Leod Fitz: One Writer's Journey

Please put your hands together for awesome author Leod Fitz--he's one of the coolest writers I know. Meeting him in person from our IWSG In-Person Writing Group is a wonderful experience.

Leod, take it away!

I’ve been a writer pretty much my whole life.  I actually remember the very first time that it occurred to me to write a story.  Technically speaking, it was a fanfic; it was a story I wrote about my favorite He-Man character.  The story, in its entirety, was about a paragraph long, and it was missing little things, like character development, plot, themes, motifs… pretty much everything that one tries to fit into a story.

But it was my introduction to writing, and as awful as it was, that was all that I needed to become a full on addict.

I love writing.  I adore the process of building a world, constructing a story, designing characters and watching them grow and change.  Unfortunately, my journey as a writer was somewhat hindered by the fact that I had absolutely no idea what I needed to do to learn how to become a good writer.  Looking back, I suspect that all I had to do was spend a bit of time in the library looking for ‘books on writing,’ but I’m embarrassed to say that, at the time, that didn’t even occur to me.

Book Spotlight: Druid's Moon by Deniz Bevan

Congratulations, Deniz Bevan, on your new release! It's super exciting to see my anthology buddy releasing a new book.


Welcome Druid's Moon, Paranormal Romance.

Here's the blurb from Amazon:

Lyne Vanlith, an archaeologist who seeks a logical explanation to any mystery, discovers an ancient Druidic curse on her first dig. When the signs foretold by the curse descend on her, Lyne can’t find a reasonable interpretation.

And that’s even before a Beast rescues her from a monstrous sea-creature. She drops a grateful kiss on the snout of the Beast, who transforms into a man, Frederick Cunnick, Baron of Lansladron. Lyne is meant to be Beauty to his Beast—and break the curse forever.

Now both spellkeeper and monster are targeting Lyne. She must take up her legendary role, to defeat the curse and save Frederick—and herself. Instead of logic, for the first time, Lyne must trust her heart.



Oh, this book sounds like a romantic adventure indeed!




Now available at:

Apple - https://tinyurl.com/234dztfb

Amazon - https://tinyurl.com/df5wfhh9

B&N - https://tinyurl.com/wp2pztdb

Kobo - https://tinyurl.com/xzudk5wj

Author Interview: Welcome author Frank Riganelli

I'm excited to have Frank Riganelli who shares his experience as a writer! His experiences along with his compassion for first time authors moves him! Let's see how he does it...

Welcome, Frank! Tell us about yourself and your book.

 

Well, I've enjoyed the telling of a good story for as long as I can remember. That led me to write five novels and my latest book that helps people write their own. I've had the good fortune to be able to travel, and have lived in six countries - from North America, to Europe, and to the far East. That doesn't include home, which is Canada, where I live now on Vancouver Island. I have one son, and my hobbies are writing and tutoring English when I'm not at my full-time job.

 

My latest book is about helping first-time authors write their own novel, and, as you might guess, it's titled HOW TO WRITE A NOVEL : For First-Time Authors. I feel like all the novels I've written are in this one book, in a way, because it looks at what's involved and what the writer goes through in writing their tale. But as for my last full-length novel, it's a cross-genre thriller. An epic, I'm happy to say. I love epics stories. I managed to combine two stories in it; one about a girl struggling through a difficult personal time, and a second about the timeless question, 'Why are we here?' Epic Sci-Fi is my favourite genre. I picked up an appreciation for sciency things having studied engineering. I'm not exaggerating when I say it took a lot of reflection to be able to mesh the two into one coherent whole. And that was before I even wrote the first word. I was able to shape the story to be able to use the book cover's tagline, 'The world's final chance', and I don't think I'm giving anything away if you see the cover, when I say that it all comes down to the main character of one of the stories; a girl going through a struggle in her life – how she's led to face it - and how that will literally save the world, in a grand-design-by-powers-that-are-beyond-us, kind of way.

 

#IWSG: Writers, Unite!

click on image to join other IWSG writers!

IWSG: a place where writers and friends share woes or hugs.

Welcome to mine!

September's question of the monty - What genre would be the worst one for you to tackle and why?

A shout out to the wonderful cohosts for the month: Kim Lajevardi, Cathrina Constantine, Natalie Aguirre, Olga Godim, Michelle Wallace, and Louise - Fundy Blue!

I will address how writers need writers instead of answering the prompt. First, writing is a lonely place to be with our scribbling, imagining, and creating. Social interactions might become awkward to some of us as we prefer to scuttle back into our caves where our keyboard is safely tucked away.

photo by me--parts cannibalized from pixabay images. Muahaha!

But sometimes we feel brave enough to stir from our holes for a breath of fresh air or some warm sunshine and, yes, we meet other writers. We need others who share the same interests, who understand how it feels to have voices take over our thoughts, the voices that jump to life and seize the reins of a scene, and even the voices that refuse to be silenced when it's supposed to be The End.

photo by MysticArtDesign@pixabay

Who else can we turn to but those who experience such things?

I come from a place where writers are busting at the seams; where they can be found under books and hiding in the mortar of the libraries as well as at book stores (who knew, right?).

Well, moving to where I'm at, it was a shock to see what an antithesis it has been. There are no writers anywhere. Impossible! Where did they all go?

photo by Luismi Sánchez@unsplash

Inspired and feeling brave--finally!--after years of hiding under a rock, I found the courage to start a writing group. It isn't just any group, but an Insecure Writers Support In-Person Writing Group!

the coolest flyer you'll ever see

I started out with one the second week, then another, and another, and another--the first one as loyal as ever to the cause of writing. The numbers have stabilized to seven, but it is a good number. Everyone is at a different stage of writing but we all love it and take it very seriously.

photo by Donald Giannatti@unsplash

I like to follow the Knights of the Round Table concept where we follow a schedule but, since we are all adults, we are free to touch on what we need to do the most. It's not stiff and formal but relaxed and comfortable. I hope I'm doing okay with it because I'm insecure. Perfect, right? Haha!

I'm also reaching out to writers on other platforms to share their love for writing here on my website. We will do spotlights, interviews, guest posts--whatever feeds the muse.

I started my career this way, reaching out to others and lifting them high because everyone deserves the chance to shine. We are all in this together and books are like delicious bonbons--it's our responsibility to keep the readers well-stocked with our beloved craft. Right?

photo by GDJ@pixabay

Can you name a time when someone reached out to you and lifted you upon their shoulders for a better view (literally or figuratively)? How do you feel about connecting with other writers? Would you be interested in participating in a spotlight, an interview, or possibly as a guest?