Writing

When the Muse Hits

/ lisaemme / Leave a comment

ibook

It started with a writing prompt:

Write a sexy story that involves a tattoo.

It wasn’t much of a prompt and I was supposed to be working on the next adventure in the Harry Russo diaries, but for some reason it got the creative juices going, and the next thing I knew I was obsessing over a woman with an unwanted tattoo that would point the way to her true love.

heart tattoo yc

And so Daisy’s story was born. Harry’s latest crisis would have to wait. When the muse hits you, you just have to listen. There’s really no point fighting it. At least that’s been my experience.

I had the seed of a story, I just had to let it grow. I also had to plant it somewhere and so I chose Vancouver, a city I’ve visited, but I’m not overly familiar with. Not to worry though, that’s what Google is for. It also helped that I had a friend who used to live on the coast who let me run things by her and pick her brain. This was particularly a lifesaver when one short story grew into two and then three, as first Kimi’s then Pax’s stories demanded to be told as well. The common thread for each? A special tattoo and a hint of magic.

Want to know more? Preorder your copy of The Yacht Club and learn how these three women find their hot and steamy happily-ever-afters.

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What’s in a Name?

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Have you read Deadlocked yet? If not, you might want to skip this post because it contains a little bit of a spoiler. If you have read Harry’s latest adventure already or you don’t care if I spill the beans and tell you the name of Harry’s new business venture then read on.

coffee-shop

Still with me? Great! So, as you know, Harry is opening up a coffee shop. In Deadlocked we get to see a lot of the preparations involved and although there is definitely a bit of Brownie magic going on to help things move smoothly, Harry is hands on.

There is one point in the story where the question of what Harry is going to call the coffee shop comes up and since I’m a ‘pantser’ when it comes to writing, like Harry I was at a loss as to what to call it. And, like Harry, I just kept going, hoping I’d find inspiration. And I did…at the exact moment that Harry did. It was almost magical.

I’m sure every writer feels it at one point or another, that moment when everything just clicks and you feel totally connected to your character(s). That’s what had happened to me. I was on a roll, writing the scene, the dialogue was flowing and suddenly like a light bulb going off above our collective heads, Harry and I came up with the name for the coffee shop. It was perfect and I’m sure I could only have come up with it in that moment. If Isaac and Morris hadn’t been arguing about coffee condiments, if Isaac wasn’t the food snob he was, it wouldn’t have happened. And so, the Full Fat Coffee Company was born. If you want to know the whole story behind the name, I guess you’ll just have to read the book (if you haven’t already).

lisaemme_deadlocked_eBook_final

Deadlocked is available now on

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When the Spirit Moves You

/ lisaemme / 5 Comments

My muse is a fickle…uh, {insert not nice word that my mother would disapprove of here}. After spending the last few months learning the ropes of marketing the two books I have currently published, I have been chomping at the bit to be writing again.

muse-inspiration

How people picture a writer’s muse

The ideas are whirring around in my head and although I had originally thought Harry’s story was a trilogy, it turns out there is more to tell. The story for book four is there.  In my head. The problem is, it won’t come out, or rather, it may be ready to come out, but another idea spoke louder, or was pushier and cut in line and got out first.

 

So now I find myself writing something completely different than I intended, but don’t get me wrong, I’m not complaining (well, maybe a little).  Writing is writing and I love it. I love thinking through the scenes, plotting them in my mind, listening to my characters speak to me and writing it all down.  I love how I can close my eyes and my characters come alive.  It’s like having the best TV show ever in my head, all the time.  Of course, that can also have a downside because it’s like having the best TV show ever in my head, all the time, like at 3 AM when I should be sleeping because I have to get up and go to work at my actual paying job (you know, the one that keeps a roof over my head and my kid’s hollow leg fed) so that I can have the leisure time to write about the TV show in my head.  Whew!

It doesn’t help that I’m a night owl and I get my best work done in the evening.  I can be
dead on my femy museet at 6pm but by 9pm? I’m wide awake and my muse is tapping me on the shoulder impatiently.  I can’t deny her. When the urge to write is there, I feel compelled to listen, frantically typing out the words in my head as if it will relieve the pressure. And, maybe in a way it does.  As the ideas take form and the words hit the paper, I’m freeing up space inside my brain for more ideas to grow.

So I’ll keep writing when the muse is upon me, even if it isn’t what I intended to be writing about.  I’m just grateful to be writing and have the chance to share my words with you.