Find your Author Power

Empowering yourself as an author has so much to do with mindset. If we believe in ourselves, the hard part has been accomplished. However, this is so often the stumbling block for many creatives. You can erase self-doubt by boosting your self-confidence in a few ways.

If you meet self-doubt down a dark alley in your mind, walk past it; leave it in the shadows and head for the light – work through it by writing yourself away from it. Getting creative will leave your mind little space for sinking into doubts and fears. If it’s a long alleyway, take small steps that can broaden as you gain confidence and therefore move more swiftly to success.

Be comfortable in your creative process. There is nothing more sapping on your creativity than an uncomfortable chair, or a pen or laptop that won’t cooperate! Find the best place and the best method to write, even if your choices sound crazy to others. Write what you want and how you want, otherwise it may not happen at all.

Lastly, never believe you know everything. Creative journeys involve ongoing learning, so don’t be afraid to make mistakes and learn from them. There is continual room for improvement and it is part of the fun of creating!

Inspiration Hibernation

A blank piece of paper

You would imagine having twelve weeks at home would have been a writers' dream. No external distractions; no time wasted on journeys here, there and everywhere; no meeting friends in coffee shops or wasting time mooching around department stores. I'd been waking much earlier, often before my alarm at 6.15am, and not retiring to bed before 11pm most evenings. But... and this is the BIG 'but', I hadn't spent any extra time writing. My inspiration had gone into hibernation along with me!

Apple blossom

I have spoken with other creatives who haven’t sat at a laptop or picked up a pen or paintbrush either. Unable to go out and about, to see people or places, had sapped our spark. To rectify this I began by posting my ‘Hibernation Inspiration’ blog posts. These were a small effort to aid fellow creatives and a channel for me to kick-start some writing by creating the mini poems and prose for the posts. Here is my first 'Hibernation Inspiration post.

My little tray of filter coffee and matching mug

The ability to ‘find’ ideas comes from stimulation or solace, neither of which are always attainable when you are indoors for months with all your family! The muse wanders, so you have to find new methods. I substituted visits to coffee shops, woodland walks and running my local writing group with coffee moments at home, writing letters and spending more time in our garden for work or leisure. To maintain my writing group, I organised video meetings for my members and emailed them topics. I have found beauty and inspiration closer to home. To spur my writing, I switched to smaller projects needing less focus time and a shorter attention span. I extended deadlines on larger projects and succumbed to a slower pace of life.

Scales of work/life balance

Life is all about balance and when something is tossed at you that tips the scales, you make adjustments until you regain that balance. Sometimes it takes a while, but when you find the magical mix, mind and body relax. Relaxation of mind and body facilitates the return of the muse and eases creative production. If you are stuck in a creative rut, keep trying. Your muse it out there. You may simply need a little longer to find it. And take heart… during this time of global hibernation many people around the world have chosen the creative arts to express themselves, to entertain them and to inspire them to try new careers.

• Have you struggled to write through lockdown?
• What have you done to maintain inspiration?

~   ~   ~

Blood, betrayal and brotherhood.

They come to honour a Warrior-Lord’s dream,

An ancient saga weaving their destiny,

But a treacherous rival threatens their fate.

The Wolf Sons are coming.

WULFSUNA

Author Interview: Louise Ann Knight

Today's author interview is with debut fantasy author, Louise Ann Knight:

Louise lives in England and loves to read, garden and wander wild places. She writes fantasy, modern and children’s fiction. She is a freelance administration and event volunteer in her local community. After working in business administration, she trained as a meditation teacher. She is currently writing the next novel and producing a children's book for release.

'Sky Drum' is available from Amazon

"Peace. Chaos. Potential. Cosmos. It will take them all to restore the sky drum. Journeys and friendships collide, in this elemental tale of old promises and new hope. Sky Drum is the first in the series about two planets, two suns and the people that unite them."

You can find out more from Louise's website

~ ~ ~

1. What was the initial inspiration for your current book/series?

A thunderstorm several years ago reminded me of recurring childhood dreams. I’ve always been fascinated in nature and the cosmos. I began thinking about people interacting and working with them directly. Nature provided the inspiration and the dreams a landscape. I began writing characters that connected them.

2. What aspect of your genre is the most, a) satisfying and b) annoying?

I love creating names – for people, places and things. I enjoy writing about a race of people that have lived through differences and similarities in history (global equality being a difference, plant medicine being a similarity). Continuity is annoying though necessary. Sky Drum required a lot of threads to weave a story through multiple characters and across two worlds. Now that is done, going forward is simpler.

3. Which of your characters is your personal favourite and why?

I enjoy writing all the characters, in different ways. Though the protagonists on each world are my favourites, because they go through the most change in the story. Ora is seeking a lost part of herself. She is willing to dismantle what she believes and thinks, to challenge all she knows. So that she can remember ways of being, that can help others. Illik gives himself in service to a purpose he cannot fully comprehend. He is prepared to be the person that is needed, even though he doubts himself. His trust in the land that shaped him and his love for others, gives him courage in the face of the unknown. And I think everyone can identify with those things, at one time or another.

4. Do you love or loathe research? Do you plan it or look it up as you write?

I love research! I do some initially and inspiration is bound to come from the non-fiction reading I enjoy. Some research takes place as I write. For the fantasy series, as one example, I looked at the food and housing of tribes around the world and throughout history. I then created flora and fauna within the landscape that would enable people on the otherworld to create homes, depending on what climate the settles were based in.

5. If you were to write in another genre, which would it be and why?

I like modern fiction because it is so broad and children’s fiction, because I love to nurture imagination.

6. Describe your ideal writing paradise.

The seasons encourage me to experience writing in different ways. I love writing at a wooden table or in a chair, near a large window. A view of nature. Hills, meadows, beach or barrow. The light, the air, the wind through trees. Or sat on a log or blanket, in amongst it all. Candlelight on dark evenings, a blanket. I write onto a computer though first I draft on paper. I love the tactile experience of ink flowing onto a page. I re-use paper so there's a stack of leftover notebooks people passed me and sheets of printed paper. A jar of pens and pencils. Pukka teas or Lavazza coffee on the hob. Bliss!

~ ~ ~

Blank Page Syndrome

Beginning any project can prove a fearful experience for many; a perilous precipice of white expanse where no words dare to fall. Toes curl, hair bristles on the back of necks and fingers pause over keys. They envy those who freefall into the abyss and dream of the day when chapters gush onto the page in a vomit of inspiration. Yes, writing is a messy craft for some.

I recently wrote a blog on keeping a writing ‘log’ after experiencing insecurities over the little time I thought I was spending on my craft. It turned out these insecurities were unfounded and other areas of my life had only appeared to have consumed my writing time. Quite often doubts and insecurities arise when we are confronted with what our own psyche views as a mammoth task.

Starting a new novel, entirely undrafted or plotted in any way except for a title had shaken my confidence. The ‘Blank Page Syndrome’ had crept in while I had been busy with daily work and family routines, to undermine my ability to even begin! Goodness, it had even cast doubts on whether I was doing any writing at all, about anything.

A few weeks into the log settled those initial doubts. Then it was time to get to work on the fear of that vacant page. Where did I begin? I read books, lots of books, all factual research on various topics relating to the novel I hoped to write. As I made notes on Druidry, equine history, Autism and the movement of Celtic peoples after the departure of the Roman Empire from Britain, visions emerged. My vacant page contained words, not of a story per se, but of scenarios.

Finding the roots of your story is one way to chase away the Blank Page Syndrome. Once you set down roots, it is hard to be uprooted as the trunk expands, branches spread and leaves grow with your ideas. Soon these disparate scenarios contain characters, or at the very least names or titles of the protagonists. They may not have faces or hair colour, but they are saying things and moving around a landscape that is slowly emerging, like a watercolour filtering over paper.

Soon you discover you are linking these scenarios together and forming a jigsaw with them, slotting in new ideas or moving them around. External factors or other characters appear to tip the delicately balanced plot, sometimes even before it has completely formed and you find the story spiralling into unknown, unplanned pastures.

You have the beginnings of a book!

• Have you ever suffered with the blank page syndrome? If so, how have you dealt with it?
• Are you a tight plotter, loose pantster or a little of both?
• If you have an idea do you stall it and pause to assess if it will be detrimental to the original plot, or run with it and see where it will lead?
• Do you throw out an idea if it doesn’t fit within the strict confines of the perfect story arc you created, or allow it to alter your story?

Writing as ‘E S Moxon’, Elaine's debut historical fiction adventure ‘WULFSUNA’ was published January 21^st, 2015 and is the first in her Wolf Spear Saga series. She is currently writing her second novel, set once again in the Dark Ages of 5^th Century Britain, where the legendary Saga ensures a Seer and one named 'Wolf Spear' are destined to meet. You can find out more about Elaine’s novels on her website or follow her on Twitter or Facebook.

Elaine lives in the Midlands with her family and their chocolate Labrador.

~ ~ ~

Blood, betrayal and brotherhood.

An ancient saga is weaving their destiny.

A treacherous rival threatens their fate.

A Seer's magic may be all that can save them.

WULFSUNA

A Year and a Book

A little over a year ago I began a writing log, because I felt I wasn’t giving enough time to my craft and that Book 2 in my Wolf Spear Saga series would never be written. I had decided to shelve complete drafts of the two novels I had written after ‘WULFSUNA’, as I wanted to remain with the characters from the first book a while longer. I felt the reader would also want to, and that the other novels could become later stories. This of course meant starting entirely from scratch – blank page syndrome. We all have commitments and it is a lucky few who find their writing successful enough to allow them to do it full-time. Work, family and life in general seemed to be taking over all my spare time. I felt I had let myself down and so the ‘log’ commenced.

Looking back on pages of handwritten columns of notes, word counts and hours revealed I had not forsaken my craft or Book 2 at all and I was writing ‘something’ every week. Exceptions to this were clearly delineated by family holidays (where I prefer to spend time with my tribe and leave the online world behind) or periods of illness. All my spare time had not been consumed by extraneous activities as the weeks and months of wide-ranging word count proved in black and white (or blue, or purple, or green – hey, I’m a writer; I love pens!). There had been words to count!

Admittedly the time spent actually writing averaged only an hour a day, including weekends, but I noticed also that length of time did not necessarily equate to the amount of words produced on the page/screen. I had spent several hours redrafting chapters where word count added had been minimal for the time allotted. In contrast, I had spent many a ten-minute slot scribbling a few hundred words off the bat.

Patterns also emerged, providing me with an insight into routines I had not consciously noticed, such as pockets of marketing and promotion in one-week blocks or periods where I read research material extensively and made copious notes. This was all time spent working towards my writing and the completion of my novel and so it was counted. Other patterns were more intriguing. Whether you believe in planetary energies or simply equate the full moon with lighter evenings and hence a sense of being more ‘awake’ for longer on those nights, my writing did peak in a week waxing up to a full moon. Word count was often triple or quadruple my usual levels.

Certainly, whatever these figures prove, the single outstanding factor is that I am writing regularly. Maintaining the log has merely revealed this fact to me, at a time when I imagined other areas of my life had taken over. It has given me impetus to continue and increased confidence that I have been managing my writing time effectively while, as they say in France, juggling the ‘train-train du jour’. And after a year, I have an ‘almost’ book that this week surpassed 91,000 words.

 The Wolf Spear legend will return!

•  Have you ever faced difficulties in balancing your writing time with other factors in your life?
• How have you overcome these?
• What advice would you give to others who find themselves in the same situation?

Writing as ‘E S Moxon’, Elaine's debut historical fiction adventure ‘WULFSUNA’ was published January 21^st, 2015 and is the first in her Wolf Spear Saga series. She is currently writing her second novel, set once again in the Dark Ages of 5^th Century Britain, where the legendary Saga ensures a Seer and one named 'Wolf Spear' are destined to meet. You can find out more about Elaine’s novels on her website or follow her on Twitter or Facebook.

Elaine lives in the Midlands with her family and their chocolate Labrador.

~ ~ ~

Blood, betrayal and brotherhood.

An ancient saga is weaving their destiny.

A treacherous rival threatens their fate.

A Seer's magic may be all that can save them.

WULFSUNA

Guest Post - Mark Noce, author

My guest at Writers' Grove today is US historical fiction writer Mark Noce whose novel 'Between Two Fires' is released on 23rd August 2016. Paula Brackston, NYT Bestselling author of 'The Witch's Daughter' has this to say about it: “A spirited ride through a turbulent slice of Welsh history!”. Aside from being a writer of historical novels, he is partial to putting pen to the odd short story and is also a mariner, gardener and keen traveller. His debut is published by Thomas Dunne Books (an imprint of St. Martin's Press and Macmillan) and is the first in a series of historical fiction novels set in medieval Wales.

He has graciously agreed to answer some questions about his writing and debut novel, and I'm thrilled to be his host for the day!

From where did your original idea for 'Between Two Fires' stem and did it become the book you originally set out to write?

For me, the core of a story stars with that first line. In this case, “Today I will marry a man I have never met.” That line haunted me because the moment it entered my head I knew who Branwen was and the story I wanted to tell. At that point I pretty much had no choice. Funny as it sounds, I simply had to write the story as she was speaking inside my head. I’m also always interested in “dark ages,” not just a backward or apocalyptic time, but an era that has left very little trace for modern archaeologists and historians. This gives me as an author a chance to bridge the gap with a plausible story that can extrapolate just a little further than a historian might feel comfortable doing. Plus, I just love a good medieval romantic story.

That's fascinating Mark, and I know exactly what you mean. Once those characters enter our heads, we are held captive at their will until all the words are written! I would also have to agree with you about the so-called "dark ages" and the excitement, as an author, of being able to illuminate them with our own creativity.

Are you a 'schedules and spreadsheets' writer or is your approach more organic?

I have to say, I used to be a planner and now I’m a total panster. I certainly do plenty of research, but I need the organic approach in order to make the plot flow the way I want and get the tension just right. And since I’m a big history buff, I’m pretty much always researching a dozen different eras that interest me anyway, so when inspiration strikes for one particular subject, I’m usually all ready to go anyways.

Yes, I consider the best approach to be a balance of good underlying planning, but then a free-flow of creative ideas. As you say, researching a variety of topics cannot fail to inspire and tug your plot in different directions. Often the best work arises from those unexpected moments.

'Between Two Fires' is the first in a series. What might we expect to see in following tales?

I actually already have the sequel written and in the hands of my publisher, as I originally signed a two-book deal with St. Martin’s Press when I started. The sequel entitled The Long Defeat, chronicles the Welsh kingdoms dealing with a new threat, that of the Picts, and how they present problems entirely different from those that they encountered with the Saxons. We’ve no firm release date as of yet, but I’m hoping to have it out by late next year. Fingers crossed.

An intriguing time, Mark. I very much look forward to 'The Long Defeat' when it is revealed to the world.

Name 3 of your favourite books/authors of all time.

My three favorite authors in terms of their writing style and storytelling would probably be Lawrence Durrell, Kim Stanley Robinson, and Marion Zimmer Bradley. But honestly, the list goes on and on for me. I love the classics, everything from Homer and Shakespeare to Hemingway, London, and Dumas, so nailing it down to three authors is pretty difficult for me.

Thanks Mark. An interesting collection. Thank you for being my guest on Writers' Grove today and the very best of luck with 'Between Two Fires'.

Thanks again for having me here, Elaine! 

 ~ ~ ~

 'Between Two Fires' is released 23rd August 2016, by Thomas Dunne Books

(an imprint of St. Martin's Press and Macmillan).

'Saxon barbarians threaten to destroy medieval Wales. Lady Branwen becomes Wales’ last hope to unite their divided kingdoms when her father betroths her to a powerful Welsh warlord, the Hammer King.

But this fledgling alliance is fraught with enemies from within and without as Branwen herself becomes the target of assassinations and courtly intrigue. A young woman in a world of fierce warriors, she seeks to assert her own authority and preserve Wales against the barbarians. But when she falls for a young hedge knight named Artagan her world threatens to tear itself apart. Caught between her duty to her people and her love of a man she cannot have, Branwen must choose whether to preserve her royal marriage or to follow her heart. Somehow she must save her people and remain true to herself, before Saxon invaders and a mysterious traitor try to destroy her.'

First in a series of historical fiction novels set in medieval Wales, you can purchase it from the following locations:-

Amazon/ Amazon Kindle/ Barnes & Noble/ Barnes & Noble Nook/ iTunes/ IndieBound/ Thomas Dunne Books

 
You can keep up with Mark Noce via the following links:-

 Twitter/ Facebook (author page)/ Goodreads/ LinkedIn/ Google+/

 Mark is also running a Thunderclap campaign for the release of 'Between Two Fires' You can help support him here:-

Thunderclap Campaign