How Do You Keep Writing and Where Do You Get Ideas? I’m glad you asked because that’s what I’ll tell you.
The first rule is to desire to write. I love writing crazy ideas into books, surprising and entertaining people. I truly would do it for nothing. In fact, my net profits so far are nothing.
I loved writing Zombie Turkeys. That way I got to write ridiculous chapters with weddings and zombie turkeys.
Then, I sought to top myself with My Undead Mother-in-law. I had to make a new villain, one so evil you would feel sorry for the zombies. I made a sociopath who used cyborg animals to commit crime, like capuchin monkeys, rats, and black mambas.
Now, how would I top myself again for my third book? I hated repeating myself. I needed something related, but totally beyond a mere undead mother-in-law. How about if I put the zombie family on a luxury yacht, give them a letter of marque from the President, and send them around the world fighting American enemies, public and private? That’s a start!
My undead family would be zombie pirates. But that phrase is too common. Paranormal Privateers became the title of my third book.
Next, a disaster happened.
Ruh Roh! Writer’s Block
I got stuck writing this book. How could I keep topping myself? My paranormal privateers fought pirates, slavers, terrorists, and prevented a nuclear holocaust. What could come next?
I needed a change, a total surprise. But how do I get there? What did I want to write? I loved 1950s science fiction movies. So I wrote what I loved. That is how you break writer’s block. Return to your passion.
I can’t tell you what I did without spoiling the book, but I’ll give you some hints.
Your first hint:
Now, your second hint.
That is your second rule to keep writing year after year: write what you love.
I finished Paranormal Privateers two months after NaNoWriMo, in January 2018. It appeared in ebook and print on Amazon and later Audible.
(By the way, you can get all my books at Audible. They’re free if you’re a member. Zombie Turkeys, My Undead Mother-in-law, and Paranormal Privateers. Or, if you want a free copy, just write me and I’ll send you one in exchange for an honest review.)
But what would I write next? I burned myself out on zombies. This leads to your third rule.
How Do You Keep Writing: Write Something New
Where could I go next? What else did I love writing? What did I love reading? Young adult science fiction. Everyone wants a superhero origin story. I wanted to do one of those for my fourth book.
But this had to be different, unusual. Superman got his power from birth on another planet. Batman got his power through intelligence and training. How about an ordinary hero? How about an unlikely hero? What was the least likely hero?
Now I get personal. My daughter’s been disabled with cerebral palsy since her birth. What if my hero had cerebral palsy–and his superpower didn’t take it away?
Then superheroes often come in teams. What if they were all disabled, each with a different disability and a different superpower?
I had my next book: Secret Supers.
Finally: Your Free Books
These offers are just good until October 31st.
First, you get Zombie Turkeys for free. Click here.
Now you get your BIG GIFT: 31 Free books follow and end this blog post.
