's the price I pay for being on disability. When I was laid off, a job skills counselor suggested that I should take up freelance writing after I showed him tear sheets of fan magazines which published my music reviews. I also showed him the government newsletters in which my articles about recycling appeared. This seemed to me a golden opportunity. I could write at home while doing what I loved.

Freelance writing and being an author hasn't paid well. Nevertheless, I'm glad I have the freedom to create without the pressure of making a living. Even so, I still live with the haunting suspicion that the next phone call will be my case worker in Ottawa with bad news about my pension.

While I can, I'll spend the next seven years and two months searching for writing work, writing short stories, and promoting my books. I shouldn't worry but I do. Even so, I know intellectually that the heavenly Father will work something out for me. Now that knowledge needs to work its way into my heart.