Writing is hard.
Exhilarating, rewarding, life giving? Absolutely! Sometimes though, it’s just straight up a pain. What is it that separates published authors from the hundreds of thousands of wannabes? I think a little illustration might help.
Recently, I was put through intensive spine shaping therapy due to a back injury. What does that mean? Everyone, including myself, was most curious to know.
Good writing comes from two things. Lots of reading and lots of writing. There’s just no getting around it. But you hopefully already knew that.
Our Feature Friday author Kim Vandel, recommended writers to “read, read, read.” I used to be one of those types who would find time to write but rarely to read. Then one day, I stumbled upon something one of the most prolific writer, Stephen King, wrote. He said, “If you don’t have time to read, you don’t have time to write.”
Pen Friends, today we have an unpublished Young Adult Fantasy novelist writing us from Alaska.
SP: Who are you?
Hello! My name is Rebecca Henry. I grew up in Southern California, with a lot of sisters and a big backyard, perfect for acting out the stories we made up! I began writing down my stories soon after I discovered my older sister had her own writing journal. When I turned six and the question was put before me, “What do you want to be when you grow up?” I answered with conviction, “A teacher, mom and writer.” Through the unpredictability of a child, teen and college student, those three remained constant and describe who I am now.
SP: What do you write?
I love to read and write MG/YA fantasy fiction, and anything for children!
SP: What are you working on now?
I am always sifting through new ideas and adding extra details to old manuscripts, but my main project right now is SPEAK, a Young Adult Fantasy Fiction.
It’s hard to write believable action when the most exciting thing you’ve done this year is spike your cat’s water bowl.
I say this because I’ve had a pretty action packed life and the action I’ve lived, I can write. One of my most infamous memories is of being attacked by gang members a couple years back. Thanks to that encounter, I can now say with confidence black eyes are not my style, a broken nose isn’t as flattering as I’d hoped, and hard as I try, I can’t rock stitches.
Pen Friends, todays feature is a Canadian poet and aspiring novelist.
Welcome Natalie Bearg!
SP: Who are you?
My name is Natalie and though I was born in Canada I don’t consider it home. I actually spent much of my growing up years in Asia, mostly Mongolia. It may be because as an introvert I tend to live inside my own head but writing has always appealed to me, especially poetry.
SP: What all do you write?
I love to write poetry, but in terms of fiction I write fantasy, steampunk themed stories with maybe some supernatural elements thrown in there, and heart wrenchers 🙂
SP: What am I working on now?
Life, The Afterlife, & Everything Inbetween — That’s what I’m calling my story at the moment. It’s a story that I started for nanowrimo in 2011 and the book is about just that. It’s a fantasy that follows a young girl who is trying to find herself in the world.
Hey Pen Friends! Today’s feature is an aspiring Young Adult author.
SP: Who are you?
My name is Dana Black, and I live in the beautiful Pacific Northwest. I’ve had a love of story for as long as I can remember, but I’ve been seriously pursuing fiction writing for the last four years. In my spare time, I enjoy photography and baking, and a few times over the years I considered going to pastry school or film school. Writing ended up winning out, and it continues to do so. But I make it a point of including food and baking in my stories as often as possible, and I dream of adapting my novels into screenplays.
SP: What do you write?
After trying out a few different genres, I have found a home writing young adult speculative novels, and I focus on fantasy. I’ve also got a time travel series in the works as well as a dystopian/fantasy waiting to be written.
Quick poll.
How many of you when you roll out of bed in the morning find your house and writing project in perfect order?
There’s a rich aroma of rainforest coffee wafting through the quiet and dark house as you sit down to your clean desk and boot up your laptop. You pull up your documents and immediately your fingers start flying over the keyboard. No hunting around for your charger, no searching for that character chart you filled out yesterday, or your hand drawn map—it’s all there and ready to go.
If “that’ll be the day…” is your response, this post is for you.
Getting organized is often the bane of a writer’s existence. But it doesn’t have to be. Here are a few helpful tips I’ve picked up along the bumpy writer’s road.
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Let’s do one of those little exercises you might expect to do at a psychologist’s office. Don’t worry, we won’t go too far back into your childhood or keep asking you “why do you think that is?”. I want you to think back to someone you’ve been attracted to at one point in your life.
Why were you attracted to begin with? Was it her status in the corporate world, his personality, the way she made you laugh, or his aura of mystery?
Someone worth spending time with pulls you in. They’re interesting.
For different reasons, albeit, but if s/he doesn’t interest you, that person is doomed to the inescapable dreaded pit we call the friend zone. Readers have a similar relationship with the protagonist in a book.
Sure magical lands, mythical creatures, or witty dialog can intrigue us, but story ultimately centers on people. If the protagonist can’t pull you in, it’s time to say “bye bye Felisha”.
So what to do about the predicament of your protagonist?
How do you prove to your reader your protagonist is worth reading about? First things first…
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Hey Authors~ Starting today, on Fridays, we will feature new people involved in the writing world, unpublished and published authors, editors, agents. Please find our contact information if you are interested in being one of them.
Today’s feature is an aspiring unpublished writer. We present…
They have a way of weaseling their way into our hearts.
After the years have passed and the details blurred, the thing that remains is our relationship with people.
That’s the magic in reading a book. We spend time getting to know characters and in turn, they let us into their lives.
Creating lovable characters is no easy task. There’s no set formula. There are, however, tools that can help. Here are four tools you can use to develop your characters.
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The Spinning Pen 