Origins Blogfest!

What started you on the path to writing?  That's what the Origins Blogfest created by DL Hammons is all about.  It's co-hosted by Alex Cavanaugh, Katie Mills (Creepy Query Girl), and Matthew MacNish (The QQQE).  Check out their blogs for links to other great Origins stories.
Here is mine:

I don't know exactly when it started for me, maybe I was 5 maybe I was 7.  It doesn't really matter, but whenever we took long car rides (almost every weekend to go up North in Michigan), I would stare out the window and make up stories in my head that fit the landscape we were driving through.  I didn't write anything down yet.  They were stored simply in my brain.  

Later on, in fifth grade I had an inspiring teacher who made us use our spelling words to write sentences. I'm not sure if she told us to weave them all into one complete story, but that's what I did.  It was my favorite class.  I came up with some pretty weird stuff.  It's hard to fit in all twenty words ranging from "lint, wallow, comb, heiress, etc" into something that made sense. (I guess it was a great preparation for all the flash fiction in Rachael Harrie's Campaign.) ;)  My favorite yarn from that class was the lint ball that ate the school.

Then my Mom and I started writing picture books together.  We never got any published, but we had so much fun working on them together.  We sat at the kitchen table sharing our imaginations.  We probably did more laughing than actual writing. But the experience was priceless, and I was hooked.  We started going to local writer's conferences. I took a creative writing class in school and then at the local university as a Saturday class.

Everywhere I went, I took a notebook to jot down ideas or write a quick poem. Every scrap of paper, even my college calculus class notes were covered with thoughts, things I noticed, and story snippets. (Maybe that's why I failed Calculus!)

Eventually, I got married had kids and life kind of got crowded with other duties and sadly my writing went on hold.  Then a couple of years ago, I decided I had to make time for writing again.  I started up with picture books because my three kids had given me so many wonderful ideas, but I couldn't quite get them right. So instead I worked on an article for a national magazine and to my surprise it was actually published!

It's my only publishing credit to date, but at least I'm writing every day now and I'm loving it!  I'm also sharing the fun with my daughters Jess from Write Skate Dream and Alyssa from Life Is Good.  Even my 7 year old son Ryan has been inspired to start his own story.

Well that is my Origins story.  I hope you enjoyed it.  I'd love to hear what got you started on this crazy path to crafting stories. And don't forget to check out everyone else's stories too!

Kathy :)                

I'm Hearing Voices--Emotion!

Today is the last day of the I'm Hearing Voices Character Blogfest hosted by Cassie Mae and Angela Cothran.  It has been lots of fun reading what everyone else has written.  It's also been quite challenging to create pieces I'm satisfied with.  Today's challenge was to write an emotion in 250 words or less.


I hope I was successful.  Here is mine (at the end I'll let you know what emotion I was going for):



"Would you stop that!  You're making too much noise!"  Elodym says in a loud whisper.  "They're bound to hear us."  Ryn continues tinkering with something.  "Hey, I'm talking to you!" She nudges him in the shoulder with her fist.


He looks up as if waking from a dream.  "What was that for?" He asks rubbing his shoulder.


"You're being too loud!"


"You're the one talking!"  He fires back.


"I don't understand why we're waiting here in the middle of the forest.  We should be out there helping.  Instead I'm stuck here with you.  It's so stupid.  We're wasting our time!"  She throws her arms up in the air and paces like a caged lion.


"Hey it's not like this is my favorite assignment either sweetheart.  But we follow orders and both Shen and Nakyte want us here."


 "What are you doing with this thing anyway? It looks like a piece of junk." Elodym grabs the contraption he is working on and it breaks into a hundred tiny pieces.  Her mouth drops open.


"OHH come on!  What did you do?  You ruined it!"  Ryn says.  He fights to keep his voice low.


"I didn't do anything!  And SHHHHH!"  She bends down to pick up the pieces but he bats her hand away.


"Stop that!  Don't touch anything.  Go over there and be the lookout.  We're supposed to be watching to see if there is movement in the camp."


"Well if anyone is around, they surely have heard all of your racket!"



I hope you were able to guess the emotion was annoyance or frustration.  If not let me know what you did think.  I'm looking forward to read what you guys all came up with for this one.

If you really enjoy writing flash fiction pieces like these click here to sign up for a monthly flash fiction blog hop.

Don't forget Monday is the Origins Blogfest you can find out all the details here.
And if you haven't already, sign up for Rachael Harries 4th Campaign here.

Have a great weekend!

Kathy

I'm Hearing Voices Dialogue!

Today is the second day of the I'm hearing Voices Character Blogfest hosted by Cassie Mae at Reading Writing and Lovin It and Angela Cothran at Live to Write...Edit When Necessary.  Head on over to check out all the details.  It's been a great way dig a little deeper into our characters personalities and see what makes them tick.

Today our prompt is to have two characters introduce each other using only dialogue--no backstory, no internalization, just dialogue between the two.  Max 250 words.



Here's mine:

"Elodym, I'm shocked to find you here in this rat-infested squalor."

"Let go of me Jedrik! You know nothing about me."


"I know when all this is finished you will be my wife."

"Never! I'd rather marry a wild boar! You are the most vile power hungry loathsome creature I've ever met!"


"When I've destroyed both the Sunayas and the Kyerdens, I will be this world's only hope.  People will come to me for leadership."

"You couldn't possibly...you don't have the mental capacity of a frog! With what I overheard between you and your "friends", I'll put an end to your treachery."


"You spy! You think I'm going to let you out of here?! You won't be able to tell your precious Princess anything.  You are stuck with me my dear.  And your friends will fall."

"But the Prophecy. They'll find and destroy you."


"Ha the Prophecy is nothing more than ancient stupidity and lies.  It means nothing."

"Get your slimy hands off me!"


"Such a temper does not suit your beauty. You used to have feelings for me. Why do you want me destroyed?"

"I never  had anything for you!"


"Five years ago, when we first met, we walked happily through the gardens together. I remember everything like it was yesterday. That was the day I decided I would make you my wife."

"Jedrik, I didn't mean to lead you on, that's just my way with men."


"You will pay for your seductive ways and you will be my wife!"


Thanks for reading!  Hope you enjoyed.  Hop on over to Cassie Mae or Angela to check out all the other great entries.

Kathy

4th Campaign!

Rachael Harrie is at it again!  The 4th Platform Building Campaign has officially started!  Check out all the details at Rach Writes.  The challenges are lots of fun and it's a great way to meet new bloggy friends! :)


If you're here for the I'm Hearing Voices Character Blogfest, read below.

Thanks for stopping by.  :)

Kathy

Character Blogfest!

Today we packed everyone in the van and took a road trip to Indianapolis.  Not the most scenic drive in the country but at least it was a bright sunny day and there wasn't much traffic.  Unfortunately this made my post for the beginning of the Character Blogfest hosted by Cassie Mae at Reading Writing and Lovin It and Angela Cothran at Live to Write...Edit When Necessary slightly late.

The prompt for today is: 

Characters on the couch:
Have one of your characters answer the following questions:

1. What is your biggest vulnerability? Do others know this or is it a secret?
2. What do people believe about you that is false?
3. What would your best friend say is your fatal flaw? Why?
4. What would the same best friend say is your redeeming quality? Why?
5. What do you want the most? What will you do to get it?

Today I'm introducing you to Nakyte Sunaya.

Me:  Good evening Nakyte, sorry for the late hour of this interview.  Our readers would like to know, what is your biggest vulnerability? and is this a secret?  

Nakyte:  I hate to admit this, but I guess confidence in my own abilities.  I try my best to hide it.  My father has trusted me to a mission that I'm not certain I can carry out.  In order to be successful in gaining the trust of the Kyerden's and helping our people, I need to make them believe in me...which means I need to believe in myself.  

Me:  What do people believe about you that is false?

Nakyte:  Well, they think I know what I'm doing! Other than that, I've had to pretend I'm someone I'm not.  If the Kyerden's knew I was the daughter of the King Sunaya, they would have my head.  They would believe all the lies that have been told about me and not see who I really am.

Me:  Wow, I guess that puts you under a lot of pressure.  

Nakyte:  Yes it does.

Me:  What about your friends?  What would your best friend say is your fatal flaw? and Why?

Nakyte:  Hmmm, I guess two things, I'm stubborn and I trust people too easily.  Those two qualities always get me into trouble.  I'm always taken by surprise when someone betrays my trust.  

Me:  So tell me then, what would that same friend say is your redeeming quality? and Why?  

Nakyte: I'm loyal.  I will do anything to protect the people who return this loyalty. 

Me:  Okay the last question, what do you want the most? and what will you do to get it?

Nakyte:  Wow that's a big one.  Being the daughter of the King, more than anything I want my people to be safe and live without fear for their lives.  Right now my biggest priority is to foster peace between our nations.  But I know there are many people secretly working against me.  They want to keep us all vulnerable until they gain enough power to take over.  I will do anything to protect my people.  

Me:  That's all the time we have today.  Nakyte, thank you for joining us and good luck on your mission.

Thanks everyone for stopping by!

Kathy  

         

KOMF Winners and Interview

Congratulations to Julie over at Rosewood Pencil Box and fairbetty at Fair Betty's World for winning the inaugural Knights of MicroFiction (KOMF for short) blog hop!  Yipee!  Today I have the pleasure of interviewing Julie.  Check out Jess' blog Write Skate Dream for an interview with fairbetty.

Alright let's get down to business and find out more about Julie.

Hi Julie, I hope your having a great day let's begin. 
When did you know you wanted to be a writer?


I've been scribbling story ideas and character sketches in notebooks (oh my gosh, so many partially-filled notebooks) for as long as I can remember, but it was never in the foreground because I was so involved in theatre and church and summer camp.  Around the time I got married, when all those things started to change, my long-time love for writing returned with a vengeance and has not let me go.

Oh I know what you mean by those half-filled notebooks! So what's your current WIP?


Uh...haha.  Right now? A lovely hot mess.
But behind that, it's a young adult adventure/fantasy about a boy named Bell. I've been thinking about it since college, and finally drafted it last year. Now I just have to make it...make sense.


I love YA adventures! Do you have any specific goals for this year?


Ooh, goals are scary for me. I need them, though, so I'll give it a shot. My number one hope for this year, writing, wise, is that I will have a working second draft of Bell's story by my birthday in June.

That would be a great birthday present.  Speaking of special days... you have one approaching, right? How long have you been blogging and how has it helped your writing?


My second blog-iversary (do any two people spell that the same?) is in April, and this whole experience has helped immensely.  I studied writing a bit in college, but in all honesty, I've learned more from author and agent blogs than I ever did in school (I was never the best student). Plus, I've gained precious crit partners, friends and readers. Also, confidence, opinions, and a fuller understanding of how fiction works, in general.

Is there anything else we should know about you?


I'm a vegetarian, a cat-owner, and this is the second time I've won a contest alongside fairbetty (also a vegetarian, cat-owner and real-life, pre-blogging friend, which is awesome). Hey girl, hey!

 Well that's all the time we have for now.  Julie, thanks so much for being here and we're looking forward to hearing more about Bell and his adventures in the future.  Thanks everyone for stopping by and have a great weekend!  
To sign up for next months Knights of MicroFiction blog hop fun click here.


Kathy

KOMF Winners and IWSG

First off this morning I'm announcing the winners of our inaugural Knights of MicroFiction winners.  

Drum Roll please..... and a big round of applause to Elisabeth over at Fair Bettys World for her entry about the dangers of using incense while doing yoga; and to Julie at Rosewood Pencil Box for her entry on sibling rivlary, for her post click here.  Ladies we will be contacting you to do a short interview/feature.  Thanks to everyone who played along and we hope to see you again at the end of February!  

Moving on to:

Today is the first Wednesday of the month so that means it's time for the Insecure Writer's Support Group, hosted by Alex Cavanaugh.  The purpose is to get together monthly and talk about our fears, insecurities and also our successes.

This month I have a couple insecurities.


Last week, I had one of those days where nothing was going quite right and a funky mood settled over me.  
I sat down at my computer and began working on my next scene, hoping I could write my way out of it.  But the scene before me required love and tenderness.  How could I paint a picture of affection with my words when my heart and mind were full of tumult?
I could have whipped out a chase or fight scene with ease.  I tried listening to music, but soft, smooth words did not leave my fingertips.  Instead I closed the file and worked on something else.

I know I shouldn't let my own mood affect my writing.  I know if I want to succeed at this I have to be able to write under any circumstance, but how do you distance yourself from your own emotions and still write with the passions of your heart?

Second:
 As you can see, I've finally taken a leap of faith and started co-hosting my own monthly blog hop with Jess from Write Skate Dream., called the Knights of Micro-Fiction, where we provide a monthly prompt and then we can all enjoy reading each other's works.  I think the best part of blogging is to be a member of this great writing community and now I feel like I'm helping foster that community spirit.  But I've never hosted anything before and I hope I can make it work.


I'd love to hear your thoughts, encouragement, and advice.

Thanks

Kathy

Jess just made us a linky list (she's awesome!), click here to join us