Ask the Author: Kaz Delaney
Answered Questions (3)
Kaz Delaney
Book #5 in The Hart of Texas Murder Mystery series. Tentative title? 'Silence of the Limes'. Ha! Will my publishers let me keep it? Probably not - but I'm having fun anyway. And each time I open that document and start work it makes me smile. Win!
Kaz Delaney
There's usually a reason for writers to suddenly feel unable to create. My take is that often that reason is just plain creative exhaustion - and the 'girls in the basement' who send up all those fabulous ideas are simply calling for time out.
So, first of all - do that. Give yourself permission to do other stuff. I baked, took up knitting again, walked on the beach - joined some groups that got me talking about different things.
One thing I still did though, was continue to hang out with my author friends. Was it difficult when they were babbling on about their works and word counts? Sure! Did I feel like a failure? Sure did.
And yes, there were tears; tears of sadness, of frustration.
But gradually, the girls in the basement started back. They worked slowly at first - and here's where still attending writer's group meetings helped - but then I found myself becoming more involved (again) in various writing discussions. I listened to their ideas and would mull over what I'd do if it was my story. And the girls downstairs gradually began to respond.
Slowly, slowly I could feel my creative energy returning until one day a story just screamed at me to be told. I was nervous, thought I'd run out of steam at the first hurdle - but I didn't.
What did I learn? To pace myself. To not push, push all the time. To make time for other people and other things. All in all it was a win win because I hadn't just rested the girls downstairs - I was now nurturing them again. And for a while I'd got into a habit of forgetting to do that... Good luck if you're suffering. It will pass if you just give it time.
So, first of all - do that. Give yourself permission to do other stuff. I baked, took up knitting again, walked on the beach - joined some groups that got me talking about different things.
One thing I still did though, was continue to hang out with my author friends. Was it difficult when they were babbling on about their works and word counts? Sure! Did I feel like a failure? Sure did.
And yes, there were tears; tears of sadness, of frustration.
But gradually, the girls in the basement started back. They worked slowly at first - and here's where still attending writer's group meetings helped - but then I found myself becoming more involved (again) in various writing discussions. I listened to their ideas and would mull over what I'd do if it was my story. And the girls downstairs gradually began to respond.
Slowly, slowly I could feel my creative energy returning until one day a story just screamed at me to be told. I was nervous, thought I'd run out of steam at the first hurdle - but I didn't.
What did I learn? To pace myself. To not push, push all the time. To make time for other people and other things. All in all it was a win win because I hadn't just rested the girls downstairs - I was now nurturing them again. And for a while I'd got into a habit of forgetting to do that... Good luck if you're suffering. It will pass if you just give it time.
Kaz Delaney
I'm a beach girls through and through, however, I would live in (fictional) rural Airlie Falls in Texas at the drop of a hat. My character, Rosie Hart, really fell on her feet when she landed in this place. A place where people really care; that has such a strong sense of community. I've always dreamed of living in such a place so it was no accident that I created it. And I'm so happy to say that readers - even my editors - feel the same way. My editor was so excited when one reader described being in AF as being in a warm hug, because they were exactly her own words when she read 'A Bittersweet Murder'. I mean, sure people get murdered occasionally but only the nasty ones, right?
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