ISWG & A-Z Challenge: D is for Sea Dragons

Today I'm posting for IWSG & also the A-Z Challenge. Now that Spring Break and Easter are in the past, I'm back into work-mode which for me is fantastic.

Before I begin with my IWSG insecurity, I'd like to recognize it's founder, Alex J. Cavanaugh and this month's helpers or co-hosts Olga Godim,Chemist Ken, Renee Scattergood, and Tamara Narayan! Thanks, guys!

To learn more about the IWSG program and how it can help your insecurities, visit the website here.

IWSG April

April 4 question - When your writing life is a bit cloudy or filled with rain, what do you do to dig down and keep on writing?

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Guilt is an effective tool to push me. I talk to myself incessantly and give myself a guilt trip. I guess I should do something a bit more positive, but alas no. Whatever works, right? Another thing I do which may sound crazy, but I often have my characters talk to me. It's pretty annoying sometimes and usually stops when I'm done writing the story. Does anyone else have this problem?

A-Z Challenge: D is for Sea Dragons

The AtoZ Challenge continues with the letter D! My theme is Under the Sea Myths & Legends and I'm featuring another sea creature. These marvelous beasts are known to fly, breathe fire and massacre fictional worlds. This time, however, they hang out in the sea. My sea monster myth is....

Sea Dragon

Also known as the Sea Serpent or from Norse Mythology, Jörmungandr, this creature is in short...awesome.  Now many people may think about the Loch Ness Monster, but we're way past that. The legend of Jörmungandr is beyond cool. This sea dragon is said to be one of Loki's three children and is pure evil. He's massive with snake-like skin mixed with dragon scales, wings, fins and barbed tale. I didn't see anything that mentioned fire-breathing but with the submerged mostly in water bit, fire might not be feasible.

Are sea dragons a myth or real? Well, there have been centureis of stories about dragons in general, some of which mention sea dragons, like Norse Mythology. Probably the closest evidence in real life of a sea dragon is a Ichthyosaur  or Plesiosauria, which lived over 200 million years ago. Were they as exciting as the sea dragon depicted below? Definiely not as cool, but still monsterous.

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Do you think sea dragons are real? The bodies of water on earth are so enormous, it's like their a whole other planet. And frankly, quite possible.

Mina B.

IWSG: Sweet February

Hello IWSG Friends! How's everyone enjoying this year so far? The cold weather and flu season has made its way to South Florida which hasn't been fun. Most of my family's illnesses have started from being run down, exhausted. I'm sure most of you know the feeling. Seriously though, the flu this year is scary so I hope you all are taking care of yourself.

Anyway, lots of exciting things happened last month. I know #IWSG had fantastic success and ended up trending on Twitter--which is AWESOME!  Mark your calendars for the Next #IWSGPit is Thursday, July 19, 2018! More details here.

Today's IWSG topic is perfect for this month. But before I begin, I want to give a shout out to IWSG team. Like many of you, I have a soft spot in my heart for the #IWSG founder Alex J. Cavanaugh. Thank you,, Alex so much for creating this monthly hop and doing everything you do. You rock! The lovely co-hosts for the February - IWSG are Stephen Tremp, Pat Garcia, Angela Wooldridge, Victoria Marie Lees, and Madeline Mora-Summonte! Thanks, you guys!

To learn more about this program and how it can help your insecurities, visit the website here.

IWSG February 2018

Monthly question:  "What do you love about the genre you write in most often?"


I'm a sucker for an fantasy, supernatural etc.. and I like unlikely pairings in romance and friendship. For me, I find the daily grind gets monotonous and the writing takes me away from that. I think we're all suckers for "What if?" Am I right? That's what drives me. Think about how many advances there have been in the last 100 years. In the past, think about how many authors wrote about futuristic things, like space-travel, test-tube babies, etc.. and now we're living it and practically thriving in it. I'm not saying that one day we'll be able to grow body parts that can double as companions like Thing, but...what if? And that type of imagination drives my creativity. I gravitate towards that while writing because it inspires me.  It's not easy writing about what you love. I think you're can be more critical about it. At least that's what I find. Do you agree?

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Since it's February I'm wondering if any fellow authors have anything special planned? Are your writing a romance or do you plan to take you're sweetie out on the town? Just curious. I'm participating in a Romance is in the Air Book Blog Hop which starts Feb 13th. Signups are here if you're interested in participating.

That's it! Now I'm off to see other IWSGers. What are your insecurities this month? What do you love about your genre? 

Mina B.

IWSG: Artificial Intelligence & Writing

2017 is coming to an end. Yikes! How on earth did time move so quickly? Oh well.  Anyhoo...it's time for another monthly post for Insecure Writer's Support Group. Special thanks to Alex J. Cavanaugh for creating this monthly hop. This month's co-hosts are Julie Flanders, Shannon Lawrence, Fundy Blue, and Heather Gardner!

To learn more about this program and how it can help your insecurities, visit the website here.

ISWG December

Monthly question:  "As you look back on 2017, with all its successes/failures, if you could backtrack, what would you do differently?"

I don' have any success or failures to comment on... I would say I've gotten back on track over the last few months with certain projects and that in itself is a success for me, but that's pretty much it. NaNoMo wasn't as big as a success as I'd hoped for, but then again the holidays can do that to any writer. Am I right about that? Did anyone else have great success with NaNo?

Artificial Intelligence & Writing

By now most of us know how AI (Artificial Intelligence) has infiltrated nearly every aspect of our lives. If you're having doubts then take a look at your cars, your home entertainment systems, phones, computers etc.... The list goes on.  I hadn't thought about what that meant until I started reading how in the future, AI will replace coders and even the oldest profession is being programmed right now. Ugh. These recent news articles really freaked me out. Call me crazy, but I believe humans understand human behavior best and that's despite all the real, ugly stories and controversies including #MeToo, free speech, LGBT rights, and all the other hot topics right now. 

That said, it forces me to look at us as writers. Would you believe that AI could take over that aspect of humanity too? Haven't thought about it? Well, other people are. In fact, recently History.com published an article, "This Supercomputer Was Programmed to Think Like the Zodiac Killer. No Wonder Its Poetry is So Creepy." From the article, "After being fed all the known writings of the infamous Zodiac killer, a supercomputer named CARMEL has developed the ability to think like the elusive serial murderer. It often writes poetry like one, too." Listen to CARMEL's work below:

Can you say creepy? Skynet is upon us!

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Using AI for Writers

Artificial Intelligence is supposed to make things easier, although I cringe when I hear my ten-year-old ask Alexa the time, or how to spell a word.  I tell her to grab a dictionary and she looks at me like I'm crazy. God help me. *facepalm* Which this got me thinking about using Alexa for writing. Alexa has skills you can download for writing prompts which I thought was interesting.  And it also has other uses. Here's a brief list of skills in case anyone was interested in using it to help with writing:

* Organization Skills
* Time management Skills
* Researching skills such as History Channel
* Dictionary Skills

Since I'm sure Alexa will be adding more skills in the future, expect there to be more. Siri from iPhone is another AI that many of us use with talk-to-text, hands-free calling etc... Cortana, the AI inside Windows, offers decent dictation which some writers use. I'm not sure how much this would help in my writing process, but it's certainly interesting how quickly things are changing...even for writers.  There's an interesting article about how AI is already affecting the writing industry, "What a world of AI robot writers will look like." Read this if you want to learn more about AI & writing.

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That's it for this month.  What are your insecurities this month? What do you think about AI? Do you use it when you're writing?


Have a fantastic rest of the week!

Mina B.

ISWG: Keeping up with Life & Inspiration

Insecure Writers Support Group is here for February!  Last month's hiatus couldn't be helped so I apologize for not giving you all a proper New Year's welcoming.  That said, I'll move along to IWSG brought to you by founder and Ninja Captain, Alex J. Cavanaugh.  This month's co-hosts are Gwen Gardner, Dolorah, Sarah Foster, and M. Pax!

ISWG:  Keeping up with Life

The past two months (December and January) flew by, and I've marveled at how quickly the days come to pass.  I'm still processing the last few months even though they're gone, asking myself, "What just happened?"  Frankly, it's a little scary.  My insecurities this month centers mostly around time management.  I realized that I often take on too much and there in lies the rub.  My resolution for this year it to be more realistic of life dramas, workload and family/friend expectations and do a better job at managing them.  I need to say no more often so I have time to settle my mind and of course write.  This might sound simple, but it is something I struggle with.  Send me good vibes that I may conquer my inability to say "no" and be able to manage life better.

Anyway, there were two things that caught my eye this past month that I wanted to share with my writer friends.  One is this quote by one of my favorite writers, Joss Whedon. See below and see the rest of these quotes in this article, 25 Quotes That Will Inspire You To Be A Fearless Writer.

In addition, I'm posting this awesome video I saw on Facebook.  My apologies for not remembering the source.  I can't remember who shared it with me.  I know it was one of my author friends and since I can't remember, then I'll just thank you all and pass it along.  This is a timeless one.  In this video, Ira Glass of "This American Life" talks about the building blocks of a great story.   Enjoy this boost of inspiration for all those struggling with their writing or those who are new this maddening adventure.

Ira Glass on Storytelling from David Shiyang Liu on Vimeo.

That's it for IWSG.  What about you?  What are your insecurities this month?

Have a great rest of the week!

Mina Burrows

Critique Partners & Beta Readers Match Up

Critique partners & beta readers are what make a writer’s world go ’round.  Right?  Okay, maybe not all the time, but they’re still pretty important. Over the years I've had people beta read and critique my work. And to be honest, I was pleased with the process. I got what I needed and then some. Unfortunately, I never actually found an ongoing critique partner.

There’s no rhyme or reason, it’s just what happened. This year, I want to try to change that – not just for me, but for any other writer friends searching for help. 

And so I've decided to post this Critique Partners & Beta Readers Match Up. My goal is to inspire the readers and writers that follow my blog to collaborate on creating thrilling reads! 

The process is simple, if you’re looking for someone to critique or beta read leave a comment and well…let’s see what happens. I would love to have as many people as possible to comment – both readers and writers. 

In need of a critique partner/beta reader? Sign up for my Critique Partners & Beta Readers Match Up. 

If you are a writer and are need of a critique partner or a beta reader, please comment on this post. (See sample template below.)

Name: (Name or blog handle)
Email: (Your email address)
WIP: (Give a few details)
Genre: (Genre details)
Critique/Beta Reader Needs: (Provide info about the type of critique or a beta reader you need/want.)

Lastly, if you’re interested, I found two really good posts. YA author, Sara Hockler, recently wrote an excellent post about critique partners. I highly recommend reading this if you have any questions about the process. And another great post is by fellow friend and author Kate Evangelista. If you have any other posts you’d like to share, comment and post them below.

Mina B.

Likable Characters

So as I am working at a snail’s pace during this NaNo Writing Month, I had a question percolating in my mind. After finishing writing a novel, I typically feel a combination of exhaustion and exhilaration. Just the fact that you’ve completed it is an overwhelming sensation. And then of course, the dreaded next steps are the editing, critiquing and ultimately beta reading. For me, the editing part leaves me exasperated! That being said, I then wait on bated breath for an unknown amount of time for my beta reader to read and then give me their unbiased opinion about my story.  Upon receiving the feedback, I take my notes, ask minor questions, receive possible plot change/suggestions, etc... And then when it’s all said in done, I push my notes to the side and very pointedly ask my beta reader… “Did you like my main character(s)?”

Love to hate!

To be honest, for me, this one question is the single most important question to ask. Why? Because I want to make sure that whatever direction I take the story in, my reader has enough invested into the main character(s) to follow them.

I’m sure as writers and readers, we all can attest to times when we’re writing/reading, and we fall in love or get annoyed with a character. I think sometimes when writers are so close to their stories they forget or ignore the fundamental importance of connecting with a reader. I for one can admit, I’ve stopped reading a book because I realized I didn't really care what happened to the main character. Haven’t you? I think as a writer that’s the worst mistake one could make – other than possibly a horribly bad plot.   If you can’t convince the reader to continue reading your story, then what make you think they’ll possibly buy/read another one of your books? On a side note, Cynthia Leitich Smith wrote a blog post earlier this year on this topic. If you get a chance, take a peak.

So today my question to my readers and writers is...

* And as a reader, what are the qualities that spark interest in a character? What keeps you reading?

* As a writer, what do you do to make your characters more likable?

Mina B.

Best Job Ever...

As we are near the middle of NaNo writing month, I’m troubled right now.   I am riddled with so much work that I'm struggling on how to manage it all.   I can’t complain, though.  I'm lucky I get to do what I love.   So much of our lives are impacted by our jobs/careers.   Since we spend far too much time at work during the week, it got me thinking about the best job I ever had when I was younger.   I'm sure we all have what we deem as great jobs as well as nightmare ones too.
 
The best job I ever had was when I was a lifeguard at a major water park.   Aside from pulling kids out the water, what I remembered I loved the most about it was I was also responsible for testing the rides - making sure they ran smooth.  Sometimes water slides have rough patches, like life I suppose.   I would have to test each ride and report the issues - which there never were.   Rough task, huh?   Not on your life. Oh there were other employees that hated that, but not me.   That part of the job was awesome to no end.   And as a bonus, during the evening shifts, they used to have me dive in the pools at the bottom of the rides to pick up lost items in the water.   You wouldn't believe the crap people wore when riding those damn slides. Jewelry, sunglasses, wallets are obvious choices but the signs posted clearly stated, do not carry/wear valuables on said ride or else…  Needless to say, after the park closed, I’d spend a good amount of time, scouring the bottoms of the pools, towing stuff back up to the surface.  Still, I didn’t mind.  The best find usually was money.  Duh!  And anytime there was loose bills or change, my boss let me keep it.   It seems petty now, but back then, I thought it was the bomb.  Not only did I get to slide down every thrilling ride, I also got to walk away with some cash.   Best. Job. Ever.

Don’t get me wrong, I love my job now and especially love being I writer.  Frankly, I don’t consider it work. That's what they say, when you love what you do.   So what about you? 
What's the best job you've ever had?


Mina B.