Month: October 2011

Meet the Author: Nancy Lee Parish

Author Nancy Lee Parish

Meet Nancy Lee Parish, author of the soon-to-be-released fantasy adventure, “Amulet.”  She is an author who is both inspired and inspiring. When I do these interviews, I always ask each author to identify their biggest challenge. Most of the time, I get an answer that is at once familiar to all writers. Often, I will just glean a word or two from the answers so I am not writing the same article over and over. Nancy’s answer shows why I continue to ask this question, though:

“Running the 100 foot cord up to the public washroom so I could plug my laptop in to continue writing next to the campfire was challenging. That and mosquitoes. I won’t bore you with details, but Amulet began in a tent in the middle of a prairie, amidst thunderstorms, heavy winds and sudden downpours. That was a very difficult time in my life, but it was also a turning point. We were homeless for almost 9 months. Writing a novel was something I always wanted to do, but never did. At that very low point, I guess I finally figured I had nothing to lose by starting to write. Fortunately, it concludes from inside solid walls, though the campfires were rather nice.” Wow. I’m just in awe of that kind of commitment and passion. Continue reading “Meet the Author: Nancy Lee Parish”

Writing Exercise #1

As writers, we must constantly exercise our imaginations. Here is a fun workout: Write a one-paragraph story about the picture to the left. You can make it any kind of story you want, as long as it incorporates the elements in the picture. Try to make the story self-contained, and something more than just a clever caption.

So, go ahead and strut your stuff. Show us your chops and post your story in the comments. Most of all, have fun with it.

And Now—the Airing of Grievances

A while back, I was reading a novel written by a best-selling and highly acclaimed author. I had in my mind an image of the main character. Suddenly, the author decided to just tell me his main character looked like Denzel Washington.

As a reader, I felt insulted. Worse, I was robbed of part of the experience of reading because the author insisted I see this character exactly the way he did. He was evidently too lazy to describe Denzel Washington and let me come up with that image on my own. He wasn’t taking any chances that I might “cast the role” with someone else. Continue reading “And Now—the Airing of Grievances”