Just Keep Writing: August 14, 2023 - Monday Musings

 Welcome to the scenic route! You'll never guess... The sun is shining today. It's only been shining every day for the past I don't know how many days. Oh, for some rain! Still, there are good things about the sun. As my son said, he's been able to plow areas of our pasture that haven't been accessible in years because they're always too wet. It's important to look for the good things. I hear our temps are supposed to drop drastically in a day or two and I'm actually looking forward to that. It may mean an open-window day. I'm craving that fresh air!

Just Keep Writing: Monday Musings

If this is your first time participating in this kind of writing exercise, you're in for a treat. If you've done this with me before, just keep scrolling for the prompt.

Rules:

1. You can use any/all of the words and/or the photo in the prompt below to create a unique written work. Fiction or nonfiction, poetry or prose, even lyrics are acceptable.  
2. Please keep the material you write clean (i.e. nothing R-rated or worse) if you wish to share the link to your work here, as well as if you link back to my site. I strive to keep my site free of such things. My readers know and expect this. I respect your right to write whatever you feel you need to write. And you're free to use my prompts. But if your material is graphic, I'd rather not view it, and most of my readers will not wish to. 
3. Have fun! This type of exercise is perfect for growing in the writing craft, or for helping through a rough patch in your current WIP. If you're looking to push your author limits and you normally write in nonfiction prose, try a whimsical collection of lyrics. If you normally write poems about real life events, try your hand at a fanfic. Give yourself some room to explore.

Don't forget to leave a link to your creation (unless you're writing graphic material) so my readers and I can check out your work. I'd appreciate a link back to this post to help me reach more readers, but it's not required. 

This is an interesting word combo. What do you think?

Writing Challenge Time! #AbouttheAuthorAugust 2023

We're hitting week two on the scenic route. Today's prompt: 'Books/stories/characters that inspire you'.

• Kit Tyler from The Witch of Blackbird Pond - She's plucky. Even though she's starting completely over in a new place with family who are complete strangers to her in a culture which is unfamiliar to her, she doesn't give up. 
• Aragorn from The Lord of the Rings - He's truly noble. He doesn't think he's noble, but he tries to be. In my mind, he succeeds all the time. I actually preferred him as he appears in The Fellowship of the Rings. In that guise, he got a real feel for what the humans thought and how they worked. As such, he could be a better king to them later on. 
• The Obnoxious Jerks - This book was hilarious the first time I read it and it still cracks me up. I love this group of guys who find ways to fight the system at school. They're not the most popular, or the cutest guys. They're just a group of quirky guys who think. And I love the way the author is able to convey a picture I can easily see and just dive right into. 
• Jane Austen is inspiring as a woman author in a time when that wasn't well-received. She manages to show so much in them of what a woman had to go through during the Regency period. And she writes a riveting story without sex, foul language, or any other gimmick today's publisher's would have you add so they could make more money. 

I must stop there for today, but know that there are so many books and characters which inspire me, I could be here all day. Which ones inspire you to create? Share in the comments below!

Thank you so much for joining me on the scenic route today. I appreciate the support and encouragement. 

Don't forget to grab your copies of Ripples and The Tale of Outh'n Durr (check the sidebar menu for links). The price of Ripples will be going up soon, probably around November. It won't be a whole lot more, but with the costs rising for everything, it's not really something I can avoid. That really bothers me, too.  I had originally planned to market The Tale of Outh'n Durr at 99 cents. I found that I couldn't do that and still make enough in royalties. Back in 2018, it wouldn't have been a problem. But this is not 2018. 

On a brighter note, I'm working on getting things together to try to re-issue hard copies of Ripples, and get the hard copy option out for The Tale of Outh'n Durr. Stay tuned!

Come back tomorrow for a new word prompt and another response to the author challenge!

Until next time,
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