CWD Member Interview - Linsey Painter

Each Thursday in 2018 we will be interviewing one of the members of Christian Writers Downunder – to find out a little bit more about them and their writing/editing goals.

Today interview: Linsey Painter

Beautiful beach in Indonesia

Question 1: Tells us three things about who you are and where you come from.

I am a child of God, a mum to two rambunctious boys and wife to a wonderful husband.

Where I come from is a bit of a complicated question to answer. J I kind of do life on the move. I was born in Melbourne, I grew up in West Papua, Indonesia and I’ve lived in Arnhem Land, Papua New Guinea and Cairns.
Each place I have lived, has contributed to making me who I am.

Question 2: Tell us about your writing (or editing/illustrating etc).  What do you write and why?

I primarily write for young people. I love kids books. When I was growing up, reading was a safety net for me, it was a place I could disappear and feel safe and secure. I want to write books that will help kids when life gets tough, that will open their eyes to other worlds and write books that will be their friends.

Question 3: Who has read your work? Who would you like to read it?

Friends and family and kids of friends have read my work as well as other adults around the globe. I would like my work to reach whoever it needs to. I still turn to kids books as my first love in reading and I’m thirty-six, so I’m more than happy for whoever at whatever age to read my work.

Question 4: Tell us something about your process. What challenges do you face? What helps you the most?

My workspace

I’m a pantzer. I get an idea and I write. I skip all over the book and write a chapter in the beginning, then I’ll write the ending, then I’ll start filling in the middle bits. I do get to a stage where I need to do lots of mapping and looking at my structure and plot.
It’s usually a huge mess for a long time but I’m learning that ‘mess leads to clarity’ so there’s hope.

Music helps me a lot. I get so much inspiration from listening to songs. Also, going outside and being inspired by nature is amazing.

I have a lot notebooks because I love to actually write on paper. The majority of my work goes straight onto the computer but I doodle and draw pictures and write down tid-bits, dialogue and even whole chapters into my notebooks.

Question 5: What is your favourite Writing Craft Book and why?

Hmmm, this is a bit of a hard one for me to pin down. I really love Anne Lamott’s Bird by Bird. It reminded me that writing is not all about getting published. It’s a gift to be shared in lots of different ways.
Libby Gleeson’s Writing Hannah is a fun, practical look at writing for kids.
I also loved Katherine Paterson’s The InvisibleChild. It is actually different papers she’s written and talks that she gave over the years about her experiences and what she's learned through reading and writing children's books.

Question 6: If you were to give a shout-out to a CWD author, writer, editor or illustrator – who would they be?

I will give a shout out to my amazing Sci-Fi/Fantasy Skype group that meets once a month. Jeanette O’Hagan, Adam David Collings, Raelene Purtill and Catriona McKeown. They have been such an incredible encouragement for me being such a newbie to writing. Their wisdom, experience and generosity in sharing has taught me so much. Thanks guys!

Question 7: What are your writing goals for 2018? How will you achieve them?

I have quite a number of things that I want to finish off. This interview was one of them—tick! I'm working on a couple of short stories that I would like to finish off with a view to submitting them to anthologies. I'm also writing a fantasy series. My goal this year is to write the second book in the series, so I’ll keep plugging away at.

We’re having an interestingly disruptive year. We’re heading off to Africa for about six months. So, that will influence not only how much I get done but also what I write. I’m excited to see what impact it will have on the stories that I am working on at the moment and what new concepts I might come up with.

 

Question 8: How does your faith impact and shape your writing?

I write from a Christian worldview though not necessarily for the Christian market. So my faith saturates what I write. I want to write in a way that glorifies and honours God. I want to write to have a deep impact. I want to write in a way that the reader is distracted by what’s at the front door while the truth slips in through the side window.

Linsey Painter loves to write stories that draw on her rich heritage of growing up overseas. Her children’s stories focus on growing young hearts, challenging assumptions and exploring courage in the face of life’s difficulties.
Linsey’s books are drawn from real life and imaginative fantasy adventures. Life doesn’t always turn out the way we expect and sometimes we need to be brave and find out how to love and trust again.
Through her books Linsey shows that joy and beauty are everywhere even when life is difficult.
Linsey lives in Cairns with her husband and two lively boys.
You can find information about Linsey on her website or follow her on facebook or twitter. 

Ride 'em in, Rawhide!

The other day, as I walked into my lounge room to relax with some Netflix and a nice hot cuppa, my eye caught something on the wall...my heart jumped, and an expectant cold shiver ran down my spine. 

A spider.

A big spider.

A HUGE spider!  

Okay, it was a medium sized huntsman. But it was there. And its presence affected my ability to unwind.

I stood there for a few minutes and debated my options; kill it, trap it and release it, or live with it.

Over the years, the choices I've made have definitely changed. As a child, the sight of a spider sent me into a screaming mess of tears; I would call for my parents to come and deal with said spider, and no amount of fly spray was enough to ensure it was dead. I wanted it squished and removed!

Once married, it was my husband's job to deal with my fearsome enemy.

Now, I have realised that I must face my fears alone; I can either allow them to control me, or I can control them.

So, what did I decide to do? I thought about trapping Freda, (yes, I name them, it makes them seem less icky!). but she was far too high for that. And I don't like spraying huntsmen; they aren't dangerous, just really creepy! So, I reasoned with her; you can stay inside, but no suprising me! 

I spent the next 5 days living with Freda inside my house. We got a bit close at times, but generally, we co-existed nicely. 

And then my 6 year old, Josh, saw her! 

"SPIIIIII-DEEEERRRR!"

By this stage, I was so comfortable with Freda, that I was able to tell my boy, she's okay, she won't eat much, (and actually believe it!); but she was sitting on the roof, right over Josh's head!

So I grabbed a long, blossomy ornamental branch thingy and waved it near Freda, to try and have her move along. It worked nicely. So I moved her along a little more. And a bit more. Soon, we were at the back door; Josh quickly opened it, and I calmly encouraged Freda to walk out through the back door, and into her own world again.

We just herded a spider out of our house!

Now, I'm no psychologist or behaviour analyst, but...that is a far cry from my previous reactions! 

So what changed? The fear was still there; why could I suddenly handle it? 

I think there are two key things; firstly, there's no "super hero" to fly in and save me from my enemy. I must be the hero!

Which lead me to my second discovery; my fear was actually unfounded. I was totally overreacting to the situation, because I had allowed myself to do so. The situation was not ideal, but was it really worth all the stress and angst?

No. 

Do I still pray when I see a spider?! You bet I do! But I also pray for wisdom on how to handle it, and to give me clarity of mind, and the ability to relax in the face of the fear. 

As a creative, and in my spheres of writing and photography, I have had to overcome overwhelming fears; doubts that I am any good, that what I have to offer will measure up, feeling overwhelmed with the hugeness of what God is calling me to do. Many - MANY - times I just want to curl up in a ball under my blanket and cuddle my cat and not face what he's called me to.

But...I know that there is a greater purpose to my calling. Fear says, "I am not good enough!" whilst faith says, "Yet I will trust God to take my talent and make it grow exponentially." So I'm learning to live with the fear - of failure, and even of success, and the unknown nature of it all. For if I allow the fear to be in control, I will do nothing, and will just hide my talent away for no one to see; and how sad it is to know that someone could achieve something truly remarkable, had they but the faith to step out. 

I sincerely pray for anyone reading this today who is bound by fear; that God's gentle yet powerful hands would slice through the bindings and release you into your God-given and ordained potential! That you would catch a glimpse of all the things God has in store for you, and that you would take that first step to being in control of the fear, through faith in Him who is able to do exceedingly, abundantly more than you could ever ask or imagine!

Blessings,

Helen

Your Words are Powerful

I'm sure you are familiar with the beginning  of John's gospel.
'In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God and the Word was God...Through Him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.’ 
Would you allow me to interpret the beginning of the Bible in light of this scripture? 
'In the beginning The Word created the heavens and earth. Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep...and the Word said, "Let there be light!'


As authors it is imperative we understand the incredible power of words. Four words ignited the creation of the world. Four words turned 'formless and empty' into the beginning of the world as we know it. A few more well chosen sentences formed the sun, moon and stars, land, oceans, wild life and plant life. 
'But,' I hear you argue, 'Those words were uttered by the Almighty God. They carried His power and authority.'
I agree. But look at what comes next!
God said, "Let us make man in our image, in our likeness..."
We are created in God’s image. Everyone of us is just like Him. We are spiritual beings, placed within a body meticulously crafted from the ground. 
Therefore, by definition, we are creative. But as I'm talking to a bunch of authors. You know you're creative. You can feel that blood flowing through your veins.
You are born with the ability to create your world using your words - just like your heavenly Daddy. As believers we carry the same power that God used when he raised Jesus from the dead. (Eph 1:19-20) This is why Jesus expected His disciples to speak to the storm, to multiply the loaves and fish, to command demons to leave.
The truth is we do create our world with our words. The question is, what type of worlds are we creating? Are they hopeful or fearful, positive or negative,  rich or poor...
Do we declare faith over our circumstances, or do we agree with the circumstances? 
As I preached about this subject a few months ago, a lady sat weeping throughout the message. She told me after the service that her unborn grandchild had been diagnosed with severe brain deformities a few days earlier. She went home with a determination to create her world. For the rest of the day she spoke life, health and wholeness into that child. She claimed her authority from Ephesians 1. The next morning she continued her verbal assault on the heavens. That afternoon, she received a phone call. Further tests showed the child to be completely normal.  A few weeks ago, he was born whole and healthy. She changed that little boy's life by the power of her words!
As authors, we are word-smiths. We hold within our fingers the greatest power on earth. We craft ideas that others grasp. When those words come out of their mouths, they create their worlds! 
What an incredible privilege! What a great responsibility!
Will we stuff up? You mightn't, but I sure do! Then I use the power of my speech to seek His extravagant forgiveness and ask Him for the words to put things right. 


Jo Wanmer is excitedly awaiting the arrival of her first book, 'Though the Bud be Bruised.' It will be released by Even Before Publishing on 1st June. Her hope is for the words in this book to bring life and hope to hundreds of readers.