Interview with L. Austen Johnson

I am delighted to welcome L. Austen Johnson to the blog for an interview today. Here's a little bit about her.

L. Austen Johnson is a debut poet from Virginia and counts herself lucky to be from the lovers' state. She studied English, Archaeology, and Astronomy in university, which may explain her love for stargazing and time travelling. 

She's an avid reader, a sometimes writer, and an attempter of various art projects. When she's not in class, you can find her searching for animals to pet, singing off-key in the shower, and learning the art of making the perfect cup of tea. 

And onto the interview!

Do you read your own genre? Is it a favourite?
I definitely do. My only published book is a collection of poems, so I do try to read other poetry collections by young women. Right now, I'm in an academic program studying poetry, so it's definitely a genre I read a lot. My other WIPs are mostly fantasy and magical realism, which are two of my favorite genres.

If you had to describe your style in three words, what would they be?
Accessible, hard-hitting, emotional

Was writing always your dream choice of career?
I've written poetry since I was in middle school. I've always assumed that I'd do some type of writing, prose or poetry, fiction or nonfiction.

Do you have a writing space? Pictures or descriptions!
I do a lot of my prose writing at the library, but when I write poetry it kind of just comes to me. I like sitting outside, letting my pen flow while my mind wanders.

Playlists? Yes or no? And why?
Yes! I think music can really enhance the emotion of a scene. One of my WIPs is a fantasy retelling of a Polish folklore, and for that I listened to a lot of remixes of Slavic folk music. I also think it's fun when people make playlists for their characters. I've listened to many an 8tracks playlist when reading other authors' books.

Which social media do you see as a must for writers?
I think Instagram is a great place to connect with other writers and readers. I also think that having a Facebook page when readers can see updates is a must.

Where do you hang out most online?
I post a lot to my author tumblr and have a bookstagram that I post on almost every single day. I have a Facebook and Twitter too, though I use them less often than the other two sites.

Do you have a favourite app for writing?
I use Evernote a lot for writing poetry and OneNote for organizing my prose WIPs. 

Organised or not?
I'm not very organized. I usually just spit out my thoughts or ideas and then use editing to organize them. When I try to organize too much, I feel like some of my wild creativity is lost.

Morning or evening writer?
Usually evening, with some warm tea.

You can find L Austen on Tumblr, her website, Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

Join Joey here on the blog on Fridays for interviews, reviews and guest bloggers. If you'd be interested in doing any of those, you can contact Joey here

Growing As A Writer [CC]

Talking about how you grow as a writer! #Authortube

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#TEASERTUESDAY

Tara still feels the effects of her past. No matter how much she tries to forget about it, some things leave a lasting mark. 

PRE-ORDER HERE: http://www.books2read.com/DTSD

[ID: A Teaser graphic for Dying Thoughts - Seventh Death. The release date is listed as May 15th 2019. The teaser contents are as follows:

 I closed my eyes and tried to quell my shaking hands, but it didn’t seem to help. I counted slowly as I breathed out, and then in again, trying to calm my fraught system. If there was one thing I wished I could change it was that I didn’t react like this to stupid things that shouldn’t have even been triggers in the first place. I’d given up trying to understand my traumatised brain, but it would’ve been nice if there were at least *some* clues as to what set me off this time.
“Tara, are you okay?” Nate asked. 

END ID]

Fighting Burnout - The Creative Process

FIGHTING BURNOUT

Over the past couple of months, I've been finding it harder and harder to keep the momentum going in regards to writing. I've never been someone who struggled that much with writer's block, or at least I haven't been for a good number of years. Once I got into the routine I use now, it became a thing of the past. I'm not saying that every word was easy, just that I rarely got to a point where I couldn't write. But in the past few months, with my health going down the drain and other factors draining my creative well, I've realised that I am, quite literally, fighting burnout.

It's something that happens to a lot of creative people, including writers, and it's something that can be fought, but it's also something that can not be avoided if you don't learn the signs, practice self-care, and sometimes, take a step back to allow yourself to heal. Because that's what you need to do, when you've reached that point of being burned out, there's no pushing through. All that happens then is you lose your love for the project and in some cases, make the burnout even worse.

So what have I done? How have I gotten through this period? Am I still going through it? The answer to the last is that yes I am, but I am also on the tail end of it. I know that I need to do better at practising self-care, and I need to do better about making my days off, actual days off. Not just days where I plan to do nothing and end up doing everything else instead. So how have I gotten through it? I'm gonna tell you so that hopefully you don't end up in the same position, but if you do, you know some ways to ease your mind back into the creative space without making the whole thing a hundred times worse.

#1 - EASE OFF
When I first started noticing issues, it was back in November. I was already pumped about starting NaNoWriMo, but I realised that with everything going n with my health, I knew it wasn't possible. I knew I had to cut back on work, and that meant not taking part in NaNo with the hope that things would improve going into the Christmas period. This felt like step one of a multi-step plan. Because while it worked for the short term, it didn't fix the issue because I was, as usual, back to normal in December.

#2 - FACE FACTS
It wasn't really until my sleep started to suffer in December and into January that I realised my plan of taking a month to get myself back together wasn't working all that well. I would find myself falling asleep early in the evenings, but being unable to stay asleep. It led to me being awake at odd hours, unable to get my usual amount of work done and then having to take long naps during the day. It meant that during the holiday period I was overtired, grouchy and not in the best place to be creative. It didn't help that I was having to keep working even though I felt like I was falling apart at the seams. There were outside factors that didn't help my stress levels and that of course just made me a giant ball of burnt out mess. So come January I realised I needed to do a few things and start to actually face facts and look after myself for the good of my writing career.

#3 - TAKE A BREAK
I've talked about this a little in my most recent Life Of Joey video. I got to the point where my health was suffering and I needed to take an actual break. I came down with an allergic reaction, that my doctors also wondered if it could be brought on by stress. I was ordered to take a break, and in doing that I realised that I needed some serious down time. I couldn't put it off any longer, and I couldn't risk getting sicker. There was also a period when I thought about not releasing all three books because of the massive amount of work involved. I knew that if I did go through with it, I needed to be doing a hell of a lot better. It was one of the reasons I got strict with myself about having at least one full day off every month that wasn't just Mepo.

#4 - TAKE TIME
And the next step was time. I took a serious chunk of time off in February, and did the same in March. I'm not sure to be honest where I will be back at the point I want to be by the time this blog post goes live, but I think it's important to focus on looking after yourself. If you need time to relax, to take a breather, to get away from creating and focus on healing your frayed nerves mentally as well as physically. There is no shame in needing to stop, and a friend of mine told me that resting was still time invested in your career. It's a way to make sure that you can keep going when you're back on the right track.

#5 - REFILL
Of course what comes alongside taking that time is refilling your creative well. For me that meant a whole lot of reading. I went through almost 40 books in January and February. I imagine it will be similar in March and April. It was a way for me to both rest my own creative side, but also still have fun enjoying other people's. It gave me a chance to reconnect with my stories and it also gave me a chance to just have some time off. Refilling takes as long as it takes. It could be weeks, could be longer, but the important thing is that you let it happen. Rushing through it, like I did initially, just ends up frustrating you and causing you more grief in the long run.

#6 - MONITOR
And finally, monitor yourself. Be honest with yourself. Are you ready to go back to work? It's okay if you're not, it takes as long as it takes and it's not something to skimp on. If you are, then be gentle with yourself. It may take some more time for you to get back up to where you were, and that's okay. If you're not, then allow yourself that time to refill and time to heal, it will come back and with it, you'll find yourself thankful for having taken the time to charge yourself back up and get back to writing.

If you've got any burnout tips, lemme know in the comments, and as always, good luck!


Follow Joey here on her blog, or on Facebook or Tumblr to be kept up to date with the latest news regarding Joey and her books

ARC of Dying Thoughts - Seventh Death

ARCS ARE COMING

If you’re interested in reading Dying Thoughts - Seventh Death before anyone else and are happy to leave a review on Goodreads and the relevant Amazon sites on release day, then please do sign up at this form here: https://forms.gle/QgyFmNoN6ZTa3MsC7

The Dying Thoughts series is YA crime/mystery/paranormal that follows Tara who has a gift that allows her to see the last moments of someone’s life when she touches something that used to belong to them. 

The blurb for this book is here:

Tara will have the house to herself while her Dad goes on his comeback tour. She has plenty of ideas about what to do with the time. Parties, college work and all the bits and pieces that come from being a student who also works for the police.

It’s only when an accident almost kills Colin that Tara’s life is turned upside down and she is pulled from college to sit by her father’s bedside. Away from home, from her friends, from her life, she has to somehow piece together what really happened on that tour bus and she has to do it with only her gift and a little help from Kaolin.

Only, someone is determined that Colin won’t survive his injuries, and if they have to take Tara out in the process, that’s a price they’re willing to pay.

Can Tara solve the puzzle before they catch up with her?

The release date is MAY 15TH 2019

YOU WILL HAVE THE BOOK BEFORE MAY 1ST

Sadly I am only able to offer e-format at this time.

This book can not be read as a standalone, but if you’re interested in catching up with the series beforehand, reach out to me and we may be able to work something out.

Review of Triggered by Michael Evans

Memories will break you.

Natalie thought that she would be able to fix her past, but some things are forever broken. After being rescued from the rubble, Natalie is welcomed into a new world of horrors, where she is reunited with a humanoid version of Hunter and barred by Danielle from seeing her mom. With her newfound memories, there are only more questions and pain, and Natalie is finally ready to move on to a future where she can truly be happy.

But President Ash has a plan of his own, specifically one for not only ending the civil war in America but reducing everything to dust. A new program called Maga X has been in testing for years, resulting in the deaths of thousands. When President Ash decides to release this new program upon the population of America, he won’t just be mind controlling them, he will be vaporizing them from the face of the earth. However, Natalie, Hunter, and her mom have a plan, one that involves ending the life of one man to save the lives of millions. And this time it’s not just about saving themselves, it’s about saving everything before it all turns to nothing. 
Amazon 

My review: 4 stars
I was happy to read this book having read the previous two. The writer's style is not one that I was usually prefer, but I was able to get through the book and enjoyed reading it. Natalie is finally getting to a point where maybe she can have a life, she can have something that makes her happy, but everyone else continually wants something from her. They place so much pressure on her shoulders and it's enough to make anyone crack. Of course when you throw in the lack of knowing if her memories and what she feels is real, it's understandable that she switches moods so rapidly. The story is well-written, if a little wordy, but as I moved through the book I found myself making guesses at where Natalie's would end up, would she make the jump to save humanity, or would she stay focused on saving herself. I will say the ending surprised me and I would love to see where the series ends up going. Otherwise, a good book.

You can follow Michael on Instagram, Facebook, Goodreads and Twitter.

Join Joey here on the blog on Fridays for interviews, reviews and guest bloggers. If you'd be interested in doing any of those, you can contact Joey here

Questions From Readers - March 2019 [CC]

Answering questions from you guys! #Authortube

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#TEASERTUESDAY

Tara is excited about spending some time alone, and happy that her Dad is back doing what he loves. Even if his list of rules are a little strict for her!

PRE-ORDER HERE: http://www.books2read.com/DTSD

[ID: A blue graphic with a teaser for Dying Thoughts - Seventh Death. Below the title is the release date: Coming May 15th 2019.

The excerpt is as follows:

“I’m sure I’ll survive six weeks without you!” I said, laughing a little. “I’ll have Kaolin over and we can have a few raves…kidding about that last part!” Though, I did plan to throw a party or two, Dad didn’t need to know about that.
“The list also has the ground rules. No boys after eleven. You don’t miss college unless you are actually sick and no parties. At all,” he replied, looking serious.
I raised my eyebrow. “Dad, I’m seventeen, I should be able to have ‘boys’ over if I want, besides you’ll be living it up with hot groupies, won’t you?!”
END ID]

Disabled Characters FTW! - The Creative Process

DISABLED CHARACTERS FTW!

I talked last week about representation (found here) and this week I want to touch on something near and dear to my heart, and that is: disabled characters. Now I've talked about this before (pieces here and here, video here) but it's been a long while since I really spoke about this issue. A lot of the time, it feels like disabled characters get forgotten about. We end up with the tragic ending, or being cured when actually we're just happy being in fiction. There's a lot than goes into this, some of it is the belief that disabled people are better off dead, some of it is the idea that every single one of us just wants to be cured magically and go on our way, and some of it is plain old ignorance.

When I started my AuthorTube channel, I did so without really saying much about my own disability. If you follow me there, you know that I regularly open up the floor for questions from my readers, you guys basically. You'll also know that a lot of the time, I got a lot of similar questions: what's wrong with you? It got to the point where I did a whole video addressing that because I just got sick of being asked all the time. (For the curious, the video is here) But what does that have to do with disabled characters and why you should write them?

I'm glad you asked. It's as simple as this. A lot of the time, I'm seen as tragic and/or inspirational because I both write and exist while being chronically ill and in a wheelchair. A lot of the unsolicited messages I get are from people unaware of what my deal is, and therefore asking what's up with me and how does it get fixed. And there in lies the problem. You can't "fix" me. I am, firstly, not broken, and secondly, there is no known cure. And I'm okay with that. There are some days when I'm not, but for the most part, I am okay with the way my life is going. Because of getting sick, I was able to start my writing career and if that'd not happened, I wouldn't be where I am today. But before you start telling me how inspiring that is, read on a little further.

A lot of the time, when people like me are in stories, they're seen as a warning, or a tragic ending. People fawn over them, feel sorry for them, use them as a way to build themselves up and generally the disabled character isn't at all well-rounded, because they are, at the basic, a prop to spur on the protag and save the day. And that's a really hard pill to swallow as both someone who grew up chronically ill, and someone who writes young adult fiction. As I mentioned last week, I don't think abled people should be writing about the struggles of being disabled, but that doesn't mean we have no place in your story. It also doesn't mean that for a happy ending, the disabled person has to be cured or die so that they are "no longer suffering."

I say it like that but I know there are a wide array of views when it comes to both the disabled community and the chronically ill community, the crossover between the two is a lot and everyone is different. I am not, by any means, claiming to speak for anyone but myself. I'm not the voice piece and I am only going by my own feelings and thoughts when it comes to disabled characters in fiction that I've read or seen talked about.

So what are my tips when it comes to writing disabled characters and how can you avoid falling into a trope plot hole that makes it more cringey than readable? Glad you asked, because you know that I love to give out tips on these posts so here's my top five when it comes to writing disabled characters.

#1 - NO INSPIRATION PORN
If you're not disabled, then you've probably never heard this term thrown around. Lemme break it down for you, inspiration porn is when you see a photo or video of someone in a wheelchair or visibly disabled doing something completely ordinary. It's then held up for all to see, usually with the words: What's your excuse? It's the bane of disabled lives because we're seen as so tragic that we simply exist to build up abled people and show them that if we can do x then they should be surpassing us by miles. It's a similar kinda thing to that saying: The only disability is a bad attitude. Which is crap and allows me to use this gif to convey it.

 
But this is something you should be avoiding at all costs when it comes to writing disabled characters. You should not be putting them up as the standard to live by, unless they're doing something exceptional for anyone. It should never be despite their disability. Of course mileage may vary here, but personally I find characters who are super awesome at what they do well-rounded when they're not being touted as so inspirational because they got the thing done while also being disabled.

#2 - CHECK YOUR TERMIOLOGY
This is something that applies to a lot of marginalised characters, and that is making sure you're using the right words to describe them. I can't talk on writing characters of colour and how to describe their skin tone and hair, but I can tell you that a lot of disabled people prefer being referred to as just that: disabled. Not differently abled. Not person with a disability. But disabled. Again, mileage may vary and it's not something you have to take my word for, as I said above, do your research and talk to people with that disability when writing these characters, especially if you're not disabled yourself.

Another word that I would rather not be used by those without a disability is the word cripple. It's been a slur against disabled people for a long time, and while some have reclaimed it, myself included, it's not something that should be thrown around. On top of that things like wheelchair bound are seen as a no-go. My wheelchair frees me, it doesn't bind me. In that regard something as simple as switching it to wheelchair user, can be a better idea.

#3 - HAPPY ENDINGS ARE OKAY
As I mentioned above, a lot of the time, disabled characters don't get happy endings. They either die tragically and that is seen as a happy ending, or they get erased from the whole thing. It's okay to write a character who doesn't get cured and yet still survives to tell the tale. On top of that, it's more than possible for someone in a wheelchair or with a disability to have a good ending. To have been part of the action and gone on to have a rich, fulfilling life. It's okay to let us be happy and it's okay for us to stay disabled.

#4 - LOVE HAPPENS
This is something that is shied away from a whole lot and it's a pain in my backside. Disabled characters can have love interests. We can even have sex should we wish to. We're not so faux pas as to never get the girl (or guy) because we also happen to wheel rather than walk. So if you're thinking that your love interest can't be with a disabled character because of the disability aspect, think again, it's possible, it happens, and it should be shown in fiction!

#5 - CURING ISN'T THE END ALL
I touched on this a little in some of the other points, but not all disabled people want to be cured. It was a big thing for me when J K Rowling announced that there were no disabled people at Hogwarts because they'd all be cured. It left a bad taste in my mouth because it just felt like erasure, which is what it is. Disabilities are real, they have a lifelong effect, and announcing that there are no disabilities in your world and therefore no need for adaptation etc, is lazy writing. There, I've said it, and I know I'm not alone there. Allow your disabled characters to stay disabled, because in the real world there are people reading who never get to see themselves in fiction, and who won't get a cure because there isn't one.

So those are my five tips and pointers when it comes to writing disabled characters. As always, if you have any questions, feel free to sound off in the comments below!

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#AmWriting - #010 [CC]

A writer writes... #Authortube

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