Ellie Lieberman's Blog: Dusty Shelves - Posts Tagged "kindra-sowder"
Here There Be Dragons!
An opportunity arose to be part of an anthology. An anthology for dragons. My work would be featured along with so many talented authors such as Raven Williams, author of the Elven-Jumper, Kindra Sowder, author of Follow the Ashes, and Barbara Lieberman, author of Message on the Wind and more. What an honor! All I had to say was yes, I was interested.
I spoke a lot with Barbara Lieberman, who agreed to be part of it before I had. Her work doesn’t really focus on the realm of fantasy. It’s a challenge for her because it takes her out of her comfort zone in one sense. She’s a phenomenal author, so whatever story she comes up with is sure to be brilliant. One of the things she mentioned, though, was that she didn’t have an idea for the story until she agreed.
I hemmed and hawed over whether or not I should agree. There were so many fears and elements to raise my anxiety. For as much as it is an honor to be featured alongside authors you adore and respect, it is also terrifying. What if my quality of writing doesn’t match up? (How could it ever match up)?
Then there’s the deadline. Not only do I not have any stories written about dragons, or anything outside of a vague possibility for a maybe-story, but I’d have to fit it into a specific deadline. I don’t work well with deadlines. Ask every teacher I’ve ever had. Or better yet ask my mother who bears the brunt of my “holy-I’m-going-to-fail-Batman” freak out. I tend to find deadlines of any sort constricting to my creativity. And then there’s the freak out of epic proportions because constricted creativity = writer’s block = nothing to turn in by the deadline.
Barb Lieberman, however, pushed me and told Raven Williams - Fantasy Author, who is the genius behind this anthology, that I was in fact interested and viola, I’m now aboard the dragon express. And I have to say, not only am I excited for this new adventure and challenge, but it turns out, like always, Barb Lieberman was right.
I was sitting in my doctor’s office, when a dragon flew into my head. I had some notebooks with me, but they were special notebooks designated for other stories, research, or other purposes (yes, I carry around a notebook of jokes, who doesn’t). I scrambled for the only thing on hand to type out notes, and as my mother put it, it was weird seeing me so engrossed in my phone. Funny what writing will do to you.
Suddenly, a vein was tapped. And the ideas and the story and the characters just started flowing. It is incredible. On top of this challenge, I have added writing at least a page a day through the month of August. So far, I am succeeding. Somehow, by taking these challenges and opportunities presented to me, I have a brand new story on my hands that is unfolding before my eyes.
Doors will open for you. The universe will drop hints. Opportunities will present themselves. And they will seem challenging. They may appear like mountain, an impossible feat. But challenge yourself to do it. Because you might just surprise yourself. And things like this are not ones you will want to pass up. Sometimes you need a push. So, if you’re reading this, consider it your push. Take the chance. Fly with the dragons!
I spoke a lot with Barbara Lieberman, who agreed to be part of it before I had. Her work doesn’t really focus on the realm of fantasy. It’s a challenge for her because it takes her out of her comfort zone in one sense. She’s a phenomenal author, so whatever story she comes up with is sure to be brilliant. One of the things she mentioned, though, was that she didn’t have an idea for the story until she agreed.
I hemmed and hawed over whether or not I should agree. There were so many fears and elements to raise my anxiety. For as much as it is an honor to be featured alongside authors you adore and respect, it is also terrifying. What if my quality of writing doesn’t match up? (How could it ever match up)?
Then there’s the deadline. Not only do I not have any stories written about dragons, or anything outside of a vague possibility for a maybe-story, but I’d have to fit it into a specific deadline. I don’t work well with deadlines. Ask every teacher I’ve ever had. Or better yet ask my mother who bears the brunt of my “holy-I’m-going-to-fail-Batman” freak out. I tend to find deadlines of any sort constricting to my creativity. And then there’s the freak out of epic proportions because constricted creativity = writer’s block = nothing to turn in by the deadline.
Barb Lieberman, however, pushed me and told Raven Williams - Fantasy Author, who is the genius behind this anthology, that I was in fact interested and viola, I’m now aboard the dragon express. And I have to say, not only am I excited for this new adventure and challenge, but it turns out, like always, Barb Lieberman was right.
I was sitting in my doctor’s office, when a dragon flew into my head. I had some notebooks with me, but they were special notebooks designated for other stories, research, or other purposes (yes, I carry around a notebook of jokes, who doesn’t). I scrambled for the only thing on hand to type out notes, and as my mother put it, it was weird seeing me so engrossed in my phone. Funny what writing will do to you.
Suddenly, a vein was tapped. And the ideas and the story and the characters just started flowing. It is incredible. On top of this challenge, I have added writing at least a page a day through the month of August. So far, I am succeeding. Somehow, by taking these challenges and opportunities presented to me, I have a brand new story on my hands that is unfolding before my eyes.
Doors will open for you. The universe will drop hints. Opportunities will present themselves. And they will seem challenging. They may appear like mountain, an impossible feat. But challenge yourself to do it. Because you might just surprise yourself. And things like this are not ones you will want to pass up. Sometimes you need a push. So, if you’re reading this, consider it your push. Take the chance. Fly with the dragons!
