E.G. Bella's Blog, page 18

Why I Use a Pen Name

Hello and happy Wednesday!

We’re almost halfway through the blog tour for The Toymaker’s Doll, and I’m just blown away by the supportive and encouraging community that’s taken part. Each message of congratulations or of thoughts on the story make my day. I’ve been so very blessed!

The Toymaker’s Doll is my first published story (which you can learn more about by clicking on its name above), but I’ve been writing, blogging, and sharing my stories for quite a while now. And doing so under the name of E. G. Bella.

I don’t think it will be any surprise that E. G. Bella is a pen name. Many people that publish using initials are either using a pen name, or at least shortening their real name. Maybe they think it sounds better, maybe it fits their genre more, maybe it fits better on book covers…there are many reasons writers choose to alter their real names or adopt completely separate ‘pen names’ for their writing endeavors.

Not everyone does, of course. Just as many people use pen names, there are also plenty that use their real names. It all comes down to the writer themselves, and their writing goals. Do they want to keep their writing and their personal life more separate? Do they want to link them? Do they think their real name is suitable for the genre they want to write in, or would they rather take a more stylistic approach and change it to something more fitting?

There’s no right or wrong answer. Just the answer that works best for you.

I messed around with what name to use with my writing for quite a while. At first I tried my real name, or my real name with initials. But as I thought about where I wanted to go with my writing, I decided I’d prefer to keep a little more anonymity. Not that I’m going to obsess over keeping my ‘real identity’ secret, but I’d rather not plaster my real name across the internet either. If someone knows me enough to know my real name already, than I don’t mind them knowing the connection to my pen name. If not, I’d rather not share it.

But if I was going to use a pen name, what one would I even choose? I wanted to be sure of it. After all, I was essentially renaming myself – my author side, anyway. My website, my books, my blogging, would all be done under this name, so it had to be something that fit. And because I write in so many genres, I didn’t want to pick anything that only seemed tailored to one or two.

As those closest to me know, I’ve never been good at making decisions. I’m very indecisive and second-guess just about everything. No matter what name I considered, I could always find a reason that it was off, or that it just didn’t fit me. After a while, I realized my problem. The names didn’t have meaning, which is something I prefer to keep in every aspect of my life. Picking a name that looked or sounded nice wasn’t enough – it had to mean something.

Which is how I ended up choosing E. G. Bella, a name honestly packed with meaning.

The initial ‘E’ is a nod to my name in real life (which is as much as you’re getting from me, haha). So it was definitely the most straightforward part of the pen name to figure out.

The initial ‘G’ is a reference to my older brother, who is no longer on earth, but was one of my first and most passionate encouragers of my writing. He was always willing to patiently listen to my stories, and as kids do, we had many plans and dreams to turn my stories into all sorts of things: series, movies, radio dramas, even games. Including his name with the one I used for those stories felt right. Like I was bringing him right along with me.

The name ‘Bella’ serves several purposes. First of all, it references another dear friend, who is also no longer on earth, but enjoyed writing as well, and even self-published a book of her own. Just as with my brother, it felt right to ‘bring her along’ too, as she was such a inspiration and encouragement to me. She had many plans to continue writing her own stories, and I was really looking forward to reading them.

(For those who’ve read The Toymaker’s Doll, this is where the stuffed kitten Isabel gets her name. In many ways, she was inspired by my sweet friend.)

‘Bella’ is also one shortened form of Isabel/Isabella, which means ‘devoted to God’. And it serves as a constant reminder of why I’m writing and publishing. Every time I see or read my pen name, I’m reminded that I’m ultimately devoting it all to Him. Every book, every blog post, every email . . . it’s all for Him to use for His glory and His perfect purposes. It helps me to keep my focus in the right place and not be distracted by other things.

And so every part of my pen name contains meaning to me. It reminds me of several loved ones who greatly impacted my writing journey, and also keeps me journeying in the right direction. And while I wondered at first if the two initials would make me seem impersonal (referring to myself as E. G. just didn’t seem to fit, but using the full E. G. Bella seemed too formal for all the time), I often just go by Bella, and it works perfectly. It fits well.

I don’t regret using a pen name at all – and definitely not the one I’ve chosen. It’s given me that separation between personal and author life, and it’s also served to inspire, encourage, and remind me of why I’m writing in the first place. I don’t feel any sense of sadness over not seeing my real name on book covers, because E. G. Bella is still me. Every part of the name speaks to who I am and what’s brought me to this place in my writing journey.

My real name is my birth name, but E. G. Bella references many of the people, experiences, and lessons that ‘birthed’ my author self. The name is practically a story in itself, and I always enjoy explaining it and telling that story to others. I don’t ever plan on changing it.

So if you see an E. G. Bella floating around the internet, chances are it’s probably me.

And it feels like me. It never feels fake or like I’m trying to hide or play tricks on people. There’s so much meaning in it, so much personal experience behind it, that I feel at ease introducing myself as that name. When it comes to my writing, I really am her. She’s me.

I am E. G. Bella.

Everyone’s situation is different, and neither the choice to use a pen name or to use a given name is right or wrong. In the end, all that matters is that the author themselves is content with it. But with the release of my first published story, I thought I’d take a moment to share the reasons behind my pen name. Thanks for sticking around!

What are YOUR thoughts on using a pen name? If you’re a writer, do you use one, or would you consider it? Or do you prefer to use your real name? I’d love to hear your thoughts, so let me know in the comments below!

Recent Posts:

The Toymaker’s Doll Blog Tour Kickoff!Know the Novel Linkup – Part 3: Words Written

The Toymaker’s Doll Blog Tour Kickoff!

Happy Monday!

Today, I’m thrilled to announce the start of my first-ever blog tour, for what is also my first-ever published story!

If you’ve been around my site long, you’ve probably heard me talk about my short story, The Toymaker’s Doll (if you’re on my email list, you’ve already received some version of it when you joined). This is a story that’s very dear to me, and contains many of the truths and life lessons I’ve learned – especially over the past couple of years.

Though I never planned to do anything more with this story at first, God has brought so many opportunities, and so many encouraging and supportive people into the process. And it’s because of this that The Toymaker’s Doll is now available as an ebook on Amazon!

Available as an ebook on Amazon – just click the cover!

A limp. A scuff. A cowardly heart.

Jane is a doll struggling with all these things. She and her friend Isabel, a blind stuffed kitten, spend their days in the corner of their shelf, watching the other toys in the shop play—and wishing they could be like them.

Questions plague the friends. Why has the Toymaker allowed them to be flawed? Surely it’s a mistake. One day, Jane sets off to find his workshop, eager to be fixed, and to bring him back for Isabel.

But the journey is hard and the road long. How can such a weak, fearful doll ever reach the Toymaker? And how will he respond if she does? 

If you’re interested in learning more about The Toymaker’s Doll, you can find all the info here – including a sample!

And to celebrate and help spread the word, an absolutely amazing group of fellow bloggers have hopped onboard the blog tour, starting today (December 20th) and finishing Sunday, (December 26th). I’m so blessed by them, and am really looking forward to the fun line-up of posts we have scheduled! Let’s look at the schedule…

The Blog Tour Schedule:

Monday (December 20th): 

Vanessa Hall (Book Review)E. G. Bella (The Toymaker’s Doll Blog Tour Kickoff!)

Tuesday (December 21st):

Kristina Hall (Book Review)

Wednesday (December 22nd):

Vanessa Hall (Author Interview)E. G. Bella (Why I Use a Pen Name)

Thursday (December 23rd):

Grace Johnson (Book Review & Author Interview)

Friday (December 24th):

Stepping Stones Book Reviews (Author Interview)E. G. Bella (What Readers are Saying)

Saturday (December 25th):

Teen Writers’ Nook (Book Review)

Sunday (December 26th):

E. G. Bella (Blog tour Wrap-Up)Here’s the schedule!

I am beyond excited for the coming week, and all the lovely posts we’re going to get to read by these supportive people. Every day, I’ll add the links to the specific posts, so if you’re wondering what’s going on, just hop back here and find out! I’m looking forward to this, and I hope you enjoy it too!

And thank you for supporting me. Every step along my writing journey so far has featured so many encouraging and helpful people, and I couldn’t do any of this without them. This is quite the exciting first stepping stone in my publishing, so thanks for being part of it!

Recent Posts:

The Toymaker’s Doll Blog Tour Kickoff!Know the Novel Linkup – Part 3: Words WrittenThe Spotify Wrapped Tag

Know the Novel Linkup – Part 3: Words Written

Happy Friday!

For the past two months, I’ve participated in Christine Smith’s Know the Novel Link-Up, which focuses on giving an overview of the novel I’m currently working on. You can find the first two posts for this link-up here, and here.

This month, with NaNoWriMo being over, the focus is on the writing journey, and how the story has turned out. Now, I didn’t participate in NaNoWriMo this year, and I wrote the first draft of Cabin Girl three years ago, but I’ve still enjoyed looking back and seeing how far the story’s come since then!

With that in mind, I’ll mostly be answering these questions about when I was first writing the rough draft, with some comparisons between my process then and now. I hope you enjoy this third glimpse into Cabin Girl!

You should definitely go check out Christine’s site!

Now on to the questions…

How did writing this novel go all around?

All around, writing Cabin Girl went pretty well. There were learning curves, certainly, and several chapters stalled me for a while. But thankfully, even when I ran into snags, they were never anything a bit of time, thought, and acting out those troublesome scenes couldn’t help. I discovered through this that I’m a verbal processor when it comes to my stories. When I’m stuck, it helps to voice the issues out loud, even if it’s just to myself. The simple act of explaining usually causes things to click.

So although there has been a lot of polishing and rewriting needed, the initial rough draft didn’t give me too much trouble. I mostly enjoyed it, and had fun getting to watch as the characters took over the story. For me, one of the best feelings is when the characters feel so real that they end up dictating many – if not all – of the story events. It may not be this way for everyone, but as a character-driven author myself, it makes me happy, haha.

Did it turn out like you expected or completely different? And how do you feel about the outcome?

Because the climax was the first scene to come to my mind for Cabin Girl, everything major stemmed backward from there and ended up about like I expected. There weren’t any revolutionary changes to the theme or plot structure, or anything major like that.

That said, while the major stuff stayed true, I let myself go off plan for a lot of the more minor moments, and really enjoyed it! I ended up with some surprising characters (and their fates . . .) and disasters that have thankfully gone over well with readers too. Overall, at this point, I’m pretty happy with how it’s turned out. Not that it’s perfect, but it’s a lot better than it started!

What aspect of the story did you love writing about the most? (Characters, plot, setting, prose, etc.)

The characters, for sure. That’s usually the case for me, but this story in particular features a very diverse and, I think, memorable cast, so I really enjoyed watching them all come to life and tell their stories. There were plenty of times when I had an idea for where the chapter would go, but it just didn’t feel natural, so it was fun to follow the characters instead and see where they took me. I never regretted it! In fact, those are still my favorite chapters.

Also, the setting was pretty fun. I grew up playing ‘pirate’ with my siblings, and enjoying pirate stories, so getting to write about them – even if they’re not the classic, treasure-hunting pirates – was a really cool opportunity. It also stretched me to find ways to introduce conflict and tension when most the characters are in the same place for at least half the book.

How about your least favorite part?

Description, for sure. Writing description or smooth, clear prose has never come easily to me. I always feel like I overanalyze everything and gravitate toward extremes; either very poetic and flowy, or sparse and blunt. Finding a good balance and a compelling narrative voice for Éirinn has been a challenge, and actually the main reason it’s taken me so long to publish. It just hasn’t felt quite right. However, I did recently make a breakthrough with her narrative voice, so I’m super excited about that!

Also, editing is never my favorite. Rewrites are fine for me, but once I get to edits, I run out of steam very quickly. Admittedly, I have a pretty short attention span sometimes, so I think it’s partially the fact that I have to read my stories about a bazillion times that I’m not fond of. Even your own stories – ones you’re very attached to – can get mind-numbing after having them in your brain for months straight. Or maybe that’s just me.

What do you feel like needs the most work?

Again, the description and narrative voice. Also, this isn’t really an issue any more, but after the first draft was finished, plot holes were a huge issue. I’d forgotten to tie up some big loose ends, and I’d filled quite a few chapters with stereotypical ‘pirate-y’ events that actually just came across as cheesy. Turns out it’s a good idea to actually thoroughly research the historical setting you’re trying to set your story in. Lesson learned!

How do you feel about your characters now? Who’s your favorite? Least favorite? Anyone surprise you? Give us all the details!

Like I mentioned above, I love them. My favorite would be the enigmatic and thunderous Captain Gills. Though he’s pretty much the exact opposite of me in every personality type possible, he was super easy to right, and was the character that seemed to leap off the page the most. From the start, he pretty much determined what his moves were going to be, without me seeming to decide anything. And it’s just like him to shove even his author around.

My least favorite . . . is tricky, because I really do like this character as a character. Just not as a person. I’m not going to give a name right now, because spoilers, but his behavior was unacceptable. Two other characters definitely did surprise me – one by dying right away, and one by becoming a major part of the story, even though neither character were originally in my outlines at all. Again, I’d rather not give spoilers just yet.

What’s your next plan of action with this novel?

Back when I first finished the rough draft, in June of 2019, my next steps were to polish it just a bit before submitting it to a contest in August. It was a busy couple of months so I didn’t get much editing done, and needless to say, the plot-hole-riddled rough draft didn’t make it far at all in the contest. So I set it aside, discouraged, for a few months and came back to rewrite it in 2020 with pages full of research and outlines. It’s come a very long way!

Which leads us into my current plan of action with Cabin Girl, which is to publish it in ebook and paperback format in 2022! I’m in the final stretches, but there’s still those tricky last edits to do, as well as a bunch of the actual publishing details. If you’ve been following my journey with this book, you know that my original intention was to publish it this year. But thanks to an explosion of unexpected events and a full work schedule, here we are. Slow and steady wins the race, haha.

If you could have your greatest dream realized for this novel, what would it be?

If I’m dreaming big, my greatest dream would honestly be to see this novel adapted into a movie one day. That’s beyond unlikely to ever happen, but hey, I can imagine it, right? I think the mix of pirate-y action and character-driven suspense might carry over to the screen pretty well. Of course, there’s not much market for this kind of story in the movie-making world right now, but oh well. It’s cool to think about anyway.

Other than that, I would definitely like to publish Cabin Girl, and thankfully that’s in the plans! Even though The Toymaker’s Doll will technically be my first published story, it’s only going to be in ebook format for now, so I’m extremely excited to have a paperback of a book that I’ve written within the next few months. That will be a long-standing dream come true!

Share some of your favorite snippets!

Alright, well, my favorite snippets contain huge spoilers, so I’ll just settle for some hopefully intriguing ones that don’t give away too many details, haha.

From chapter 1:
Halfway down the hill, separated from the beach by a shallow slope, our weather-beaten cabin perches. Moss covers the log walls, and the flattened path of path of grass I follow leads to our door.
Ciara runs to meet me, her raven hair blowing behind her. “Éirinn!” Her voice breaks, shrill and trembling. “Éirinn, she’s gone.”
Oh please, not now. I rush toward Ciara, a chill prickling my skin. “Where?”
My sister shakes her head, choking back a sob.
“Ciara,” I say, fighting to keep my voice calm. “Where did she go?”
Ciara struggles to speak. “I thought she’d be fine—I was going to surprise you—” She holds up a shaking hand of yellow wildflowers. “The door was open—and she’s been calling Papa.”
My stomach lurches. “Ciara, go back inside.”
“But—”
“It’ll be okay, I promise.” With a squeeze of her shoulders, I nudge her toward our cabin. “Wait inside—please.”
Ciara looks back at me, dragging her feet. Biting her lip, she hugs her arms to her chest and trudges down the path again.
I stumble down the hill, hurrying to the water—and the form standing in it. “Mama!”

From Chapter 8:

I look up at the pirates, craning my neck. “He’s secure! Pull him up!”
Turning to the pirates at his side, Scully gestures behind him, and the pirates disappear from view. Han lifts, his chest rising out of the water. I swim out of the way of his legs, and the rope continues to pull upward, raising Han higher with every jerk.
The sun’s rays drop lower, casting the water with a dark hue. I float, shivering and waiting for Han to reach above deck—in case the knot unties or the rope breaks, and he falls again. I bite my lip, and the metallic taste of blood sours my mouth. I wipe the sticky liquid off my face and into the water.
Han reaches the railing, and the pirates grip his arms and haul him back over it, onto the deck.
Wait. Didn’t the pirates say something about—
 “Éirinn!” Peering down at me, Scully gestures to the ladder on the side of The Eye. “Use the—”
A pirate shouts, his words garbled by distance. He motions into the water, behind me, and I glance in the direction he points.
A shark fin rises out of the foam and glides toward me.
My lungs freeze.
“The ladder!” Scully’s voice is breathless. “Éirinn, use the ladder!”
Forcing my stiff limbs to move, I kick toward the ladder. My fingers brush the highest rung I can reach, and I grasp it and pull myself out of the water. My sopping clothes cling to me, weighing me down. I struggle to step up a rung and glance back.
The shark speeds toward me.
Ice surges through my veins. My feet slip, and I clutch the ladder tighter, my knuckles white.
A splash sounds behind me.

From Chapter 11:

The Captain sets his jaw. Whirling around, he strides back to the towering store of barrels and crates and reappears a moment later with a stack of tinderboxes. He turns one over, spilling its hot coals onto a pile of sails against the wall. He repeats the movement with the second, and the third.
I struggle to find words. “What are you doing?”
The Captain buries the coals in the rags. The edges of the cloth curl, darkening with the heat.
“He’s a disgrace.” The Captain’s voice lowers to a growl. He empties the last tinderbox onto the rags and crouches next to them. “I will not allow that swine to use my ship—my ship—as transport for someone else’s filthy fancies. I’d rather she be at the bottom of the ocean than in that slimy sea-snake’s hands.” He blows on the glowing fabric. A tiny flame licks out of the cloth, spreading across the surface.
The Captain stands, and steps back to observe the fire. “When it reaches the magazine, they’ll be sorry.”
My chest tightens. How is it possible to feel pride and terror at the same time?

Did you glean any new writing and/or life lessons from writing this novel?

Well, as I mentioned above, I learned some helpful ways to process parts of the story that I’m stuck on. It was also my first full novel written in first-person POV, so that was a great learning experience. Initially it was in first-person past tense, but now it’s in first-person present tense (which I honestly like better for this particular story). Cabin Girl had a lot of firsts for me, actually. First historical fiction, first pirate story, first ‘novel’ over 50,000 words, first time writing in first person, and first of my novels with an openly Christian character.

In addition, perhaps the most encouraging lesson was finding out that, yes, I can write a full-length novel on a deadline, and end up with something that’s not completely horrible. Before Cabin Girl, I’d only managed a couple of novels that took me years of writing and second-guessing, and at least twenty starts for other books. Consistency and the ability to stick with one project long enough to finish it have never come naturally to me, so finishing Cabin Girl in six months was a huge milestone for me. And that encouragement came in handy last year, as I wrote the prequel (about 65,000 words) in one month for NaNoWriMo!

Well, that wraps up this awesome linkup! Thanks, Christine, for hosting it, and thank YOU for joining me! I hope you enjoyed reading through my rambling insights on Cabin Girl as much as I enjoyed sharing them. Have any questions, or did anything stick out to you? Let me know in the comments! I’d love to know your thoughts!

Did you attempt NaNo this year, or have you been writing lately? I always enjoy hearing about other people’s projects, so feel free to gush about your special novel as much as you’d like in the comments!

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Know the Novel Linkup – Part 3: Words WrittenThe Spotify Wrapped TagA Writer’s Blog Tag: All About Editing

The Spotify Wrapped Tag

Happy Friday!

Music is not something I typically talk much about in my posts. Most of my content is centered around reading, writing, books, and publishing, with some random reflections on life thrown in. However, when I saw this tag on Maribeth Barber’s site, I couldn’t resist hopping in.

I’m also not sure why I don’t talk about music more. Music has played such a huge part in my life, and there’s rarely a time when I’m not singing to myself, humming, listening to music (and trying to harmonize with it), or simply putting up with the tune in my mind that’s played at least forty times that day.

In my experience, music – like story – has such power to touch hearts, and that’s why I love them both. Such gifts from God!

I started listening to Spotify in February of this year, but didn’t actually get serious about branching out and creating playlists for each of my writing projects (and listening to them consistently) until this fall. Before that, I mostly just listened to the same songs sporadically, and it shows in my Wrapped results, haha! I’m looking forward to finding more variety next year.

THE RULES:

Link back to the original post on A Writer’s Tale (which is right here!)Share this image at the top of your post: You should definitely go check out Maribeth’s site!

And now for the questions . . .

What was your #1 song of the year?

I Feel Pretty by Hanna Hewson (53 times).

Fun story: this song was the whole reason I got Spotify. It’s by a friend of mine, and Spotify was the only place I could listen to it. So, this was the only song I listened to for a while before I branched out. It’s a good one, and I definitely recommend it! A great reminder not to judge ourselves by the world’s standard of beauty, but to instead trust how God made us.

What were your other top songs of the year?

Tiny Voice by Lexi Walker, Speechless by Naomi Scott, Strange Sight by KT Tunstall, and Friendship Song, by Brennley Brown.

Like I said, once I found a song I liked, it typically stayed on repeat for a while, haha. And these songs were all either great upbeat ones to have in the background while editing/formatting, etc. or good mood music for certain short stories I was writing.

Which song will play as you defeat an ancient vengeful spirit?

This question wasn’t included in my Wrapped, but I’m going to say Glow in the Dark by Jason Gray (which was my top #7 song). It feels appropriate, and it’s one of my very favorites.

Which song will be playing as you score the game-winning point at the buzzer?

Me Without You, by TobyMac.

This seems pretty accurate, haha! This wasn’t actually one of Maribeth’s questions, but it appeared in my stats anyway and I wanted to share it.

Which song will play as you face-off against your rival dance crew?

Better When I’m Dancin’ by Meghan Trainor.

I’ll be honest, this was one of my top songs to play during my workouts. It’s just so upbeat, and it’s almost impossible not to smile at some point during it. And yes, it’d probably be perfect for a dance-off, haha.

Which song will play as you proclaim your love in the rain?

This one wasn’t in my Wrapped either, but I’m going to say When You’re With Me by the Afters. It’s such a sweet and sappy song, and I think it’d be perfect for that situation.

How many minutes did you spend listening to Spotify?

8,358 minutes, which is apparently more than 55% of other listeners in the United States.

Considering my listening was pretty sporadic most the year (on Spotify; I listen to our local Christian radio station a lot), I’m pretty pleasantly surprised with this amount!

What is your audio aura?

My top music moods were uplifting and courageous.

And yes, this basically sums it up. Though I prefer slower, ‘moodier’ songs when I’m writing (depending on the story setting), more energetic and upbeat songs are best when I’m editing or formatting, and I did a lot of that this year. And plus, what a pretty color!

What were your top podcasts?

So, I haven’t really listened to podcasts much. The only two I’ve listened to so far are The Self-Publishing Show by Mark Dawson, and Write On Cue, both of which I’ve found very helpful. If you’re looking for good writing or self-publishing advice, I recommend both!

How many genres did you listen to this year?

29.

I’m pretty clueless when it comes to music genres, so I didn’t actually realize there were that many! There’s probably many more though, I suppose.

What are your top genres?

CCM (Contemporary Christian Music), Soundtrack, Show Tunes, Pirate, and A cappella.

This is pretty much my music tastes in a nutshell, especially for my writing playlists (I’m looking at you, Pirate genre…).

How many artists did you listen to, and who are your top 5 artists?

I listened to 581 artists this year!

My top one was YoungMin You. His Christian piano instrumentals are just gorgeous, and I listened to 642 minutes of them, with my most-listened track being Reckless Love.

My following top four artists were James Newton Howard (movie scores), Josh Wilson (Christian artist), MercyMe (Christian group), and Ben Platt (yes, I may have discovered Dear Evan Hansen this summer, and the emotion in his voice is incredible to me).

So, in summary:My 2021 Music Stats!

Well, thanks for joining me for this fun tag! I’ve really enjoyed answering these musical questions, and would love to hear your answers! If you’re reading this, consider yourself tagged (and feel free to adapt the questions for your situation)!

So, what have YOU been listening to this year? What are some of your favorite songs? I’d love to hear from you, so let me know your thoughts on your own blog, or in the comments below!

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The Spotify Wrapped TagA Writer’s Blog Tag: All About Editing2021 November Wrap-Up

A Writer’s Blog Tag: All About Editing

Happy Friday!

I was recently tagged by the sweet Kristina Hall to participate in this blog tag – all about editing! Admittedly, editing is my least favorite part of writing, but it’s much too important to skip, and I couldn’t pass up the chance to answer Kristina’s fun questions either.

The lovely tag graphic!

So first off, the rules:

Link back to the original site (that’d be Kristina’s site!).Thank the person who tagged you. (thank you, Kristina!) Include the lovely graphic.Answer the ten questions.Create ten new editing-related questions of your own or stick with the questions you answered.Tag however many of your fellow writers you want.

And now, for the questions!

What’s the goofiest correction spellcheck has suggest you make (nothing profane, please)?

Hm, in general, spellcheck doesn’t like most my character’s names. For example, it always wants to change the name of my character Hedeon to ‘head-on’, and back when I spelled Éirinn’s name as ‘Erin’, it always suggested the word ‘wrong’ for some reason . . . poor, confused spellcheck, haha. I’ve added lots of names to its dictionary now.

What’s your most embarrassing typo?

Oh, this is a fun one. I don’t keep record of my typos really, because I tend to correct them right away while writing. But I do keep a whole document of writing ‘mess-ups’ that I’ve made (there are more than I care to admit, haha!). Here are a few from various stories:

‘My throat sinks.’

“When I need you, I’ll call for me.”

‘I smile, smiling.’

‘It’s a dangerous trade to get into – and a dangerous one.’

‘He purses my lips.’

‘…planting one feet on the road.”

‘One of them pulls me toward me.’

‘It’s not very safe, but the way is not a safe one.’

What is your record number of complete edits on one project?

Well, on a finished project, my current record would be about…8 full edits. Not counting partial ones, and a lot of touch-ups to fix minor issues. And on unfinished stories, the number would be a lot higher. My very first full novel has undergone so many rewrites and edits that I’ve lost count, and it’s still nowhere close to being done. I guess that’s what happens when an eleven-year-old writes a science fiction novel, with plans of turning it into a huge series, haha. I love it, but it needs a lot of work.

When is a project good enough for you?

Well, I’m a recovering perfectionist, so honestly, never. No matter how many edits I do, I can always find something I think should be better in my stories – even though I’m not sure how to improve it many times. However, one thing that’s really helping me decide when to call a project ‘good enough’ is basically . . . when my edits on a story are no longer improving the story, just changing it, I should probably finish up.

It can be tough to know the difference, but if I’m agonizing between the choice of a word, or how to structure a sentence, and yet the overall, solid story remains the same, I should consider being done. In reality, neither change could be better. Those things are often personal preference, and I could continue to switch them over and over again, without actually improving my story at all. Details definitely matter, but it can be all too easy to become trapped and never allow yourself to share anything because of them.

Do you live in fear of finding a typo in your published work (novels, short stories, blog posts, etc.)?

Absolutely! It’s slowly getting better, as I’m learning that I can’t be perfect and shouldn’t let that stop me from sharing my writing, but I still dread finding errors. At least with blog posts, typos are embarrassing, but I can still fix them. With published novels or short stories though, I don’t think I’m going to be able to read them without holding my breath.

What mistakes or writing styles drive you the craziest (when you’re reading)?

Poor grammar (yes, I’m a hypocrite here). Obviously this can and should vary in character voices, and minor discrepancies don’t bother me. But when the grammar is consistently so bad that it distracts from the story itself, I have a hard time finishing the book.

Also shallow characters. As a character-driven author and reader, I struggle to read stories with characters that just don’t have any depth or relatability to them. This also applies to first-person narrative voices that feel like just the author, and not the character speaking.

Have you ever written in a library book to correct a typo?

Definitely not. I’m very hesitant to write in books – period. But especially if they’re not ones that I own. At some point I might go through a few of my fiction books and mark out the swear words so I can loan out copies in good conscience, but I haven’t done that yet either. Typos don’t usually bother me too much, unless they’re in excess or jarring.

Can you edit and write in the same day?

Yes, but I do need to have a break in between the two, and it helps if I start with writing. I’ve noticed that if I try to write new material after editing for a while, it’s harder to turn off my perfectionistic brain and get my imagination flowing again.

Sometimes it’s actually nice to switch ‘modes’ partway through the day. If I’m feeling drained or stuck on writing, getting to edit can be a refreshing change and I still get to be productive. It really just depends on the day, my mood, how much time I have, and what project/s I’m working on.

What’s your favorite part of editing?

Seeing the story become stronger and more polished. Usually it’s hard to tell in the middle of the editing process, but one of the best feelings for me is coming back to a story after a break and realizing just how much better it’s become. In my experience, it’s often the hardest changes to make that can improve the story most. I think my favorite round of editing would be the second draft, which is usually a full rewrite for my novels.

What’s your least favorite part?

Actually doing the work of editing, haha. Mainly filling in plot holes and having to figure out where I went wrong…when my characters stopped being likable…how to fix the entire second half of the book after noticing a continuity issue…what I was thinking when I threw in that plot twist…etc. Writing the first draft comes pretty easily to me, and so do the final proofreads, but all the editing in between is definitely a (necessary!) exercise in discipline.

Well, thank you for joining me for this fun and thought-provoking tag! I really enjoyed answering these questions, and I hope you enjoyed reading through them as well.

I’ve been doing quite a few blog tags lately, so to avoid overwhelming the bloggers I usually tag, I’m going to leave this one open-ended and pass along these same questions as well. So as you’re reading this post, then consider yourself tagged! Feel free to jump in if you’d like!

What do YOU think about editing? Do you enjoy it? Not so much? How do you approach it? I’d love to hear from you, so let me know your thoughts in the comments below!

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2021 November Wrap-Up

Hello and happy Wednesday!

Today’s post brings another summary of the past month of my life – with writing progress reports, reading accomplishments, and general updates!

So without further ado . . .

General Update

Well, it’s still cold, and still gets dark far too early for my tastes, but that’s to be expected in November after all. There’s no snow where I live though yet, so I’m thankful for that. As much as I love the look of snow, driving in it is not so fun, so I’d honestly be okay if it kept its sole appearance to the week of Christmas, haha. And speaking of Christmas, I listened to my first Christmas playlist on Thanksgiving and loved it. Yes, I’m that kind of person.

Life last month did not slow down at all, but I do feel like it settled down a little. There seems to be more of a routine in place now at least, so it makes it easier for me to figure out when to fit in each task and event. Time off from a few things for Thanksgiving was also very nice. Time with family, and a few extra moments to relax or catch up on odds and ends was much needed. Another plus was getting a bit more sleep than I did in October.

As always, God continues to provide. We have countless reasons to be thankful! Of course I need to remember to be thankful no matter what month it is, but November was a good reminder of all the reasons I should praise God, and I’m looking forward to continuing that season of gratitude during December and the holidays. He’s faithful – no matter how uncertain life is.

Fiction Writing

Last month, I wrote 2,166 words, which is far less than I’d hoped for, but also way more than previous months, so I’ll take it. Mostly I’ve been focused on editing, which means cutting many more words from my stories than I’m adding – but it’s still progress! I’ve made a lot of improvements to the narrative voice of Cabin Girl, and I’m thrilled to see change.

I also have some exciting writing news this month! If you’re on my email list or street team, you may have read my short story, The Toymaker’s DolI; an allegorical tale of a doll on a quest to find the Toymaker and convince him to fix the ‘flaws’ of both her and her friend. It’s a story that’s very near and dear to my heart, and come the week of Christmas, it will be released as an ebook on Amazon. I’m looking forward to sharing it more publicly, and also getting the chance to dive into publishing with a smaller-scale project first.

If you’re not on my email list and would like the chance to read The Toymaker’s Doll before it’s published, you can still find that here. So far, I’m still undecided whether I’ll continue sending it to subscribers after it’s published, or if I’ll swap it out for another story. And if you’d be interested in writing a review, or helping spread the word about The Toymaker’s Doll, just let me know! I’m so grateful for all the help and encouragement so far.

On the Blog

Well, my original goal for November was to release 8 posts, and while I didn’t manage that many, I did finish 6! I’m pretty happy with that number considering how busy it’s been, and the fact that I actually managed to do a little fiction work last month too. I also prepped quite a few fun posts for December (stay tuned!).

Below are the links for all of November’s posts:

~ October Wrap-Up
~ Blog with Character Tag
~ Indie Author Blog Tag
~ The Single Line Story Challenge
~ I’m Thankful
~ Know the Novel Linkup – Part 2: Within the WIP

Reading List

Once again, I didn’t get to read too much last month, but I did manage one longer fiction book and three non-fiction selections I’ve been wanting to get to for a while. I also continued October’s habit of reading more instructional articles to help with snags I’ve run into with my fiction writing.

The books I finished:

~ Fawkes by Nadine Brandes
(I cannot say enough good things about Brandes’ writing, I’ve discovered. This was my second read of hers and I wasn’t disappointed. The plot, the characters, the historical setting, the magical twist, and again, the writing style, made it another favorite of mine.)
~ Sacred Marriage by Gary Thomas
(No, I’m not married, but never too early to prepare, right? This was a very insightful book, full of biblical reminders and truths for building a God-centered marriage, and I enjoyed it.)
~ Passion & Purity by Elisabeth Elliot
(Admittedly, I wasn’t fond of the way this book was structured, and that made it hard for me to get into it. But, as always, Elisabeth Elliot shared a lot of good biblical wisdom which I appreciated.)
~ Who I Am In Christ by Neil T. Anderson
(This book – a series of devotionals – contained a lot of great reminders of what a Christian life should look like, and many of the sections contained encouragements I was needing.)

I’m not actually sure what the next books on my reading list are, other than continuing to read more of the Bible. I’ll definitely be reading through The Toymaker’s Doll several more times, but in addition to that, I guess I’ll have to peruse my bookshelves and see what jumps out at me (hopefully nothing literally).

Looking Forward

Christmas is worthy of celebration and joy every year – no matter how we feel about the extra things that tend to come with the holiday. However, I’m glad to say I’m feeling in the ‘holiday spirit’ a bit more than last year. Not that there aren’t still hard things going on, or difficult memories, but overall, it’s been making my heart very happy to look forward to extra time with loved ones, see the lights go up around town, and listen to Christmas hymns. If it were a bit warmer, it’d be perfect, haha.

Highlights I’m anticipating in December include: continuing to work, teaching the writing class, devoting more time to practicing my piano and singing for church worship, volunteering with a food pantry again, attending a Christmas concert, getting to write a bit more (on the blog and fiction), and of course spending time with loved ones over the holidays. I still have a hard time believing we’re almost done with 2021.

And some writing goals I’d like to reach in December are to publish The Toymaker’s Doll (and my first ever blog tour has already started being set up!), do more work on the narrative voice for Cabin Girl, write a short story if possible because I miss fiction, and post 6-8 times on the blog. It’s also about that time, where I take stock of my writing progress over this year and start figuring out my goals for 2022!

What was YOUR November like? What kinds of things did you get to do? If you have a progress report on something, or books you read and would like to share, go ahead and let me know in the comments! And while you’re at it, feel free to include what you’re looking forward to and/or hoping to accomplish in December! As always, I’m excited to hear from you!

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Know the Novel Linkup – Part 2: Within the WIP

Happy Friday!

Last month, I participated in the first of three parts to Christine Smith’s Know the Novel Link-Up, which focused on giving an overview of the novel I’m currently working on. You can find that post, about my novel Cabin Girl, right here.

This month, the focus is on the writing process and more details within the novel. Now, I wrote the first draft of Cabin Girl three years ago, so even though I’m not currently writing the material for the first time, I’m still in the middle of edits and wanted to give a deeper glance into the story anyway.

With that in mind, I’ll mostly be answering these questions about when I was first writing the rough draft, with some comparisons between my process then and now. I hope you enjoy this second glimpse into Cabin Girl!

You should definitely go check out Christine’s site!

Now on to the questions…

How’s the writing going overall?

The process of writing Cabin Girl actually went pretty smoothly. I hit a fair number of snags, but usually some extra time brainstorming and outlining plot points solved the writer’s block. It took longer to write the first draft than I’d anticipated, but the story also turned out to be longer than I expected, so it made sense. The characters mostly directed the story for me.

Not to say there weren’t surprises, complications, or setbacks that came up, but thankfully there was never anything that required a huge step back in the middle of the first draft. It ended up at least somewhat coherent. Not what I’d call good, but the general idea was strong enough that several rewrites and many partial edits have helped, and hopefully turned it into a story that can be considered good.

What’s been the most fun aspect about writing this novel so far?

The characters -but that’s not a surprise. I’m a very character-driven author, and wouldn’t ever write a story (at least not happily) with characters that don’t feel deep or realistic to me. Cabin Girl‘s characters made me very happy with how much depth I discovered. I quickly realized they each had a fascinating story to tell.

Also, just getting to write a ‘pirate’ story is a fun endeavor!

What do you think of your characters at this point? Who’s your favorite to write about?

Something I really liked about Cabin Girl‘s characters was the variety. From the innocent but troubled little sister, to determined but timid Éirinn, to each pirate on the crew, to loyal Murphy (the dog), to the brash and sharp-tongued Captain Gills…I had a lot of fun unburying the secrets beneath each character’s shell.

If you’ve heard me talk about Cabin Girl elsewhere, you’ve probably heard me gush about Captain Gills, and that’s because he’s always been my favorite. This story started after a burst of inspiration featuring him, and everything developed from there. Despite the differences in personality between him and me, he was by far the easiest character to write. His actions and dialogue just flowed, and he came to life very quickly.

Has your novel surprised you in any way?

Yes. The backstories behind Éirinn, Captain Gills, and a certain other key member of the crew surprised me quite a bit. I’d only done vague outlining, but as the story continued, more and more details were revealed that I didn’t expect. Thankfully, all of them fit the characters and made sense, so I really didn’t have to do anything except go with it.

The addition of Murphy, Éirinn’s furry companion, was also unplanned, and came about after my mom suggested giving Éirinn some ally on the ship. Éirinn really did need someone on her side. So in came Murphy to the story, and I haven’t once regretted it. He’s one of the characters I receive the most fond comments about.

Have you come across any problem areas?

Yes, my lack of research. Always do your research before writing historical fiction, folks. I did just enough to figure out that my pirates were going to be Barbary pirates and where Éirinn and her family were going to live, and that was it. So very quickly while writing, I realized that I was falling into all sorts of ‘pirate’ stereotypes rather than actually learning what life was like for a Barbary pirate (and really anyone) back then.

Thankfully, before the rewrite, I set aside an entire month and researched all the little details I could think of. Whether it had to do with the ship, the weapons, the food, their dress, their speech, their common routes, or their terminology. And while definite facts about Barbary pirates in that period are hard to find, and I’m sure I’ve messed up, the story is far stronger and more realistic now.

What’s been your biggest victory with writing this novel at this point?

My biggest victory with Cabin Girl was finishing it! Before that, I’d only finished one other novel, and it was so full of plot holes and errors that I had a hard time even considering the first draft finished. Otherwise, I’d just started too many other novels to count. So yes, Cabin Girl has needed a lot of work, but finishing the entire thing, and having it show promise from the first draft was a huge victory in my writing journey.

If you were transported into your novel and became any one of the characters, which one do you think you’d be? Would you take any different actions than they have?

I’d definitely be Éirinn, the protagonist. We have very similar personalities and I really relate to the way she thinks and the choices she makes. However, I know that she is far more logical and organized than I am, and also more courageous (after the story progresses anyway). Her faith – even in such hardships – is inspiring to me. In all, I think our personalities are a lot alike, but I doubt I’d survive being a cabin girl to Gills and his crew.

Give us the first sentence or paragraph then 2 (or 3!) more favorite snippets!

Alright, well, I’m still working on some narrative voice edits, but here are a couple snippets.

The first sentence:
“You told me you could save him.”

An excerpt from the end of Chapter 2:
“I’ve made my decision.” The Captain’s voice rises. “We’ll not be throwing the wench overboard just yet.”
I exhale, my pulse jittering. Grumbles rise from the pirates, but the Captain’s glare silences them.
“I’ll make it known,” he says, “that the first man to lay a hand on our new cabin girl will find himself without spirit for a month. And so help me, that’s the lightest they’ll get off.”
My breath hitches. Cabin girl?
The Captain meets my gaze, and his mouth twists into a chilling smile. “You heard me right, Ostrich,” he says. “Until we reach Morocco, you’ll be under my charge. You’ll follow my orders and obey my every command—and the moment you refuse will be the same moment I reevaluate my decision to keep you alive.”
God, this isn’t what I meant! I didn’t mean—
“But, Captain,” a pirate says, “what about bad luck?”
The Captain snorts. “I’ll work the wench so hard, she won’t have strength to cause trouble. The Eye won’t be jinxed by a female while I’m captain!” He shoves me around to face the crew, and their cheers and chortles surge. “Men!” His voice booms. “Meet our new cabin girl!”

And another excerpt from chapter 8, to give a glimpse into the troublesome relationship between Éirinn, the cabin girl, and Gills, the captain:
“What is that monstrosity?”
I cease tying a knot in the sail rope and step away from the mast. The breeze catches my hair, blowing the crimson strands around my ears. “My knot.” I hold it up.
The Captain scoffs and twists it around. “That’s nothing more than a tangled mess. A half-dead sea slug could tie better. You expect that to hold up in the wind?”
I grit my teeth, biting back bitter words. “My papa taught me to tie it, and it never failed him.”
“That fool?” The Captain tears the rope from my hands and pulls the knot apart. He thrusts the rope at me again. “Doesn’t seem to have helped him, now does it?”
I meet his gaze, my throat tight and chest burning. Don’t respond. Don’t react. Earn his trust.
Smirking, the Captain raises an eyebrow. “Tread carefully, Cabin Girl. And start again.”

Share an interesting tidbit about the writing process so far! (For example: Have you made any hilarious typos? Derailed from your outline? Killed off a character? Changed projects entirely? Anything you want to share!)

Well, without spoilers, yes, I killed off one character early on that was…not in the original plans, we’ll just say that. I’m not even sure why I did, except that it flowed naturally and seemed like the best thing to happen. And the story is definitely stronger for it. That one event is the section I’ve gotten the most shocked reactions from, and that’s where people usually realize things aren’t going to go as smoothly for Éirinn as she hopes.

As for the outline, I started with just a loose list of things that I thought should happen in each chapter and filled in as I went. The earlier chapters stayed closer to the original outline, but the further into the story I wrote, the more I veered off-track. And I’m glad I did. Each of my personal favorite parts are ones I hadn’t planned for.

Take us on a tour of what a normal writing day for this novel looks like. Where do you write? What time of day? Alone or with others? Is a lot of coffee (or some other drink) consumed? Do you light candles? Play music? Get distracted by social media (*cough, cough*)? Tell all!

Well, I’ve almost never had a normal writing routine. It changes from day to day, project to project, and usually just consists of whatever it takes to get the writing done between the craziness of the rest of life. My current writing ‘routine’ is even less structured than it was back in 2018, but I’m also in a different season of life now.

My typical process while writing Cabin Girl was very casual. I would take my laptop into another room, shut the door for quiet, and then just…write. Usually in the evenings or late night. No music, no special lighting or drinks (other than a closed-lid water bottle, I can’t have drinks near my laptop without fearing spills). And minimal distractions thankfully. Maybe it wasn’t fancy, but it got the job done!

Well, that’s all the questions for now! Thanks for joining me for this fun project, and I hope you enjoyed getting some more rambling insights into Cabin Girl. Have any questions, or did anything stick out to you? Let me know in the comments! I’d love to know your thoughts!

And if you’re a writer finishing up NaNoWriMo this year, I always enjoy hearing about other people’s projects, so feel free to gush about your special novel as much as you’d like in the comments! Or if you’re not doing NaNoWriMo, I’d still like to hear from you!

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I’m Thankful

We have so much to be thankful for.

It seems like such an obvious statement, but it’s sad how often I need to hear it.

Unfortunately, it’s human nature to be ungrateful. To see the shadows rather than the sun. To complain rather than to praise. To always be seeking more instead of being content with what we have.

But in reality, every breath we take is a testament to how much we have to be thankful for.

I have bittersweet feelings toward Thanksgiving. There’s nothing wrong with the holiday itself. In fact, it’s a wonderful reminder for us to slow down and really count our blessings. But I also wish that we didn’t need a holiday to remind us to do that.

Speaking from experience, it’s all too easy to get sucked into the monotonous stresses of daily life, and forget to give thanks. It can be very hard to praise God for His gifts when we’re struggling to provide for our families, or worn down from sickness, or missing a loved one.

When everything seems to be going wrong, it’s hard to remember to focus on what’s right.

Some people are naturally better at being thankful, no matter what’s going on in their life. Unfortunately, I can’t say I’ve ever been one of those people. Yes, if I stop to think about it, I’m very grateful for all the blessings in my life. But I do have to intentional about focusing on them, and not letting my mind wander toward all the things I dislike or dread.

The past couple of years have not been easy (another obvious statement, right?). And early on in the chaos, I realized that I had two choices going forward. I could sulk, complain, and allow my grief and frustration over the loss of normal to make me bitter and hold me back. Or I could intentionally focus on the One who never changes, and remember all the ways I could see Him working in the midst of the hardships and losses.

This has been tested every single day. Over and over. Will I curse Him or praise Him? Will I remember His blessings or forget them? Will I be grateful for His gifts or unimpressed?

And though I haven’t always made the right choice, gratitude is always better. Always.

This isn’t to say that being thankful will take away all our problems, or somehow makes them any less real. I know better than that. I’ve personally experienced many painful losses, none of which have magically disappeared when I remember to say thank you.

But being thankful takes the focus off of all our problems and fears, and places it right back where it should be; on all our blessings – and most of all, on the Provider of them. Because no matter what is changing around us, He is unchanging. No matter the hurts and scares and hardships, He’s still with us every step of the way, and nothing will pull Him from us.

My heart’s never in a better place than when I’m being thankful.

So I am.

I’m thankful for my family. For each and every one of them. For all the things we’ve laughed and cried, played and suffered, relaxed and fought through. For every conversation, smile, joke, hug, and prayer. I wouldn’t trade them for anything.

I’m thankful for my friends. For the way God’s brought each of us together to bless and strengthen and encourage one another in different ways. For the memories and the lessons learned. For the chance to share the love I’ve been shown with others. That’s a gift.

I’m thankful for my work. For the opportunity to provide for myself and those around me. For the chance to bless others by giving my best effort and continuing to show up. For my employers and coworkers, and for the skills I get to learn. I shouldn’t take it for granted.

I’m thankful for my writing journey. For the highs, because they’ve motivated me to keep going, and for the lows, because they’ve pushed me to learn and grow. For the stories in my heart and the opportunity to tell them. For all the people that have helped, encouraged, and challenged me in the process. I’d be a very different person if I didn’t get to write.

I’m thankful for my home. For the fact that I have one in the first place. For the warmth in the winter and the refreshing cool in the summer. For the memories, most of all. There are too many fond ones to count.

I’m thankful for my pets. For the sweet fluffball of a dog that’s either lying around for hours or running hyper circles around my feet. For the lovable oaf that has yet to meet a stranger and likely never will. For the cats whose names I can never remember, but who are too cute not to love. Animals really can be family members.

I’m thankful for music. For the way it can make a day better and speak to my heart in a way often nothing else can. For the lessons that now allow me to make music of my own. For the variety of songs, styles, lyrics, musicians, and sounds that make me think Heaven must be a bit like that. There’s almost always a song in my head.

I’m thankful for nature. For the beauty and intricacy that never fail to amaze me. For the countless, breathtaking variations of weather, landscape, wildlife, and foliage. For the way being outside makes me feel closer to God than anywhere else. As much as I might complain about it sometimes, I wouldn’t change anything.

Most of all, I’m thankful for my Savior. For His love and sacrifice that allows my salvation. For His patience and refusal to give up on me though I deserve it countless times over. For His constant presence and provision, and His promise to be with me always. Only because of Him do I have anything to be thankful for – and because of Him, I have everything to be thankful for.

I’m thankful for so many things. Big and small. Eternal and fleeting. Majestic and intricate.

I’ve learned that if I don’t think I have anything to be thankful for, I’m just not looking hard enough. I’m not staying focused on my blessings, but on my hardships. And I’m probably going to miss all the beautiful things God is doing through the struggle and confusion.

And that’s why I’m trying to always be thankful. Even when I don’t feel thankful, those feelings often follow after I’ve decided to fight the bitterness and praise anyway.

I’ve often regretted not being thankful, but I’ve never once regretted praising the Lord.

So now, as we move past Thanksgiving, through the remainder of the year, and into the next, my prayer is that we’d all stay thankful. Not just for the easy things, but for the hard things too. We never know how God’s working through even the most painful of situations to bring about goodness we couldn’t have imagined.

We have so much to be thankful for.

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The Single Line Story Challenge

Happy Thanksgiving!

Today brings another fun activity – this one a little bit different and a lot shorter than my usual blog tags. And no, it doesn’t have anything to do with Thanksgiving, except that I’m thankful I stumbled across it! I found it over on Akshita’s page, and as it looked interesting and she also left the nominations open, I’ve stolen it to use for today’s post haha.

I’m the kind of author that likes to jump from genre to genre with every story, so this challenge sounded just about perfect. Not that I’m good in writing every genre, but I do enjoy it, so this should be fun!

The snazzy challenge graphic!

First off, the rules:

Thank the person who nominated you. (Though I wasn’t technically nominated, thank you, Akshita!)Write 5 single line stories that fall under any of these genres (you can pick which ones you do!):fantasy (I’ll do this one) romance (this too)thriller (oh, and this)mysterywesterncontemporary (why not this one)historicaldramadystopianadventure (never can go wrong with this)sci-fiparanormalyoung adultYou can choose 5 genres that’s easiest for you, or you can challenge yourself to try something new!Nominate 5 blogger/writers who you’d love to see participate and leave an open nomination for all writers!You can do this challenge more than once.

Fantasy

(I’ve written several fantasy novels, but have yet to finish one that’d be considered high-fantasy, like the below sentence would probably be.)

And now they’d reached the moment everything rested upon: the Choosing of the Crown, the hour the star was to die – and the very last time Kryllis would ever see her brother.

Romance

(I haven’t written any romance before and am not usually a fan of the romance genre as a whole. However, I do appreciate it as a well-done subplot.)

Not until she’d returned home, after the sunset fell and her frantic pulse calmed, did she realize…he really wasn’t so bad after all.

Thriller

(I wrote one of these in January, and will admit that they’re fun. Not fond of thrillers that turn into horror, but I like the suspense and tension of this genre otherwise.)

Instead, she screamed.

Contemporary

(I’ve only started contemporary stories before, but hope to write several in coming years.)

If I’d have known I’d be spending the night in a library, with a black eye, Ugg boots that aren’t mine, and seven green paperclips chained around my wrist, I’d at least have remembered to charge my phone.

Adventure

(This is the genre I’ve written in most, particularly medieval adventure.)

With a bone-rattling roar, the dragon thundered toward me, wisps of smoke curling from his nostrils.

Well, thank you for joining me on this fun, experimental challenge! I really enjoyed coming up with these tiny stories, and I hope you enjoyed reading through them as well.

I’d like to tag:
1. Kristianne at Whimsical Wanderings
2. Vanessa Hall
3. Kristina Hall
4. Grace Johnson
5. Jordyn at Indie Edits by J

However, if I haven’t tagged you, still consider yourself tagged (confusing I know)! I’d love to see you do this challenge, so if you’re interested, whether on your own blog or in the comments below, I look forward to hearing from you and reading YOUR stories!

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Indie Author Blog Tag

Happy Friday!

If you’ve been around my site long, you know that I’m happy to call myself an indie author (an author who ‘independently’ publishes.) Although technically I haven’t indie-published something quite yet, haha, I do plan to soon, so I’m going to say it counts. To celebrate the recent National Indie Author Day last week, I was nominated for this tag by a fellow indie author, R. M. Archer – and I’m very excited to participate!

By the way, I highly recommend checking out Ariel’s blog, Scribes and Archers. The in-depth and helpful writing advice she provides there has helped me numerous times, and there’s also a whole heap of detailed book reviews too. Plus, she’s an absolute joy to talk to!

First off, this tag’s rules:

Link back to the original tag (just click the link above!)Link to the authors you mention (or their books) in your answers.Tag 5 other indie authors.

And now, for the questions!

Why do you publish indie?

I’m choosing to publish indie for numerous reasons: because it’s what works best at this stage in my life and writing journey, because I love being so involved in every aspect of the publishing process, because I enjoy learning all the skills needed to indie publish, and also because it allows me to have the final say on each detail about my book.

Because I’m so passionate about telling stories that ultimately lead others closer to God, I want to make sure my novels reflect that. And while I’m sure there are traditional publishing houses that would support that goal, the types of stories I write would probably be hard ones for traditional publishers to sell, since there’s not a huge market for them. I’m not against publishing traditionally, but at least for now, publishing indie allows me the creative freedom to send my stories out into the world just as I’d like them to be.

What’s your favorite indie standalone?

I have so many that I like, but my absolute favorite so far would have to be Blank Mastermind by Rosey Mucklestone. The genre (superhero) is not one I would typically read, but I loved the unique take she had on it. And in addition to the fantastic setting, the narrative voice was strong and witty, her characters were relatable and nuanced, the plot itself kept me up late into the night, and the theme…oh, the theme was beautiful.

My only qualm was that there were maybe two instances of words I’d have preferred to be left out, but they fall on the mild end of things. The content is otherwise clean. I highly recommend it, especially if you’re looking for a unique and gripping novel with lots of wit and lovable characters, and an intriguing usage of the protagonist with amnesia trope.

What’s your favorite indie series?

I’m realizing that I’ve only actually read one indie series so far, haha! And in that case, I’d have to say it’d be the Daughters of the Seven Seas series by Grace A. Johnson. As a fellow Christian, ‘pirate’ author, I’ve really enjoyed reading her first book in the series, Held Captive, and look forward to reading both sequels: Prisoner at Heart, and the upcoming release, Bound and Determined. Her stories are every bit worthy of being favorites; full of memorable characters, beautiful description, intriguing plots, and powerful themes.

What’s your most anticipated indie book release?

That would be Calligraphy Guild by the same R.M. Archer that created this tag! I’ve enjoyed watching as she’s progressed through edits and continues to draw closer to the publishing date (set for June of 2022). I’m always game for a high fantasy, especially by a fellow Christian indie author, and every excerpt and bit of information I’ve gleaned about the story has only gotten me more interested. It’s hard to wait!

What was your most recent indie read?

That would be Take Flight by T. E. Price. After being contacted by the author, I received the chance to read this book even before it was released, and to take part in the launch activities. Though domestic suspense is not a genre I read often (indie books can be great for taking you outside your reading comfort zones, haha), I was impressed with this one! An interesting plot that I couldn’t predict, sympathetic main characters, and a biblically sound theme were all major pluses for me. I enjoyed it much more than I thought I would.

What is your favorite part of being an indie author?

Getting to decide on everything. For me it really comes down to that creative freedom and the ability to write and publish the story I want to tell, as I feel called to tell it. Having the last say on everything from story content to cover design, to formatting choices and marketing efforts is such a blessing – particularly being committed to telling stories that lead others to God. Indie publishing allows me the freedom and space to do that, without needing to abide by the wishes of traditional publishing companies that may not have ill intentions at all, but they do still have a market to sell to and families to provide for.

Of course, I do strive for quality similar to that of a traditionally-published author, but as I’m working at that, my favorite part of being an indie author is that it allows me to stay true to my goals and beliefs. I also love all the new things I get to learn, and the supportive and encouraging community of indie authors I’ve discovered this past year.

What’s the hardest part of being an indie author?

Deciding on everything, haha. While all the creative freedom and final say is great, trying to learn and do it all – and do it all well – can be extremely overwhelming. Being an indie author means being being involved, if not fully responsible, for every step of the writing and publishing process. Writing, editing, cover design, formatting, marketing, publishing, etc. There’s a lot of hats to wear, a lot of skills to learn, or a lot of other people to pull together to make my own publishing team if I don’t want to do it all myself. I’m still trying to figure out the best balance.

Do you ever plan to go hybrid?

I’m certainly not opposed to it! The next few years will be very telling as to where my writing is going to go, but my plan right now is to continue writing and indie publishing stories for a while. I’m not currently seeking traditional publishing opportunities, but if something comes up and I feel led to pursue that path, then I will. Both traditional and self-publishing have their pros and cons, and I wouldn’t mind getting to experience both.

How many books have you released?

A grand total of…none, haha. However, I am working hard at the upcoming release of Cabin Girl (shh, what’s that? The release date will be announced soon?), and the release of a shorter work by the end of this year that will let me get accustomed to publishing with Amazon before going all out on a full-length novel. And of course, I have many more stories that I would love to publish after that, God willing. Just none at this moment.

Where are you with your current project?

I currently have two projects approaching the publishing stage. One is Cabin Girl, my full-length pirate novel set to release early next year (again, that date will be coming soon). I’m currently working on its last rewrites, after deciding to rework some description with my protagonist. Her narrative voice is much stronger now and I’m so glad for it!

The second is my short story, The Toymaker’s Doll, which can be found for a little while longer as the freebie I send to my email list subscribers. Edits are done with this one, and all I need to do is finish formatting and cover design, and nail down the last of the publishing details. I’m excited for this, as it’s going to give me a chance to test run the Amazon publishing process with a much smaller – but still meaningful to me – project. My goal is to release this one toward the end of December this year (next month!).

I’d like to nominate the following indie authors:

1. Kristina Hall
2. Vanessa Hall
3. Julia Witmer
4. Kellyn Roth
5. Tiffany Price

Well, thank you for joining me for this fun and thought-provoking tag! I really enjoyed answering these questions, and I hope you enjoyed reading through them as well.

What are YOUR favorite indie reads? Have you ever published indie, or do you ever plan to? I’d love to hear from you, so let me know your thoughts in the comments below! And if you’re an indie author, please consider yourself tagged!

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