Ask the Author: Theresa Moretimer
Answered Questions (8)
Theresa Moretimer
I got stuck on To hide from Death III (3rd in the series) not because of writer's block but because I had things come up that I had to take care of. That in turn lead to writer's block because I had walked away for a few months. I had to skim my previous books to get in the gist of the flow I had going originally and to get me back in the flow of the way I wanted things to go. As I was writing, I became tired (after all that pre-reading I couldn't help it) I got stuck. I walked out of the house and went for a walk. I took my older horse, Honey out for a ride grabbed a Coke and set back to work. This didn't help, I was in a mood where i didn't want to sit down and write. Then i dropped a note to some of my friends and asked them to please light a fire under my butt to get some work done. They started riding me hard about wanting the third book and it actually worked. I began to feel like I was letting them down and in doing that i was letting myself down. So i watched a good horror flick and the next day I read my third book from the beginning, got back into my flow and began writing again. I was supposed to have had that book done three months earlier LoL, but these things happen. You have to do what inspires you to pick up from where you were stuck. Sometimes it's as easy as a walk or a ride and sometimes it's as easy as family game night. Just find what inspires you to keep going with your books, even if you have to look outside your genre for a break.
Theresa Moretimer
Hi Sandra :) That's an excellent question. I sometimes write out of order (I usually write in order) but sometimes you can't help writing out of order especially when someone says something that triggers off an idea or you see something, or dream something...When I do this, I print out my out of orders and keep them in a folder marked "Out of Order" and the title, and on the inside cover I write a brief description of what that chapter contains. Then when I am writing my books I read over my out of order files and the notes on the inside covers. This tells me if this is something I can use while I am in the middle of writing and need to piece together my work. It is a lot easier when you do it like this I think. Of course I keep them in my computer files so as I'm writing i do not have to set that aside, I just pick up my folders and look on the inside and when I find which one works, I add that file to what I'm working on and then place a sticky note on it marked "used" so I know I don't have to read through that file again and put that file away. It sounds complicated, but it really works. I hope it helps you too :)
Theresa Moretimer
I find that stress is the number one cause of writer's block for me. The way i deal with it is to take a day off from writing, break out the cards or a board game and have a family game night or take a day trip. Having a change of pace scenery really helps me to relieve the stress that keeps me from writing and gets me back on track. I also watch a scary movie with my kids or go for a trail ride. Something about going through the woods where it's a little darker inspires me :)
Theresa Moretimer
Setting my own hours. I can spend more time with my family on weekends because I dedicate myself to writing through the week unless I have an exceptionally great idea LoL.
Theresa Moretimer
My biggest advice is to research ways to promote yourself. This is the biggest part of selling your work whether you are self-published or traditionally published. Just having a blog spot, a Twitter acct, FB, LinkedIn etc is not enough. you need to know how to market yourself on these tools. Also an absolute must is a book trailer prior to your release. If you need a recommendation for a good company, I can give you one.
Theresa Moretimer
I am currently working on four novels. To hide from Death III (edits) To Hide from Death IV, In the Walls, and Cooking from the Heart (A Christmas novel).
Theresa Moretimer
Funny you should ask that LoL. I just began a new novel (Other than my series). This one is a horror novel and I got the idea from a comment my nephew made to me about the walls :)
Theresa Moretimer
My most recent book is actually book 3 in my To Hide from Death series. It will be released in September. The idea came from a dark time I was going through after a domestic violence incident that almost cost me my life and the stalking that I continued to endure when I began the series.
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Aug 09, 2014 02:41PM · flag