Maggie Clare's Blog, page 6

Wedding Bells!

I missed last week’s ‘Five Things’ blog over on my Tabitha Lord Author website because it was WEDDING WEEKEND, so I decided to double post it here. Next week, we’ll return to our regularly scheduled programming!

Welcome to my blog titled “Five Things” where you can expect just that - five random musings or reflections from the previous week or so. In addition, at the end of the blog, I’ll keep a running itinerary of our travel plans. For a photo gallery of our life on the road, our pets, and mis...

I Don’t Suck, I’m Just Stuck… and other things I tell myself when I’m not writing.

The concept of writer’s block gets a lot of attention. I’ve written numerous articles and moderated fun panels with titles like, ‘You Don’t Suck, You’re Just Stuck!’ If you’ve been writing long enough, eventually you’ll find yourself spinning your wheels, stuck in the muck, or staring at your keyboard like a deer in the headlights. I’m full of descriptive metaphors this morning, but I am also struggling with my newest book.

First off, it’s summertime, and summertime is my least productive writin...

Who’s Next?

Everything in the writing world, rather like construction projects, seems to take much longer than planned. I’d intended to get back to the TSI series months ago, but I got sidetracked writing a fantasy novel, and to be honest, I’ve also been caught up in our new nomadic life. Learning to be creative and productive with a schedule that changes every week, and trying to find balance between work and play when there is just so much to see, has been a bit of a challenge. But, I’m getting the hang o...

Making Magic

My first writing projects were science fiction, and I enjoy so many things about writing in that genre. I love imagining futuristic technology, I love tackling real world issues in otherworldly settings, I love thinking through big, action-filled plots, and I love how this space allows my imagination to run wild.

Recently, I’ve wanted to dive into the fantasy side of things. Dragons, magic, and monsters have been on my mind as I write my newest novel, and it’s a ton of fun. Science fiction and f...

Setting the Scene

Ray and I have visited a bunch of National Parks on our nomadic adventure, and I have to say, they are spectacular! Each one showcases something amazing about planet Earth. From Carlsbad Caverns to Rocky Mountain National Park to Bandelier to Great Sand Dunes to Dinosaur National Monument, we’ve been well and truly wowed.

The writer in me can’t help but soak up these almost otherworldly places and somehow work them into my stories.

I’ve used real world settings to help inspire me in the past. F...

The Halfway Mark

The summer solstice just passed, signifying the longest day of the year and also the halfway mark of the year. I like to have regular check-in times with myself every quarter, both personally and professionally, to take stock of what I’ve accomplished and readjust my priorities if needed.

With our life on the road, it’s been a different sort of year. I wasn’t sure what to expect in terms of building good work habits and trying to experience ALL THE THINGS while traveling the country. I set some ...

Summer Lovin’

When I think of summer, I think of summer romances and beach reads. I imagine steamy nights and cocktails with umbrellas. In honor of summer’s arrival, and being a writer of romance among other things, I thought I’d share a little bit about my journey into this genre. Most of you know that I write speculative fiction under my given name, Tabitha Lord. I’ve talked about why I love the weird, wonderful world of science fiction and fantasy, and why it’s still my focus a good bit of the time as a re...

Another Month with Five Mondays

May is a month with five Mondays, so today I’m going to share my “Five Things” blog which is also posted on www.tabithalordauthor.com. If you like it, feel free to subscribe to that one (sign up at the bottom of the home page), and you’ll get to hear from me every week, lol! In addition to my random musings, I also post our travel schedule over there so check it out. For a photo gallery of our life on the road, our pets, and miscellaneous things I find interesting, you can follow me on Instagram...

Dreaming of Dragons

I’ve shared so much about our travels, our tiny mobile home, and this grand adventure, you may be wondering if I'm still writing. I am! The story I’m working on now starting swirling in my brain when I was working through edits for Dreamwalker over a year ago. Usually, my best ideas come to me when I’m smack in the middle of something else. I think this happens because the creative energy is flowing and my brain is racing with plot action and character development. New ideas form and nudge at me...

May the 4th…

Okay, so I know it’s May 8th, but since I only put my blog posts out on Mondays, I’m going to pretend it’s still May the 4th and tell you why I am a huge Star Wars fan and how much the movie influenced me.

First off, on this platform you know me as Maggie Clare, writer of sexy things (and I do love writing the sexy things!), but I also write science fiction and other kinds of speculative fiction under my give name, Tabitha Lord. Science fiction, you might say, is my first love, and Star Wars had...