Good morning writers. A new day, a new page–what will you be writing today?
To be honest, I woke up feeling a little discouraged. I know, I know–it’s only day 3. But it’s okay if you feel like that too. Right now I can’t seem to think of a goal for my main character. All she does is stare broodily at the wall and tell me to do all the work.
Maybe I just need to approach my story from a different angle?
Continue readingIt’s that time of the year again!
I love autumn. Misty mornings, pumpkin pie, bright crunchy leaves, and a ridiculous month-long challenge. If you’re new to NaNoWriMo or have never heard of it before, go check it out and see if it’s for you: nanowrimo.org.
Last year I did a whole month of writing prompts for November, and I enjoyed it so much I thought I would do it again this year!
But first, let me spill the tea on my novel idea this year, because I will be attempting to write a ghost story. No guarantees it will end up a ghost story, but right now I’m channelling all the spooky Victorian fantasy vibes. I also made a map with this swanky fantasy map generator.
Today’s prompt:
Starting off with an image. What are your eyes drawn to? The wreck rusting into nothingness? The hungry birds? Or the distant houses? Is it a literal event for your character, or is it simply a metaphor?
I wish you all the best of luck this NaNoWriMo. We got this!!
Every year, sites like Spotify collate a whole years worth of content into a few minutes of numbers. This year, my partner used my Spotify more than I did, resulting in all the stats coming from songs I have never heard. Oops?
I’ve always enjoyed looking backwards at the end of the year, and to make up for the lost Spotify stats and to have some fun, I thought I’d give you all an insight into what I was up to during 2020. Is this just an excuse to make some infographics? Yes.
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Cherish D. Smith is a talented poet and budding historical YA novelist. Her beautiful and diverse characters will have you rooting and blushing for them in equal measures. You can find her on Twitter @icherishwriting.
What characters and themes do you like to write about and what inspires them?
I tend to write the quiet characters. I love a quiet character with giant dreams that almost make you go, “This? You want to do what? I mean I guess. If you like it, I love it.” And I am a bit of a romantic, so I love a good “love trumps all.” Is it vain to say that I’m inspired by myself? I have a somewhat quiet personality and ambitious dreams and I am quite easy to make blush. Lol.
Joy L. Smith is an up and coming YA novelist. She writes characters as diverse as they are powerful and inspiring–Joy is one incredible human bean. You can find her on twitter @JoyJoyWrites.
What characters and themes do you like to write about and what inspires them?
I think the main thing about the characters I write is that they’re Black girls. They’re city girls like me. They have that one thing that really keeps them going. I love to write about family and friendship and love because it’s important to me that Black girls know that there isn’t one clear story to tell about those three things. It’s all a bit complicated. And I love simple things but also complicated things too. For me I like to give my characters a skill that I was obsessed with as a kid or still wish I had. So you’ll see my characters love their theater references, ballet, acting and BMX biking among other things that make me happy, but inspire them.
What is a writer? When can you call yourself one? And how do you get the world to?
We live in a world of titles, where the difference of a few words can offend or flatter–fire you or get you a job–make enemies or friends. Finding out who you are is a big part of accepting yourself, and telling others where your strengths lie or what your job is. But often, there’s a line between professional and unprofessional. If you took a summer course in first aid, you cannot call yourself a trauma surgeon–it wouldn’t make sense. But turn to creativity titles like youtuber or photographer, and the lines are very blurred. In many cases, I don’t think they even exist.
I call myself a writer. An author, even. Am I being presumptuous? Do I really “understand” what I’m talking about? Why am I not a bestseller? If I’m a writer, shouldn’t I at least learn how to write regularly scheduled blog posts?
Well… let’s discuss. What does it really mean to be a writer? Continue reading
Sonora Hills 