Shannon here: R.F. Whong shares the inspiration behind her Action Adventure Dual-Time Odyssey, Fire Between Two Skies. You’ll find a link to download a free copy of her nonfiction title, My Journey into Writing Fiction plus comment or answer the question in any post dated Dec 16 – 30 to enter the drawing for 4 other titles. Deadline: Jan 3rd, 11:59 pm central time. Here’s R.F.:
Tai Chi and Qi
More than two decades ago, I signed up for tai chi classes to improve my health—and, to be honest, to look mysterious in the park at dawn. I did it for a long while until my knees staged a rebellion. When every bend sounded like a bowl of Rice Krispies, I bowed out, limped home, and told myself I was better suited to exercises performed while sitting.
Later, friends informed me that, when practiced correctly, tai chi shouldn’t hurt knees. That stung. It’s like being told the cake I baked wouldn’t have collapsed if I hadn’t put it in the washing machine. I didn’t continue, but tai chi never quite left me alone. Its slow grace and quiet power kept tiptoeing into my imagination and then into my writing. A tai chi kung fu master appears in several of my books, including Fire Between Two Skies.
Tai chi borrows from Taoism’s idea of softness overcoming hardness. If two forces—yin and yang—push each other with equal force, neither moves. The trick is not to meet force head-on. You step aside, borrow the momentum, and set it down somewhere more convenient. While many people now practice tai chi for health and mindfulness, its roots are firmly martial. Many masters could dismantle an attack the way you might flick lint from a sweater.
A key element in tai chi is about “Qi” (pronounced as “chee”). If the word makes you raise a skeptical eyebrow, think of Qi as a blend of breath, attention, and how your body organizes itself. Understanding and working with Qi is integral to the practice and philosophy of tai chi to promote health, longevity, and the overall well-being of an individual.
Regarding my knees, I eventually learned that it’s all about alignment. Sit back into the hips. Keep the
knees tracking over the toes. Move from the center instead of collapsing forward. “Sink the Qi, not the kneecaps,” a friend told me. If I’d heard that earlier, I might not have quit. These days I do “micro–tai chi”: shifting weight while waiting for the kettle, softening the ribs in traffic, remembering to feel the floor under my feet when a plot goes feral.
Maybe I’ll return to class, humbled and better aligned. If you see me in the park moving like a glacier with opinions, I’m either doing tai chi or trying to remember what I should cook for dinner.
Until then, I as a tai chi master will only appear in my books.
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Question for readers: Have you ever practiced tai chi? Do you think tai chi is a good exercise for improving overall well-being?
Dec Book Bundle #2
A Gift for All Time by Tonya B. Ashley, Jenny Carlisle, Ellen E. Withers, Novella Collection, print
A Texas Holiday Reunion by Shannon Taylor Vannatter, Contemporary Romance, large print
My Journey in Fiction Writing by R.F. Whong, Nonfiction, Newsletter signup download
Right Before Their Eyes by Carrie Walker, Romantic Women’s Fiction, e-book
Across the Lake by Barbara M. Britton, Devotional Short Story Collection, print
About R.F.: Dr. Ruth Wuwong (PhD in biochemistry, MBA in finance) has published 120+ scientific books and papers (under her legal name) and a few Christian fiction books under R. F. Whong. She lives in the Midwest with her husband, a retired pastor. They served together at three churches from 1987 to 2020. Her grown son works in a nearby city.
She currently runs a small biotech company (www.vidasym.com) and has raised more than twenty million US dollars during the past few years for Vidasym.
In addition to her weekly newsletter and the platform (www.ruthforchrist.com), she’s active in several writers’ groups, including ACFW, Word Weavers, Facebook, and Goodreads. Through these connections, she plans newsletter/promotion swaps with others and has writers endorse her books, write forewords, and host her on guest blogs.
The Minnesota Anoka County Library has chosen her as a 2025 Featured Author. One of her books, Echoes over Stormy Sea, won several awards, including being chosen by readers as a winner in the HOLT Medallion Contest. Learn more & connect:
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About the book – Fire Between Two Skies (releases Jan 2026):
Two eras. One relentless quest for truth amid desires and temptation. Across the centuries, two men are bound by parallel destinies that echo through time. Book 3 of this dual-time odyssey delves deep into the passions and struggles that connect their worlds.
In 2022 Hong Kong, Jason Guan, after losing his job as an assistant supervisor for wetland conservation, joins his uncle’s real-estate business. A chance meeting with his high school classmate, Vivian Jiang, draws him into a web of secrecy, seduction, and moral compromise. Amid the chaos, he and his wife, Debra, read an unpublished manuscript by her father, a celebrated writer, about the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom (1851–1864) and a man’s futile pursuit of justice and peace on earth.
In nineteenth-century China, Zhang Xin, an orphan saved from the streets by Missionary Issachar Jacox Roberts, is swept into the fiery rebellion of the Taiping movement. Torn between the dream of a just kingdom, his forbidden love for Miao Lan, and his loyalty to his ruthless brother, Xin reckons with doubt, conscience, and the cost of faith.
When greed and exploitation eclipse justice, both men must navigate their respective perils. Will they prevail or be consumed?
Fire Between Two Skies Book Trailer
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I’ve never practiced tai chi, but it does seem like a good exercise.
I have never heard about tai chi before!
I have a winner! Diana Hardt won the drawing. I appreciate Ruth for being my guest and everyone else for stopping by.