Writing Process Blog Tour

first of all, thank you so much to Jeanne McDonald for inviting me to be a part of this. i’ve never attempted to write my process out, and this tour has given me a chance to. thank you so much for including me. i’m so looking forward to Renegade :-)

before i get started answering questions, let me give you a little information about Jeanne:

She began telling stories at the ripe young age of five, when her mother considered the truth to be a lie due to her extensive embellishment to the retelling of an event.  She wrote her first short story when she was twelve years old, and at the age of sixteen she tried her hand at poetry.  She reconnected with her love for writing in 2010 thanks to the encouragement of a dear friend. 

Her passions include a “mild” Starbucks addiction, music, reading, quotes, movies, and romance.  When she’s not spending time with her family, she can be found reading, writing, chatting with her friends or diligently working toward her bachelor’s degree in Speech Pathology and Audiology.  A proud Texan, Jeanne currently resides in the Dallas/Fort Worth area with her family.

she can be found at:

http://www.jeannemcdonald.com

http://www.twitter.com/jeannemcdonald_

and so, here we go.

What are you working on?

i’m down to the last round of edits for innocents, and working with @LovelyBrutal on rewrites and edits for our novella, Light and Wine. then in June, i’ll be working on Don’t Let Me Go for the Branded anthology this August- which i kind of can’t wait for. i’ve been working on Don’t Let Me Go (ransom) for months and months now. it’s all written long-hand right now, save for the last scene, and i can’t wait to fulfill it.

How does my work differ from others in my genre?

i really don’t want to or like to compare my work to others in my genre. i listen to my characters and i work to do right and best by them.

Why do I write what I do?

i’d die if i didn’t!

i write what’s in my heart. i feel sick when i don’t write, and when i don’t get what i’ve written right. like that feeling you get when you don’t tell the truth. i can’t abide that feeling.

How does my writing process work?

from beginning to end?

there are some characters i’ve been carrying in my heart for years. i hear something from them, and write it down wherever i am, however i can, and carry that voice in my heart, like letting it grow. when the time comes to explore something, i listen harder and i sketch. i get faded. i steep in it. i ask questions. i want to know them. i put them in situations and try to understand how they’d deal. i feel like i hear characters more than i do plots, which often makes seeing a storyline difficult for me. i outline. like crazy. and then i outline some more. i don’t always follow it, and i rework it multiples times over, but i need it there as a sort of map. i write. i listen some more, with all of my senses. i research. i listen more, and i write more. i prefer early mornings. i love being up before the sun and working while it comes up. i talk about it with my truelove. i listen to a lot of bach and tycho and marc hellner. i listen. i write. i edit as i go and then edit some more. and then share it with people i trust most in the world. and edit from there. and listen.

tada :-)

the first of three authors i’ve invited is a friend i’ve had in this place longer than any other. she was the first person in the fandom i collaborated with and is the shortcake to my strawberry.

Kaye M. is a twenty-something Muslim girl who reads a lot of books, drinks a lot of tea, and wears a lot of (figurative) hats. Currently, those hats include student aiming for a future MLS, YA and MG boot blogger, staff writer for YA magazine YA Interrobang, and fantabulous intern for Pooja Memon of Kimberly Cameron and Associates. She is also the creator of #NotYourStockMuslim

When she’s not reading, she writes about dark worlds, high stakes, and tough, wounded girls who carve out their own happily ever afters.

Kaye can be found at:
watercolormoods
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i’ve also collaborated with the second author i’ve invited. we’ve shared more than a few phone calls, from giggle-filled to tear-tinted, and i’m so proud of all the work she’s put out this year.

Amber L Johnson is a full time mom, full time wife, is employed full time, and writes when she can. She believes in Happily Ever Afters that occur every day – despite the obstacles that real life serves up on a regular basis. Or perhaps they’re sweeter simply because of them.

She always has 2 rubber bands on her wrist, a song in her head, and too much creamer in her coffee cup that reads ‘Cocoa’ – because she’s a rebel. If she’s not at her desk, with her boys, or behind the computer, she’s supporting live music with her arms raised above her head and eyes closed, waiting for the drop.

Amber can be found at:
amberlynnejohnson.com
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my third and final author is all my stars. my truelove, my person in all things, and my partner in Sparrow AuSoleil. we too, have collaborated together, and have many future collaborations in the works. every character in my heart knows her name and every beat of my heart adores her.

Born on an island and unable to get off, LovelyBrutal has been inspired by the ocean since she nearly drowned in it as a child.  She loves metaphors, funnel cake and metaphors about funnel cake.  A writer of romance, erotica, humor, poetry and a few things she’d be reluctant to admit to, her mind is as messy as her desk and as hopeful as her garden.  

LovelyBrutal can be found at:
the things we think and do not say
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