Deprivation. A gift. It is what sparks the fire of our inborn resources, uncovers the internal wealth of creativity and curiosity that each of us has within. Perhaps, as families, as towns, and even as an entire country, we have cause to know that much more sharply these days than we ever have before. But [...]
Category: Inspiration
Fantasy Worldbuilding Secrets
In honor of #FantasyMonth, I thought it would be fun and insightful to re-explore some of my absolute favorite books (who wouldn’t?!) and why their “worlds” felt so special or real to me. Why they felt like places that, oftentimes, I’d prefer to the world I actually live in. The Sevenwaters series. Author Juliet Marillier [...]
The Magic of Music
Music has always been magical for me. Whether it’s Kate Rusby’s fairytale-esque folk music, a brokenhearted Chopin Nocturne, the hard bite of Switchfoot sound and lyrics, or simply when I’m geeking out to the Lord of the Rings soundtrack . . . I choose the music, and then, impossibly, the music seems to choose me. [...]
The Power of Imagination
This is a guest post by author Jenelle Leanne Schmidt. When I was asked to write a post about something that inspires my writing, my mind went instantly blank. I struggled with jotting down one idea, then another, but none of it felt right. You see, I’m not entirely certain I can point to a [...]
Catching the Butterfly of Inspiration
This is a guest post by author Brent King. “This is how I want to spend my life: corroborating with the forces of inspiration that I can neither see, nor prove, nor command, nor understand.” - Elizabeth Gilbert Inspiration can be a flitting, fleeting thing. My Vain Effort I have often attempted to follow the [...]
What Inspires My Writing (Pt 2) – and Giveaway!
This is a guest post by author H.S.J. Williams. When I was a little girl, there was a book on the shelf that fascinated me. It portrayed a young native girl sitting on a grassy hill, a wolf lying by her side. Her pensive expression, the wind in her hair...it all evoked my imagination. I [...]
What Inspires My Writing (Pt 1)
Hardship. Hardship is something I’ve known off and on all my life, although the past few years have been especially trying for various reasons. I believe everyone comes to a point during hard times where they have the choice: Be weakened and destroyed by your trials, or be strengthened and learn from them. All the [...]
My First Year of NaNoWriMo
After brainstorming, planning, and outlining my next novel for the two or three months previous to November, I felt this year would be as good a time as any to finally participate in National Novel Writing Month. Though I didn't reach 50,000 words, I did reach my own personal goal of 25,000. I loved the [...]
October Love, Wild Wanderings, and a New Book
Fall is here at last in my home of Missouri. Three days ago brisk winds blew in thunderstorms and chilly weather. Leaves are falling from the trees already. All the beaches we love to play and walk on have been temporarily drowned in the swell of the great Missouri River (but that didn’t keep us [...]
Are Fairy Tales a Waste of Time?
This is a guest post by Brent King. As a Christian urban fantasy author I have been confronted, as have many of my writing partners, by those who doubt that fantasy, or fairy stories, have any anchor in the real world. Worse yet, some have argued that they take their reader far out of this [...]
Ashlee Willis, Author of Fantasy 