My Cringeworthy First Writing Efforts

 A praying mantis friend found her way onto my skirt the other day. Just one of many special blessings coming my way lately!

Our topic at the SFF Seven this week is the most unpublishable niche story we ever wrote.

Mine isn't necessarily a niche story - although it was of indistinguishable genre - but it was absolutely unpublishable and totally, as KAK puts it, cringe. In truth, it's because I can't think of this piece without that soul-deep cringe, that it springs to mind here. It wasn't even worthy of the word "story," it was that terrible.

See, I'd decided to become a writer. I'd cut bait on my PhD, got my MS, got a job as an editor/writer to build my chops, and was taking night classes to learn. But I hadn't gotten very good at the actual WRITING part. As in, I had no writing habit, I hadn't finished much of anything, and I was pretty much just farting around. Then I heard on the radio that Wyoming Arts Council (I lived in Wyoming at the time) was offering fellowships in literature. They had a rotating schedule between fiction, nonfiction, and poetry. I could either submit something for that year's award or wait three years. Since three years seemed like an impossibly long time then, I was determined to enter the competition that year.

Only I didn't have anything much to submit. But! I decided that I could enter the first few pages of a novel I'd started - the only pages I had of it - and trust that the judges would be so dazzled by the sheer promise of my work that they'd fall all over themselves to give me the fellowship.

Cringe cringe cringe

I have no idea what those judges thought of my fragmented pages of nothing. I obviously didn't win, nor did I receive any comments. Only much later did I realize just how delusionary I'd been. 

But you know what? Many years later, I did win one of those fellowships. It just took time, lots of dedicated work, and pulling my head out of my delusions. 

The Unpublishable Cringe

 This Week's Topic: The Most Unpublishable Niche Story I Ever Wrote Was...

First, I ought to be very clear that the story was unpublishable not because of the niche but because my writing at the time was, uhm, underdeveloped? Raw? Cringy? Okay, okay, okay. Horrible. I admit, it was horrible.  It was a grimdark romance short story written to the guidelines of a general fiction contest sponsored by a leading writing magazine. 

We will ignore the red flags around the contest because this was 20ish years ago. While the magazine is still around, the publisher at the time has long since folded and the magazine was subsumed by one of the Big 5 publishing houses. Hopefully, if they still run contests under the magazine's brand, they've cleaned up their act. Nope, I'm not gonna look and see. This topic isn't for Achtung Contests, Baby. Just do a web search for "red flags and writing contests." That'll get you plenty of results.

Back to the topic at hand: It is simultaneously hilarious and humbling to review my earliest works. To catch the glaring mistakes at first glance is, in fact, a good thing. It shows that I've grown as an author (and groaned too; there's lots of both). That I tried to shove a 90k story into 2500 words is, perhaps, the first warning siren. That I didn't know the reader's expectations of either genre so there was no attempt to deliver on the promise makes the story a certified wallbanger (if you happened to endure the craptastic writing to make it to the end). Character dev? Pfffft. A plot? A through line? Ahahaha. Staaaaaap. About all it had going for it was setting and dialogue. 

Oh, you want to see a sample of it? Oh, so, so, sorry.  That file "magically disappeared" along with Windows XP. Yep. That's my story and I'm sticking to it. 😇

How to Find Inspiration

One of the things I used to most fear when I was a young writer was running out of ideas or the motivation to work on stories. As it turns out, the ideas are the easy part. Finding inspiration, especially in a season of dryness or when the story just refuses to come, can be far harder. 

But even that can be managed. Here are some of my favorite tricks for getting the inspiration flowing again and a story back on track. 

Assess the Situation

One of the most crucial things you can do is determine the problem. If you’re tired or hungry or need a break, then working harder isn’t going to help you. If you’re dealing with burnout or emotional exhaustion, you need to address that as best you can.

Even if you are unable to fix all the situations that are causing the problems, doing something to address your actual physical or mental needs can help you get into a space where you can then continue the story. Just remember to address those needs sooner rather than later. 

Talk with a Friend

If you have author friends or a group with a safe space to chat, then talking about the story can help you spot the potential issues that could be holding you up or get you excited about the story once more. Especially if they are people who know the story. Sometimes we need a cheer session or others to believe in us or just an extra pair of eyes.  

(If you know what the actual issue or your needs with it are, do be sure to let the others know too. Especially if what you need is general excitement for the story rather than criticism.) 

Thought Release

This one helps me so much I do it every morning, even when the inspiration is flowing well. But when I am having a tough time, I will take a few extra minutes and complete it again just to clear my mind.

The basic premise is simple: sit and write whatever is in your mind for 10 – 15 minutes. And I mean whatever.

I get snippets of stories, bits of poems, tasks that need to be done, and even the occasional research note. But as I put them to paper, the act calms my mind and makes it easier for me to see what actually needs to be done. And oftentimes, that takes some stress and pressure away and makes it easier for me to see what needs to be done on my current story. 

Play a Game

Personally, I love video and phone games when it comes to seeking out inspiration. If you get a good story game, your mind will start putting together that story and you may find that that excitement spills over into your own and makes it easier for you get back in your own flow.

Do handle this with care if you’re on a tight deadline as it could mean that you wind up using up all your time. 

If you only have a short amount of time, try a smaller puzzle based one like Candy Crush or Tetris. A lot of times, your mind will work on the problem with the story as you are focusing on something else, and Tetris has been shown to help restructure the brain in such a way that it can even help reduce the impacts of trauma and intrusive thoughts. 

Set a Timer

I hate this tactic. But it works. 

Sit with your writing tools and a timer for 20 minutes. Set the timer. Switch your phone and Internet off. Now look at the page. Whatever you do, you have two options: write or stare. 

Technically, you can think about the story, of course. 

But nothing else. 

Eventually the words come. 

I can’t explain why, but it feels physically painful to do nothing and keep intentionally returning my focus to the project at hand rather than letting myself get distracted by a thousand other things. And somehow, that agonizing space of focus eventually leads to more words coming. Maybe not good words. But words that can be edited and finessed. 

The one thing I’ll add is that even though it works, I hate this tactic so much I avoid it if I can. It also wears me out faster. But if I’m on a deadline for a project I just can’t complete, then this is the one I pull out. And sometimes even the threat of it is enough to make my mind realize it can continue. 

But these are just a handful of possibilities. If you find these don’t work for you, keep experimenting. Something will work eventually. All seasons end, including seasons of dry inspiration and difficult stories. 

What about you? Do you have any tricks that work for you when it comes to finding inspiration?

Jessica M. Butler is a USA Today bestselling romantic fantasy author who never outgrew her love for telling stories and playing in imaginary worlds. She lives with her husband and law partner, James Fry, in rural Indiana where they are quite happy with their two cats and all of the wildlife and trees.

Find her at https://jmbutlerauthor.com/

Getting Unstuck

Getting stuck. It happens. I hate it. There's a lot of fear and angst in getting stuck. What if you never get unstuck? What if this is it? You're just done? Finished. It's possible. It's just not likely. So you have to try to get unstuck. The common advice goes 'what worked before?' I don't know if repeating past patterns helps anyone else out there, but for me, if my brain sees the trick, it's not going to work the second time around. Frustrating. So then it becomes a question of why I'm stuck.

There are as many reasons to be stuck as there are people on the planet. Probably multiples of that, actually. Regardless. It's on the stuck author to start asking questions. Only, there's one question that will not help. That question is: Why am I stuck. Isn't that funny? There's a secret, though, from brain science. Brains are literal chucks of goo. Asking yourself why you're stuck just perpetuates a list of reasons justifying your stuckness. That list only reinforces being stuck. Instead, you want a list of your own. Behold. A list that should be a flowchart but I am NOT logging into Visio to build one tonight:

1. Is this a story problem? If yes, dissect the story problem. Ask for help, if need be, from an outside source who can help bounce ideas around. I like FFS Media.  Clare talks about theme and breaks it down in a useful, comprehensible way that your high school English teacher only dreamed of doing. Based on her information, I've been able to look at a story I've been stuck on for years and realize like a bolt from the blue that the story I thought was about revenge, is actually about family. No wonder I was stuck. IF you're stuck on story, you can get unstuck by engaging with a mentor or by doing some digging in the story to see where things went off the rails. If it's NOT a story problem, then:

2. Is this a you problem? You problems: burned out, too little time, not enough energy, depressed, anxious, sick, etc.  These are almost always matters of deferred self-care and I'm going to be mean here and point out that writing is the least of your worries right now. Failing to take care of your mental, emotional, and physical health isn't something that can be made up for over a long weekend. Burn out can take a very long time to recover from. Energy is a function of nutrition, exercise, and sleep efficiency. They can all be addressed. Too little time? Social media fast. Seriously. Break up with your phone for a few days. If your mental health is suffering, you must speak to a physician and ask for help in resolving the danger to yourself as soon as possible. Writing takes a number and stands in line until you are well and feeling like you again. Yes, there are chronic illnesses that sometimes must be pushed through. They exact their own price. Those of us experienced with the push/pull of chronic issues have learned how to balance it. Most of the time. You can't push through burn out. Or depression. Not without making things much, much worse. So practice some steely-eyed honesty with yourself here. Assess. Treat. Recover. THEN write.  If this is NOT a you problem, then:

3. Is this a values shift? What matters to you in this world? Don't look at the things you just scribbled on the pad in front of you. Those are what you THINK you should value. We're looking at what you truly value - not in word, but in deed. Where do you spend the bulk of your time? What commands your attention each day without fail? What and who would you die or kill for? There's a financial guru in the world who likes to say that people will fall all over themselves to tell you what they value, but he's only interested in looking at their calendars and their bank statements - values are actions. Where you spend your time and your money - those are your values. Sometimes in this life, values change as we change. Maybe writing and creation were a part of your value system at one time. Maybe your values have shifted. Do you hear a voice in the back of your head whispering "We've been here and done this already, enough." It's legitimate to look that thought square in the eyes and follow it through. What if you don't write? What then? What DO you want to create in this world? Who do you want to be? You have permission to keep going. You have permission to put down the keyboard and say, "I don't need to do this anymore." The world doesn't end. And you're free. You're free to walk away to a new life. You're free to turn right back around and commit to trying yet again to write through the fear and uncertainty. There are no right answers and no one will give you a gold star here. Not for anything. If it's NOT a values shift, then: 

4. Other thing known only to you.

Reasons for being stuck are personal. So are the solutions to them. We all share some commonalities - writers get stuck from time to time. Human beings flail. There's nothing inherently bad about it. In fact, half the time, I feel like the judgement of 'being stuck' is 90% of the problem. There is no part of the writing process that recrimination and rising anxiety can't make bleaker and more problematic. The key to getting unstuck is being willing to change. Adapt or die. If you're stuck but cannot give up then you have to batter yourself against the wall of your stuckness until you know every aspect of it. Then you have to transform yourself to slip through, slam through, dig under, or fly over stuckness.

Those are the only options. To quote Yoda. Do. Or do not. There is no try.

Stop Waiting for Inspiration

 Barnes & Noble is offering 25% on preorders for the next 3 days, so if you read on Nook and want a great discount on TWISTED MAGIC, go to B&N and use PREORDER25. 

This week at the SFF Seven, we're talking how to find inspiration when the story won't come to you. 

Did you know the word "inspiration" comes from the Latin inspirare, which means "to breathe into"? Same root as the English word for respiration and other, similar, breathing-related words. It refers to the sense of the divine breathing life into us. 

The way creatives use "inspiration," we usually mean it the way this topic is phrased - that we're waiting for that divine breath, waiting for that story to come to us.

Stop waiting.

As a creative, YOU are the divine and the story is your creation. Did the gods wait for lifeless clay creatures to somehow totter up to them, requesting the breath of life?

No.

Similarly, those stories are not going to come to you. You must reach out and seize the clay, shape it into what you want it to be, and then for YOU to be the inspiration, to breathe life into the new work.

I know this isn't the advice you wanted to hear. This isn't easy. But then, being a Creator never is. 

Creative Blockage: Go Sit in a Corner

 This Week's Topic: How to Find Inspiration When the Story Won't Come to Me

I'm the sort for whom the broad strokes of the story come easily. It's the details that can cause me to sit in a corner and drool. Sometimes, I'll bring an aluminum pot to bang on mindlessly while I'm there.

Wait.
Does--does that actually help?

Ya know, yeah. Yeah, it does. Figuratively and, on occasion, literally. Letting my mind go utterly blank permits my subconscious to noodle over the problem. When my conscious mind is too chaotic, the monotonous thumping of the pot provides a singular focal point that eventually quiets the pandemonium and lulls the conscious mind so the whispers of my subconscious can be heard. 

Naturally, my subconscious doesn't acknowledge the concepts of deadlines, schedules, urgency, or even time itself. Like so many of us, my creative epiphany strikes at the most inconvenient moments. Say, whilst folding laundry, walking the dog, or at 0200hrs. Can I always remember the moment of brilliance until I get to a voice recorder or notebook? I so wish the answer to that was Yes. The gist lingers, however, and that's good enough to weave the bridges of minor events that connect the Big Moments. 

In a world of overscheduling and overstimulation, the key to conquering any kind of creative block is to give yourself time to simply...think. 

Aluminum pots are optional. 

Marketing and Making Author Friends

2023 has been a whirlwind - I can't believe it's the end of the summer already! In Canada we have Labour Day Weekend this weekend and then the children go back to school on Tuesday. The last days of fun and frolic until we have to get serious and studious again. Sigh!

Marketing

I'm finishing up a marketing course by Shelby Leigh and looking forward to implementing what I've learned this fall. Most authors don't have a degree or experience in marketing and it can seem overwhelming to promote our books. We can feel like it's impossible to be heard or that we can't find our readers. And much marketing advice for entrepreneurs doesn't translate quickly to the author setting. Finding those people who get it and can help us navigate the marketing waters is incredibly helpful. Shelby has been an important contributor to my knowledge and my confidence in promoting my books. And just in time, since it's Promo Week on the SFF 7 Authors blog!

Promo

Shelby helped me define the themes and emotions that go into my stories and will resonate with my readers. I've always been a fan of the Fated Mates trope and I love writing shifter stories. For me, these themes connect with reader's desires to read about a true connection and partnership between equals in romantic relationships, as well as our need for belonging and community. Shifters for me are about transformation and being our best selves while facing the evils of the world. Giving us hope for a better future.

You can read Book 2 in the Laurentian Mountain Clan series I'm writing. Mind's Peace introduces a geeky billionaire shifter and his curvy librarian soulmate who have to work together to discover where to find the ancient sorcerers who have attacked the shifter clan. Along the way, our librarian heroine comes to terms with her magical powers of prescience and controlling fires. 

He was looking for answers, not his Fated Mate.

After his cheating girlfriend dumps him, Thomas Ducharme, Lieutenant of the Laurentian Mountain Clan, believes he has nothing to offer. The Fated Mates prophecy will never apply to him. But shadowy supernaturals have allied with a rival clan and his energy is used best by discovering the origins of Frè res Gris Consortium.

Ever since Tatienne Laflamme lost her parents in a house fire, she has feared her fiery nightmares. She was left to raise her sister, but she can't stop her passion when she meets billionare ski mogul Thomas Ducharme. Thomas knows she belongs with him. She just has to let him in.

As Tatienne helps Thomas seek the truth of his foes, she becomes a target and is pulled into the world of shifters and the conflict between clans. When their enemies endanger her and her sister, Tatienne finds the courage to harness her dreams to find the Frè res Gris Consortium. Thomas' s pack gets closer to answers, and they can' t do it without her.

The fire in her heart can help them defeat the clan' s foes. But how can she confront her fears and accept the peace that Thomas offers?

Read in KU or get your copy here! Mind's Peace Book Link.

Making Author Friends

This spring I also contributed to a fantasy romance anthology, Bound in Magic, which featured a dazzling array of fantasy settings, lots of bada$$ women characters, and all kinds of true love. The limited edition collection of stories has concluded, but my friendships with the awesome group of authors continues (stay tuned for information about the next collection, coming spring 2024).

You can check out the amazing featured authors on instagram:

• Ruthie Bowles: @ruthie.narrates.books

• Alisyn Fae: @authoremmaalisyn

• Elayna R. Gallea: @authorelaynargallea

• Danielle M. Hill: @daniellehillwrites 

• Daniela A. Mera: @authordaniela.a.mera 

• E. Milee: @writtenbyemilee 

• Mimi B. Rose: @mimib.rose

• Priscilla Rose: @priscillaroseauthor 

Coincidentally, this collection featured stories from three Canadian authors of fantasy romance! Elayna and Danielle are my fellow countrywomen and I'm thrilled to get to know them better along with the other authors in the anthology (special shout out to our fearless leader, Priscilla Rose!).

Danielle's first book came out in 2022, same as mine. (Funny story, that's how the Bound in Magic collection began, with a group of debut authors featured in the FaRoFeb blog.

Her Twingenuity series is a gorgeous take on twin sisters who change places. 

Amara was like any other princess from a once magical kingdom. Like most, she had secrets, her biggest one of all; She’s actually her twin sister Avery.

After Avery is taken from her ordinary life and brought to the mysterious kingdom of Soluna, she is introduced to the heir to the throne, and her twin sister, Amara.

Not everyone believes Amara is the rightful heir so she ventures off on the quest of her life to prove them wrong, leaving Avery behind to impersonate a sister and life she knows nothing about.

Follow both Avery and Amara as they discover more about themselves than they ever thought possible, including unbelievable powers.

You can read Book 1 here:  https://books2read.com/A-Kingdom-of-Sun-and-shadow/.

I'm thrilled to support Danielle and my fellow authors by buying and reading their books. Indie authors are a wonderful bunch of people! Check them out now. 

Love, Mimi

Summer Book Recs!

Summer is winding down where I’m at—the fields of corn and beans are yellowing, the garden is slowing, and a few leaves have fallen. But we’re clinging on to the last bits of hot sun this week with our topic: Summer Promo! 

I don’t have anything new to share with you, but I have read some great books recently! In the beginning of August I shared a couple of sci-fi recs, which you can find here, Recoil and The Blighted Stars. And I can’t not put another science fiction book on the list, and this one has a heavy dose of romance to compliment the exemplary tech! Book three in the Starlight’s Shadow series:

Capture the Sun

by Jessie Mihalik

Acclaimed author Jessie Mihalik returns with the thrilling conclusion to her Starlight’s Shadow trilogy. An intergalactic thief must join forces with the charming teleporter who stole her last job—and may now be her only hope for saving her former crew. As a recovery specialist, Lexi Bowen’s jobs typically require more trickery and thievery than honest work. Her former captain might not approve of her flexible morals, but stealing artifacts for rich assholes pays the bills, and Lexi’s had enough of war and death. The FHP left her to die once; she doesn’t plan to give them a chance to finish the job. Unfortunately, her latest contract takes her to Valovia itself—and right back into the orbit of Nilo Shoren, a Valovian teleporter who already cost her one payday and nearly stole her heart. Armored against his clever charm, Lexi plans to get in, get the job done, and get out. But when her former crew goes missing in Valovian space, Lexi will have to work with Nilo to figure out what happened—and stop it—before the galaxy’s two superpowers can use the disappearance as an excuse to return to war.

If you’re in the mood for some fantasy on the high seas I highly suggest:

Dark Water Daughter

by H.M. Long

A stormsinger and pirate hunter join forces against a deathless pirate lord in this swashbuckling Jacobean adventure on the high-seas.

Mary Firth is a Stormsinger: a woman whose voice can still hurricanes and shatter armadas. Faced with servitude to pirate lord Silvanus Lirr, Mary offers her skills to his arch-rival in exchange for protection - and, more importantly, his help sending Lirr to a watery grave. But her new ally has a vendetta of his own, and Mary's dreams are dark and full of ghistings, spectral creatures who inhabit the ancient forests of her homeland and the figureheads of ships.

Samuel Rosser is a disgraced naval officer serving aboard The Hart, an infamous privateer commissioned to bring Lirr to justice. He will stop at nothing to capture Lirr, restore his good name and reclaim the only thing that stands between himself and madness: a talisman stolen by Mary.

Finally, driven into the eternal ice at the limits of their world, Mary and Samuel must choose their loyalties and battle forces older and more powerful than the pirates who would make them slaves.

And one last, fantastic read. The magic system and all their rules is so good and the relationships will suck you in, proving you can run but you can’t hide—book two in the Renegades of Magic series!

Rogue Familiar

by Jeffe Kennedy

He left to save her from herself… But who will save him from her?

When Lady Seliah Phel wakes from a drugged sleep to find herself abandoned by her newly bonded wizard, she vows revenge—and to hunt him down. Tracking him through the familiar wilds of the marshlands of her home is the easy part; learning to use her nascent magical skills is something else entirely. So is facing the vast, uncaring society of the Convocation in a time of brewing war.

Jadren El-Adrel is not known for doing the right thing, but getting as far away from Seliah as possible before he drains her dry will be his one noble gesture. So what if she weeps a few tears. Better than her dying in his service—or enabling him to become the ravenous beast that crawls beneath his skin. Unfortunately, in his self-imposed exile, and without the power of his familiar, Jadren quickly runs afoul of the enemy.

As her vengeful quest for recapture becomes a rescue mission, Selly faces all she still doesn’t know about the greater world of wizards and familiars. And Jadren, once determined to walk his own path and stay far, far away from the idealistic fools of House Phel, finds himself aligning with them against the house of his birth. War is coming to the Convocation, which means a clever wizard should pick the side most likely to win.

Sadly, Jadren has never been all that clever…

I’ve shared some of mine, do you have any book recs for me?