Get on Track! Writing Books and Links to Guide, Inspire and Motivate

This past summer, I came across some wonderful posts (and books!) about writing that really hit home for me. I'm sharing them here in the hopes we can all stay on a good track - or get on one! - for the rest of the year and into the next. May you come away from reading them with the same inspiration, motivation and guidance that I did! 

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If you've lost your writing mojo, check out Anna Elliot's post over at Writer Unboxed - When the Spark is Gone: 4 Ways to Bring Back the Joy of Writing: 

"But we all have experienced those hard days: times when we feel like we’ve lost the spark of delight in what we’re working on. It might be a scene, a chapter, or an entire book that suddenly feels flat or empty or just lifeless on the page."

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If you're trying to figure out where you'd like your writing career to go, these two posts from Pretentious Title can help:

Author Career Planning: "I'd like to talk about career planning. In my opinion, the trad vs self publishing choice is just a microcosm of figuring out a real career path for yourself."

Know Thy (Publishing) Self: "Because the truth is that both trad and self publishing have horrible pitfalls and incredible heights. Neither of them is easy and nothing is guaranteed. So how do you know which is right for you?" 

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I can't say enough good things about Lisa Cron's book Wired for Story: The Writer's Guide to Using Brain Science to Hook Readers from the Very First Sentence. I'm now reading her new one, Story Genius: How to Use Brain Science to Go Beyond Outlining and Write a Riveting Novel (Before You Waste Three Years Writing 327 Pages that Go Nowhere.) Oh. Yes. Please.  

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And now . . . some inspiration! Bear with me, I'm going all Fan Girl (wait, am I too old for that? Or should it be Fan Woman?) I am a huge fan of Mindy McGinnis - the 2016 Young Adult Edgar Award Winner! - whose new book, The Female of the Species, is out September 20th.

Guess how long it took this book's journey form beginning to bookstore? 15 years! In A Picture of a Thousand Torments, Or: A Literal Pile of Rejection Letters, Mindy says, "I'm sharing all of this with you not as yet another example of "never give up," but rather, "never stop improving." If I had continued to query for fifteen years but never bothered to improve my craft, I guarantee I would still be receiving rejections." Read her post. Please.

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(I didn't receive any compensation for mentioning these links or books. I just liked them and wanted to share.)

Lost Soles - Horrors: Real, Imagined, and Deadly

Just in time for the haunting season of Halloween and those dark, bone-chilling months of winter, Elephant's Bookshelf Press releases its latest anthology - Horrors: Real, Imagined, and Deadly. 

Exploring the realms of fear and sorrow, of dark thoughts and haunted locales, the anthology includes a dozen tales by as many authors, including me (yes, you read that right!) AND one of my favorite authors, Mindy McGinnis (excuse me, while I geek out all fangirl-like....) 

Here's the beginning of my story, Lost Soles - 

The Lowry sisters weren't supposed to be at the beach that night.

The family was due to leave for home the next morning, another vacation over and done. The girls begged to check on the sea turtle nest one more time. The eggs were supposed to hatch soon . . . 

The girls crept out - Sammi in pink slippers, Audrey in yellow sneakers, both wearing pajamas. They left behind rumpled covers and treasured teddy bears. They'd be back soon . . . 

That night, the hatchlings made their way to the sea, made their way home.

They were the only children who did.

Add on Goodreads

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Amazon - Kindle Edition

Amazon - Paperback

Midweek Miscellanea - Madness, Breakthrough Books, and Snacks

I'm a huge fan of YA author Mindy McGinnis. I absolutely loved Not a Drop to Drink, and I enjoyed its companion novel, In a Handful of Dust, so I was thrilled to see she has a new stand alone novel - A Madness so Discreet - coming out in October 2015. Can't. Wait.

Also, check out this post - Blogging for Writers - where she talks about why she blogs and how she uses social media.  

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This post - What Age Did the Greatest Authors Publish Their Most Famous Works - will probably make you either laugh or cry, depending on how old you are when you read it. I focused on all the authors who were in the 40s or older when their "breakthrough book" hit the stands. Made me feel better. A little.  

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Do you snack while you write? I'll occasionally munch on dark chocolate covered powerberries or espresso beans (both from Trader Joe's.) Check out what some famous authors enjoy eating while working - 9 Famous Authors' Favorite Workday Snacks. I'm all for cheesecake but raw eggs in coffee? Not so much.