Ask the Author: Elexis Bell
Answered Questions (7)
Elexis Bell
I'll say two things.
One, just write.
It sounds overly simplified, I know, but that's what it all boils down to. Nothing else can happen with your story if you never write it.
Don't make excuses about time or equipment or motivation. If you're daydreaming about your story while in a waiting room, pull up a note app on your phone and write what you're daydreaming. If you get a burst of inspiration but can't sit down to write, jot notes down on your arm to be typed up later.
Just write.
And two, write what you like.
This story, first and foremost, should be something you like. You're going to spend hours and hours, over the course of months or even years depending on your writing process, immersed in this story. And then, there's a ton of editing. And then, if you publish, there's a ton more time working with and around the story.
Don't torment yourself. Write what you actually like.
One, just write.
It sounds overly simplified, I know, but that's what it all boils down to. Nothing else can happen with your story if you never write it.
Don't make excuses about time or equipment or motivation. If you're daydreaming about your story while in a waiting room, pull up a note app on your phone and write what you're daydreaming. If you get a burst of inspiration but can't sit down to write, jot notes down on your arm to be typed up later.
Just write.
And two, write what you like.
This story, first and foremost, should be something you like. You're going to spend hours and hours, over the course of months or even years depending on your writing process, immersed in this story. And then, there's a ton of editing. And then, if you publish, there's a ton more time working with and around the story.
Don't torment yourself. Write what you actually like.
Elexis Bell
Music. It's unbelievably helpful for getting my mind going.
If I have headphones and a mindless, repetitive task, my characters start talking and refuse to stop.
And if I'm struggling to get into a groove with a book I've been away from for a little while, turning on the playlist for that book is usually enough to jumpstart the creative process.
Did I mention I make playlists for every story?
If I have headphones and a mindless, repetitive task, my characters start talking and refuse to stop.
And if I'm struggling to get into a groove with a book I've been away from for a little while, turning on the playlist for that book is usually enough to jumpstart the creative process.
Did I mention I make playlists for every story?
Elexis Bell
I have a lot of irons in the fire, but I'll break it down into editing and writing.
Writing:
The Regonia Chronicles- a dark sci-fi series with aliens, interplanetary travel, alcoholism, broken families, and romance. I'm still adding to all three books, but book one is done (barring any additions), book two is nearly done, and book three is about... a third of the way done.
The prequel is roughly a quarter of the way done, and there's a short story prequel that I'd like to write, as well.
Editing:
Allmother Rising- Dark high fantasy romance with druids, princes, god battles, magic, and animal companions. LGBT and straight romance.
Where Darkness Leads- Dark romantic high fantasy with blood magic, war, gods, and tons of desperate choices. Primarily straight romance, but also some LGBT.
Second to None- Psychological thriller novella set in a haunted house.
Several short stories in varying genres, everything from victorian paranormal drama to tragic dystopian romance.
Writing:
The Regonia Chronicles- a dark sci-fi series with aliens, interplanetary travel, alcoholism, broken families, and romance. I'm still adding to all three books, but book one is done (barring any additions), book two is nearly done, and book three is about... a third of the way done.
The prequel is roughly a quarter of the way done, and there's a short story prequel that I'd like to write, as well.
Editing:
Allmother Rising- Dark high fantasy romance with druids, princes, god battles, magic, and animal companions. LGBT and straight romance.
Where Darkness Leads- Dark romantic high fantasy with blood magic, war, gods, and tons of desperate choices. Primarily straight romance, but also some LGBT.
Second to None- Psychological thriller novella set in a haunted house.
Several short stories in varying genres, everything from victorian paranormal drama to tragic dystopian romance.
Elexis Bell
It really depends. Most of the time, I just do something physical and think my way through it while getting my blood pumping. My job is actually pretty good for this. It's very repetitive physical work, so my mind is active and able to wander.
My current WIP, The Regonia Chronicles, is a bit different though. A couple of years ago, I reached a point where it was clearly going to be two books instead of one (standalones are kinda my thing), and I had made the big bad guy so big that I had no idea how the humans and Regonians were ever going to stand a chance.
Every scenario spelled a complete and total wipe-out of all their forces, no matter what. Some even spelled cataclysmic genocide.
That's the trouble with making really big bad guys.
As the writer, you have to figure out how to at least give your main characters a fighting chance. Even if they don't win, they need to stand some chance, otherwise it's just depressing and boring.
So, I set it aside and wrote something else while I tried to figure out what to do to put them on... *almost* equal grounds with the big bad guy.
When I figured it out, I then had to go back through what I'd written, add some things, restructure other things, and lay all the groundwork for the next book. And, as it turns out, the next book after that.
My current WIP, The Regonia Chronicles, is a bit different though. A couple of years ago, I reached a point where it was clearly going to be two books instead of one (standalones are kinda my thing), and I had made the big bad guy so big that I had no idea how the humans and Regonians were ever going to stand a chance.
Every scenario spelled a complete and total wipe-out of all their forces, no matter what. Some even spelled cataclysmic genocide.
That's the trouble with making really big bad guys.
As the writer, you have to figure out how to at least give your main characters a fighting chance. Even if they don't win, they need to stand some chance, otherwise it's just depressing and boring.
So, I set it aside and wrote something else while I tried to figure out what to do to put them on... *almost* equal grounds with the big bad guy.
When I figured it out, I then had to go back through what I'd written, add some things, restructure other things, and lay all the groundwork for the next book. And, as it turns out, the next book after that.
Elexis Bell
In this regard, I'm a little... odd.
I don't set out a specific list at any point in time. I have a 3 foot by 3 foot shelf in my library dedicated solely to books I want to read at some point. After I finish a book and move it to my "read" shelf at the height that corresponds to how much I liked it, I sit in the floor in front of this "to be read" shelf for as long as it takes me to find one that I want to read right then.
I look at the titles and covers. I pull them off the shelf and read the blurbs. If the blurb piques my interest given the mood I'm in at that point, I flip to the first page (never the last page) and start reading. If it grabs me, that's what I read.
So, it's a little difficult to give a list that I want to read this season, but I can tell you a few recent additions to the shelf that I'm excited about. The Wielder series by Elle Cardy recently found its way onto my shelf, as did Omega Rising by Douglas S. Pierce. The Crown of Conspiracy series by Kara S. Weaver (the books that are out so far) are waiting for me, as is Sorceress of Truth by Jodie Cross.
I'm currently reading Rising from Dust by Martine Carlsson.
I don't set out a specific list at any point in time. I have a 3 foot by 3 foot shelf in my library dedicated solely to books I want to read at some point. After I finish a book and move it to my "read" shelf at the height that corresponds to how much I liked it, I sit in the floor in front of this "to be read" shelf for as long as it takes me to find one that I want to read right then.
I look at the titles and covers. I pull them off the shelf and read the blurbs. If the blurb piques my interest given the mood I'm in at that point, I flip to the first page (never the last page) and start reading. If it grabs me, that's what I read.
So, it's a little difficult to give a list that I want to read this season, but I can tell you a few recent additions to the shelf that I'm excited about. The Wielder series by Elle Cardy recently found its way onto my shelf, as did Omega Rising by Douglas S. Pierce. The Crown of Conspiracy series by Kara S. Weaver (the books that are out so far) are waiting for me, as is Sorceress of Truth by Jodie Cross.
I'm currently reading Rising from Dust by Martine Carlsson.
Elexis Bell
A Heart of Salt & Silver came from bouts of insomnia. When I can't sleep, I imagine a character and just drop them into a scenario to see what happens.
That focuses my mind, slowing the chaos that's keeping me awake and letting me eventually go to sleep.
Sometimes I like the character. Sometimes I like the scene.
Sometimes I like both.
When I find something I like, I stow it away in the back of my mind and come back to it the next time I can't sleep. Eventually, I get enough to start writing. That's how I ended up with the bare bones of the opening scene for A Heart of Salt & Silver.
That focuses my mind, slowing the chaos that's keeping me awake and letting me eventually go to sleep.
Sometimes I like the character. Sometimes I like the scene.
Sometimes I like both.
When I find something I like, I stow it away in the back of my mind and come back to it the next time I can't sleep. Eventually, I get enough to start writing. That's how I ended up with the bare bones of the opening scene for A Heart of Salt & Silver.
Elexis Bell
Building worlds and people. Hands down, that's my favorite part.
There are a lot of parts of writing that I absolutely love, but the pure creation of it is the best part.
There are a lot of parts of writing that I absolutely love, but the pure creation of it is the best part.
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