New This Week: Getting Back on Track! #WIP | Renee Scattergood

Originally posted by Renee Scattergood:

I spent most of last week sick again, so this week I’m getting back on track. I thought I’d have to change my due dates for everything, but then I realized I didn’t fall as far behind as I thought. So, I’ll be able to finish up what I didn’t do last week and do this week’s writing as well.

In fact, today I wrote about 3.5k words. If I keep that up, maybe I’ll be able to reach the NaNoWriMo 50k goal in November.

I’m excited this week too because I’m starting work on a new middle-grade series. It’s based on my Shadow Stalker serial and involves Auren’s daughter and her friends. My daughter wanted me to write a series for kids her age, so this is it. She’ll be doing the cover art for the series as well, so it’s something we get to work on together.

My goals this week:

• Finish writing the first draft of Episode 24 of my Shadow Stalker serial, complete Step 16, and start Step 17 of my editing process
• Continue with Step 7 of my planning process for Emergence
• Finish and post my May 12 Short Stories Challenge story
• Finish Steps 7, 8, and 10 of the planning process for my new short story
• Write a flash fiction story
• Complete up to Step 5 for the middle-grade series
• Finish the first draft of Book 2 of AGD and start Step 7 of the planning process for Book 3
• Write up to Step 16 for my Blog Series

It’s going to be a busy week! I finished my writing for today, so wish me luck for the rest of the week.

My Writing Process: Step 6 #WritingTips | Renee Scattergood

Originally posted by Renee Scattergood:

If this is the first time you're catching this blog series, you’ll want to read the other steps first:

Step 1
Step 2
Steps 3 & 4
Step 5

Now that we got that out of the way, it’s time to move onto Step 6. In this step, I go back to my individual characters and answer the next set of questions on BeemGee. This set of questions is in the free area of BeemGee, so you can answer them there. They help to further define your characters on a deeper level.

Question #1: First I define which archetypes fit the character. The archetype is essentially the role the character plays in the story. There is a full list of archetypes on the BeemGee site if you want to check them out.

Question #2: Next I define what the audience might recognize in each character. What about the character makes the audience able to identify with him or her?

Question #3: What is the ideal way for the audience to respond to this character?

Question #4: How might the audience respond to the character in a way that is unintended?

Question #5: Who are this character’s allies?

Question #6: Who are the character’s opposition?

Question #7: Who is the mate or potential mate for this character (if he or she has one in this story)?

Again, you can find more info on how to answer these questions on BeemGee, but they are pretty straightforward. It takes about an hour or so to answer these for each character, sometimes longer because they require a bit more thought, especially the first four questions.

Don’t forget to let me know how it’s going for you in the comments below if you’re trying this method out. And if you don’t want to miss future posts in the series sign up to the right to receive the posts in your email inbox.

Next week is Step 7 and for the next two steps, I work more on the story as a whole. See you then.

Author Spotlight: Light Musings - A #Fantasy #Novel by Xtina Marie | Renee Scattergood

Originally posted by Renee Scattergood:

Welcome to this week’s Friday Author Spotlight! This week I have Xtina Marie visiting with her fantasy poetic narrative, Light Musings. She’s shared an excerpt from the book, but first, let’s get to know her.

The Accidental Poet:

Xtina Marie is an avid horror and fiction genre reader, who became a blogger; who became a published poet; who became an editor; who now is a podcaster, and an aspiring novelist—and why not? People love her words.

Her first book of poetry, Dark Musings has received outstanding reviews in addition to being nominated for a Bram Stoker Award for poetry. It is likely she was born to this calling. Writing elaborate twisted tales to entertain her classmates in middle school would later lead Xtina to use her poetry as a private emotional outlet in adult life—words she was hesitant to share publicly—but the more she shared, the more accolades her writing received.

Later in the year, both Xtina’s dark and light poetry fans will be treated to something very special in her third book, tentatively titled, Darkest Sunlight. It will explore the extremes as only Xtina can.

Her first romance erotica novel is well underway but has taken a back seat to an ever-increasing number of commitments.

Connect with the Author

Website
Blog
Amazon Author Page
Goodreads Author Page
Facebook Author Page

Facebook
Twitter
LinkedIn
YouTube

Join Xtina’s XXX!

About the Book

What a web she weaves. Light Musings is a poetic narrative – a story told through related poems. Xtina Marie is a master of this style. Known by her fans as the Dark Poet Princess, this term of endearment came about as a result of the horror genre embracing her first book: Dark Musings which continues to garner stellar reviews.

Light Musings will not disappoint her loyal fans as darkness is present within these pages as well. However, this latest book will show a much larger audience that Xtina’s poetry pulls out every feeling the reader has ever experienced – forcing them to feel with her protagonist.

Light Musings shows us that love is made from darkness and light; something Xtina Marie explores like no one else.

Get it today on Amazon!

Keep reading for an excerpt:

The Perfect Poem Composed

I want to be the sun
that shines through every cloud
the familiar face
in every crowd

I want to be the rains
that cleanse you anew
the moisture on the flowers
from the morning dew

I want to be the star
that lights up the sky
that feeling you get
from a natural high

I want to be the whisper
from a gentle breeze
the rustling of the leaves
from the nearby trees

I want to be the fragrance
from the blooming flowers
the magic that you feel
in the early morning hours

I want to be the voice in your ear
when you can’t hear any sound
the arms you feel
the warmth that surrounds

I want to be your sight
when your eyes are closed
the words on the page
the perfect poem composed

I want to be the touch on your skin
that eases every pain
the sparking bubbles
from the first sip of champagne

I want to be the rushing blood
and the pounding of your heart
the lighting of the match
the spark in the dark

I want to be the air in your lungs
when you’ve forgotten how to breathe
everything you’ll ever want
everything you’ll ever need