Writing Process Blog Hop
I’d like to thank Leslie Lee Sanders (Please hop on over and check Leslie’s site out at http://leslieleesanders.com/) for inviting me to the blog hop. It’s not an organised blog hop or anything, just a word of mouth thing that perhaps gives an insight into the minds of some authors, and you never know, you might find a new-to-you author you love!
So, onto the questions!
1) What am I working on?
At the moment I’m working on three different projects (more if you count editing ;)). First up I’m working on another Reaper story. This one is set after the events of The Reaper and the Cop, and follows more of Laney and Troy’s story. There’s the usual hotness between the main characters and some end of the world type stuff.
My back-burner project is the first in a spin-off series to Project Rebellion (Perfect Mate, Blood Mate) and will involve zombies, vampires and one pissed off ex-wife, not necessarily in that order.
My third project is a little out of left field and is a screenplay. In a total departure to my ‘normal’ writing, it’s not a romance. There’s a little bit of romance in there, of course, but its more horror/thriller.
2) How does my work differ from others of its genre?
Oh my, how to answer that question. Every writer’s voice is unique to them. I tend to write fairly gritty, dark storylines with a large dose of sarcasm. My female leads are usually very strong women, but rarely anything ‘special’ within their own worlds. Even if they are (like the reaper women), then they have all the same insecurities as every other woman out there. They’re just normal, amazing women going about their daily lives that sometimes have to go save the world.
3) Why do I write what I do?
Because I’d go mad if I didn’t write? Writing for me is an expression of creativity and a way to explore facets of the human condition that fascinate me (Someone pointed me at a book on Philosophy once and I’ve been hooked since). The challenge of weaving a storyline around a theme and poking at all the elements within is alluring and impossible to resist.
4) How does your writing process work?
I spent ten years as a transport scheduler, so I am most definitely a plotter. I work in one of two ways. In the first, once I have a story idea, I work out what’s going on behind the scenes, the theme, the character motivations and all that. Then I work out a story outline, detailing in brief all the plot points. After that I break down into chapters and scenes (sometimes they over-run) and then start writing. I know where I’m going and can drive through the story. Sometimes I’ll even go so far as to brainstorm each and every scene (I always do this if struggling to get words down).
In the second way, I have a character in my head—It’s usually the male one, although I’m not sure why—and I start to write. Just the first scene or so, as I ‘set’ the character in my head. Then I go back and plot the story as above. It’s extremely rare for me to write more than a chapter or so without a plot outline.
So, that’s me… Check out my nominated authors below!
Milly Taiden
Milly Taiden (also writes as April Angel) was born in the prettiest part of the Caribbean known as the Dominican Republic. She grew up between New York, Florida and Massachusetts. Currently, she resides in New York City with her husband, bossy young son and their little dog Speedy.
She began writing when she learned to put words together and her first book consisted of two homeless dogs living in a park for her second grade English class. She didn’t win a prize, but she acquired a love for writing that never went away.
When she’s not working full-time, texting with her best friend Heidi in England, chastising her son for pulling the dog’s ears, shopping with her sister Jewel or watching scary movies with her husband, she can be found writing on her laptop. She’s addicted to shoes, chocolate, Dunkin Donuts coffee and JIMMY THOMAS covers!!!
Cynthia Sax
Cynthia Sax lives in a world where demons aren’t all bad, angels aren’t all good, and magic happens every single day. Although her heroes may not always say, “I love you”, they will do anything for the women they love. They live passionately. They fight fiercely. They love the same women forever.
Cynthia has loved the same wonderful man forever. Her supportive hubby offers himself up to the joys and pains of research, while they travel the world together, meeting fascinating people and finding inspiration in exotic places such as Istanbul, Bali, and Chicago.
