Tag Archives: cannot write without

Cannot Write Without: Lea Bronsen

November 27, 2015Cannot Write Withoutcannot write without, Lea Bronsen, Mine to Love, time to writeCarlene

The question in the lagoon this month has been: What’s the one thing you cannot write without?

We’ve had a plethora of fabulous answers from writers all over the world. Today’s answer comes from Carlene’s music nut rock sister, Lea Bronsen!

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Thank you so much for inviting me today! What a lovely blog this is, and I’m really pleased to visit.

What is the one thing I cannot write without, you ask? Let me think… I don’t necessarily need my laptop—I’ll type or scribble on anything I happen to have at hand: my smartphone, a doodled-on page in my Filofax, the tiniest post-it note, a folded magazine someone left on my commute, a napkin some gorgeous café waiter handed me with a white-toothed smile…

Hmm, I don’t need to be at any particular place either—I’ll write on the bus with strangers staring from the corner of their eye, in bed propped up against my favorite pillows, elbowing for space at the dinner table, lying on the grass while kiddos play soccer around me, and even in the bathtub savoring a hot— (ahem… TMI perhaps, lol).

This is how my latest book Mine to Love, which I’ll talk about in a bit, came to life. Little by little, with a variety of means and at the weirdest of places.

See, as long as my imagination is at the rendez-vous, I have everything I need to write, except… time.

Yep. The biggest hindrance getting any words onto paper is everything else I do in life: having a full-time job and devoting my days and nights to three beautiful daughters and a husband. Would you believe I considered doing NaNoWriMo this year? Ha ha, what a face-slap moment it was when it hit me that I simply don’t have the time 😀

XX Lea

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A Bit About Lea: I like my reads hot, fast, and edgy, and strive to give my own stories the same intensity. After venturing into dirty inner-city crime drama with my debut novel Wild Hearted, I divide my writing time between psychological thriller, suspense romance, and erotic contemporary romance.

I love to hear from my readers! Write to [email protected] or meet me on:

A Bit About Lea’s Latest Release, Mine to Love…

The writing conference in sunny Cannes was fantastical, a dream. Back at home, reality catches up with author Andrea Johnson and the sexy cover model of her book, Yushka. With tough working schedules, challenging family relations, and seductive temptation from all sides, the couple’s explosive romance is put to the test.

Will their love be strong enough to have a future?

Cannot Write Without: C.E. Murphy

November 23, 2015Cannot Write Withoutcannot write without, ce murphy, nanowrimoAlethea

The question in the lagoon this month: What’s the one thing you cannot write without?

Today’s answer comes from fantasy author superhero: C.E. “Catie” Murphy.

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“My computer,” although that’s not actually true, as I have been known to use pen and paper when necessary.

“Peace of mind” is right up there too, if I want to be writing anything productive…

There’s really very little I can’t live without for writing, if I’m determined to write!

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Bestselling author C. E. Murphy was born and raised in Alaska. She now lives in her ancestral homeland of Ireland, which is a magical land where it rains a lot but winter never actually arrives.

Find out more about Catie and her complete body of work at: http://mizkit.com/cemurphy

Cannot Write Without: E.C. Myers

November 20, 2015Cannot Write Withoutcannot write without, ec myers, nanowrimoAlethea

The question in the lagoon this month: What’s the one thing you cannot write without?

Today’s answer comes from award-winning SF author and superhero : E.C. Myers.

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I can’t write without a keyboard.

I’ve tried writing fiction longhand, and it’s just too slow. It doesn’t matter if the keyboard is on a laptop or attached to a desktop computer or a tablet, or if I’m working on a word processor like my Alphasmart Neo — I just need keys to transfer words from my brain to a file!

I prefer clicky keys on a mechanical keyboard, the louder the better, but I can adjust to just about anything if I have to… even a chiclet keyboard.

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E(ugene).C. Myers is the author of the Andre Norton Award–winning Fair Coin and Quantum Coin, young adult science fiction novels published by Pyr, and The Silence of Six, a young adult cyber thriller from Adaptive Books.

Find out more about Eugene at his website: http://ecmyers.net

Cannot Write Without: Amber Lough

November 16, 2015Cannot Write Withoutamber lough, cannot write without, nanowrimoAlethea

The question in the lagoon this month: What’s the one thing you cannot write without?

Today’s answer comes from fabulous YA author and current resident of Germany [WHY DOES SHE HAVE TO BE SO FAR AWAY???–Alethea] : Amber Lough.

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lee & AMBER One thing I cannot write without? That’s hard because I have been forced to be quite adaptable. Honestly, I can write on napkins on a boat if I have to. The ONE thing I must have is an alert brain. If I am sleepy at ALL, I will fall asleep on my keyboard.

It’s boring, but it’s the truth. I’ve been known to fall asleep mid-word and dream about the scene I’m writing about. The more rested I am, however, the better I can write.

Ideal situation: laptop, coffee, eclectic and comfortable Cafe, and headphones playing classical music.

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Amber Lough lives with her physicist husband and their two kids in Lower Saxony, Germany.

As a child, Amber moved about every two years and spent much of it overseas in Cuba, Japan, and Bahrain. She attended High School in North Charleston, South Carolina and studied Russian at Saint Louis University in Missouri before heading into the Air Force. She was an Intelligence Officer stationed in San Diego, and travelled the Pacific for her job. She also spent about 8 months in Baghdad, Iraq. After having her first child, she left the Air Force to begin writing full-time.

Visit Amber over at The Fourteenery and The Hanging Gardens where she contributes with other YA authors.

Cannot Write Without: Monica Valentinelli

November 13, 2015Cannot Write Withoutcannot write without, monica valentinelli, nanowrimoAlethea

The question in the lagoon this month: What’s the one thing you cannot write without?

Today’s Fabulous Friday the 13th answer comes from one of Alethea’s favorite authors and gamer grrls: Monica Valentinelli.

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The one thing I feel I can’t write without is my noise-cancelling headphones.

When I wear them, my world suddenly shrinks and I feel more focused on what is in front of me. It doesn’t matter if I’m furiously typing on a keyboard or scribbling in a notebook, either. Being able to control peripheral noise has been one of the best things that ever happened to me.

It rocks!

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Monica Valentinelli is a writer, editor, and game developer who lurks in the dark. She writes both original and media tie-in fiction and works on games and comics, too. To date, she has over six dozen creative credits with more on the way. She is known for her work as the lead writer and developer for the award-winning line of Firefly RPG releases based on the TV show by Joss Whedon. Recently, she announced The Gorramn Shiniest Language Guide and Dictionary in the ‘Verse will be available in Spring 2016 from Titan Publishing.

To find out more about Monica, visit her website at: www.mlvwrites.com

Cannot Write Without: John Scalzi

November 11, 2015Cannot Write Withoutcannot write without, john scalzi, nanowrimoAlethea

The question in the lagoon this month: What’s the one thing you cannot write without?

Today’s answer comes from SF celebrity author and karaoke rock god: John Scalzi.

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I can’t write without a computer.

I started writing stories the same year the first Mac came out and so literally I’ve never not written on anything other than a computer.I think about trying to write on a typewriter and it makes me want to run screaming into the night.

So, yes. A computer, please.

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John Scalzi is the most excellent author of Redshirts and Old Man’s War and a ton of other really great SF books. He’s the proprietor of the Whatever website, and as much fun to hang out with at conventions as he is online. He lives in Ohio with his supergoddess wife Krissy, ultrafabulous daughter Athena, one dog, one cat, and two brand new kittens (be sure to follow him online to see all the fabulous photos).

And Alethea Mermaid misses him very much!

Cannot Write Without: Haralambi Markov

November 9, 2015Cannot Write Withoutcannot write without, haralambi markov, nanowrimoAlethea

The question in the lagoon this month: What’s the one thing you cannot write without?

Today’s answer comes from SF short fiction author extraordinaire: Haralambi Markov.

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Whenever you hear professional writers – I’m talking about those writers who are revising a novel under deadline and outlining a new one while simultaneously doing a press tour for a book due to be released any second – speak about writing, you hear one advice come up very often: “Abandon all rituals. Forget about the special pens, notebooks and time of day. Write – it doesn’t matter when, where or how.” It’s damn good advice; gets things done.

I didn’t take it to heart when I first started, of course, because writing is an act of inspiration, OK? You’re an artist – the recipient of a rare gift. You can’t just sit down and write. No, you have to gather all the ingredients, wait for the right hour and use the right instruments to reach the ether and channel inspiration. What this method taught me is that you can’t do much work waiting for circumstances to align. You’re not a witch waiting centuries for planets to align in just the right way for a short window of time. Writing is not that kind of spellwork.

One by one, I had to strip out the rituals and prerequisites to get any writing done. Don’t get me wrong – it’s fine to have a favourite notebook with the best layout, a favourite pen with a great grip and an hour you know your mind is clearest, but I learned to not require them.

Right now, the one thing I cannot sacrifice is solitude. I can’t write knowing there is another person in the same room as me. My desire to chat and goof around trumps my desire to write and even the potential of a conversation breeds tension and dissolve any creative focus. I’m working on overcoming this, too, but so far – I think I hit a hard limit there.

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Haralambi Markov is a writer, an editor, a freelancer, a reviewer, a geek, a book hoarder, a list maker, an art fanatic, a TV junkie, a pop culture aficionado…and lives “with the weird” in the coastal city of Varna, Bulgaria. Find out more about Harry at: http://haralambimarkov.com/blog/ (The Alternative Typewriter)

Cannot Write Without: Steven Silver

November 6, 2015Cannot Write Withoutcannot write without, nanowrimo, stsven h silverAlethea

The question in the lagoon this month: What’s the one thing you cannot write without?

Today’s answer comes from multiple Hugo Award nominated author and editor: Steven Silver.

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Several years ago, I was in a writing group for a short period of time. Each time we got together, I would circulate my works in progress to the other members and usually two or three of them would circulate their works.

Invariably, several people would circulate excuses. “I didn’t have the time.” or “My computer was down.” I kept thinking “You had a deadline. You find the time. You make the time.” or “You didn’t have a pencil? A pen? Paper? A receipt?”

I’ve written things on my phone if that was the only way to get the words down and I’ve remembered things I’ve wanted to write by repetitive memory so that they would stick with me until I got to a computer or paper. So there are very few specific physical things I need to write.

I need a method of getting the words down so they’ll be there when I need them. I don’t need a special keyboard or a magic pencil or a cup of tea (although the last is nice to have). So, what is the one thing I can’t write without…my imagination.

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Steven is a fabulous man who admits that his own website is a little behind the times. So instead, for more information I will direct you all to the website he maintains: www.sfsite.com/news

Cannot Write Without: Carlene Love

November 5, 2015Cannot Write Without, Carlene Lovecannot write without, Carlene Love, nanowrimoCarlene

The question in the lagoon this month: What’s the one thing you cannot write without?

Today’s answer comes from Waterworld Mermaids’ very own, Carlene Love.

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One thing, says Alethea. One thing. The. One. Thing. You need to write.

I love her. But this was hard. Until I realized I could make a tiny tweak to our theme. Maybe it’s not the “end all, be all” of writing necessities, but I’ll tell you what, I do much better in its comfy embrace. Without the nighttime, my words would be like sad little kids sitting on a bone-dry slip ‘n’ slide with a water hose stuck in the yard across the street guarded by a frothy-mouthed attack monster of your choice.

Man, that’s not a pretty scene. But hopefully this poem is. Thank you for letting me share why I love to write at night…

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Safe Words

I’d like to wake up when it’s safe and dark

Pull back the covers and get in my car

Drive until the road meets the edge of the sea

Call to you

Then hear you call back to me.

We can whisper and let everyone else sleep

It’s okay, you can speak

Your darkest and most beautiful truth

Dear Words, I surrender to you

And only the stars will know what we’ve said

And I’ll drive back home and crawl into bed

With you.

~by Carlene Love

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Do you love the night too? What’s your favorite thing to do in the dark? I’d love to hear it.

Fishy kisses to you all,

Carlene Mermaid

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Connect with Carlene on Facebook

Check out Carlene’s free read, Touch of Sin

Cannot Write Without: Nikki Woolfolk

November 4, 2015Cannot Write Withoutcannot write without, nanowrimo, nikki wolfolkAlethea

The question in the lagoon this month: What’s the one thing you cannot write without?

Today’s answer comes from author and chocolatier extraordinaire: Nikki Woolfolk.

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The Edible Plot

Food is a character. Food is an adventure. Food is a plot point.

In early 2011, my decade long writer’s block broke open and I dreamed of a Steampunk universe that did not exist within the genre itself.

Nowadays I confidently write Steampunk adventures and culinary cozy mysteries, but I didn’t know that’s where I was going when I participated in my first NaNoWriMo in 2011. My anxiety about writing was so bad the only way to combat it was to write by hand so I did. I have several notebooks filled from that month to prove it.

In that Steampunk Universe Bible I created my main character had a sister that was just the cook, Alex LeBeau, while the group traveled, but LeBeau became something more and it was through the food she created. I used recipes to convey the undercurrent of the story mood or sometimes to give myself an inside joke to tickle me whenever I found the scene getting way too heavy.

For LeBeau the culinary school she teaches in, when not amateur sleuthing, is a place where she can create and work at solving a clue. It’s tactile. It’s facing a problem without much effort and that’s how many of us solve a problem, we do something not related to the issue.

This is the same way I plot, but I didn’t realize this four years ago. By utilizing my food history and food science education I have been able to create edible plots.

What’s that mean?

Please feel free to buy these for me for Christmas. Love, Alethea.

The food that makes it into my stories is a result of my plotting. Sometimes a story comes out from a ‘what if?’ scenario and other times it comes from discovering one item of food that is either unique or has a history behind it. Gunpowder tea has made its way into a metaphor, a plot point and a batch of cookies in my current WIP (another Steampunk Culinary Mystery).

Before I became confident in cooking, my stories were flat, but when I begin adding my researched food history into the story I found my voice. It not only added to a scene but made my Steampunk Chocolatier Alex LeBeau multi-dimensional. Food was another character for the ensemble cast to work alongside.

Soon after I submitted sample pages of this story to a critique group and had one beta reader tell me to remove the reference of food in my culinary mystery. Not tone it down, but omit it all together. Yes, let that sink in for a moment.

So while I took the advice on how to tighten my writing to heart I left behind the suggestion to remove my food porn because I know who my audience is and it’s not for readers that do not like reading about food and that’s alright.

After all these years I admit that it’s tough to know how to balance a character (food) you adore that is forever changing, but I’m learning and I wouldn’t have it any other way.

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Nikki Woolfolk is the author of multiple Steampunk (Sweet & Steamy series), Cozy Food Mystery stories and a Professional Chocolatier. Nikki enjoys taking her readers on culinary adventures in a spectacular cogged and geared world with the perfect recipe of fun and adventure with a dash of wit! You can find her at: www.NikkiWoolfolk.com and her chocolates at: www.LeBeauChocolates.com