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Tag Archives: novels

People and Stories in My Head

13 Tuesday Jan 2015

Posted by michellestimpson1 in Books by Michelle Stimpson, For Writers

≈ 18 Comments

Tags

african american christian fiction, authors, christian fiction, novellas, novels, self-publishing

Every writer I know has several ideas floating around in their heads. Sometimes, these ideas and characters keep me up throughout the night. One of the benefits of being in a critique group, teaching writing classes, and communicating with other writers online is that I get to bounce ideas around before I start writing.

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In a spirit of collaboration, I’d like to hear your thoughts about these ideas and hear some ideas you’ve got bouncing around, too!

Hope – She’s a typical “Superwoman” who’s in love with a guy who has been stringing her along for the longest time. When he finally told her had something really important to ask her, she thought he was going to pop the question. Unfortunately, the “big question” was a request to borrow money. I got that idea from watching an episode of Judge Mathis. It was hilarious but sad. I think I’m gonna do a series with Hope eventually.

Rev. Brown – He’s a man who was married multiple times in the past. He has 3 daughters from those relationships (3 different mothers). He’s a changed man in Christ and he’s trying to reconcile with his daughters, but it’s not easy. The daughters are also struggling through life because they have Daddy issues. This idea is not necessarily “new” but I’ve been studying the orphan spirit in preparation for exploring this topic deeply through fiction. Not sure when it will happen, but it’s on my heart.

A Mean Prophetess – I’m still trying to figure out if she really is mean or if that’s what people think of her because she does what Old Testament prophets do—she warns people before destruction and they don’t like it. I still have to research this, though, because I’m not sure what New Testament prophets are called to do. Is it different now that believers have the Holy Spirit to teach us? How can she warn people without condemning them? Is she really a prophet or is she just a mean, judgmental person who needs to learn humility underneath that title?

Mama B # 6 – I think I’d like to see Mama B and Frank on a cruise or in some place other than their house. I’ve been thinking about making Mama B a sleuth (which is what happened with her Caucasian quasi-counterpart, Miss Julia), but I have to read up on that series to study the transition.

Blotted – this is a different genre (Fantasy? Sci-fi? Adventure?) This book is about teen who knows whose name has been blotted out of the Book of Life. I’ve got a few chapters already. My son liked it. This is his genre, so I’ll probably finish it soon, but I don’t think it will end up being a short story. I still need to find out if there’s a difference between the Book of Life and the Lamb’s Book of Life in scripture.

Historical Fiction – this one will probably be a short story, too. Late 1800s. An African-American girl who’s who is in training to become a midwife but she doesn’t want this destiny. Something goes wrong during the birth of a white woman’s baby…that’s where the trouble starts. This will probably be a short story, too.

Deon Jackson – this is an 8-year-old boy who has ADHD. The family dynamics change when his grandfather (who has Alzheimer’s) come to live with them. My son didn’t like it. But Tia McCollors’s son is reading my first few chapters to let me know if it’s remotely interesting.

[*Note – nothing I write ever turns out the way I plan it—and even if it did, no two writers would write the story identically. Every writer has his/her own voice, so I don’t worry about people “stealing” my ideas. What God has for me is for me.]

So…which idea piques your interest? Any suggestions? Are you a writer, too? Who’s dancing around in your head?

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A Day in the Life of a Writer

06 Tuesday Jan 2015

Posted by michellestimpson1 in Audio / Video Posts, Books by Michelle Stimpson, For Writers

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Tags

african american christian fiction, authors, christian fiction, michelle stimpson, novels, publishing, self-publishing, writing, writing blog, writing books, writing fiction

For YEARS, I have been resistant to blogging. I’ve even blogged about how much I don’t blog very often because I just don’t have the time. But last week, after reading a blogger’s recap of her typical day, I caught the blogging bug. I mean, I really, really caught it.

Write Sign, Love for Writing, for writers and authors.

In hopes of inspiring those who have been trying to decide if writing is something you might want to do full-time, I’ll share my typical day (6 days a week):

7:30 am – Wake up but stay in bed. Change the channel from ESPN to TBN. Listen to Joyce Meyer, Creflo Dollar, John Hagee and Joseph Prince while dozing in and out.

9:30 am – Get up, get dressed, eat breakfast. Replay episodes of ministers (from above) that I really wanted to listen to closely while I’m getting dressed. Stretch or maybe exercise for a little bit while listening.

10:15am – Go to the prayer closet. Read, study the Word, journal, pray.

12:15 pm – Write fiction

1:00 pm – Eat lunch.

1:30 pm – Return the morning’s phone calls. Handle inside-the-house business (i.e. update sales chart, schedule free books, sales, ads, read professional blogs, etc.)

2:30 pm – Write fiction, social media

4:00 pm – Handle outside business (i.e. post office, groceries, stuff my husband put on my list of things-to-do because he thinks I do nothing all day)

5:00 pm – Housework, listen to podcasts or other material that grows me professionally or spiritually. Eat.

6:00 pm – Write fiction

7:30 pm – Break. Watch TV with my husband while he unwinds. He likes reality TV shows or sports. I don’t like either of those, but I do what I have to do.

9:00 pm – Write. Might be fiction, might be a presentation, perhaps a blog J

11:00 pm – Update daily sales chart.

11:15 – Call it a night. Pack my husband’s lunch. Go to bed.

Following this schedule, I’ll get anywhere from 1500-2000 words of fiction written daily.

I answer email messages and phone calls as well as post on social media throughout the day. My husband is also home some days and may work at different times, so there’s some variety.

Sometimes I go to bed around 11:30 pm, sometimes I stay up until after midnight to write if I’m really on a roll or under a deadline. On those nights, I look like this video.

So, tell me…is this what you thought the writing life was like? If you’re an artist, what’s your typical day like?

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Avoiding Distractions While Writing

25 Monday Aug 2014

Posted by michellestimpson1 in For Writers

≈ 10 Comments

Tags

michelle stimpson, novellas, novels, publishing, writing, writing blog, writing books, writing fiction

Fellow author Jeaninne Stokes and I recently corresponded about a common question: How do you keep from getting distracted by your writing while writing. Specifically, if you’re working on chapter three, how do you keep from going back and fixing something in chapter one without getting stuck in chapter one again?

Just so you know: I am not the queen of staying-on-track. However, I have devised a few tricks that keep me from getting completely derailed when I write.

1. Write description later – If I’m writing a restaurant scene and I have no idea what the restaurant looks like, but I know exactly what I want my characters to say to one another at their table conversation, I skip to the conversation because I don’t want to mess up my flow. I make myself a note in the text (see below) and then I come back through and describe the restaurant when I revise (which is AFTER I finish the entire first draft). By the time I start revisions, I probably will have gone out to a restaurant with my friends and thought, “Oh! This looks like the kind of place for that scene!” and then I’ll insert the description. One note: Now that I’m more conscious of using “character as setting” thanks to my critique buddy Lynne Gentry, I want to make sure to include details that add to the mood of the scene.

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2. Research small things later – If a character was born on a Tuesday in October of 1947, I may need to know an actual date so I’m going to have to look this up. But if I stop writing and skip on over to the internet to look up the 1947 calendar, there’s a good chance I’ll get distracted by a whole bunch of stuff that took place in 1947 and I really don’t need to be in the internet at that moment. So, I make myself a note within the text (like above) and come back to it later. The internet is probably my #1 distraction when it comes to writing. I try to stay off of it when I’m composing.

3. Keep a document called “Things to Fix Later” – While I’m working, I keep another word processing file open entitled “Things to Fix Later.” Every single book I’ve written has had such a file in its folder. In that file, I keep notes about what needs to change in a previous chapter now that something relevant has unfolded in a later chapter. Even if I have a pretty good outline, things still change as I write.  (Spoiler alert – the picture below is from my book The Start of a Good Thing.

Screen shot of my list of things to fix.

Screen shot of my list of things to fix.

When I go through the revision process, I fix these issues.

Okay, my fellow authors, that’s all I have to share for today. I hope these little hints will help you make your way to the final chapter! Please feel free to add to the conversation in the comments.

Be blessed 🙂

authorsignature

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Quote

So, I had to si…

21 Friday Mar 2014

Posted by michellestimpson1 in Uncategorized

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

christian fiction, mama b, michelle stimpson, novellas, novels

So, I had to sit there and allow a mistake that I knew was gon’ come back to kick Son’s rear end. Every once in a while, parents have to do that. The only comfort I had was knowin’ God has to make this same decision every day with His children. Some of us just be beggin’ to learn the hard way.

Here is one of my favorite lines from Mama B: A Time to Mend, the fourth book in the Mama B series. I hope you all will enjoy her wisdom and wit! Thanks so much for sharing how much these books bless you!

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From 2.3b Reviewing the Editor’s Changes…

02 Thursday Jan 2014

Posted by michellestimpson1 in Uncategorized

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

michelle stimpson, novels, self-publishing, writing, writing books

You need to be in the right frame of mind to review your editor’s suggestions and changes. Sometimes, looking at the edits can make a person feel as though they are back in fifth grade and the teacher just returned a paper covered in red ink (“-1 for the missing capital letter”, “-2 for the missing comma”). Remember that you haven’t paid an editor to make you feel good about yourself. You paid an editor to point out everything that is wrong with the book. The more they caught, the better.

From The 21-Day Publishing Plan: From First Draft to First Sale in Three Weeks or Less

REAL21DayCover

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