Winner of Oct. 3rd Contest

The winner of Diana Driver's October 3th contest, The Ways of Khrem and The Fundamentals of Worldbuilding, was Kristi! Kristi is currently working on a Fantasy story and we wish her the very best in her endeavors.

Meet The Contributor - Brad R. Cook

I am proud to introduce Brad R. Cook,Fantasy and Historical Fiction Writer and another contributing author at The Writer’s Lens. Brad wrote his first book in elementary school and credits those works with starting his love of writing. After serving since 2008 as Historian of the St. Louis Writers Guild, one of the oldest and largest literary organizations in the Midwest, he recently became their President. Studying the past has given him a deep love of history. He lives in St. Louis, Missouri with his wife, cat, and plants. He loves to read books that are over a hundred years old and writes during the witching hour when his muses are most active. He is the author of The Iron Horsemen, a young adult Steampunk adventure set in a world of airship pirates, secret societies, iron mechanics, and the exciting myths of history!

The Iron Horsemen Blurb:
The year is 1881 and Alexander reluctantly finds himself in Eton College, a place he doesn't fit in. Far from his friends and home in America, when his father is kidnapped by a mysterious man half-covered in bronze plates, Alexander teams with Genevieve, a baron's daughter who constantly defies Victorian convention. Along with her feisty little bronze dragon, and an eclectic crew of Sky Raiders, they run from the fog-cloaked cobblestones streets, to the skies above the Mediterranean, as they save London from the four Iron Horsemen.

Far from his father, his home, and everything he's ever known, will Alexander be able save his father, and discover the mysterious secrets of Genevieve's family as he struggles to deal with an offer he never expected - to become an Iron Horsemen!

I recently had the opportunity to visit with Brad and he answered a few questions about his writing.

What do you like about reading and writing Steampunk?

A passion for history helps, but really it’s about the possibility of what might have been. I love that Steampunk is a juxtaposition of opposites. In my case it’s about fantasy vs.technology. I am an avid researcher and all my work is historically accurate,but the fun part is extrapolating where technology could have ended up.

You’ve written a book for young adults and one for middle grade. What difference do you find in writing for the two different age groups?

It was greater than I first thought. When you are writing for kids one of the big things to remember is that there is a huge difference in age, even a single year can have many implications. Young Adult is about emotion, the internal struggle of finding out who the character is turning into and where they fit in their world. Middle Grade is about that first sense of self discovery. Middle Grade is also more heavily focused on dialogue which for a playwright has never been a problem. However, both will always be about telling an exciting story.

What challenges do you find in writing children’s literature, for young adults and middle grade?

The biggest challenges, but one I enjoyed solving, are the fight scenes. In Young Adult you aren’t really limited, but I like to keep the action high and the body count low. However,Middle Grade is tricky. Even though I was a Fencer at thirteen fighting men in their twenties, in a book it’s difficult to have two kids battling each other.Yet at the climax of my Middle Grade there had to be a final battle. That’s where being creative is a necessity, in my case I solved the problem using lacrosse.

As a writer what are the similarities and differences between Steampunk and Urban Fantasy?

They’re not that different from each other, unlike hi-fantasy (another genre I adore) which has completely different settings, plot choices, and characters, Steampunk and Urban Fantasy are both set in ‘modern’ cities. Sure there is a difference in the level of technology, but I truly believe that if it exists today, I can find a plausible way for it to exist in the Victorian Age. It surprises me how much of today’s hi-tech was envisioned over a century ago. The real difference – in the Victorian age everything was more elaborately decorated than today where we strip our architecture, technology, and clothing down to the barest essentials.

What is your upcoming release? Your WIP?

Right now, I am looking for an agent to represent my Y/A Steampunk and Middle Grade Arthurian Urban Fantasy novels. This month, one of my scripts will be performed at Voices of Valhalla and I have two pieces in the St. Louis Reflections anthology. Later this year, I'll have an e-book of short stories, it’s a WWII spy thriller with a Diesel punk influence.My current WIP is an adult Urban Fantasy. I write a lot.

For more on Brad R. Cook please visit his Website
Please post comments or questions and you will be entered in the weekly contest.

Twitter’s Magic Symbol, the Hashtag

Twitter’s magic symbol is the little tic tac toe pound sign known in Tweet-speak as a hashtag. Categorize messages by placing a hashtag in front of keywords. Click on a hashtag word to bring up the other tweets in that category or type it in the search field. When you sweeten your tweets with hashtags they are seen by more

tweeters. Be polite and follow good twitter etiquette. Don’t use more than three hashtags in a single tweet are you will look like a spammer or hashtag hogger or something equally boring. Here’s an example of hashtag use and please feel free to retweet it. #Writers Lens blogging #contest – win Zen In the Art of Wriitng & #Steampunk model Airship http://www.thewriterslens.com/.

As we all know writing is a lonely profession, but we can share our progress and offer help to other writers with the following popular hashtags: #wip, #author, #pubtip, #authors, #editgoal , #critique, #writing, #revisions, #writetips, #editing, #writenow, #writegoal, #wrotetoday, #writingtips, #amwriting, #amediting, #nanowrimo, #amrevising. So other people will know how wonderfully you’re progressing and how hard you’re working. It doesn’t matter that these people don’t know you, they are still proud of you and encouraged by your progress. I use #amwriting all the time and I’m not the only one. It seems like someone besides me should know I’m writing.

To fish for readers in your genre draw from these hash tag hooks: #YA, #yum, #vss (very short story), #ufo, #nerd, #blog, #wolf, #goth, #xoxo, #sexy, #teen, #poem, #poet, #poems, #teens, #smexy, #yalit, #scifi, #story #ghost, #genre ,#novel, #novels, #erotic, #kidlit, #series, #sequel, #indies, #webfic, #weblit, #creepy, #horror, #yasaves, #review, #fantasy, #mystery #undead, #turnon, #zombie, #poetry, #hotguys, #fiction, #erotica, #chivalry, #twilight, #thriller, #chilling, #romance, #vampire, #zombies, #suspense, #novelists, #kissable, #kidstoday, #haunting, #vampires, #werewolf, #romantic, #dystopian, #steampunk, #werewolves, #longreads, #anthology, #livingdead, #paranormal , #bookreview, #truestories, #historical, #apocalyptic, #shortstories, #youngadult, #shortthriller, #releasedate #indieauthors, #ghoststories, #romancenovel, #contemporary, #romanceauthor, #vampirebooks, and #paranormalromance. There are plenty of hashtags swimming in the twitter sea to help you net and network with readers.
Some of the best hashtags for authors are ebook and epub tags: #wifi, #nook, #ipad, #sony, #apps, #kindle, #tablet, #scribd, #mobile, #ereader, #99cents, #amazon, #publishing, #blackberry, #goodreads, #smashwords, #librarything, #selfpublishing, #kindlebooks, and #kindlebargain,

Hashtags are for readers too. Booklovers, share what you are reading every Friday with #fridayreads. Other fabulous hashtags bookworms will love are #read, #review, #reading, #readthis, #booklook, #mustread, #bestseller, #literacy, #paperback, #amreading, #nowreading, and #summerreading.

Next time you chat about reading or writing let your fingers do the talking on Twitter with handy hashtags. This is not a full list so keep your eyes open on twitter for other hashtags to help you target fellow tweeters who share your interest.

Please comment or post questions below for a chance to win this week’s prizes. Include your email so we can contact you if you win. The prizes for this week are listed in the post directly below this one.

Contest: An Airship and Zen in the Art of Writing

It’s Monday, you know what that means. Time for the Writer’s Lens weekly contest. Yay!

You can win a prize any writer or reader would love, The Golden Compass Lee Scoresby’s Airship collector’s toy model in die cast metal. Yes, your very own airship. A very small one. And a paperback edition of Ray Bradbury’s Zen In The Art of Writing. Two prizes, both go to one lucky winner.

The 2007 film The Golden Compass is an adaptation of the children's book of the same name by Phillip Pullman, the first book in His Dark Materials trilogy, which also includes The Subtle Knife and The Amber Spyglass. Actually, in the UK the book is called Northern Lights rather than The Golden Compass. This model airship makes a great Steampunk collectable to display on your bookshelf or your desk.

I have loved Ray Bradbury's books and short stories since I was thirteen and he his has been a great inspiration to my writing. Zen in the Art of Writing is a collection of essays by Ray Bradbury of how he developed his unique writing voice and style. It describes the development of an author's voice in a way that I've never seen a book do before. I believe in authors writing from the heart and developing their voices and own styles regardless of what's hot on the market at the time. Writers, aspiring writers, and also any readers who would like to understand a bit more of where Ray Bradbury's wonderful stories come from will love this book.

To enter the contest simply leave a comment or question on The Writers Lens Blog between October 10th, and midnight October 15th, 2011. Please include your email so we can reach you if you win. The more comments you leave, the greater YOUR chance of winning the contest. The winner will be chosen after midnight on Saturday and the announcement made on Sunday, October 17th. If Blogger isn’t working, you can email me personally with your comment and I’ll add it to the Blog.
Email: CelticRomanceQueen@gmail.com

Meet The Contributor - Cornelia Amiri

Cornelia Amiri
The Celtic Queen

"Sharpen your Swords.

Find your Courage.

Prepare to lose yourself in Passion and Myth."

I am proud to introduce Cornelia Amiri, The Celtic Queen, and another contributing author at The Writer’s Lens.

The first novel I read by Cornelia Amiri was The Fox Prince, now rereleased as The Celtic Fox. Very few historical authors draw me into the stories and the culture the way Cornelia Amiri did. It was like I was actually living in this time period – her knowledge of the time period and her skillful writing puts her at the top of the list of My Favorite Authors.

Question: You've written about more than one historical time period; including Celtic Historicals, Ancient Egypt, Steampunk, and even about Woodstock in the 1960s. What is it about these time periods that you found fascinating?

Cornelia Amiri: "As far as what I like that connects all three is the art. Of course Woodstock was all about music told stories and conveyed hopes and dreams. Music was key to the Celtic Culture also. Bards were part of the religion, included in the Druidic order. They didn’t have a written language so their history and beliefs survived through the oral tradition of songs and stories. Visual art was of utmost importance to the ancient Egyptians, there writing was based on it. They told stories and conveyed hopes and dreams with their art. The decorations on the tombs and the artistic amulets included in the mummy wrappings helped guide the dead to the afterlife. All three cultures, the Celts, the Egyptians, and the hippie culture had an emphasis on art that told stories, and shared hopes, and dreams. They embraced art with their minds, hearts, and souls. As someone at Woodstock would say, that turns me on, I dig it."

Question: Historical fiction takes a lot of research, do you have any favorite online resources?

Cornelia Amiri: "Here are some:

Pictish Nation http://halfmoon.tripod.com/

Tam Bo Cualgne http://adminstaff.vassar.edu/sttaylor/Cooley/

The Mabinogion http://www.mabinogion.info/

Ancient Egypt for Kids (it’s for kids but adults like it and use it too) http://egypt.mrdonn.org/

The Megalithic Portal http://www.megalithic.co.uk/

Question:  What are your favorite writer's manuals?

Cornelia Amiri: "I love Ray Bradbury’s Zen in the Art of Writing and I also like Creating Character Emotions by Ann Hood."

Question: You've written quite a few books, which one is your favorite - and why?

Cornelia Amiri: "I love Druid Quest because it’s about Boudica, who is my favorite all time historical character. The Celtic Warrior Queen, Boudica, is the reason I began writing seriously. I love history, and in reading a book about the dark ages, I came across Boudica. I was so inspired, I started jotting down notes, but they were fiction (it-must-have-happened-like-this type). Before I knew it, I had written a novel. I thought, gosh I can really do this. So after accidentally writing that novel, I wrote one on purpose which was my first published book, The Fox Prince, which has been revised to The Celtic Fox, now available on Amazon.com's Kindle for only 99 cents."

For more information about Cornelia Amiri visit her website: http://celticromancequeen.com/

For more information about Cornelia Amiri's books go to Amazon 

The Seven Stages of Creative Writing

The Seven Stages of Creative Writing
by
Diana L. Driver

A couple of weeks ago I had an epiphany as I read an English translation of an old 14^th century manuscript.  The name of the manuscript shall remain nameless. It’s not important and I don’t want readers to think I encourage one type of philosophy or religion over another. But, the message I received from this manuscript was clear. Every undertaking consists of stages and if you can recognize these stages when they happen, then you can complete what you've started.

Stage One – The Invitation to Write

The Invitation to Write doesn’t come as a surprise. Most writers have contemplated writing a book for years before they get The Invitation. But, when this Invitation arrives it brings a new sense of excitement. The ‘idea’ of “I want to write this story!” Becomes “I should write this story!” and is almost overpowering.  The writer happily visualizes characters, scenes, backgrounds and the beginning of a plot.

Stage Two – Sense of Dread and the Realism about the undertaking – The First Crises

Following upon the joy of ‘receiving the invitation’ comes the First Crises where the author doubts both his own capabilities as well as his ideas. This could immediately be the death of the idea if the author either doesn’t believe in himself or can’t muster the courage to continue.

Stage Three – Determination to accept The Invitation – energizing the impulse

If the author garners the courage to get beyond the First Crises, then the author’s self-determination kicks in. The Author begins compiling information such as character names, description, plot points and where to start the storyline. The author knows now that he will indeed attempt the work as he organizes and plans the logistics.

Stage Four – The Recognition of Self-Discipline and Delayed Gratification

This is the beginning of realistic expectations. The author knows that the only way to complete the story is to be disciplined. Writing Time must be given a priority and a writing schedule must be maintained. Not just for a couple of days, but for as long as the work takes to be finished. This is when the writer actually commits to the project.

Stage Five – The Beginning of the Work

Now the story has begun. The first sentence of the first paragraph of the first page is written. The author sees the story unfold before his eyes. Once again, his excitement is overwhelming.

Stage Six – Problems Encountered in Expression – Second Major Crises

This is where the writer, having written, once again begins to doubt his abilities and the quality of the original idea. This is the stage where most writers fail. Their initial excitement is gone and the work seems endless. The idea now seems mundane and uninteresting and the actual writing seems tedious. With each additional mistake the author’s internal editor gets louder. This is the stage of Writer’s Block. This is the Stage also where the writer has to trust himself, knowing that perseverance is key.  

Stage Seven – Final Expression

Having passed through the Sixth Stage, the writer has matured and can realistically continue. He knows intuitively that this cycle will be experienced over and over again as he writes and rewrites each chapter  and each new edit until the work is complete and ready to be released to the world.



Diana L. Driver is an author of short stories as well as fiction and nonfiction including the novel Ninth Lord of the Night and its nonfiction companion book, The Maya, People of the Maize
visit her on the web at http://www.dianadriver.com/

Win a Copy of 'The Ways of Khrem' and 'The Fundamentals of Worldbuilding' ebooks!

It’s always wonderful to share treasures with others and today I have two e-books from Amazon that I’m offering to one lucky winner; The Ways of Khrem by D. Nathan Hilliard and The Fundamentals of World Building by Jesse Verinno. To be eligible for the contest simply leave a comment or comments on The Writers Lens Blog between October 3rd, and midnight October 8, 2011. The more comments that you leave, the greater YOUR chance will be of winning the contest. The winner will be chosen after midnight on Saturday and the announcement made on Sunday, October 9th. If Blogger isn’t working, then you can email me personally with your comment and I’ll add it to the Blog. Email to: Diana@dianadriver.com

The author who writes Science Fiction or Fantasy does more than just create compelling characters and a page turning plot – they create a whole society. In my opinion, these two genres are the most difficult to write because of the thought and planning required.

Which is why for my first contest, I’m giving away two Amazon ebooks; The Ways of Khrem by D. Nathan Hilliard published by Pill Hill Press and The Fundamentals of World Building by Jessie Verino, published by L&L Dreamspell. Both of these books are listed on my “Books I Love” website page at http://www.dianadriver.com/ and both books can be appreciated and enjoyed by both experienced writers as well as new writers.

Product Description for The Ways of Khrem by D. Nathan Hilliard

“The Ways of Khrem, D. Nathan Hilliard's three part novel features: The Reach of Talanturos, The Cistern, & The Ghost of Candlewalk Lane. Cargill the Bookseller lives a quiet life, in a modest house, overlooking the vast city of Khrem...a magical metropolis of cavernous streets, lofty spires, and dark secrets. His life is turned upside down when Captain Wilhelm Drayton of the City Watch arrives at Cargill's doorstep and confronts him with his criminal past. Cargill is required to assist the Captain in solving mysteries and the action soon explodes when he unmasks a horrific killer stalking the rooftops. Soon he finds himself forced to throw the rules out the window and bring all of his old skills to bear as he finds himself at odds with gods, monsters, and psychopaths alike.”

Click for additional information on  The Ways of Khrem

Product Description for The Fundamentals of World Building by Jesse Verino

“World building involves more than elaborate settings, more than magic and magical beings, and more than paranormal happenings. Speculative fiction is a fast growing market, and world building is an essential tool for creating successful stories where the reader can suspend disbelief. Fundamentals of World Building gives writers the proper tools to craft a well written manuscript, rich with details, by guiding them through steps for choosing the right world elements to include in their story. Use a simple blueprint method to lay the foundation, then complete the story. Beginning writers in the genre can learn to identify potential pitfalls. More complex concepts are included for intermediate to advance level authors. Use the extensive worksheet and get started world building today!”

Click here for additional information on The Fundamentals of World Building

Remember to leave a comment for a chance to win both Amazon ebooks!