Writing and Everyday Activities Series Part 2

Writing Skills and Planting Vegetables

I’ve often thought that gardening is a wonderful picture of writing. There are so many parallels and truths that can be drawn from planting seeds and watching them grow. Here are some ideas to get you thinking.

Preparing a piece of Land
A piece of land left to itself will generally be rocky, thorny and hard - unable to support a seed to maturity. It needs to be prepared for use. In the same way, we need to prepare ourselves to write and be used by God.

Using Garden Implements
Garden tools such as spades, forks and hoes are used to break up hard soil and remove weeds. We can prepare ourselves by listening to other’s comments about our writing and paying attention to them. It can be hard to accept correction and criticism but it is the best way to grow. If unsure about a comment, ask another writer to have a look and see what they say.

Fertilizer and Writing
Sometimes the soil is lacking in certain minerals and needs fertilizer to correct the imbalance. If our writing skills are weak in certain areas, we can read books or take courses to strengthen our abilities. A single weakness such as poor grammar or spelling can ruin a lovely piece of work. Seek out learning opportunities and make the most of them.

Planting Seeds and Caring for Them
Sometimes story ideas need to be buried in our hearts and left to grow. Just as a seed will fail to thrive if we keep digging it up, an immature story idea may need time to develop. Feed it by doing some research and thinking about it but don’t try and force it on to a page until the time is right.

Reaping a Harvest
Seeds planted in soil that has been prepared and watered will bring forth a crop. If we entrust our skills to God while doing our part to prepare our hearts and minds, He will bring results. Our words will come to fruition and touch the lives of those who read them.

This is a simple analogy but one that contains so much depth. I try and plant word seeds daily ... and more and more I’m seeing the fruits of my labor. It’s an ongoing process and I encourage you to start where you are and prepare the soil of your heart for great things.

Read Part 1 - Writing Stories and Baking a Cake

Debbie Roome works as a freelance writer from her home in New Zealand. Visit her at Debbie Roome or read some of her work at Suite 101 , Take Root and Write and Faithwriters.