The Martha Morgan book is coming into the home stretch. We should be able to send it to the printer next week. But I had a small scare: I forgot to apply for an ISBN number until last night, and learned that it could take 10-15 days to be approved.
But it was approved in less than 24 hours!
Surprised that I didn’t have to pray harder! And relieved!
Two weeks ago I attended a workshop by motivational speaker Roy Prevost. He talked about was the importance of always, always, always having your business card with you, giving it to people, and telling them how to use it.
That Sunday our special speaker was Murray Lutzer, youngest son of Harold and Charlene Lutzer of Canadian Revival Fellowship. I was at Caronport and Kenosee Lake Bible Camp with at least two of Murray’s sisters, so spoke with him afterwards and gave him one of my Siretona Creative business cards. (I didn’t actually tell him how to use it.) That evening his father Harold left a message on my cell phone, interested in hearing more about my ministry. Monday evening we finally talked, and Tuesday morning Harold called again inviting me to lead worship in their church some Sunday morning. Harold said, “We’ll see how the Lord leads.”
Yesterday I received a phone call from Fred Sirett wondering if I would speak at a kids came at the end of August … at Manitou Lake Bible Camp! Harold Lutzer had given him my name & number.
All from one business card … so far! That’s the power of networking.
The Government of Saskatchewan has proclaimed the month of March Rural Women’s Month in Saskatchewan. “It is appropriate that Saskatchewan recognize and celebrate the achievements of rural women, whose work on family farms and in rural communities has contributed to the success of this province,” Agriculture Minister Bob Bjornerud said.
The lives and accomplishments of rural women are documented in Saskatchewan by local history books, the Saskatchewan Agricultural Hall of Fame in Saskatoon, and scholarly work at the universities in Saskatoon and Regina.
“Since early homesteading days, rural women have been partners in their family farms and businesses,” Bjornerud said. “In addition to their dedication to the land, working off-farm jobs and raising families, rural women are vital to their community’s success, through involvement in churches, school and hospital boards, 4-H clubs, sports organizations and agricultural societies.”
Rural Women’s Month will be observed in conjunction with events held in March by various women’s groups in communities across the province. Some of events were organized in association with the United Nation’s International Women’s Day on March 8.
Yesterday a CD arrived in the mail: my Regent College thesis recording (1998) as remastered by Otto Guggemos who is in Germany!
Otto played bass and mandolin in my thesis concert. A few months ago he contacted me out of the blue and did this remastering on his own initiative. Even more amazing: just one day before receiving Otto’s first email I had thought, "I should find my thesis tape and listen to it again."
Hmmm ... do you suppose that could have been a God-incidence?
Yesterday the new master CDs arrived in the mail, complete with photocopies of a very nice cover that Otto & his wife designed, with pictures I've never seen before of the band’s practice before the performance that Friday morning, credits, and this lovely paragraph:
"In 1998 Colleen Taylor finished her thesis project on Mennonite women poets with a concert featuring her own songs and poems. It was absolutely thrilling to play in this band. We had played together in chapel quite a few times, and this was our last gig together. Most of us were leaving to be servants of the Word of God all over the world.”
Tonight I walked that lane called memory, listening to the songs, poems, harmonies, instrumentation. I miss playing with a band. I loved playing and singing with these particular people -- with you et al. Sometimes memories feel like yesterday. I can't say that this one does? Some things come back to me, but what this really feels like is a beautiful dream.
I love gathering teams to make things happen.
My current major project is editing a book of columns by Martha Morgan, an octogenarian woman whose quirky, witty reflections on growing older appear every week on page 2 of our newspaper, the Last Mountain Times. You can read her some of her columns here:
http://www.canstarnews.com/page/story/1/194
http://www.canstarnews.com/page/story/1/81
http://www.canstarnews.com/page/story/1/752
When I first started working at the newspaper, I was quite taken with Martha's column and wondered aloud if anyone had published a collection of her articles. Eventually I contacted her myself and learned that she had self-published in 2003, that the 1000 books she had printed sold well, that she has run out of those books, and that requests for more coming in every so often. Even so, she was not interested in doing that again. So I asked if we could do it. She was interested, so I wrote a proposal* and pitched it to the newspaper publishers, Lance and Vicki Cornwell. We decided to move ahead with it, so Martha and I started talking about practical details.
Last week I had an epiphany: the book has a team!
Last fall I thought it would be lovely to have this graceful and influential woman do the foreword, but immediately doubted that she would pay attention to "my" project. So I let it go, until an LMVBA meeting in December where I learned that Dr. Haverstock would be coming to make a presentation in Strasbourg and I could have supper with her! Well, I could at least try to pitch it to her! So I prepared a request package and gave it to her after her presentation. Martha Morgan's friend Shirley is personally acquainted with Dr. Haverstock, so last week Shirley phoned to follow-up for us and Lynda said she would be "delighted" to do it.
Other people on the team will include ...
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*Last May I bought How to Write a Book Proposal at Write!Saskatoon. This was some of the best money I have ever spent, guiding me in two successful book proposals and instructing me in planning for other book and CD projects.
On May 8th, I’ll be teaching a songwriting workshop at Write! Saskatoon. Please come!
Last summer I taught some writing workshops for teens at Arlington Beach Camp, including a couple of sessions on songwriting. So much fun.
During the Minus 40 Tour, Dara Hallett and I taught a worship and songwriting workshop in Weyburn. We loved the experience.
In the past 6 months I feel like my songwriting creativity has been awakened again after a few years of significant dormancy. Everywhere I go I listen for lyrical phrases and musical ideas and think, “That could be a song. Oh, that could be a song. Mmmm, that could be a song.” Where other people write prose, I see poetry and lyrics. There is absolutely not enough time to write down and/or record all the verse, melody, and harmony that I see and hear!
I’ve especially been happy to discover the joy and richness of collaboration. It’s a privilege to be able to share some of what I’ve learned with other songwriters.
