Author Inspiration and This Week’s Writing Links

Ciao, amici! I hope you had a wonderful week. Mine was a bit of a chore—more editing than writing, and the documents needed a lot of attention. I usually like to split my time between creative work and analytical work, but it was pretty much all analysis this week.

But that’s okay. I have more creative work on the horizon. Some in my rearview mirror, too. I recently completed another novel. Most of my work references music in some fashion, but this story was all about the music. That’s why I found Faulkner’s words so appropriate this week:

I would say that music is the easiest means in which to express,
but since words are my talent, I must try to express clumsily
in words what the pure music would have done better.

I would love to be able to sing. Well, I can sing. Anyone who has a voice can. My problem is I can’t sing well. There are so many times I’m trying my best—hymns at church, classic rock in the car, you get the idea—and I fall short. WAY short. I believe the term “cringeworthy” is apt. And while I’ve played my fair share of instruments in my day, I’ve never played professionally, and certainly never freestyle. I can play notes written on the page, but I can’t compose my own melody. Wouldn’t even know where to start.

And that’s a shame because music is the great equalizer, isn’t it? A perfect way to bridge any language barrier. A simple yet powerful way to express emotion. I’d love to master that art.

Music is the easiest way to express, but it’s not my tool (unfortunately). Like Faulker, words are mine. And while I doubt I’ll ever be in his league, I can certainly relate to his sentiment.

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And now, this week’s writing links:

Posts by me, about my work, or at sites I contribute to:

Me

• Bad Moon Rising: Love Set in Stone | Teri Polen

Story Empire

• New Kind of Tension | C. S. Boyack
• 8 Ways Scrivener Helps Writers | P. H. Solomon
• 5 Things Every Writer Should Have | Mae Clair

Romance University

• Pre-Plotting a Novel | Janice Hardy
• Dialogue | LynDee Walker
• First Chapter Promises | Chris Eboch

Posts by others in the industry:

• Five Tips to Improve Your Writing | Nicholas C. Rossis’s Site, by Gary D. Holdaway
• Ideology and Children’s Literature | Nicholas C. Rossis
• Earnings and Indie Publishing | The Kill Zone
• Leverage POV | The Write Practice
• Capturing Complex Emotions | Writers Helping Writers’ site, by Tamar Sloan
• Advertising to Sell Books | David Gaughran
• Promo Sites (constantly updated) | Nicholas Erik
• Scene Transitions | Fiction University
• Author Brand | BookBaby
• Get Paid to Write | Nicholas C. Rossis
• The Five Senses | K. M. Allan
• 12 Common Writing Mistakes | BookBub

And when you’re done with these links, don’t forget to check out the sidebar, where you’ll find more links to some of my favorite sites.

One last thing… I want to give a shout-out to my niece, who’s getting married today. Wishing her and her soon-to-be husband a lifetime of love and blessings.

Have a great weekend, everyone! Arrivederci!