The Devil's Advocate Blog

Hello and Welcome!

Hello, my name is Heather and I would like to invite you to join me as I work to conquer my goals and achieve my dreams.

I have spent the last 24 years trying to invest all of myself into my children and their worlds. Now that my youngest is less than two months from turning 18, I have decided to invest in myself and my love of books, reading, writing, planning, personal development, self-education, and crafting. This blog will be the roadmap of where I traveled on the road to becoming me. I am hoping that this website will serve as a place for developing a community of friends and sources of inspiration, a way of tracking memories, and a place for accountability.

Prophecies of Redemption

I have wanted to be an author since I was four years old. I invite you to follow along as I write my first book, Prophecy featuring Azazel (aka Roman), an Angel and Leader of the Watchers, as he begins his journey for Redemption. I am hoping that Prophecy will be the flagship book of the Prophecies of Redemption Series, a five-book series that I will be writing. I have 75% of the scenes planned for all five-book series, leaving just enough unplanned that we can all still be surprised as things develop throughout the writing process.

Writer's University

Never having any classical education in writing beyond that of high school (years ago) I realized quite quickly that there is so much more to writing a book than just sitting down at a computer and just typing in a linear order. I went out and started looking into some of the things I needed to refresh on, leading me to Kate Kavanaugh's YouTube channel where I found her idea of the Writer's University where you identify a weakness, build a class to strengthen that weakness, you do the work you assigned yourself in the syllabus and then based off of the results or how comfortable you feel with doing the "weakness", you give yourself a grade. If you don't pass, it is recommended that you retake that "class" again. I love this idea as you can choose what to focus on based on what your life looks like. Maybe you take one class because you are working full time or if your schedule is less full, you can focus on more than one subject. I created three classes: Plot Structure, Writer's Terminology, and Editing: What do you edit when? I created each class for a specific reason, The Plot Structure was because I wanted to make sure that I was following the ideal structure because all I knew about was the 3 Act Structure. Writer's Terminology was created to memorize the correct term for each element since I struggle with remembering information that doesn't have an emotional tie to it (the reasoning is in the next paragraph) and since what I know is from high school and there is no emotion connected to it, a refresher seemed smart so that I could decrease the amount of time looking terminology would take me. The Editing class was created because after I finish The Prophecy in the Rough Draft Challenge, I will start the editing process in January 2025. I will list all of my syllabi and the places where I found my answers. If this information is helpful at all, please feel free to use it as it is or use it as inspiration.

Project 45

While watching Sarra Cannon with Heart Breathings, I learned of her Project 48 where she is focusing on her personal goals before she turns 48 in January 2025. I feel that I am also in an area of re-designing my life with the death of my parents, my children quickly becoming more and more self-sufficient, and two of my siblings moving out of state leaving me with more time on my hands. So, my Project 45 will run until September 2025 and I will share with you guys my goals and my attempts at completing those goals.

Planning and Journaling

I adore all things planner-related. At 29 years old, I had two strokes in one day. Due to my young age, I bounced back relatively quickly, but short-term memory was a real struggle for me, especially if there was no emotion connected to it. I was too active with my kids, my community, and my extended family to not be able to remember the smallest things, like a game, a meeting, or what I had planned to make for dinner. And sleep, which I desperately needed to heal, wiped the slate in my brain clean every night. I turned to the internet and after many, many trials and errors, I found the Bullet Journal System created by Ryder Carroll. This system is designed around the idea of carrying over any action items you didn't complete today - to tomorrow, it had an area to document future dates and it was an already established system, so I was able to write down the steps so that I could follow them without having to try to remember them. I started in a basic notebook because I had to note or write down so much to make sure I completed as much as possible and attended all the events and meetings. The miraculous part was that the longer I used the Bullet Journal System, the quicker my recovery seemed. I think it was because I reviewed every action item so many times throughout the day that it strengthened the synapses that assist in creating memories. It became so helpful that even when my short-term memory was no longer a struggle, The Planner was so much a part of my life that I couldn't imagine my life without one. I found the Happy Planner throughout the years and my creative side enjoyed the decoration, the ability to take the pages in and out or rearrange them, and the ability to note future events on the daily pages that are already set up. I have bought dot grid paper that I use for Bullet Journal spreads after the weekly spreads. And now my one journal has turned to two. Due to the weight of my very full Happy Planner (Classic), I have tried to add in a weekly planner that would be my EDC or my Every Day Carry so I had a smaller planner to use while out and about. I had tried a couple of options but so far none have fit right. I have found one that I am trying in 2025 and I am hoping that this may be "the one". I will let you know what I think as we go. In 2025, I am also trying to journal daily. I will start with a sentence a day and then build that up as time passes and I become better at my journaling habit.

Books and Reading

My love of books started when I was young. I learned to read at three years old and by the time I got to Kindergarten, it took the teacher a day and a half to call my mom to tell her that she wanted to have me tested to move up to 1st grade. The time I spent with my head between the pages led to many family jokes including a family favorite about my dad stating that he couldn't remember what I looked like until I turned 14 and discovered boys. I love fantasy, historical, supernatural, religions, spice, conspiracies, and anything that makes you think. As I read, I will be posting book reviews. I hope I can help point you in the direction of a really good book and if you have a recommendation, please let me know! Eventually, I would love to start a Book Club, where we can read and discuss amazing books. If you are interested, also, please let me know.

Crafting

There are times when I need to take a break and be creative in different ways. I enjoy scrapbooking, making cards, making Christmas ornaments, painting, making home decor, plus much more. As I create I will share as well as give instructions if that is something I can do.

Thank you so much for visiting. Please feel free to email or message me if you have any questions or comments.