Heart Pounding Romance

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Creative Writing for Kids

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I’ve recently started teaching a creative writing class to a group of homeschooled children ages 10-12. Akin to a “writer’s room” in the television industry, we sit around a long table and brainstorm ideas for a group story. Initially, I wondered if this idea would take flight.

Sure, in the beginning, many of the children were shy to share their ideas, but soon the ideas were flying out of them. Some went off on tangents, but that was interesting in itself. They naturally had a sense of what worked and what didn’t. Commonly, I heard, “What if we did this…” or “How about if…”

The best part of group writing is that it also inspires reading as a group. One time, one of the children suggested an idea similar to a book she was reading. The others weren’t familiar with the book, so we decided to make that our reading club book for the month.

Want to get your kids reading and writing? Try one of these writing prompts for children to get them started:

  1. Ask them to imagine a new super hero power and how they would use it.
  2. Encourage them to “discover” a new species of animal combining two of their favorite animals. (Check out the “butterphant” on this post!) What does it do?
  3. Let them pretend that they’re taking a trip. Ask them by what means they plan to travel, where they’re going, and what they will do when they arrive.

Being creative with children helps spark my own creativity. You might want to check out the #FREE deals on my books this month.

Sleeping with the Sandman – Free til April 18

Keeping Up – Free from April 19-23

Released – Free on April 25 and 26

Happy reading…and writing!

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Celebrate the Success-o-Meter

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Screen shot 2014-11-23 at 7.42.15 PM
I recently listened to another writer lament about what she felt was a sparse number of books she sold in a month’s time. It was interesting because to me, her sales seemed quite good. It made me realize that everyone has a different “success-o-meter.”

The first month that I released a book, I did just that…I released my book. No lead up to it with blog tours, no posting of quotes, no giveaways…just me hitting that “publish” button. Was it any wonder that a day and then a week, and then a month went by and only a handful of close friends knew that I had even written a book. That’s right, a year of hard work and nobody knew about it. Call me naive, but I didn’t know how much pre-marketing was needed.

So let’s fast-forward a year-and-a-half and now analyze my sales after applying knowledge I’ve gained about pre-release marketing. It’s a definite improvement and I feel a measure of success. I get a little thrill every time someone downloads my book or requests it from a contest. Still, when I think back to my colleague, whose sales triple my own, I realize that success is all about perspective.

For me having gone through months with no sales whatsoever, now when I have regular sales I feel a great sense of accomplishment and knowledge gained. I’m satisfied. This doesn’t mean that I don’t strive for more. It doesn’t mean that I don’t dream of “best seller” status as much as the next author, but I do feel that I have achieved a sense of peace and well-being that my colleague can learn from.

To me, if you are a writer and seeing an upward climb in sales, regardless of how small, that is the definition of improvement. Let’s put this into perspective. If you are teaching your child to read, do you celebrate the small victories? Every letter they remember, every time they are able to put three or even four letters together to form a word is success. You don’t expect them to read Proust in second grade and nor should you be upset if your sales aren’t best-seller status.

Remember the reason you became a writer in the first place. Take pleasure in your victories no matter how small. I’ll bet they continue to grow.

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    Chocolate Love

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    Special Dark Chocolate
    As a romance writer, I can imagine a scene in which the dashingly handsome man hand feeds his lady a bite of chocolate and then proceeds to kiss away any traces that may have marred her lower lip. Now, I’ve got even more reasons for my chocolate love.

    Usually around 3 p.m. I find myself in need of a small pick-me-up. You know, that little bit of luxury that gives me the boost of energy I need so that I can go into mom-mode and become a snack making, homework helping, activity driving pixie extraordinaire. A bite of chocolate is the ticket.

    It’s packed with healthy chemicals like flavonoids and theobromine, but remember to nibble on dark chocolate, which has more trans fats and less of the undesirable saturated fats.

    Here’s what the doctors are saying chocolate can do for us:

    Reduce the risk of heart attack
    Decrease blood pressure and increase insulin sensitivity
    May improve arterial blood flow
    May help people suffering from chronic fatigue syndrome

    However, the health benefits of chocolate may disappear if you overindulge. It might mean that you are adding pounds along with flavonoids. Think of chocolate as your afternoon indulgence. A little break and a little bite go a long way. Try a two-ounce square of chocolate or about six chocolate kisses (Special Dark variety)…and don’t forget to reach for your favorite romance novel while having your bit of indulgence.

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      Ten Thousand Sack Lunches

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      Ten Thousand Sack Lunches

      What does Monday mean to you? If you’re like me, there are aspects of Monday that you just don’t like. Back to work…kids are back to school…no sleeping in. These are the normal complaints. What tops my Monday to-do list is having to make the sack lunches. Over the course of my children’s lives (now ages 10, 13, and 15), I think I must have made hundreds, perhaps ten thousand sack lunches, maybe more.

      I wake up every Monday and make a sack lunch, continuing that habit every day until Friday. Now here’s what I hate about that activity…It’s not resentment toward my children. I love them dearly and readily make their lunch because the school based ones are not only pretty disgusting, but also not particularly healthy and healthy eating is my schtick. What I resent about the ten thousand sack lunches that I’ve prepared over my days is that I do it without any hesitation. I realize that I need to approach my writing in the same way as making the sack lunches.

      I ease into my writing. I take notes. I research. I procrastinate with a little social media. I don’t follow the Nike slogan — just do it. It’s not the first thing I do in the morning…every morning without fail. So, why is it harder for authors to sit in front of the computer and write every day of the week?

      I think we often wait for inspiration to strike, but I believe that if you just dive in, you can stir up that inspiration just like stirring the peanut butter jar for that sack lunch sandwich. I believe authors need to reach for the keyboard as readily as we put on our pants, get in the car, or for me, make those sack lunches. We just do it and we do those things every day as if they are the most normal things in the world.

      So, I know what my New Year’s resolution is going to be…have a word with the cafeteria lady about the mystery stew! Nah, just kidding. I’m going to write…every day. Or at least, every sack lunch day.

       

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      The Chicken or the Egg of Story Telling

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      When it comes to launching a new story, what comes first for you? Is it the setting, the plot, or a character quirk? In other words, what’s your own personal chicken or the egg of story telling?

      What I love most about being a writer, or perhaps it’s the reason I am a writer, is that inspiration and ideas can strike at any moment. I was reading an article in Travel & Leisure magazine about the best adventure destinations and I was immediately struck that any one of these would make a great setting for a book.

      For this reason, I believe with all of my heart and soul that a writer must also be a voracious reader. Sure, we don’t always have time to launch into a full book, so when life gets busy at least read a magazine. The point is to read anything you can get your hands on.

      I’m sure if you’re a writer you have a vivid imagination, but that doesn’t mean your ideas don’t get stale every once in awhile. It’s good to stir things up and turn to new sources for inspiration.

      Besides, it’s fun to get lost in ideas. With regards to the article and photos that recently inspired me, they were also a welcome reprieve considering that I didn’t get away this past summer on a vacation. Here they are for you to enjoy…and perhaps gain inspiration from as well.

      Travel and Leisure Best Vacation Destinations

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      Magical Morphing Words

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      What I love most about being a writer is that ideas can come from anywhere. Innocent phrases or even titles of magazine articles can bloom into story ideas and what was once one idea suddenly is another — magical morphing words are discovered.

      Recently, I caught a magazine title, “Chasing Sleep,” and it was like being a racehorse and hearing that bell…I was off! The title created such a visual impression that I imagined a story far from what the article intended.

      Because I love young adult and paranormal romance I thought of scenarios in which a damsel in distress is locked away in her dreams, running either to or from some unseen hero…chasing sleep and the beauty of the dream that she sought. In reality, the article was about a wellness retreat called Kamalaya on the Thai island of Koh Samui.

      Of course, the knowledge of what the article was really about only sparked more ideas. It was written by an insomniac who traveled to this wellness facility to seek the advice of a naturopath. This article in the hands of a writer, sparked my imagination and now the insomniac was a heroine taking an exhaustive trek through wilderness and perils. She wasn’t trying to find answers for sleepless nights, she was there to seek out a prophet who would tell her that she is destined for greatness and along the way will be tempted by a sexy, but potentially dangerous man.

      In reality, the article’s author was told his sleepless nights would be solved if he stopped eating and drinking late at night. Not nearly as intriguing as the scenario painted by my imagination, but then again, I would never have come up with the idea if it wasn’t for the original article.

      Imagination is like the air we breathe. It’s always there, but we take it for granted. Inhale it regularly and fill yourself with it.

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