I’m participating in my first blog hop and this one is about authors offering others a glimpse into their work, their work schedules, and perhaps their innermost thoughts.
Who poked me to share the strange inner workings of my mind? Renea Mason!
Author of:
Click here to find out how she does it!
http://reneamason.com/2014/02/17/my-writing-process-blog-hop/
Q. What am I working on?
I have a couple projects going at once, in various stages of development. My big project is Stealing the Wolf Prince, the first is my Wylderlands Chronicles, a fantasy romance series. StWP is in edit mode as I got some very helpful rejections from some publishers. Once I get my writing tightened up it will be back to pinging the editors for that manuscript. I’m also developing a companion short story to Unrequited, tentatively titled Requited.
Q. How does my work differ from others of its genre?
I write fantasy and science fiction so each setting is of my own creation. The magic systems are my own, the world maps are my own, the characters are my own. I do my best to avoid the cliche (unless I’m trying to be funny), I try to think outside the box and approach every situation with a clear mind. Plus, I’ve never read another author who creates realms like I do, and I’ve read a lot.
Q. Why do I write what I do?
It was a fourth grade writing assignment that started me writing. It was as if a gate had been opened in my mind and ever since then, I wrote. I didn’t seriously pursue writing as anything other than a hobby until about a year ago when I met some like minded writers. We’ve been plugging forward ever since.
Q. How does your writing process work?
It always starts with an idea. I could be a vague idea like unrequited love or something oddly specific like shape-shifting monster. Ideas come from dreams I have and from flashes of inspiration I have doing mundane things. Once the idea is rolling around in my brain, which I call Plot Bombed, I normally write it down, brainstorm it, or log it somehow.
If the idea works with something already in development, I try to merge the ideas. If it doesn’t work with anything currently in development, I determine the scope of the story (short, novella, novel, etc) and put it in a binder to explore later. My binder is currently 34 ideas thick.
For drafting, I normally wait for NaNoWriMo or Camp NaNoWriMo if it’s novel length. 30 days for a 50k word novel isn’t a bad time frame. For short stories, I just push forward until it’s written. My writing days are normally on weekends. I just create a to do list and cross things off until it’s done. Same with editing.
I used to wait to feel inspired to write or edit but realized that I couldn’t rely on a muse to get it done. I created a writing nook and all I do in that nook is write. So now when I sit there, I want to write.
Q. Who will we meet next week?
Kristy Denice Bock, Romance Author
The Light
When Madison goes to sleep at night, she transcends into the body of another woman. Each night she wakes as a victim of a violent, senseless crime. With each waking day she bears their pain, experiences their death, and is helpless to stop it from happening. With only her aging butler at her side, Madison tries to survive each day without falling into madness.
Brian Brinkley chose to save the life of his young ward marked for death. Thrust from the heavens because he dared disobey God, he tries to find some type of life quiet life among the humans. One chance meeting with Madison and his tranquility is shattered. When she becomes the target of a sadistic man, he vows to do everything in his power to protect her.
The Art of Forgetting: Rider
A young boy leaves his village to become a cavalryman with the famous King’s Third regiment; in doing so he discovers both his past and his destiny.
Gifted and cursed with a unique memory, the foundling son of a notorious traitor, Rhodri joins an elite cavalry unit stationed in the harbour town of Northpoint. His training reveals his talents and brings him friendship, love and loss, and sexual awakening; struggling with his memories of his father who once ruled there, he begins to discover a sense of belonging. That is, until a face from the past reveals a secret that will change not only Rhodri’s life but the fate of a nation. Then, on his first campaign, he is forced to face the extremes of war and his own nature.
This, the first part of The Art of Forgetting, is a gripping story about belonging and identity, set in a superbly imagined and complex world that is both harsh and beautiful.
elleclouse.com 
Great post, Elle. I like your idea of a writing nook. I created one in my bedroom then never used it. But now I think it would keep me focused. Thanks for the idea.
My writing nook has helped me so much, I can ignore the rest of the world and write.