Tamara Narayan, Author
"Everything I do, I rush through, to do something else"-Stephen Dobyns
Wednesday, March 3, 2021
March IWSG, 2021
Wednesday, February 3, 2021
February IWSG 2021
This month's optional question is about blogging and friendships. There are many wonderful bloggers I've been in contact with over the years, but my brain is locked in other areas, so I will skip it this month.
Today I'm wondering: How long can you be on a writing hiatus and still consider yourself a writer?
When I first started writing, my girls were three and one years old. The three-year-old went to a preschool in the morning and my husband took my one-year-old on two-hour shopping trips twice a week so I could write. What a guy.
I used that time wisely and cranked out a first draft (what a mess) in a matter of months. Later, when the kids were in grade school (and rode the bus!!!), I might have seven hours to write, five days a week. What a windfall. Those were the golden years and I should have appreciated them more.
Then came middle school and the bus became the ninth circle of hell, apparently. My time started to dwindle as evening time started to shift to more and more homework help.
Skip ahead to today. High School. Pandemic. Hybrid schedule with in-person classes only two days a week. I've come full circle, and yet that is not true. I haven't been using those precious, quiet hours to write. Yesterday, I spent them drafting a study guide for AP Chemistry, Unit Four on Lewis Dot Structures, Lattice Energy, and Bond Enthalpies. Not quite as exciting as writing fiction, let me tell you.
But I'm a former professor who loves her kids and will do anything I can to help them through this current state of educational chaos.
Am I still a writer?
Are you?
Wednesday, December 2, 2020
December 2020 IWSG
Wednesday, November 4, 2020
November IWSG 2020
This month's optional question: Why do you write what you write?
I have loved books for so many years. They seem to cure so many maladies, including boredom and loneliness. They inspire. They educate. Books are magical.
I wanted to know if I could create a story comparable to the stories that made a big impression on me or the ones that made me think and see something from another point of view. I wanted to know if I could create something magical. Something a reader could get lost in.
This lead to stories where, hopefully, the characters seemed like real people and the situations were full of tension and surprises.
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I skipped last month's IWSG blog hop because the Tuesday before, I did something all newly-minted, 50-year-olds (or rather, 45-year-olds nowadays) should do: I got my first colonoscopy.
Man, I was dreading this test for years, not because of the procedure itself, but because of the prep. And not the drinking the bad stuff either (although Suprep tasted like sea water with a squirt of cherry piss and that's being generous).
My greatest fear was the day of fasting. I've never fasted more than 12 hours and I don't skip meals. I was afraid of getting the mother of all headaches and completely falling apart.
And like all fears, once I'd gotten through it, it wasn't as bad as I thought. Did I get a bad headache? Yes. But that's from working all day with one of my daughters on her schoolwork. Six hours of screen time without food will do that to a person. Did I have a minor freakout when I realized my Tylenol was coated in bright red, the forbidden color you absolutely can't have on the day before a colonoscopy?
Oh, yeah.
So, I tried to make due with some years out-of-date white Tylenol that really didn't help much. You want to know the other forbidden color? Purple. I remembered this just as I was swishing the awful taste of Suprep away with my mouthwash and realized mid-swish that IT WAS PURPLE! Oh, calamity!
Well, at least I didn't accidentally scarf down a bunch of chocolate-chip cookies or anything. The only item close to food that you're allowed on fast day is Jello. I mixed up 4 batches of the stuff and learned some important things. First, you really need boiling hot water to dissolve the stuff properly. Otherwise, it turns out grainy. Second, blue raspberry jello isn't that great. Orange is the best flavor, then lime, then lemon. Skip the blue.
Another thing you can eat drink the day before is chicken broth. I read somewhere that you should treat yourself to an expensive brand of broth. Don't. The expensive brand I picked (Pacific) tasted like somebody scraped the burnt parts off a grill and mixed it with water. Hurl. Just go with a brand you know and you will be much happier.
When I finally got home and could eat, I scarfed down all the chocolate-chip cookies in the house and slept for three hours. What a day.
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Anything you've been dreading?
Wednesday, September 30, 2020
Chrys Fey Frozen Crimes Blog Hop
Hop around to the other participants to read their answers: Frozen Crimes Blog Hop
When disasters strike around every corner, is it possible to have a happily-ever-after?
BLURB: Beth and Donovan are expecting their first child. Life couldn’t get any better…until a stalker makes his presence known. This person sends disturbing messages and unsettling items, but it isn’t long before his menacing goes too far.
Hoping for a peaceful Christmas, Donovan takes Beth to Michigan. Days into their trip, a winter storm named Nemesis moves in with the goal of burying the state. Snowdrifts surround their house, and the temperature drops below freezing.
Except, the storm isn’t the only nemesis they must face. Everyone’s lives are at stake—especially that of their unborn child. Will they survive, or will they become a frozen crime?
BUY LINKS: Amazon / Barnes & Noble / iTunes
EXCERPT:
The crunch of the shovel pounding into the snow and ice filled his ears. It was all he could hear. The rest of the street was silent beneath its wintry blanket. Breathing was difficult with the icy air clogging his lungs. His nose burned. His throat was dry and on fire. But he ignored it, focusing on his task.
Crack, crack, crack.
He jabbed the shovel into a hunk of snow. On the third hit, it shattered into several pieces. He scooped them up and flung them to the side. He surveyed what remained. There was one big ball in the middle of the path that needed to be dealt with next. He moved over to it and struck it. That one impact had it severing in two. He was about to hit it again when something crashed into the back of his head.
Explosions of white light danced over his vision. Pain enveloped his skull.
The shovel slipped from his fingers. Blackness cloaked his mind, coaxing him into its depths.
Beth. Her name was a whisper in his head, as if his thoughts were being sucked into a wormhole.
His legs collapsed under his weight.
Cold. It seeped into him, consuming him. And then his consciousness fled down that same void that ate his thoughts.
***HUGE DISASTER CRIMES GIVEAWAY***
Prizes: 4 eBooks (Disaster Crimes 1-4: Hurricane Crimes, Seismic Crimes, Tsunami Crimes, Flaming Crimes) + Girl Boss Magnets (4), Inflatable Cup Holder (1), Adventure Fuel To-Go Cups (2), Anchor Fashion Scarf (1), Mermaid Nail Clippers (2), Citrus and Sea Salt Scented Candle (1), Snowflake Handmade Bookmark (1), Insulated Cooler Bag (1)
Eligibility: International
Number of Winners: One
Giveaway Ends: October 30, 2020 12:00am EST
LINK: http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/76132e0221/?
***FREE EXCLUSIVE EBOOK***
To get the exclusive prequel to the Disaster Crimes series, sign up for Chrys’ newsletter. By signing up, you agree to receive Chrys Fey’s newsletter. After you confirm subscription, you will receive an email (so check your inbox and spam folder) with directions on where to snag your eBook copy of THE CRIME BEFORE THE STORM.
Click here to sign up and get The Crime Before the Storm FREE!
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Chrys Fey is author of the Disaster Crimes Series, a unique concept that blends disasters, crimes, and romance. She runs the Insecure Writer’s Support Group Book Club on Goodreads and edits for Dancing Lemur Press. https://www.chrysfey.com
Author Links:
Website / Blog / Goodreads / Facebook / Twitter / Amazon
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Have you ever experienced a blizzard? Which of my three picks above appeals the most to you?
Wednesday, September 2, 2020
IWSG September 2020
Image: The Wizard |
Image: sdobie What I'm currently rereading. |
Wednesday, August 5, 2020
IWSG and Keep Writing With Fey Blog Hops
Catch the sparks you need to conquer writer’s block, depression, and burnout!
When Chrys Fey shared her story about depression and burnout, it struck a chord with other writers. That put into perspective for her how desperate writers are to hear they aren’t alone. Many creative types experience these challenges, battling to recover. Let Keep Writing with Fey: Sparks to Defeat Writer's Block, Depression, and Burnout guide you through:
· Writer's block
· Depression
· Writer's burnout
· What a writer doesn’t need to succeed
· Finding creativity boosts
With these sparks, you can begin your journey of rediscovering your creativity and get back to what you love - writing.
BOOK LINKS:
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Chrys Fey is the author of Write with Fey: 10 Sparks to Guide You from Idea to Publication. She is also the author of the Disaster Crimes series. Visit her blog, Write with Fey, for more tips on how to reverse writer’s burnout. https://www.chrysfey.com/
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Has burnout/writer's block been a problem for you?