Inspiring "Author" Blogs

Happy Thursday Evening!

Last night at this time, I was sitting amongst a group of about 200 writing and reading enthusiasts--99% women!  (But to be fair, the five men in the audience were definitely noticed and very much appreciated!)

So--where was I? It was with great pleasure that I attended the 6th Annual "Evening With Authors"--presented by Rhode Island's own Book Lover Extraordinaire and Radio Talk Show Host Robin Kall Hominoff--which benefits Breast Cancer Awareness Month as well as keeps an excited reader-junkie audience on the edge of their seats!

As a side note--my "Writer's Crate" blogging partner, Kate Phillips, was my partner in crime last evening, and I truly believe it was one of the best "Literary Adventures" we have yet to attend.

Let me explain. I've been privileged to be writing for Kate for over 12 years now! We have experienced many "literary" adventures together during this time--a combination of both professional and personal delightful adventures. Kate is one of those editors that takes writing to a whole new level! She makes my published writing shine like the North Star and the many facets of writing that I've gleaned from her editorial finesse has taken my writing to grand, new heights!

Not every blog or post will resonate with each of us, but if you're connected with writers you love, something will surely grab your attention if you read them on a regular basis!

Today's post is all about inspired beginnings! The three authors we heard from last night were beyond amazing and entertaining! I would like to share their websites and blogs with you.  

Dani Shapiro   --  Moments of Being

John Searles   Help For The Haunted

Susan Jane Gilman   A View From Abroad 

I'm not advocating that you'll become these three authors biggest fans, but I do encourage that you explore new writers so that you can broaden your own horizons through even one or two of their messages and lessons.

Do you have a favorite writing blog that makes you tick?  Please share your thoughts with us!

Blogs I Read

 

From Kate's Writing Crate...

 

            The Writer's Crate blog is another fun Literary Adventure for me. It has also become my favorite writing project.

 

In almost seven months, I have written about 15,000 words on topics I never would have written about without this blog. I am proud to have written these posts as I love letting other writers know about books that have helped me grow as a writer as well as lessons I have learned while writing almost 1,400 published articles and essays.

 

However, I don't just enjoy writing posts; I also enjoy reading them.

 

I visit all my favorite authors' websites to find out when their next books will be out as well as their thoughts about all things writing.

I also enjoy these blogs:

 

As I recommend his book The War of Art: Break Through the Blocks and Win Your Inner Creative Battles so often, no one will be surprised that I read Steven Pressfield's "Writing Wednesdays" posts. As the author of a dozen books, he has years of experience and is willing to share his thoughts on writing in funny and useful ways.

 

Meg Waite Clayton's First Novels section on her website is inspirational as authors recount their trials and tribulations on the way to becoming published authors. Most take years, but they never gave up. Book recommendations and writing tips are also parts of the site. Also recently posted there was a graduation speech given by author Neil Gaiman including his advice to always make good art—recommended listening for all writers and artists.

 

Don't Pet Me, I'm Writing, a blog by Tawna Fenske, provides a personal view of the writing and publishing of quirky romantic comedies. It is also irreverent and often edgy as she shares funny thoughts and tales from her life.

 

Libereading by Rayna: I love the title which Rayna defines as the act of reading freely. She reads an eclectic mix of books, then reviews and rates them. She is also a site editor for Diversify Your Reading.
 

 

 

Kristen Lamb writes a blog called WarriorWriters. She is an expert on managing social media when it comes to authors and their books. She is also the author of Are You There Blog? It's Me, Writer which Cheryl and I read before we began our blog. I find her to be helpful, funny, and inspiring.

 

As I have stated before, I think blogging is a great way to improve your writing. You have: the freedom to choose the topics to keep you interested; the pressure of a weekly or daily deadline to keep you writing and, if you choose to (and I highly recommend that you do), a hard word count to help you make every word tell. All things that make writing fun, stronger, and inspired!     

 

What blogs do you enjoy reading?

Brain Candy for Writers

From Cheryl's Writing Crate

One of my passions, other than my family, my dogs, my writing and reading (what can I say, I’m a passionate gal!) is surfing the net for interesting information.  I have discovered so many random fun facts, neat hobbies I never knew about, a collection of mouthwatering recipes, dozens of unique and colorful ways to decorate my home, endless health and nutrition articles—well, the list goes on and on.

A couple of weeks ago I was randomly perusing author websites (yet another passion—finding out what makes other authors tick!), and I came across an unbelievable find!  A creative website for writers called The Bookshelf Muse which is dedicated to helping writers via descriptive tools, knowledge sharing and support.  I felt at home immediately, and I just had to share one of those tools that I am now enamored with—Braincandy for writers.  This is basically a collection of awesome, eclectic links for writers covering everything from soup to nuts in a writer’s world. 

Angela Ackerman is co-author of The EMOTION Thesauraus, A writer's  guide to  character expression.

Here are some of the links that I found so very interesting and helpful.  Once you check these out be sure and visit the site for yourself.  (Hey, we writers need to stick together!)   I hope you’ll be as impressed and taken with it as I am. 

Specialty Dictionaries: Need to know more about a specific subject like boats, wine, music, Oil and Gas, mythology, etc? OMG, awesomeness, right here.

ISBN: Looking for a book and want to know who published it? Is your book similar to something on the market and you want to see what other books are published on the same topic? Want to look up a publisher or imprint to get an idea of what they currently publish? Great way to research!

Senses Word Pack  & More Senses Word Packs: Here's two neat little list of words for Taste, Smell, Sounds, Textures and Sight. It might help you brainstorm an exact match for your character's experience.

Character Archtypes: A list of 140 different archtypes. I know--140? I had no idea there were so many out there in the big bad world of fiction and film, but here they are. This is probably the most complete list I've ever found.

Food, Past and Present: OMG people. This is so much more that a simple Food Timeline. You have to see it to believe it. If you are writing about any point in history and want to know exactly what crops were available, what people in different countries ate and how it was prepared then BAM, this is the place. 

Confusing Words: Death to Homophones! Affect or Effect? Complement or compliment? Or maybe you just get stuck on those words that are difficult to pin down a meaning for. All you do is type in a word and it helps you with the meaning. Quick and easy!

Self Control: Do you find yourself checking email , Facebook, Twitter, etc when you're supposed to be writing? Of course you do! And if you're like me, you probably bemoan the fact that you need to have the Internet on to research bits of info as you write and so the temptation to 'peek' at other stuff can't be circumvented. Enter Self Control--it blocks your Facebook, Email, etc for a set period of time that you choose while leaving your Internet accessible. No more excuses! (Note: I just found this so haven't used it yet, but it looks great, doesn't it?)

Nonverbal Dictionary: Know all those non-verbal gestures (a blush, a bobbing Adam's apple, a chin jut or crossed arms, etc) that slip our minds when we need them most? Well this dictionary has got you covered. All the possible human gestures are explained and many shown, which makes it an excellent companion to the Emotion Thesaurus (in sidebar).

Synonyms for Commonly Used Words: Here's some alternatives for those bland or overused words we sometimes dump into our MSs like Bad, Get, Go, Have, Look, Move, Put, Take, Show, etc. Great for that final polish.

OneLook Reverse Dictionary: Okay, I'm breaking my rule on not posting anything I've linked to before, but ONLY because this resource is one I would crumple up and DIE without. I love how I can search for a word or idea that is kinda-sorta-ish what I need and then get a huge host of other words that are related to it. I use this often for my Thesaurus Posts, for example, because I can type in the subject I'm focusing on and often get a slew of content that is directly related to it.

Thanks so much to Angela Ackerman and The Bookshelf Muse for allowing us to repost these great tips!  Have you found a certain link on the web that is like Braincandy for your writing?  Please share with us here in the comment section and above all, keep on writing!