When stuck on a chapter, finding a nice cafe to work from is great. A change of scene is all it takes.
Tag: Womensfiction
A Writer’s Corner – Why do you write?
Writing has always been my favorite form of communication. I would rather write than speak. I would rather read than listen. I am visually oriented. What I read becomes a movie in my head.
My imagination is a wild, untamable thing. It always has been. I made up stories and illustrated them as a child. Playing with dolls involved elaborate storylines and characters. It was an ongoing, epic Barbie drama. I played with dolls for a very long time, acting out the drama in my head.
That drama never stopped. It became creative visualization, a way to soothe myself or a cure for insomnia. Always imagining, building fantasy in my mind. Self-soothing. My characters and their drama had to be as unlike my life as possible, so historical romance was the preferred genre.
There you have it.
Sinclair’s Dilemma – A Misalliance with Love.
“The cool evening air soothed his raging mood as he left the House of Lords. He waved off his carriage and continued to walk towards St. James. The early evening was damp, and he turned up the collar of his topcoat. He had wanted to redeem himself in the eyes of society by working hard and showing himself, to be honest, serious, and reliable.
All of that was ruined now, and he looked like a fool. Like his father! Sinclair felt incensed at the unfairness of it all. He was not responsible for what happened but must do all he could to limit the damage. He must get Rosie to be a real wife, even if he had to go straight to Castle Holme and haul her back to London.”
Excerpt From: Dee Harper Lewis. “A Misalliance with Love.”
Rosie and Sinclair – A Misalliance with Love
“He offered her his arm, and they descended the terrace steps to the long table where sandwiches and cakes had been set up. A footman handed them their cups, and Rosie tilted forward to survey the delicious food arranged on platters. She selected a cucumber sandwich and munched on it with gusto. He thought that her lack of refinement would not do her any favors, and she did not seem to be conscious of it—or to care.”
Excerpt From: Dee Harper Lewis. “A Misalliance with Love.”
A Writer’s corner: Stability killing my creativity
“I’ve been struggling with writing (and journaling) in the past few years, basically since my life took a turn and it became ‘normal’.”
A writer in my favorite subreddit related their continued struggles to produce any work. I can very much relate to the frustration and angst behind this statement. I think it is something all artistic people fear.
I stopped doing anything creative when I was living a normal life with a stressful job. The only time I started writing again was when I was either between jobs or when I had a job that gave me hours of downtime. Once, when I was required to travel for work, I ended up with six hours of time to kill per week. I wrote a non-fiction book in that time.
During the pandemic, I started a fiction novel. Creativity requires energy and concentration, and I find it very difficult to work, socialize and be creative. Something must be sacrificed.
That said, I think carving out 30 minutes a day is not too difficult. It will take longer, but in the end, you will have something.
A Misalliance with Love: Ely Cathedral
“The weather was perfect, with the sun shining bright and a cool breeze blowing. Rosie felt exhilarated as she kept pace with the more experienced riders, and they galloped through the vast expanse of marshy flatlands, the soft ground cushioning their horses’ hooves.
It did not take them long to reach Ely, and they stopped in view of the town to admire the grandeur of the towering cathedral, majestically rising above all else in the distance. ”
Excerpt From: Dee Harper Lewis. “A Misalliance with Love.”
Rosie is his target – A Misalliance with Love
Rosie’s choice to live apart from her husband means that she faces unwanted attention for another man.
-A tumult of disordered thoughts raced through her mind. She recalled the intense fear that had gripped her when Sir Gaylord had come too close to her during the estate sale. As she had moved from one room to another in the vast house, he had trailed her, and she had sensed that he was stalking her. Even now, her fingers dug into her arms as she struggled to keep her panicky thoughts under control.-
Image generated by Canva and digitally manipulated.
At the Theater-A Misalliance with Love
“As they ascended the grand staircase and found their box, she could feel the excitement building around them and eagerly anticipated the beginning of the play.
Lowering herself demurely into a seat and opening an ornate Chinese jade fan, she turned to Alton, aware of the eyes of society upon her.
Since signing the marriage contract, they had not laid eyes on each other, and on that occasion, she had been in a fit of pique. She could not help but smile, remembering the look on Sinclair’s face when it became clear she knew exactly what she wanted and was brave enough to ask for things that her father would never have asked for on her behalf.
“What are you thinking?” Alton glanced down at her curiously, puzzled by the expression on her face.
“I was thinking of our upcoming marriage,” she replied, then a wrinkle formed on her brow. He must think she meant . . . what comes after.
“Are you unhappy with this marriage?” He had seen her hesitate, and a frown and brief flare of disappointment passed over his face.
Excerpt From: Dee Harper Lewis. A Misalliance with Love.
Image generated by Canva and digitally manipulated.
A writer’s corner: Productivity
An author in the Reddit writers group posed the question: “When do you feel the most inspired or productive in your writing?”
They went on to ask is it morning? Afternoon? And they asked if we ever dream about our characters and get up to write more.
I had a good laugh out loud at that. I would love to dream about my characters. I used to dream about work all the time. Why can I not have a lovely nocturnal fantasy about the ever-fascinating characters I want to create?
The truth is, I am most productive two times during the day.
I am very productive early in the morning with a clear head and no distractions when my mind has not yet been cluttered with the minutia of daily life.
But many times, I’m super creative when I’m just about to fall asleep. From a very early age, that has been a time filled with fantasy. I have a long habit of creating other worlds in my mind as a way to erase the clutter and dream.
The more complex and detailed these ‘nocturnal daydreams’ are, the faster I will fall asleep. Now that I am writing regularly, this is a time when I grab my dictaphone and start rattling off dialogue or descriptions. To produce the best work, I can’t have anything else in my head. I immerse myself in the mindset of the characters, and that happens best when there are no distractions.
Character inspiration
Once in a while, you see something that screams for a book to be made or a movie to be written about it. I saw this clip on Reddit and want to create a character as badass as this woman. What would her backstory be? How would she meet her love interest? My writing focuses on the Victorian era, but I will do post-WWI just to have characters like this.
She belonged to the Thirteen Black Flying Cats, and they deserve their own miniseries.
DEE HARPER LEWIS 