Inspiration – Page 3 – Mythic Scribes Test Site

9 Amazing Blogs for Writers

While Mythic Scribes is geared towards fantasy writing, I’m a big believer in studying writing from many different angles. For that reason, I’m always on the lookout for great writing advice from authors in other genres.

Today I’m going to feature nine of the blogs that I turn to for inspiration. Each of these blogs offers great insight from experienced, talented authors. While there are many quality writing blogs out there, these are nine of the best.

In no particular order, here are 9 amazing blogs for writers:

Finding Strengths in Your Weaknesses as a Writer

by Philip Overby

The key to finding your way as a writer is to discover what kind of writer you are.

Are you the type that talks about writing but doesn’t really do it much? Are you the kind that works diligently every day, but always ends up deleting or scrapping the whole manuscript? Are you the perfect planner, but awful at execution? Or vice versa?

Finding your strengths and weaknesses as a writer can help you navigate your way along the path to being the perfect “you.” Sound flaky? Maybe, but the sooner you can chip away at your problems the earlier you can fix them.

I’d like to preface this by saying I’ve fallen into every one of these categories before. So if any of these describe your current writing situation, I feel your pain.

10 Easy Steps to Crush Creative ADD

by Philip Overby

You’re working on your current project when a beautiful faerie lands on your laptop and says, “Hey! Why are you writing this boring story? Look over here!”

Wow, a story about elven wyvern hunters in 18th Century Central America is much more interesting than my current Work in Progress (WIP) about mutant horse-thieves in a post-apocalyptic world ruled by centaurs.

The faerie grabs your hand, hovers it over a new Word document, and jumps up and down on your finger until you left-click it. Ah. Like sinking into a warm bath. The feeling of cleansing away your dirty, stinky WIP and starting a pristine, new document, that little blinking cursor sending shivers up your spine.

Using History as Inspiration for Fantasy

by Alice Leiper

When others learn I am a writer, one of the most common questions I am asked is “where do you get your ideas from?” Now the obvious answer is “everywhere,” because life is inspiration for fiction. But one of those places where it is easiest to draw the direct correlations between what I see or learn and what I write is in history.

Some of you might, at this point, be thinking, “Oh yes, kings and knights and castles and all that. What’s new about that in fantasy?” But history encompasses so much human lived experience, and we can use it in far more intricate and interesting ways than just including an idealised image of the medieval world.

The Power of the Genre – Why Write Fantasy?

by Dave Robison

With a few rare exceptions, genre fiction is generally dismissed – even disdained – by “serious” authors and critical reviewers alike. Fantasy book sales are miniscule compared literary fiction; even the other genres outsell it. If you want to get rich, you’re better off writing “Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants” than “Bonds of Sisterhood.”

So what is it about Fantasy that motivates a writer to sacrifice broad cultural acceptance, fame, and money for the genre?

I asked editors and authors, “Why Do You Write Fantasy?” I was curious what it was about the Fantasy genre that made it the best venue for the stories they wanted to tell. Some weren’t really sure, but others had some very definitive ideas on the subject.

Knowing What You Want

by Benjamin Clayborne

Question Mark | Image via Wikipedia — Do you know what you want?

It’s hard to know how to get started as a writer. Should you write short stories or a novel? Should you stick with one genre, or try several? Should you get an agent and submit to traditional publishers, or try the self-publishing route?

The answers to those questions depend entirely on what you want. A full-time career as a writer? Financial stability? (That’s a tough one to achieve by writing!) Fame and respect? To simply be able to say that you finished a novel-length story?

Some people say “I want to be a writer!” without really figuring out what that means. Other folks just want to be able to say “I’m a writer” at cocktail parties and high school reunions. They might not even need any publication credits; simply having tried makes them feel like a writer.

Five Ways to Beat Writer’s Block

by Featured Author

This Article is by Currie Jean.

Writer’s block doesn’t happen to everyone, but even the fear of writer’s block can cause a few fits and starts before a writer starts to pen an opening paragraph. Countless solutions for writer’s block have been devised by many writers, and often work best for those same writers themselves. There are as many solutions for writers block as there are writers! Most of these solutions can be grouped into the following five types.

Fantasy Music – What Inspires You?

by Test Administrator

Cover of "Legend: Original Motion Picture... — Legend: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack

Music has the power to conjure emotions and spark the imagination. When I’m at my writing desk, nothing makes the work go smoother than listening to just the right music.

Over the years I’ve put together a collection of fantasy music which I use for inspiration. Some of these albums are derived from my favorite fantasy movies. Others I discovered while listening to Radio Rivendell, the online fantasy music station. All of them have one thing in common: when played, they transport my mind to a different place – a realm of myth and magic.

Here are seven of the albums which I turn to the most when seeking inspiration: