Susan E. Farris's Blog: The Well-Fed Writer, page 2

How I Come Up With Character Names

Unusual Names From Real People

Ok, I can’t believe I’m admitting this, but this is how I find character names…⁠

I read the obituaries.⁠

Yep, you read that right. The obituaries. Now, stick with me. It’s not because I’m being morbid, but if I need to come up with an interesting name for my character (or a lot of names all at once), the obituaries are where it’s at for a lot of different reasons.⁠

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The Perfect Cup of Tea

There is something about sitting down to write or crack open a good book with the perfect cup of tea at my elbow that is impossible to beat. Put a little Nina Simone on the radio and you’re not going to be able to budge me for hours.

But finding that perfect cup of tea is an art form, and it’s one I’ve taken to new levels over recent years. Fortunately, my husband indulges me- and even encourages- me in this pursuit, setting aside a cabinet for my ever-growing collection of teas and cups.

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Connecting Over Board Games: My Top 10 Tabletop Games

A non-writerly fact about me? I love board games!

But as my husband will tell you I have an *ahem* competitive streak. Which is fun for me, and not so fun for more laid-back players. ‘Tis a problem.

Recently, I’ve made it a goal to find games that are more about enjoying the experience together and less about kicking a**. And I want to share my top ten experiential board games to jazz up your next night in (which, face it, is practically every night right now.)

While a couple of these games are still a teensy bit competitive, they rate on the lower end of the “must win at all costs” scale and veer towards “this is a cool game” end of the spectrum. I hope you enjoy!

Discover My Favorite Games!

How To Write An ARC Review, Or A Darn Good Book Review

I am so excited to be opening applications for my Advanced Reader Team this month!

In celebration, I wanted to offer some advice to readers who want to write ARC reviews -OR- write better book reviews. Whether you want to spiff up your Goodreads profiles, support your favorite indie authors (like me!), or just for the enjoyment of it, these tips will help you get going.

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Four Common Writing Problems & How I Deal With Them

This week, I cheered as a team of four U.S. astronauts launched into space aboard the SpaceX Dragon capsule for a journey to the International Space Station for the first time since 2011.

This journey came after years of intense preparation and research and included an unusual companion: a Baby Yoda doll. (I’m a huge Mandalorian fan, so my ears perked up at this bit.)

Why the doll? It was a lighthearted way to tell when they had achieved Zero G. It was a marker of success along the way. Zero G is achieved before you reach the Space Station and the mission is “complete.”

I think this illustrated something we can forget as writers. We need markers of success along our writing journey. Read More Here