Writer's Blog

Go on now, get your nose into Hale's Storm.  

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Inspiration

A lot of my stories come to me in dreams.  not just pictures, but emotionally charged, intense moments.  When I wake up in the morning (which is usually when my kids jump on me, an abrupt jump into consciousness), I find myself clinging to the lingering feelings I'd  experienced, but they slip away quickly and take the memories with them.  

Dangit, I think.  If I could just get back to that feeling, I could write it all down...

And then, sometimes days later, I'll hear a song that brings it all back in a flood!  So I play the song on repeat until I'm sure that I've gotten it all onto paper (or, um, computer document).  Today, Jason Mraz is helping me out with a spicy little scene...

Thanks, Jason.

I can't wait until YOU (reader) get to read it, too!  Tell me if you feel the same way.


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Oh, How Embarrassing!

You may be asking yourself, 
"What's that blue thing?" or 
"Is that a dog?"  
Well my friends, I will give you the answers to your questions...  even though it's seriously embarrassing for me to do so.

Let me preface this with some information about my writing process:  I sit on an exercise ball instead of a standard chair to keep the blood flowing when I really get down and dirty with a long session of clickety-clacking away at my keyboard.  If I get hot, I place a fan on my desk.  If I get cold, I fire up the space heater at my feet.  
No distractions!

The photo above documents the day that the exercise ball and the heater got too close for anyone's comfort.
In the heat of furiously trying to type a serious scene as quickly as it played in my mind, I was stopped short by a loud, high-pitched whine.  The next thing I knew, I was sitting on the ground.  The hard ground.  Um, this was slightly distracting to my writing process (ever so slightly).  Luckily, the only one there to witness my stupidity (seriously, who pulls the space heater mere inches away from a giant plastic ball?) was my dog.  As you can see in the photo, he appreciated the free-flow of hot air, no longer obstructed by a giant, air-filled ball.

Months have passed.  The ball has been replaced (I'm sitting on one now), though my pride hasn't.  So let's just laugh about it now, shall we?  Now stop distracting me... I've got to get to work.


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I'm a Mormon.  Which means that I belong to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. Which also means that I enjoy the sage advice and modern-day direction of a prophet (currently President Thomas S. Monson), whom I wholeheartedly believe is the mouthpiece of God on earth today.

President Monson gave a great talk in General Conference in 2011 (read or watch it here) about daring to stand alone.  Mormon or not, surely we've all had the opportunity to stand up for what we believe in, even though our heart pounds, our palms sweat, and our stomach spasms with nerves.  Real bravery is when you're scared, but you do it anyway.

I love this message.  Hale's Storm fans may recognize a phrase that I borrowed from President Monson's story and shared as a snippet from Pip's brothers' letters home: 
 "After many letters home describing the agony of basic training, “They’re not training us, they’re killing us!” and “It’s freezing here!  I can’t get a wink of sleep when I’m too busy shivering all alone in this bunk!”, all three were rewarded for surviving the cold by being stationed in Oahu on an army base that defends the Naval outfit there.  Hawaii!  Warmth at last!"  

I included   President Monson's quip in my story as my own way of honoring a great man.  I hope the next time that you read that phrase in Hale's Storm, you'll remember what bravery means.  I hope you'll feel the courage to stand up for your beliefs!