Superstition, Supernatural, or Simply a Case of Writer's Block By Connie Vines

According to Wikipedia, 

Superstition and the supernatural are often grouped together, but they refer to different phenomena. The supernatural refers to forces, entities, or phenomena that exist outside of the physical laws of nature (e.g., spirits, magic, or miracles). Superstition, on the other hand, is the belief that certain unrelated behaviors or objects can directly influence these supernatural forces, luck, or destiny.

Charles Dickens (1812–1870) carried a navigational compass with him at all times and always faced north while he slept—a practice he believed improved his creativity and writing.

Dr. Seuss: The author and illustrator Theodor Seuss Geisel (1904–1991), better known as Dr. Seuss, kept an immense collection of nearly three hundred hats. When facing writer’s block, Dr. Seuss would go to his secret closet and choose a hat to wear until he felt inspired.

 Truman Capote refused to begin or end a piece of writing on a Friday.

 J.K. Rowling’s superstition is to hold off titling a piece until it is complete. She said on Twitter: “I only type the title page of a novel once the book is finished.”

✎ 🖳

To non-writers, these behaviors must smack of obsessive-compulsive disorder. 

But to those of us struggling at the keyboard to create something worthwhile, these quirks can make the difference between a productive day or one that ends in despair. 

 

There's more to writing than hoping to learn the secret of someone else’s magic formula.

The magical formula comes from within.

It's a spark of inspiration and hard work.

I find glancing out my office window gives my brain a reset. The gentle fragrance of roses and the music of my windchimes allow creativity to flow.

While individual rituals may seem like idiosyncratic quirks, all are actions in pursuit of rational goals:

(I smile when I see the word rational 😄 and rituals in the same paragraph.)

Help writers get in the frame to write

Alleviate the anxiety that prompts writer’s block or procrastination

Take care of the necessary details as a way to minimize intrusions

Provide a routine to keep a writer on track

Of course, not everyone believes in rituals. Isaac Asimov, with over 500 published books to his name, dismissed the idea as “ridiculous.”

“My only ritual is to sit close enough to the typewriters so that the fingers touch the keys,” he said.

My preparation rituals are pretty mundane, but I embrace them. A steaming cup of coffee sets the stage to log on to my PC and start typing. Music plays softly in the background, my pups are napping in their beds while I mumble dialogue... and the words flow.

Except for summertime.

Summer brings high temps, winds, and wildfires.

Last year, the neighborhood was placed on fire watch.

Fingers crossed, this summer will be uneventful, boring, with an occasional bit of cloud cover.

Look who wandered in as a visitor

https://www.audible.com/pd/Lynx-Audiobook/B0FK6K51

Lynx (Rodeo Romance, Book 1) is available in audio and eBook

ALL My books are available at your favorite online vendor. And Barnes and Noble brick-and-mortar stores.

Happy Reading,

Connie

The deadly shiver may not be a myth after all - by Vijaya Schartz

Award-winning series, action, adventure, alien planet, strong heroines, brave heroes
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I follow a few scientific groups for sci-fi research and recently came upon an interesting tidbit. A study about the shiver, the frisson, the sensation crawling across your back when you are exposed to extreme cold, or when you come inside from the heat with sweat on your skin and feel the icy blast of AC as you step into the grocery store. We’ve all experienced it in this superhot summer.

As it happens, that electric sensation on the skin surface constricts the blood vessels, slows the flow of blood, and temporarily suppresses your body’s ability to fight infections…

Rapidly transitioning between hot and cold environments and inhaling dry, cold air can also stress your immune system and dry out your nasal passages. This makes it significantly easier for airborne germs to enter your body.

As a consequence, if you happen to be exposed to a dangerous virus during that vulnerable time, it will find its way inside your bloodstream and hide, waiting for a moment of weakness to attack and spread.

I live in the Arizona desert, and I never liked that goosebump sensation from hot to sudden cold. Now I understand why. My body was telling me it wasn’t good for me. It’s why I keep my AC on the warmer side at home.

Scary, I know.

Action adventure on a space station with telepathic cats
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The studies do not mention the poetic frisson or the thrilling shiver you experience while reading a book, however. That’s good news.

Stay safe out there in the summer heat. And if you are relaxing at the beach or enjoying the AC inside, I recommend a few feel good action novels like these:

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Happy Reading.

Vijaya Schartz, award-winning author

Kick-butt Sci-fi Heroines, cats, romantic elements

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My Writing Career by Joan Donaldson-Yarmey

 

https://www.bookswelove.com/shop/p/gold-fever

https://www.amazon.ca/Gold-Fever-Joan-Donaldson-Yarmey-ebook/dp/B00PEOSJR8

I worked off and on at various jobs for many years while raising my children and when I began taking writing courses I still had teenage children at home. I wrote some historical and travel articles and had them published in Canadian magazines. My children had left home when I got my first contract for a non-fiction travel book, which morphed into seven travel books about the backroads of Alberta, British Columbia, and the Yukon and Alaska. Travelling, researching and writing each one of those took up my days, evenings, and nights for a year between 1990 and 2000. When I finished the last one, I decided to try fiction writing and spent days in my office on the computer.

However, I found fiction writing lonely, so I also decided it was time to get a job so I would be out and about with people. I took training to be a nursing attendant, also known as residential care aide, and began working in a long-term facility on the evening shift. I also started writing my first mystery novel. Then my husband and I moved to a small acreage Vancouver Island and I got a job in a group home looking after disabled adults.

I do not like getting up to an alarm clock so I took a position in the afternoons from 4-9 pm. This gave me time during the day to work in my yard, hike, dragon boat, pick and can or freeze fruit from my trees, and of course, write. I did this for twelve years and in that time, I also wrote and had published six novels. I finally retired which gave me more time to write, but I also travelled more, sat and enjoyed the sunsets more, and visited family more. I have also published eight more books since then.

I try to write something every day, even if it is just some ideas for a scene or about someone the main character of my WIP might meet. Usually, these ideas occur in the middle of the night, so I always keep paper and pen by my bed to write this down.

     And I must be doing something right because, since I began my writing career I have had twenty-two print and e-books published and I have five more coming out in the next two years.

Artificial Intelligence vs. characters coming to life by Dean Hovey

 

As most experienced authors will tell you, their characters become old friends and much of the book is nothing more than recording their conversations. Yes, this sounds a little like I should be put on a 72-hour psych hold, but it's true. I have a vision for the book, often in outline form, which provides a sequence of events in the plot. Sometimes that's formal, like a door covered with Post-it notes. making me a "plotter". Other times it's more informal and little more than ideas bouncing around inside my head, making me a "pantser". Whether plotting or flying by the seat of my pants, the character's conversations lead me in unexpected directions. When my son-in-law asked why I didn't use an artifical intelligence program to write my books, the answer was simple: artificial intelligence doesn't know how to bring the characters to life, nor does it know a plot twist to be revealed by a conversation. Nope. AI uses what it's seen. My son-in-law said it can mimic my style, if it scans a few of my books. However, AI doesn't know what it hasn't seen. For instance, in "A Bourbon To Die For" my lead character perceives that a lot of the towns secrets are revealed to a lowly cemetery caretaker who everyone ignores because they think he's a stupid drunk. By treating the caretaker like an accepted member of the community, my protagonist is invited to an Alcoholics Anonymous meeting. He meets a few of the other colorful town characters, but learns little from their meeting chatter. HOWEVER, they go out for coffee and within the kidding and laughter, they key to solving the murder of a local businessman is revealed. It's not an "AHA!" moment. There's a passing comment from a bus driver about seeing the victim's car turning into the site of the murder, as it does most afternoons when the schoolbus driver is passing that location. To be honest, the bus driver doesn't realize he's just revealed a key bit of information. Nor did I understand the value of that tidbit until later in the book. I sincerely doubt the Aritifical Intelligence program would walk through the series of events, and create the group interaction among the AA members which led to that one nugget. I told my son-in-law that story and he mulled it, then explained how I would have to teach the AI program that series of events, provide the backstories of the AA members, and the outcome of their discussion. He nodded emphatically. I said, "If I'm going to do that, why don't I just write the book?" I have a weekly lunch date with a group of friends who became the AA group. I can't imagine how ChatGPT could accumulate the background I've experienced over five or six years of lunch banter, then distill it down into a few pages buried among 320 other pages. Maybe their people can put a microphone in every corner of every North American cafe, then build a hundred data centers to filter, sort, and arrange the conversations to fit a plot. Or, maybe I'll just tap into my experience and use modified versions of what I've heard and learned over several decades. My buddy Gene (a retired bus driver) thought the AA scenes were darned good. He told me he's interviewing people to play him when the book is made into a movie. Check out "A Bourbon to Die For" on the BWL website, or at your local bookstore or on Amazon.Trust me, there's no AI involved, it's all original. https://www.bookswelove.com/shop/p/a-bourbon-to-die-for?rq=dean%20hovey https://www.amazon.com/Bourbon-Die-Doug-Fletcher/dp/0228635764

Interesting Cornish Superstitions, by Diane Scott Lewis

 

A young adult haunted house story set in Nahant, Mass. Five stars from Long and Short Reviews! They were thrilled by the novella.

To purchase, click HERE Barnes and Noble, or for Amazon

I wrote many novels set in eighteenth century Cornwall and became fascinated with its myths. Two of them, Escape the Revolution and Hostage to the Revolution, were set on the wild northern coast. Cornwall covers the western region of England where tin mining was often the main occupation of the people. Many superstitions arose from this grueling work. 

Miners believed in gnomes called Knockers. They believed any strange noises in the mines were caused by the knockers, who warned of dangers to come, such as cave-ins. The knockers also caused mischief. The miners would leave them bits of their food to placate them.

The Cornish also believed in Piskies (Pixies). To avoid being tricked by the Piskies, they'd wear their clothes inside out to fool them. I'm not sure how that worked.

A scary belief was a Spriggan. They were small and ugly and they guarded treasure. If you angered one, they might kidnap your child and leave you a 'changeling'. This elf or troll might look like your child, but its demeanor would soon become strange.

Fishing was another important occupation in Cornwall. Fishermen would never count their catch. They'd chant over it first to keep the bad spirits at bay. You also could not mention the word 'rabbit' or 'minister', or whistle when onboard your boat, or it would cause you bad luck.

Giants are also part of Cornish myths. The children's story, Jack the Giant Killer is set in Cornwall. Might there be magic beans?

When my husband and I visited there the people were kind and open. And we didn't see one giant or gnome. They must have been hiding.

To find out more about me and my books.

Diane lives in Western Pennsylvania with one naughty dachshund.