Guest Post - Overcoming Inertia: For the Underutilized Creative Mind

Overcoming Inertia: For the Underutilized Creative Mind - Guest Post by Remi Roy

 I started writing my book in 2011. I was working at a creative job and had just read a book that beyond inspired me and I thought, “I can do this.”

 Before then I had written many short stories but just couldn’t bring myself to write anything longer. It was like my brain was in permanent short story and sometimes even, flash fiction, mode. So I accepted the self-imposed challenge. Write a novel! Huh… okay a novella. Great! Leggo!

 And I wrote. And I wrote. And frankly, time flew by and I was done (technically) before I knew it.

 So that wasn’t hard. I guess because I already had the story in me. It’s a theme that is close to my heart and it was just a no-brainer that I would explore it as my first book. So at the end of 2011, the book was technically written.

Now if I were a serious writer I would look for an editor to work with me on the plot and ask the hard questions. Does it work? Are the characters relatable? Does the story even make sense? But, huh…

No. I didn’t do any of that.

Why? I don’t know. Maybe life happened and I just got busy with other things. Maybe I was afraid. In any case the book lay buried in my hard drive for three more years. And for those three years I fought the battle of the mind, trying to answer the question; Am I a writer?

 Imagine!

 I had written a book. Imperfect or not, it had a beginning, a middle and an end! But I still couldn't move forward. Years later I had to accept what my problem was.

 I. Was. Afraid. Of. Mediocrity.

 I don’t know about you but I would rather do nothing than do something… bleh. And that was my problem. I was afraid to miss the mark because I thought if I did I’d never work up the courage to try again.

 Oh, creative person. Are you like me?

 That may explain your unfinished painting, or the half written book, or the self-published novel on amazon you have refused to actively promote, or the song demo no one has heard, or the floor design you have kept away from human eyes for as long as you can remember.

 You’re in inertia. Wake up!

 It doesn’t matter if it’s so good or needs more work. What matters is that you did it. You! Yes, you. You published the book. You released the song. You promoted your work. You submitted your design. You stood behind your own work. Then you get to do the next. And then the next. And if you don’t give up, that little girl will read your book, and sigh, and pick up her own pen.

 That’s the way of the world.

Author Bio: Remi Roy is a writer and author. She is currently finishing up her Master’s Degree in Emerging Media and Communication from the University of Texas at Dallas. In the past she has worked as a Magazine Editor and written for several magazines and online platforms. Her first book, Ms. Unlikely, is the story of a young woman’s search for meaning, fulfillment and love. Visit http://msunlikely.weebly.com for more information.

Book Excerpt: When You Let Go by Unoma Nwankwor

Hello folks! Hope you've had a good week and you're looking forward to a relaxing weekend. Today I'm sharing an excerpt from "When You Let Go", a new book by Unoma Nwankwor. Enjoy!

About The Book 

An answered prayer. An unforeseen betrayal. A family healed by grace. 

Amara and Ejike Dike had been married for six glorious years. Amara was convinced Ejike, was the perfect gift from God. Loving, charming and very easy on the eyes. They had a beautiful life. Well, not so beautiful. Amara’s inability to bear children made her feel like a less than the perfect mate for her husband. Then after many years, God lifted her faith and had finally heard her cry. The Dikes couldn’t be happier. A surprise visit from Chinelo, Amara’s long lost cousin, turns Amara’s world upside down and threatens to turn her once-perfect existence into ashes. 

Ejike loved his wife with a passion. They shared a burning desire and faith in God that burned deep. However Chinelo’s appearance would open a Pandora’s Box that had purposely been kept shut. Faced with the loss of all she holds dear, Amara finds herself at crossroads. Would she lean on God’s sustaining grace to let go and travel the rocky path to forgiveness? Or would she throw everything to the wind and walk away? When You Let Go is a novel about people who know what the Word of God instructs but struggle with actually doing it when the chips are down.

Excerpt

This was working out better than I thought. Amara had been gone for a little over half an hour. She had tried calling Ejike before she left but couldn’t get to him. Chinelo smiled because that meant Ejike had no idea that he’d be coming home to her.

As soon as Amara left the house, Chinelo took a quick shower and put on her blue jean mini skirt and a sheer white blouse. Despite the black tank top underneath, it still had the effect she was going for.

Moments later, she could hear the garage door opening. That must be Ejike. Amara couldn’t have made it back so soon.

Chinelo put her hand on her blouse and adjusted the twins on her chest. Even if God hadn’t done anything else, He had endowed her with a good cup size and a figure she could always count on. She hiked up her skirt a little and sat on the sofa.

“Showtime, phase one,” Chinelo whispered under her breath.

The adjoining door to the garage opened.

Chinelo snickered when Ejike stopped dead in his tracks. He blinked a few times, then regained his composure. She felt the emotion in his eyes as he made a quick sweep of her body. Scorn. Discomfort. But she noticed that didn’t stop him from staring at her legs a second longer. That was what Chinelo had counted on—she knew he was a leg man. She remembered it was Amara’s legs he salivated over first. It was nice to know that being a church man hadn’t affected his sight.

Chinelo did a sweep of her own. Now that Amara wasn’t home, there was no need to steal glances like she had done at lunch the other day. Ejike Dike was still the most beautiful man she had ever seen. His neatly cut hair and lean but toned frame could be lethal on any sane woman’s hormones. His dark eyes always seemed to have the ability to see right through someone. Chinelo also noticed his style hadn’t been affected by the years either. He had on dark blue khakis and a Tommy Hilfiger, multi-colored T-shirt that hugged his muscles like it was made especially for him.

Chinelo stood up and reached out to grab his portfolio and the bottle of wine he brought home. “Where is Amara?”
Ejike walked past her and scanned the room with his eyes. Chinelo felt her blood rise. He just walked by her as though she didn’t exist. She couldn’t lose her head though. She was on a mission. This man hasn’t seen anything yet.
“Well, hello to you, too,” Chinelo said.
“Hi, where is Amara?”
“You trust your wife now. She’s always trying to rescue people. She had to run out for a bit to meet with a client.”
Chinelo made an attempt to reach for his portfolio again. This time he let her have it. She walked to the staircase and set it down at the foot of the stairs. She would have taken it into the study, but this time they had was valuable before his goody two shoes wife returned. She was not about to leave him alone. Every moment was precious.

About The Author 

Born in Akron, Ohio to Nigerian parents.UnomaNwankwor spent her childhood and early adulthood years in Port-Harcourt, Nigeria. She is a romantic at heart and is passionate about telling stories of faith and hope about love. She hope to capture her readers through stories that are faith based with an element of love. After all, “and now abide faith, hope, love, these three; but the greatest of these is love.” ~1 Corinthians 13:13 She is the published author of An Unexpected Blessing (2013) and The Christmas Ultimatum (2013) and many published flash fiction and short stories. Her work has appeared in Africa Book Club and the Kenyan Ezine ;Wamathai and well as numerous radio shows and blogs. She is currently working on her next novel A Scoop of Love (October, 2014). Her readers are in love with her unique way of telling stories that capture the essence of her present home base; Atlanta Georgia and her Nigerian culture. She calls them her God-given stories and strives every day to be a use her gift to His glory. 

To find out more about Unoma, visit her
Website: http://www.unomanwankwor.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/unwanwkorauthor
Twitter: https://twitter.com/unwankwor
Email: unwankwor@kevstelgroup.com

To buy a copy of "When You Let Go" please visit:
Amazon US
Amazon UK
Barnes & Noble

Updates: Flash Fiction, Reviews and Guest Post

Hello friends,

I've been a bit down in the last few weeks, but still busy trying to keep working on different projects. In the meantime, here's an update of some of the things I've had published (fairly) recently:

Flash Fiction on Brittle Paper:
I've had a second story published on Brittle Paper here: Because of Him

If you missed the first one, here it is: Betrayal (a prize goes to anyone who can name the song that inspired me to write that story)

Guest Post on The Creative Penn:
I had a guest post published on The Creative Penn (yay!) about Creating an Author Press Kit. Click to read it here: Book Marketing: Creating Your Author Press Kit

Vitabu Books featured "Nothing Comes Close" as their Book of the Month for April. Read the feature here: Vitabu |Book of the Month

Book Review by Under the Neem Tree:
Many thanks to Ndeye, the blogger behind Under the Neem Tree, a blog about books by authors of African descent and books written about Africa. She wrote this lovely review of Nothing Comes Close: Nothing Comes Close - A love story with an African Twist 

Thanks for dropping by! Wishing you a wonderful week.

Tolu

Guest Post: Book Writing Strategies by Andrea Constantine

Can a book really be easy? Three So-Easy Strategies – They’re Just Silly.


by Andrea Constantine

It’s hard to believe just a year ago I didn’t even have a book in the pipeline. At the time, it was just some pipe-dream. Little did I know that in less than twelve months I’d soon have two books on the market. It seems ironic since I had struggled for years to even commit to an idea for a book, but now the ideas are everywhere.

Why was my experience so easy? What was different or was I just plain lucky? In reality it was none of those excuses that even I’d love to believe. If I happen to come across a page of luck, I’d surely share my secret formula, but it isn’t about luck at all.

Over the course of the year, there have been three-oh-so-easy strategies that supported this stellar growth. Besides only sleeping on Sundays, and cloning myself, - teasing - these are the three things that I know can help bring your book to life too!

Drumroll p-uh-lease!?!

Collaboration. First, I didn’t go at it alone. Lone-ranger out – team player in! My book and business partner Lisa Shultz is my main collaborator; however, in our first book we had 47 other lovely ladies submit their chapters to us. Which made the writing process a whole-heck-of-a-lot easier. Imagine a book with your name on it and you just have to write a few chapters!? When I went to take my first stab at writing a book, I failed, I barely got started, and the whole-darn process seemed overwhelming as all get out. I quit. Here’s where luck or serendipity did come in, Lisa asked me to join her on her book project, and I said yes! Suddenly, I saw the light. If you want to do something big in your life, whether write a book or become president, you are not going to get their alone.

Goals. I know, this sounds elementary. But they work. Goals, deadlines, and a fire under your-you-know-what are seriously the key to just getting that book written and out into the world. Trying to write a book without some looming deadline means that your book may, just may, be ready for print in 2025. Clearly define your goals and figure it out from there. When Lisa and I partnered at the end of 2009, we picked late August for our launch date. We then worked backwards and timed out every step in between. It kept us on schedule and it kept the process moving along. We always knew where we had to be and when we had to be there by. Goals, however over-emphasized in our world, are a shortcut to accomplishment.

Accountability. If no one knows you are writing a book, or if you’ve locked up your work in a vault fearful of putting it out into the world – it’s never going to get out there. Accountability to others is one of the fastest ways to get your book done and out to market. Lisa and I checked in with each other so frequently during the writing and compilation of our books, that we never missed a beat. How are you on this? Where are you on that? How’s this coming along? What can I do to help you? Flailing along as a solo-aspiring-author is difficult, challenging, and lonely-as-the corner ice cream store in a February snowstorm. Don’t do it, do not, under any circumstances attempt to go at it alone. If you are writing a book as the sole author, it doesn’t mean that you can’t have an accountability partner, coach, friend, or mentor. Team up and you will find a pot of gold at the end of that rainbow, filled with inspiration, encouragement, and motivation.

So really, as you can see – writing and getting two books complete in one year isn’t all that hard if you abide by these oh-so-easy-strategies. Don’t wait to get your book done. Get your book done this year!

And if you are ready to take the leap and write your book this year, then check out Andrea Costantine and Lisa Shultz’s latest book… www.bringyourbooktolifethisyear.com – Grab your copy today and receive two months accountability and writing support in their monthly mentoring group and other bonuses valued at $150.