Writing (or not)

Everything is thwarting me! I wanted to upload a video from my youtube channel but couldn't manage it. Ah finally--Here is one from The Library of Time...https://youtu.be/v8QBCb_YeMY?si=c3an9fUsWfiSqFqW

I have been so distracted! We may or may not be moving, and this political situation is about to drive me crazy. Prisons being built everywhere, nasty-minded human beings who think hurting people is funny. It's hard to write or get any traction in this climate of hatred.

My newest one is going way slowly than I would like. My house is ripped apart from trying to pack--I have an organizer coming next week because of overwhelm. My cat seems to think I should be patting her every second that I'm on the computer...ok enough of that.

Moving: we found a house in Arcata, Ca. that we love--we made an offer that was accepted--finally. But the roof of said house seems to be on its last legs and the quote we got was for 18,000--there may have to be a bit more negotiating done--hence the 'may or may not' move comment.

Is anyone else out there feeling this amount of distraction?

I write a line or two every other day on The Hangman's Noose. I promised it would be finished by the fall...good luck to me. One of my main characters just got a Haflinger horse to pull her old Gypsy caravan. Sorry, I guess that word is no longer used---she is a pavee--word for an Irish traveler--no relation to the Roma...She is about to embark on a trip into an enchanted forest to escape her son-in-law who is something dangerous--we don't exactly know yet what he is--also one of her herbal clients is about to poison her husband using one of my character's remedies--if it happens she will be blamed--and that's why she's planning her escape. Meanwhile her granddaughter has been brainwashed by her father--the son-in-law.

Does that whet your appetite or just confuse you? don't worry--it's all explained.

I will attempt to keep you posted more often--please feel free to reach out! and thank you for reading!

Back to the grind

After the hell of the past couple of months I am once again working--yet another book! (#31, I think!) The Hangman's Noose takes place in Ireland, a country that I have been to once, but am planning to visit in March. (It is now May--did visit and will post about it next!) So far the story is showing itself to be in line with my earlier books that have to do with gods and goddesses, witches and mysticism. Maybe somewhat along the lines of my very first series, Wolfmoon.

I won't reveal more than this because there is a big mystery and a bunch of back story and in all honesty I don't know where the story is going! I have mentioned before that I'm a pantser (someone who doesn't outline or plan my stories) But I do have a cover already:

I LOVE this cover! What does it say to you? I see a lot of themes brewing in the imagery, and the noose is a big one...it offers a clue. Mercury is in retrograde at the moment so not much work has been done...I think I've made it up to chapter 4 so far...characters are revealing themselves and the unfolding story is hinted at. But where will it take me? I love not knowing!

If you are a writer what is it that inspires your stories? I love designing the covers--not that I do the work, but I find imagery that I like and then talk with my designer about what I'm thinking. We work well together. If you need someone great and you like my book covers, this designer is on Fiverr and goes by the name Kozakura. Once I have a cover I can kind of see the trajectory of the story...I am an artist too so it helps my imagination with general ideas...no real planning, just vague rumblings.

Writing is a mysterious process. I have noticed that when I try and tell someone about what I'm working on, the correct wordage does not come, nor can I repeat a sentence I've just written...writing comes from a different part of the brain and isn't linked to the part we use for talking. So being a storyteller does not necessarily make you a good writer! It's fascinating to me and I always wonder where the ideas come from. The prologue for this one just came to me out of the blue! And then a loose idea for a story...

Writing keeps my mind active and is my outlet for the secret world that lives inside me--it is filled with animals, mystical creatures and worlds not at all like this one). I write on substack and and used to write on medium until I realized I had like one reader. Some of these are rants about how I'm feeling regarding politics! But lately I'm trying to steer away from that...it's too negative and I found myself in a dark hole of depression. I managed to climb out, and I don't want to fall into it again!

What does writing do for you? what are your reasons for writing? There are as many reasons as there are writers, I would imagine. We all have our secret lives and the unique things that interest us.

Stay tuned as I think I may be using this blog to write down tips I might have gleaned in the twenty years I've been at this...questions and responses are very welcome!

Thank you for reading!

NEW BOOK on pre-order! .99 for the first month!

Grab it HERE

If you love fantasy/romance you may want to read book 1 and 2 first. The new one is a stand-alone but it's always nice to have background information which reveals how they came to be in the fix that they are. Because in my writing there is always some catastrophe to be worked through! Especially when it comes to Annie and Sam's relationship.

Now a little about my process. In series I usually try and pick up where I ended, explaining the last parts of the former book before I continue with the new one. I don't plot out the story. I've never been able to write an outline, which annoyed my English professors and my teachers in high school. How can you write an outline when you don't know where the story will go?

My stories write themselves--there is no other way to explain it. Characters arrive on the page and I have no idea who they are...they reveal themselves as the story unfolds. To me it is a bit like reading. I'm following along like a reader even though my fingers are typing. Sometimes I'm amazed and sometimes I laugh at what is happening. That happened a lot in my Coyote books.

Tolkien was also a 'panster', the word they use to describe this particular writing style. I recently read an article about Tolkien in which he said that Strider appeared in a pub sitting in a dark corner. Tolkien did not know who he was! As in my writing this character had to reveal himself. Doesn't this sound more fun than plotting everything out? Personally I LOVE it! If you have not read The Lord of the Rings, I suggest you do so. It is completely absorbing with fantastic characters.

Maybe we have no choice in the matter as to which style we work in, either plotter or panster. I am grateful to be the latter because I get so much pleasure out of my books! And when tell my husband something funny that occurred, it feels like I'm talking about something that happened to a friend, when in reality I wrote it! It sounds very odd when I explain it--but there it is.

Have a wonderful holiday and enjoy reading! Books make delightful Christmas gifts!