Three Places I Find Inspiration

 Happy New Year!

On this New Year's Eve day, I'm busy crunching year-end financials in preparation to go to quarterly tax-reporting. Author finances, however, are not the topic of the week at the SFF Seven. Instead we're discussing a much happier topic: sources of inspiration.

The two are somewhat tied together for me as I've spent the last two weeks refilling my creative well. I finished my revision of ONEIRA (final title to come) on December 15 and sent it off to my editor. Since then, I've taken a break from writing work - very unusual for me. The time has been consumed largely by Christmas prep, travel, visiting family, and doing business like the above crunching of year-end financials. Looking at this, I've realized that I've been relying on passive well-refilling: hoping that if I simply leave the creative well alone, that the vast water table of the universe will seep in and top that puppy off for me. 

And, to some extent, that's true.

However, I'm realizing I haven't been following my new tenet of aggressively refilling the well. That would mean finding ways to actively pour juice into that well. And that's where inspiration comes in. What are my top three?

Media

I'm putting a lot under this heading, much like my sibling-under-the-skin, Murderbot. One thing I have been doing is a full re-read of this excellent series by Martha Wells. Reading books - particularly brilliantly written ones by authors I admire - is a great source of inspiration for me. I also include listening to music under this heading. While road-tripping, I put my music library on All Songs Shuffle, which unearths interesting stuff I haven't listened to in ages. A Cat Stevens song - The Wind - turned up, so now I'm diving into a full Cat Stevens song shuffle. What an amazing songwriter, to communicate so much in so few words. Finally, I love watching movies for inspiration. I got a great idea just the other night from a movie and now I'm sizzling to write this series. Though it will have to wait, the sparkle of that excitement adds to my overall feeling of creative flow.

Nature

I'm fortunate to live in a beautiful place. My desk overlooks a spectacular view and my morning walk with the dog is replete with huge skies, distant mountains, and beauty of all kinds. I say I'm lucky to have this - and I am! - but I also sought out this place, because being outside in a beautiful place is super important to me. Just living here refills my well.

Silence

Longtime readers probably know that I'm an advocate of silence for creative flow. By this I don't necessarily mean the absence of ambient sound, though it sometimes means that for me. I'm talking primarily about the silence of the mind, the emptiness that allows creativity to flow in, that enables us to hear the voices scintillating through the veil, telling us their stories. Taking time off from the "noisier" parts of my life has been invaluable for that. 

Huh... Turns out I've been doing better at aggressively refilling the well than I thought!

Best wishes for an inspiring 2024 for us all!

So Turns the Wheel of the Year

 

In the liminal space between this end of year cluster of holidays, I wish you the warmth and relaxation and coziness of Arya nesting in my lap. May the new year be bright, prosperous, healthy, and joyous. I have no great advice to give or pronouncements to make. May we all become the best versions of ourselves as we move into another cycle.

Goodbye 2023

My husband and I smiling goodbye to 2023!

It’s been a year. I spent countless hours at my kid’s sport events. Read 78 books. Wrote one sci-fi thriller. And I’m excited about 2024. I’ve got goals and I’m going to reach them. 

The new year is right around the corner. It’s a time to look forward in anticipation. It’s also a time that many make resolutions. Resolutions, goals, whatever you want to call them, they’re good motivators. And if you’ve been looking for the push, the thing that’ll energize you, now is a great time to decide that it’s going to happen now. 

A positive mindset can carry you a long way. I was reminded of that as I watched the most recent season of Alone with my family. If you're not familiar with it, it's a reality show from the History Channel that pits people against the wilderness and their own minds as they survive out in the woods alone. The woman who stuck it out to the number two spot was incredibly positive and grateful throughout the experience. She outlasted her competitors, who brought in more game, with berries and a smile. Watching her daily lift her face to the sky reminded me that I want to face 2024 with a grin. 

That’s my plan as I prepare for the new year. I hope your New Year celebration is safe and filled with joy and laughter, but also brings you a good dose of grit for your goals. 

Cheers to the Changing of the Year

 This Week's Topic: Thoughts on the Closing of the Year/Start of the New Year

As we say goodbye to 2023 and look ahead to 2024

I wish you all 

Good Health

Good Fortune

and

Good Company

Cheers to the changing of the year!

FaRo on my mind

 

FaRoFeb website

As we look back on 2023, I want to thank our group, FaRoFeb, for contributing to the SFF 7 Authors blog this year! I love this partnership. I really enjoy seeing the different perspectives on the blog each week, and adding a variety of posts from a diverse group of our authors has been a real joy for me. 

For those of you who might not know, HR Moore founded the Fantasy Romance February (FaRoFeb) group as a way to bring together authors and readers of fantasy romance for a month of bookish activities. Now the fun lasts all year long! The group supports authors and readers of Fantasy Romance, providing spaces on social media to build community and promote great books.

The FaRoFeb team of volunteers works tirelessly to make the magic happen. If you'd like to learn more about them, please check them out:

• HR Moore, www.hrmoore.com
• Vela Roth, www.velaroth.com
• Lisette Marshall, www.lisettemarshall.com
• Colleen Cowley, www.colleencowley.com 
• S. L. Prater, www.streetwitch.net
• MJ Faraldo, www.mjfaraldo.com
• Elsie Winters, www.elsiewinters.com
• Mimi B. Rose, https://www.mimibroseauthor.SheWritesSteamyRomance.com
• Jen Lynning, https://jenlynning.com/

Finally, follow FaRoFeb on social media and join their newsletter. There are games, book recommendations, character art, giveaways, and more.

• https://farofeb.com/, https://farofeb.com/newsletter/
• https://www.facebook.com/groups/429207234870645 
• https://www.instagram.com/farofeb/
• https://www.tiktok.com/@farofeb

Next week, we'll thank the volunteers who contributed to the blog this year and wish you a wonderful new year!

Blessings,

Mimi

Winter Solstice What's on My Mind

Blessed Winter Solstice. On my mind today - Time. 

Time in all its complexity and in its simplicity. We brought in a tea advent calendar from Friday Tea in Seattle. We're counting down to Christmas with a different tea each day. We also brought in a wooden puzzle advent calendar. These simple time keepers were an attempt to handle one of our more complicated time issues - family.

My father received news from his doctor this year that no one wants to receive from a doctor. We're all aware that as we count down to Christmas this year, we're also counting down how many more Christmases we'll have together. It's a fact of life, of course, but no one has to like it, and we don't. So we're focused on connection, on creating moments for slowing down, for pausing and looking around. We're concentrated on creating enjoyment. The puzzle has been a surprisingly good way to do all of that. Dad isn't fond of the holidays to begin with, so we were pleasantly surprised when he opted to engage with the puzzle advent calendar with us. Well timed batches of holiday cookies have helped a little, too.

I'm making some of my family's favorite things to eat, of course. The holidays are time for me to try new recipes simply because I enjoy experimenting. I'm contemplating how to create more time and space in my life for my dreams and my ambitions. During this solstice season, I'm pausing, taking a full, deep breath and holding it in the depths of the dark while I look around with eyes not clouded by my breath in the cold night. Solstice night is the time to leave behind the parts of me that no longer serves me. Time to strike the match and light the midwinter fire. This is the doorway out of shadow into light.

It's time to realize that our lives are advent calendars counting down the clock of our existence. What matters to us can no longer wait. 

Winter On My Mind

Food preparations, gift wrapping, laundry, my twin’s birthday, packing overnight bags, picking up dog food…these are a few things on my mind this week, and sadly none of them are writing related.

I knew the holiday time between Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Years would be busy, but I naively thought I’d be able to write. I wasn't prepared for a few days to have gone by since I’ve had the time, or been home long enough, to open up my laptop.

Now I seriously understand every author who has said they don’t write during the holiday season. But I’m not beating myself up over it. It is what it is. I’ve also got a lingering bug that I caught at a family Christmas, so I’m choosing salt baths and hydration over pushing myself for words. I'm choosing to winter.

Yes, I'm wintering. That idea that we need seasons same as our environment. Winter is the time of year for salt baths, cozying up on the couch with a warm cuppa, quiet nights at home with loved ones. It's restorative and does wonders for the brain. If you haven't done any wintering yet, I highly suggest it! 

My imagination hasn’t taken time off yet, my plot continues to grow in my mind. So I’ve got that going for me. 

I hope your holiday preparations aren’t driving you crazy and that you either get time with your own words or turn some pages with someone else’s! 

Merry Christmas!

A Peaceful Pause

 This Week's Topic: On My Mind, the Winter Edition

It's the time of year when I give myself permission to not write, to pause marketing analysis, and to back off ad management. There's no guilt for missing word-count goals. No stress over skipping editing pages. My book discounts and winter ad campaigns were launched at the beginning of the month and are slated to run through the end of January (yes, I do winter campaigns versus holy day campaigns).  I check my sales mostly because it's a habit and not because I will do anything to adjust campaigns.

When writing full-time--or any type of self-employment--we often forget to give ourselves permission to take a break. As creatives, it's imperative we step back, step away, and step into a place of regeneration and relaxation. Too many of us attempt to keep our work schedules during times of the year that we know will demand a lot of us outside our fictional worlds. Whether it's family obligations, religious observations, charity deliverables, or community interactions, the end of the calendar year is exceptionally taxing. Fighting the inevitable isn't worth my health or my sanity. Thus, I give myself permission to set aside my writing--both the creation and the business--to participate in the season of giving. Giving my time, my emotion, and my cooperation to those who've supported me throughout the year. 

Now, now, I don't give away all my time. I still maintain my restful hours. I even claim a few extras. Because, as stimulating as it is to reconnect with loved ones, it's also exhausting. This recluse can only handle so much of...people.

This winter, dear readers, I wish you the serenity of a peaceful pause.