Today we welcome Sharon J. Burton to the blog to talk about her new book. I have a copy and it's a wonderful indepth guide with everything from advice on dealing with the inner critic, how to create the perfect creative environment down to the lighting, along with ways to spark your creativity. She has great info on journaling as well as journaling prompts for every section covered in the book. If you're someone looking to add more creativity in your life or, as part of an already established creative practice, then this book is a must have. Tell us about your new book. What inspired you to write it? Creative Sparks: 21 Affirmations and Inspiration at Midlife is a book that provides support for emerging creatives at midlife who encounter circumstances that may derail their creative goals or affect their creative potential. By the use of affirmations, tips and testimonies by their peers, it is my hope that people will gain the confidence to move forward with pursuing a creative life that fuels their passion, no matter what age they are. It is a book I needed some years ago when I was thinking about re-engaging my creative life after graduate school and working professionally in a non-creative world for a number of years. I wanted to revisit my passion for creating art, but doubted myself thinking I was too old or that I really wasn’t the artist I thought I was in high school. After being introduced to the concept of affirmations in Julia Cameron’s The Artist’s Way, I found writing them to be helpful for me to release negative thoughts and feelings about my creativity and move forward towards engaging in a vibrant creative life. Since starting my creativity coaching practice, I have encountered beautifully talented creative people who want to engage in a creative life after the kids have left home, a divorce, or retirement. They are often entering a new role without the benefit of having years of experience in navigating a creative life. This is where the book steps in to help move you forward, no matter whether or not you were creative as a kid or younger person or if you are pursuing a creative life for the first time. I love the idea of reaching readers/artists/creatives at midlife pursuing creativity. Why did you decide to focus on midlife? All of my clients are over the age of 40. As a person at midlife myself, as a Gen Xer, many of us were not encouraged as other generations after us to pursue a creative life. Some of us were discouraged from going to art school or pursuing creative endeavors by well meaning family members who felt that it would lead to a life of poverty. For example, when I was coming out of high school in the late 80s, there was a heavy emphasis on pursuing academic degrees such as business, health care, engineering, law, etc. I didn’t experience a climate of celebrating art, artists and creativity. A lot of us who were trying to engage in creative activity also encountered criticism about our work as youth or young adults that haunts us regarding the ability to create to this day.. As a result, many of us entered careers that were considered stable and financially rewarding. It helped us to buy homes, raise our own families and take care of our obligations. Quite a few of us thrived in these careers but many of us didn’t feel aligned with what we were doing. Some of us who were lucky to pursue creative passions beyond high school had to abandon them to raise families and pursue these careers, but secretly long to return to it. My own physician shared recently that she was a singer in a band before she finished medical school. Today she is a wife, mom, and juggling her own health care practice with her husband. Her face told me all I needed to know about how much she missed that creative part of her life. A lot of us learned to hide that we have these creative passions. I was sharing with an attorney in my age group the other day about my book and her eyes got big and she stated she has been in the process of writing a mystery novel, almost in a hushed tone. It reflected how I feel about many people who may not have felt comfortable owning and sharing that side of themselves as a result of an era that didn’t appear to value their creative interests. I see this book as a love letter to them. That it is never too late to engage into your creative passions. Can you share a little about how and why you use affirmations to help with creativity? I share in the book about what affirmations are, which I define as statements that are in the present tense that are designed to “re-wire” or challenge negative thought patterns. I also highlight a few research studies that examine the role and benefits of positive self-affirmations, which provides some level of scientific evidence that in the proper context, affirmations can work. As someone who didn’t feel confident re-engaging into my creative passion, which was art, my doubts and insecurities kept me from moving forward for a time. After learning about affirmations and how to use them in a way that helped me, I was able to coach and motivate myself in pursuing my art practice and eventually to exhibit my work. That was over 15 years ago and I continue to use affirmations as part of my daily morning journaling practice to focus on intentions every day. What are some of the creative blocks/issues you help creatives work through and how? Many people are encountering the more common blocks such as dealing with the inner critic, imposter syndrome and creative anxiety. A common one is time management…people are juggling more than ever in their lives and time for their creative life is often hard to schedule. I am also finding that grief is becoming more of an issue than it once was, especially since the COVID-19 pandemic. We are grieving a lot right now, whether it’s the death of a loved one, a life circumstance (ex: divorce, a move to another city, our personal health issues that affect how we navigate the world, witnessing the mental or physical decline of our parents, loss of income) or collective humanitarian issues. Grief affects our ability to enjoy the things we are passionate about and can block us from pursuing them. I use everything from affirmations to mindful exercises to help people achieve a sense of balance to achieve their creative goals. It looks different for everyone based on their needs and their commitment to the process. Much of how I assist blocked creatives in many circumstances is provided in Creative Sparks. Could you share one of the affirmations that’s helped you during a period of imposter’s syndrome? I am an author of a book that positively impacts the lives of artists and creatives. Anything else you’d like to share about your book? Where can we find more about you and your book online? The book is available through Amazon.com here: www.amazon.com/Creative-Sparks-Affirmations-Inspiration-Creativity-ebook/dp/B0D2GGK25D. You can learn more about me, the book launch and upcoming related events at https://www.sparkyourcreative.com/book.html
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YA/MG Fantasy Author Holly Davis joins us on the blog today to talk about books, music, and more!
Tell us about your new book. A Diamond Bright and Broken is a YA epic fantasy and my debut novel, releasing November 5, 2024 with Inimitable Books. It’s a Tangled retelling with a genderbent Flynn Rider and includes disability rep, sapphic romance, mages with unique magic, and a ride or die sister relationship. Here’s the book blurb: Sixteen-year-old Cadence was born with the ability to cry tears of diamonds–a secret talent her parents have abused to climb the royal ranks thanks to the infinite source of wealth. At their command, she cries diamonds to pay for the pricey treatments for her sister’s neuromuscular disorder. Regardless of the pain, she’ll do anything for her sister, who weakens by the day. When the prince heckles Cadence at the King’s Summer Solstice Ball about her sister’s disability while dancing in the ballroom, she’s left on the verge of tears, threatening to expose her power. She is saved by a mysteriously charming girl who sweeps in to take the next dance—and the single diamond Cadence cried. The stranger reveals the Magi Queen sent her to tell Cadence that she’s a mage, and that her power is a curse. Yearning to discover the secrets behind her powers, Cadence sets off for the City of Magi. To claim the life she wants, Cadence must embrace her power—before she loses the bright spots in her otherwise sad existence. After all, even diamonds can shatter. What inspired you to write it? I’d written and queried a few manuscripts before writing A Diamond Bright and Broken. When I came up with the concept, I’d seen a beautiful YouTube thumbnail of an illustrated girl crying. For some reason I thought, what if she was crying diamonds? And the story grew from there! Cadence is most like me out of all the characters I’ve written, so I think I was finally ready to write someone who really represented me. Can you share a little about your writing process? I’m a plotter who likes to know where my story is going and how it will end before I write it. I follow the Save the Cat beat sheet to plot out my story and save everything to story bible in Microsoft Word. I usually take 1-2 months to finish a 1st draft and try to write during live writing sprints or with writer friends for accountability. I let it rest for a few weeks before doing some developmental edits before handing it to beta readers and critique partners. Then I go through maaany rounds of edits before I feel it’s ready enough to query. And I usually pay for a professional to critique/edit the first few chapters, my query letter, and synopsis to ensure my whole query package is as strong as possible. What inspires your creativity/writing (music, movies, art, etc. Feel free to share links to playlists or Pinterest boards)? I love listening to instrumental music, and also hearing other people talk about their stories gets me hype about mine! That’s why I love connecting with the writing community. I have a writing music playlist of songs I listen to when I write which you can find here: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLRAw-sOu1AE0yPD2-lQrTvW_UeN2oVGVD&si=1otXORXyvGxDd8VC Anything else you’d like to share about your book? Diamond is the first book in a duology, so you’ll get to be in this world a bit longer (I’m writing the sequel right now!). Also, if you submit your preorder receipt, you’ll receive 3 full body character art cards which are gorgeous! https://www.inimitablebooksllc.com/a-diamond-bright-and-broken Favorites: Favorite book in your preteen years? I actually read a lot of Robert Cormier books in 6th and 7th grade before I found my fantasy groove in high school. A lot of Cormier’s books were about troubled teens and had a lot of swearing in it, which was definitely the opposite of me, but maybe that’s why I was drawn to reading about it? Favorite book now? The Shades of Magic series by VE Schwab. A Darker Shade of Magic was the first book to completely draw me in by the prose that felt like a poetic story, made me stop and admire Schwab’s writing craft, and bring such intrigue. Favorite actor/actress? I don’t really have any faves, but I loved Tom Holland in Spiderman. Movie and/or TV show? I love all things cooking shows like MasterChef and MasterChef Junior. I don’t cook much so their skills are super impressive and their stories and journeys are inspiring! Singer? I’m definitely a Swiftie! Ha ha. I love the poetic lines she creates and both her upbeat and somber songs. I also really like female Kpop groups like BLACKPINK, VCHA, ITZY, and TWICE. Where can we find more about you and your books online? You can find links to preorder A Diamond Bright and Broken via my publisher’s website as well as submit your preorder receipt for exclusive character art: https://www.inimitablebooksllc.com/a-diamond-bright-and-broken Join my newsletter for exclusive sneak peeks, reader and writer freebies, and more: https://www.hollydavisbooks.com/ I also frequent social media to connect with writers and readers alike: https://www.instagram.com/writehollydavis/ https://www.youtube.com/@WriteHollyDavis I was on Tea with Josephine talking about sweet romance and Y contemporary books and what author life is really like. You can watch it here or follow this link: www.youtube.com/watch?v=CCpz5hNuBwg Author Samantha Ann is on the blog today to talk about her latest book. Check out the interview here:
Tell us about your new book. My latest release is called FAN SERVICE. It is a steamy novella about a Korean Pop idol and a fan who took a chance during a fan event. And all my books offer a fun little bonus of learning Korean as you read. But if that isn’t for you, the Korean doesn’t take away from the story. What inspired you to write it? Funnily enough a personal experience at a K-pop concert. No, I did not hook up with an idol (lol) but I had chosen to something a little different at a hi-touch event and my fav member of the group took notice of it. That caused my writer brain to question “what would happen if this were to play out in a romance novel?” Can you share a little about your writing process? I tend to write most novels in journals first. Then transfer over to the computer. I know it is an extra step but for me I am better at putting paper to pen then fingers to keyboard. I also don’t write in order. If a scene comes to me that is what I write first. I then tab all the scenes into order for when I am typing it up. What inspires your creativity/writing (music, movies, art, etc. Feel free to share links to playlists or Pinterest boards)? I would have to say K-dramas are my biggest inspiration. The romantic ones always hit me right in the feels and I hope that my books can do that as well. While I don’t listen to music while I write, I do listen while I read. I create playlists for all my books you can find them here: https://open.spotify.com/user/zkv0r49bhw5x9n93j4ngxkjmf Anything else you’d like to share about your book? FAN SERVICE is the second book in The Idolized Series. The plan is to have one book per member, totaling six. I really hope you enjoy reading and also possibly learning. Thank you! Favorites: Favorite book in your preteen years? The books that made me really fall in love with reading was a series Avon Teen did of historical romances. I still have all of them on my bookshelf today. Favorite book now? Any series by Ana Huang. The Dirty Air Series by Lauren Asher. The Pit Stop Series but Bridget L. Rose. (I have become an avid F1 romance reader to the point I am working on my own F1 book.) Favorite actor/actress? Oh man I don’t know if I can pick just one! My current fav is Byun Woo Seok Movie and/or TV show? All time fav movie is Stand By Me. Current favorite TV show is Lovely Runner. Singer? Stray Kids Where can we find more about you and your books online? You can find me on all socials as @koreanfromcontext My Website: https://www.koreanfromcontext.com/ And my Amazon page: https://www.amazon.com/stores/Samantha-Ann/author/B09QT7DKSR?ref=ap_rdr&isDramIntegrated=true&shoppingPortalEnabled=true |
AuthorAuthor of the Landry's True Colors Series, the Cecily Taylor Series, the Star Series, and Dating the It Guy. Archives
July 2024
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