In this episode — our first “Wild Card Week” installment, co-host Terrance Zepke and I discuss “Five Places to Inspire Writers.”

For all things travel related, you must visit Terrance’s website. Over the years, she has worked in every facet of the travel industry and is the author of The Encyclopedia of Cheap Travel and several other travel guides. Her site is full of free travel reports, travel articles, and tips on places to go and how to get the best deals everywhere.

Her new book series Terrance Talks Travel is forthcoming.

She was kind enough to compile some of her expert travel tips from the podcast for website visitors.

#5 – London

London (England) is home to legendary sleuth, Sherlock Holmes (Sir Arthur Conan Doyle), Charles Dickens, Virginia Woolfe, and Geoffrey Chaucer, who was the first poet buried in Poet’s Corner in Westminster Abbey.

What Writers Might Want To Do While Visiting

221B Baker Street (Sherlock Holmes Museum),Shakespeare’s Globe Theater, Westminster Abbey, Literary London Pub Walk, Thames River Cruise, London Eye (Dr Who fans will recognize this as the transmitter for the Nestene Consciousness in the episode ‘Rose’ and may also want to do a Dr Who Walking Tour), British Library, Madame Tussauds Wax Museum (is home to lots of famous people including writers, such as Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and J.K. Rowling), and Tower of London. The Tower of London is one of the world’s most famous buildings, dating back more than 900 years. It includes the royal palace, prison, arsenal, jewel house and zoo. And outside of London is Highclere Castle (Downton Abbey), Stratford-Upon-Avon, and Stonehenge.www.visitlondon.com

Fun Trivia: The Tower of London is home to not only the Crown Jewels, but also a bevy of ravens. These six ravens (with a seventh in reserve) are believed to protect the Crown; according to superstition, if these Tower of London ravens “are lost or fly away,” The British Empire will fall.

 

#4 – Savannah, Georgia

Savannah (Georgia) is best known for author John Berendt’s novel, Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil, but other notable writers include Flannery O’Connor, Pulitzer Prize winner Conrad Aiken, Mary Kay Andrews, Beth Hoffman, songwriter Johnny Mercer, and cookbook author, Paula Deen.

What Writers Might Want To Do While Visiting

Trolley tour of Historic District where you’ll see lots of historic homes and sites, such as Mercer House, Flannery O’Connor’s house, and Bonaventure Cemetery. Other attractions include the Juliette Gordon Low Museum (Girl Scout Founder; visited by thousands of girl scouts annually), Ships of the Sea Maritime Museum, City Market, and River Street, which is home to 75 artists studios, galleries, shops, pubs, and eateries. Be sure to note all the innovative statutes and sculptures that are all over Savannah, which were created by students enrolled at the renowned Savannah College of Art and Design, whose buildings are also scattered all over Savannah. Be sure to visit Leopold’s Ice Cream Restaurant, which has been a tasty, local icon since 1935. www.visitsavannah.com

Special Events

Savannah Book Festival is a long-standing tradition and features well-known contemporary writers and workshops.

 

#3 – New Orleans

New Orleans (Louisiana) is home to many writers, including Ann Rice and William Faulkner.

What Writers Might Want To Do While Visiting

Ride a streetcar, take a ghost walk, French Quarter, St.

In this episode, Terrance and I talk about two keys to writing solid non-fiction.

While I’m currently working on my first novel, in the past, I’ve written a great deal of non-fiction, mostly based on my own historical research. One article called On the Trail of Tom, or A New Look at the Tuscarora War  was cited in The Tuscarora War, a history reference book by David LaVere, PhD. (Professor of History at UNC-Wilmington). Another non-fiction piece —  a 2006 interview with the late indigenous languages expert, Blair Rudes, who reconstructed the Algonquian language for the film The New World — will appear in the October 2014 edition of The Southern Quarterly, the literary journal of the University of Southern Mississippi.

Terrance Zepke is the published author of two dozen non-fiction books. Some of her titles include The Encyclopedia of Cheap Travel, Ghosts of the Carolina Coasts, Lighthouses of the Carolinas and A Ghost Hunter’s Guide to the Most Haunted Places in America.

Click here to subscribe to A Writer’s Journey on iTunes.

In this episode, Terrance and I talk about two keys to writing solid non-fiction.

While I’m currently working on my first novel, in the past, I’ve written a great deal of non-fiction, mostly based on my own historical research. One article called On the Trail of Tom, or A New Look at the Tuscarora War  was cited in The Tuscarora War, a history reference book by David LaVere, PhD. (Professor of History at UNC-Wilmington). Another non-fiction piece —  a 2006 interview with the late indigenous languages expert, Blair Rudes, who reconstructed the Algonquian language for the film The New World — will appear in the October 2014 edition of The Southern Quarterly, the literary journal of the University of Southern Mississippi.

Terrance Zepke is the published author of two dozen non-fiction books. Some of her titles include The Encyclopedia of Cheap Travel, Ghosts of the Carolina Coasts, Lighthouses of the Carolinas and A Ghost Hunter’s Guide to the Most Haunted Places in America.

Click here to subscribe to A Writer’s Journey on iTunes.

In episode five, co-host Terrance Zepke and I talk about the view.

No, we’re not talking about that boring TV show.  We’re talking about the view that will decide what your reader sees as he or she reads your novel.

Who gets to tell your story?

The two main ways are as first person (I) and third person (he/she). Yes, there is a second person POV (you), but it is rarely used because it is a difficult concept to successfully achieve.

So how do you decide which you should use? Should you use more than one? Can you use more than one? Listen to the show and find out.

Here are some popular examples of books written in each of the different voices, or POVs:

First Person: 

Robinson Crusoe – Daniel Defoe

The Hunger Games – Suzanne Collins

Third Person: 

Lord of the Rings – J.R.R. Tolkien

A Christmas Carol – Charles Dickens

Second Person:

Choose Your Own Adventure series – R.A. Montgomery

 

Click here to subscribe to A Writer’s Journey on iTunes.

In episode five, co-host Terrance Zepke and I talk about the view.

No, we’re not talking about that boring TV show.  We’re talking about the view that will decide what your reader sees as he or she reads your novel.

Who gets to tell your story?

The two main ways are as first person (I) and third person (he/she). Yes, there is a second person POV (you), but it is rarely used because it is a difficult concept to successfully achieve.

So how do you decide which you should use? Should you use more than one? Can you use more than one? Listen to the show and find out.

Here are some popular examples of books written in each of the different voices, or POVs:

First Person: 

Robinson Crusoe – Daniel Defoe

The Hunger Games – Suzanne Collins

Third Person: 

Lord of the Rings – J.R.R. Tolkien

A Christmas Carol – Charles Dickens

Second Person:

Choose Your Own Adventure series – R.A. Montgomery

 

Click here to subscribe to A Writer’s Journey on iTunes.

In this episode, Terrance and I talked about four key elements for making sure your novel has what it takes to be a success.

Listen to the episode, then ask yourself the following questions about your current or pending project:

* Is this plot realistic but not obvious?

* What is the conflict?

* What makes your story unique?

* What kind of response are you expecting from readers?

Some of the resources mentioned in the episode include:

Writing the Breakout Novel  by Donald Maass

On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft by Stephen King

How I Write: Secrets of a Bestselling Novel  by Janet Evanovich

Click here to subscribe to A Writer’s Journey on iTunes.

In this episode, Terrance and I talked about four key elements for making sure your novel has what it takes to be a success.

Listen to the episode, then ask yourself the following questions about your current or pending project:

* Is this plot realistic but not obvious?

* What is the conflict?

* What makes your story unique?

* What kind of response are you expecting from readers?

Some of the resources mentioned in the episode include:

Writing the Breakout Novel  by Donald Maass

On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft by Stephen King

How I Write: Secrets of a Bestselling Novel  by Janet Evanovich

Click here to subscribe to A Writer’s Journey on iTunes.

In the last couple of episodes of A Writer’s Journey: From Blank Page to Published, Terrance Zepke and I talked about Nine Ways to Write a Book. We discussed various methods for organizing your ideas before you begin writing.

Well, in this episode, IT’S GO TIME!

Let’s say you have a great idea for your book — maybe you’ve started outlining, or maybe you’re planning to pants it, but either way, you just need to get the first draft written before you worry about anything else. How can you make sure that happens?

Earlier this summer, I had an idea for a novel. I used index cards to come up with scene ideas, and then I intended to get started writing. I had been at it about a week — towards the end of June — when I saw the invitation for the #JulyWritingChallenge on Twitter.

Founded by Kristy Acevedo in hopes of using an online writing challenge to spur her on to finishing her young adult sci-fi novel over the summer, the #JulyWritingChallenge ended up turning into something much more, with a core group of members all cheering each other on as we all posted our daily word counts. Those of us who benefited from the motivation the July challenge provided became worried as the month neared its end. We wanted the challenge to keep going, so it turned out that I was nominated to lead July, and then #JulyWritingChallenge participant and published romance novelist, Samantha Garman, agreed to take September.

We now have volunteer leaders who will carry the challenge all the way through next summer. To learn more about the challenge, go here, but in the meantime, listen to this podcast where you can hear me, Kristy and Samantha talk about finishing our projects through the writing challenges, as well as other tips and tricks we’ve learned along the way.

About our guests for Episode 3

Kristy Acevedo

Founder of the monthly Twitter writing challenge, and leader of #JulyWritingChallenge (July 2014). Leader of #JanWritingChallenge (January 2015)

With over a decade of classroom experience as a high school English teacher,  Kristy Acevedo most enjoys sharing and discussing the written word with teenagers. She has her M.A.T. in English and graduated summa cum laude as both an undergraduate and graduate at Mount Holyoke College and Bridgewater State University.  A member of the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI), she actively participates in a local writing critique group.  Currently, she is editing her YA sci-fi manuscript, CONSIDER, Book One of a two-book series. She lives in Massachusetts with her husband and two daughters.

Follow her on Twitter at @kristyace.

Samantha Garman

Leader of #SeptWritingChallenge (September 2014)

Samantha Garman has a B.A.

In the last couple of episodes of A Writer’s Journey: From Blank Page to Published, Terrance Zepke and I talked about Nine Ways to Write a Book. We discussed various methods for organizing your ideas before you begin writing.

Well, in this episode, IT’S GO TIME!

Let’s say you have a great idea for your book — maybe you’ve started outlining, or maybe you’re planning to pants it, but either way, you just need to get the first draft written before you worry about anything else. How can you make sure that happens?

Earlier this summer, I had an idea for a novel. I used index cards to come up with scene ideas, and then I intended to get started writing. I had been at it about a week — towards the end of June — when I saw the invitation for the #JulyWritingChallenge on Twitter.

Founded by Kristy Acevedo in hopes of using an online writing challenge to spur her on to finishing her young adult sci-fi novel over the summer, the #JulyWritingChallenge ended up turning into something much more, with a core group of members all cheering each other on as we all posted our daily word counts. Those of us who benefited from the motivation the July challenge provided became worried as the month neared its end. We wanted the challenge to keep going, so it turned out that I was nominated to lead July, and then #JulyWritingChallenge participant and published romance novelist, Samantha Garman, agreed to take September.

We now have volunteer leaders who will carry the challenge all the way through next summer. To learn more about the challenge, go here, but in the meantime, listen to this podcast where you can hear me, Kristy and Samantha talk about finishing our projects through the writing challenges, as well as other tips and tricks we’ve learned along the way.

About our guests for Episode 3

Kristy Acevedo

Founder of the monthly Twitter writing challenge, and leader of #JulyWritingChallenge (July 2014). Leader of #JanWritingChallenge (January 2015)

With over a decade of classroom experience as a high school English teacher,  Kristy Acevedo most enjoys sharing and discussing the written word with teenagers. She has her M.A.T. in English and graduated summa cum laude as both an undergraduate and graduate at Mount Holyoke College and Bridgewater State University.  A member of the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI), she actively participates in a local writing critique group.  Currently, she is editing her YA sci-fi manuscript, CONSIDER, Book One of a two-book series. She lives in Massachusetts with her husband and two daughters.

Follow her on Twitter at @kristyace.

Samantha Garman

Leader of #SeptWritingChallenge (September 2014)

Samantha Garman has a B.A. in Playwriting from the College of Charleston. Her playwriting professor lovingly nicknamed her “a female Woody Allen” due to...

This is part two of “I Have an Idea! Nine Ways to Write a Book.”

In this episode, Terrance and I continue our conversation about the various methods for planning a novel.

To listen to part one and find links discussed in the podcast, click here. 

A couple of books mentioned in this podcast episode were:

Outlining Your Novel by K.M. Weiland

Writing the Breakout Novel by Donald Maass

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