Writing Life – Page 5 – Mythic Scribes Test Site

Why Am I Still Writing?

Knitting — What do knitting and writing have in common?

This article is by Craig Robertson.

If I write something and not many people read it, am I wasting my time? This is an important question and I think most creators ask it, be they authors, musicians, dancers, or painters.

I write speculative fiction – time travel, mythic figures, spoofs on genres – that type of thing. Moreover, I write fiction which is not mainstream. I pound away for hours at my stories and my podcasts and my blogs. I think they are all perfectly wonderful. But, come on now, we all know people who think their FLK’s (medical for ‘funny looking kid’ – honest to goodness) are soooo beautiful. In point of fact, the child is so peculiar looking, and acting, that you are glad you are not the parent. Many might advise, for example, that if my writing efforts are not very successful maybe I could better spend my time doing something else – you know, something productive, useful, not a complete waste of my time.

The Banquo At Your Banquet

by At Dusk I Reign

Théodore Chassériau (1819–1856), Macbeth seein... — Macbeth Seeing the Ghost of Banquo

Do you believe in spirits?

Have you ever suffered an indefinable disquiet in the still of the night, ears straining as you pull the covers tight about your shoulders?

I have. I’ve heard the whispers.

They echo. They reverberate down the years.

I didn’t understand their murmurings at first, but in my youth I don’t think I needed to. To hear was enough – comprehension would come later.

And eventually it did. It took time to decrypt and collate, but I heeded the message.

Why Write a Fantasy Novel?

by At Dusk I Reign

Cover of "A Wrinkle in Time" — A Wrinkle in Time

This is a question I’ve thrown around in my mind like a ping-pong ball ever since I was old enough to understand what fantasy actually is (the literary genre, that is – I doubt anyone under the age of twelve needs any lectures on the power of the imagination and the hours of fun that can be garnered from a muddy ditch, an old branch, and a raggedy piece of cloth: PIRATES AHOY!).

There was never any doubt in my mind that I wanted to be a writer…or, more specifically, that I wanted to write. But as to why I chose the fantastic as my canvas, who can say? The Lord of the Rings no doubt played a part, as did Fahrenheit 451, A Wrinkle In Time, and numerous other novels which wriggled their way into my brain and nestled in the darkness, content in the knowledge that sooner or later the gouges they made on my psyche would become apparent.

Balance – at Least 80% of the Time

by Featured Author

This article is by Sean Keefer, author of The Trust.

I’m really happy I can say my first book, The Trust, is done. People can buy it and hopefully some are even reading it.

So now it is on to book two. Well, at least when I can find time to write.

There are authors who earn a comfortable living working only as writers. However I venture to say if you have 100 writers and create two groups – the first, writers who ply their craft fulltime and the second, those who have to write when they can find the time. I believe the second group will be exponentially larger than the first.

Why is this?

Fantasy Writing and the Spiritual Quest

by Test Administrator

Smaug from Tolkien's The Hobbit, as illustrate... — Smaug

Many fantasy writers experience our craft as being more than a hobby, or even a career choice. For us, it is a calling.

On my tenth birthday I received a precious gift: a hardback edition of The Hobbit, illustrated by Michael Hague. This marked my first foray into fantasy literature, and it irrevocably touched my life.

Upon discovering Tolkien I experienced a new realm of possibilities. While clearly fictional, the world which he described had a distinctive aura of truth to it. It was a place of magic, where unseen power filled every aspect of life. Although my mind told me differently, my heart recognized something very real.