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 [...]
Category: writing
How I Self-Edit My Books
I know many of you are not only readers but writers as well. We all develop our own system for both writing and editing. And as I continue through the slogging process of editing my own latest novel, I thought it would be fun to take a break and give you a peek into how [...]
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 [...]
When Winter Won’t Go Away
I'm not sure what you're experiencing in your part of the world, but here in Missouri, winter keeps coming back. Fortunately, I love winter and snow. Unfortunately, snow makes it harder to get out and DO things. But more hibernating days means more writing days! And I've been taking full advantage of those. My new [...]
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 [...]
Authors: Truth vs Myth
Maybe you hope to be an author. Maybe you have a friend who is one. Either way, there are plenty of misconceptions about what happens when a writer becomes published. The minutes I became a published author, these assumptions started popping out of my friends’ and acquaintances mouths until I just had to put aside [...]
Ashlee Willis, Author of Fantasy 