Michelle Miles: It's Summertime!

You know how I know it’s officially Summer? It’s finally stopped raining (at least here in North Texas), school is out, Memorial Day is over, another birthday has come and gone and it’s June.

This weekend the husband and I were doing our weekend chores and I stopped to think how much it’s starting to feel like summer. With the early morning sun leaving slashes of light on the floor to the sounds of summer—baseball on the TV, lawn mowers, weed eaters, leaf blowers, the hum of the AC—it’s hard to believe we’re already in the sixth month of the year. Where does the time go? Does it speed up when I’m not looking? Or am I just so busy that I don’t realize the days are flying off the calendar?

At any rate, I can’t believe it’s summer. The rest of the year always seems to go so fast once we get into June and before we know it the holidays will be here. But right now I’m thinking about vacation and RWA Nationals and getting through the hottest months of the year (July and August) and writing. Lots of things are happening in my world—things I can’t talk about yet—but I’m going to be one busy girl this summer.

Plus I’m looking forward to re-releasing my Realm of Honor series on July 25 starting with the first three books.

Aliens and Witches, Oh My!

With over thirty books under my belt, I struggle to find plots that are new and different. There are only twenty plots in the world and I’ve probably written every one of them. As an author you have to start looking outside the box for ways to keep the writing fresh and interesting to not only your readers, but yourself. 

A close friend of mine, who writes science fiction and is very successful, was asked by Amazon to invite other authors to write in her world. I don’t have a science fiction following, but she asked me if I would be interested and I jumped at the opportunity. I’ve always wanted to write about funny witches and then I threw in an alien. Yes, this western historical/contemporary author was stepping out of her well worn box and writing about stuff she has very little knowledge of. Space…that final frontier. 

What came out is a book that I absolutely love. I agreed to write this short novella in January and then in February, my life sort of fell apart. My loving, funny, 84 year old father became ill and I spent a lot of time with him and my mother until he eventually passed away. 

This book, which is supposed to be humorous was written in the hospital, while I sat with my father. If it had been typed on paper, there would have been places stained by tear drops. In the end, it’s become one of my favorite stories simply because I know the emotional place I was at while writing this story. And yes, it did come out funny - not sad. But the story also reflects the importance of family, no matter what planet you’re from.

RELEASE DAY FOR SUMMER HEAT - by Kathy Ivan

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Everyone Knows an Ant Can't... Using the Senses when Writing #MFRWorg #Thursdayblog #amwriting

Lift a rubber tree plant! From the old song “High Hopes” (Frank singing You Tube) 

But we’re not here today to talk about an ant being strong. Have you ever just sat and watched an ant scurry about? Or watch a leaf by the toe of your shoe in great detail? And then note the colors, the smells -- truly becoming immersed in the object?

Or sitting in a coffee shop and seeing a hunky cyclist at a table tying his shoe laces bunny ear style. You make note of his pro-looking outfit. The sweat dripping from his forehead. His scruffy beard. (Oh my, I’m finding my imaginary guy desirable!)

Writing details is important because it relays senses to the readers and invests them emotionally.

The five senses are: Tasting, Hearing, Smelling, Feeling, Seeing. From “The Five Senses” by Dr.William K. Pediaopolis (Senses),  we have this definition: "A system that consists of a group of sensory cell types that responds to a specific physical phenomenon, and that corresponds to a particular group of regions within the brain where the signals are received and interpreted."

The five senses have to be incorporated into our writing. Otherwise, our work is boring, even lifeless, unresponsive. Who would want to read that?

@sloanebcollins Writer's Block is an Evil Thing #amwriting #PlottingPrincesses #MFRWorg #writinglife #SullivansofMontana

I’ve been really stuck lately on my current work in progress.  Like STUCK, stuck.  I hit over the halfway mark, and I didn’t know what needed to happen next.  So I worked on editing the first half.  Searched Pinterest for more inspiration.  Tried writing just whatever, scenes that weren’t interesting.  Tried plotting an outline.   I even created book covers for all five in the series, hoping it would get me going (it did give me plots for books three and four!).  Worked on character development worksheets.

Etc., etc., etc. (said with Yul Brynner’s accent in “The King & I”.)

I had taken a brief hiatus from my French book sequel, and the prequel, because I had a dream about five cowboy ranching brothers, and they were clamoring for me to start writing their stories.  I’d hoped to enter it in a contest last year, but didn’t finish in time.  So with my Sullivans of Montana cowboy story, I wrote and wrote until I reached the point where the hero and heroine finally get together (you know what I mean). 

Then I got stuck.  In lava.  Which hardened until I couldn't write.

Ups and Downs of the Writer-ly Road by Sasha Summers @sashawrites #10thbook #milestone book

I love writing.


Nothing like seeing your ideas, the people in your head, in print. Yep, it's terrifying. Slightly nauseating.


And completely Awesome.


I'm blessed to be able to do something I enjoy. My 10th full length novel came out last month - a small accomplishment for some. Huge for others. I'm pretty proud.

But that doesn't mean it's all good stuff.

Michelle Miles: Reboots and Sequels

A weekend not so long ago, I visited my local library. I realized for the first time they had movies and music available for check-out. I was in heaven! Who KNEW? And why didn’t *I* know? And what’s really awesome is – it’s FREE! So the kid and I perused their selections we each found something to check-out.

One of them was Ghostbusters (1984). He asked if he could get it and I, of course, said SURE! I forgot how silly that movie is. It still makes me giggle. And there are tons of quotable lines throughout. Such as: