Cold

I don't know anyone who has not fallen under the spell of the moon at one time or another. We stand under the full moon, gazing up into her face, letting her cold, blue light wash over us. We dream, we yearn, we make wishes. We stay up to photograph supermoons, like many of us did last week when a pink supermoon appeared in our skies. Every creative person I know believes in muses of some sort, or has talismans they use to inspire them, summon ideas. For me, that muse has always been the moon. And in this episode of Cold, we talk about the magic of the moon, and the very process of harnessing that magic and deploying it in our creative lives. In the spirit of moon magic, I'm also offering Cold listeners a chance to get a promo code to listen to "Savage Island," the teaser novel to my "Breath" series for FREE on Audible. I'm giving away ten of these promo codes to you all, so please get in touch via 

Twitter (@vicdougherty) 

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/victoriadougherty.author/

Instagram: victoria_dougherty

My website: https://victoriadoughertybooks.com/contact-us/

Just say, "Hit me up, woman, I want to listen to Savage Island!" and if you're one of the first ten, your wish is my command.

This episode is also available as a blog post: https://victoriadougherty.wordpress.com/2019/09/05/under-the-spell-of-the-moon-on-savage-island/

This week in the Cold, we're talking about what a bad writing day is really like. We've all had them. Days when none of our usual tricks work. We can't go for a walk to reboot - the weather is crap, no amount of research or internet surfing is delivering that spark of inspiration, the words trip out onto the page like bad dancers. But there's a method to the madness, and there are ways we can turn these terribly, awful, no good, very bad days into something we can use. This episode is also available as a blog post: https://victoriadougherty.wordpress.com/2020/08/14/bad-writing-day-in-all-its-mundane-glory/

This week in the Cold, we're talking about the noble art of writing way outside of our experience. "Write what you know" is not bad advice for a beginning writer. It gives us a place to start that's familiar and tangible. But it's incomplete, because a crucial part of the magic of writing fiction, or non fiction for that matter, is in discovery. Imagination is the fairy dust that makes our stories come alive, and walking in the shoes of a being that may be nothing like us, in a culture that is as alien as a distant planet, is not only the stuff of great fantasy, but it is the foundation of compassion. This episode is also available as a blog post: https://victoriadougherty.wordpress.com/2018/06/15/writing-what-you-dont-know/

This week in the Cold, we talk about beauty. The way it shapes how we view the world and how it can alter our perceptions for good or ill. The role beauty plays in how we write or interpret a story and its characters is crucial and infinite. Because beauty is about so much more than a pretty face or a hot body. In great stories, we use it to inspire empathy, to foment passion, to find the weakness in another human being and use it to destroy them. It is truly an awesome tool. This episode is also available as a blog post: https://victoriadougherty.wordpress.com/2016/08/29/the-eye-of-the-beholder/

Whether we wander in our backyards or neighborhoods, or wander all over the world, wandering is an important prerequisite for any creative person. It juices us, opens the doors to the made-up worlds that we build and inhabit when it all gets to be too much. Wherever and however we wander, wandering enriches our lives in ways we can rarely predict. And we rarely regret that we ever embarked on the journey. So, please come wandering with me today...

This episode is also available as a blog post: https://victoriadougherty.wordpress.com/2020/11/12/wandering/

Last time in the Cold, we talked about where we write and how the places where we compose our stories help us create worlds that a reader can experience with all of their senses. How our various talismans - photos, artifacts, books, furniture - discipline and inspire us. Today, we're looking at place a little bit differently. We're pondering the places we write about and how they can serve as the anchors of our stories. And I tell you about a very specific place that inspired me to write my first novel. It's a sacred place of mystery, love, and even horror. It's called The Bone Church, and once you hear about it, you'll be dying to go there.

This episode is also available as a blog post: https://victoriadougherty.wordpress.com/2014/04/15/the-bone-church-real-and-imagined/

Today in the Cold, we're talking about how the spaces we occupy when we endeavor to write or create affect our work, and inspire our imaginations. Place is very important to me. I like to surround myself with talismans, artifacts, and photos that help me build my fictional universes from the ground up. That's why I'm going to give you a tour of my home office - where I love to create. Some of the things I've got in there might surprise and delight you, while others might make you queasy or uncomfortable. Either way, come have a seat in my home office...the coffee is good and so is the conversation. 

This episode is also available as a blog post: https://victoriadougherty.wordpress.com/2014/06/03/my-life-in-a-9-by-9-foot-cell/

I'm Victoria Dougherty, fiction and essay writer, blogger, collector of family lore. And I want to welcome you into the Cold.

Cold is the way revenge is best served; the way a war was fought; the way a story should be told. It's a forum for people who love great stories. Ones that are real, made up, and everything in between. The kind that make you take a sharp inhale of breath and dig-your-fingernails-into-the-sofa. Time-old tales of lovers, killers, curses, and destinies. 

So pour a plum brandy, tip your hat, pull your raincoat shut, and light a fire. It'll be the best ten minutes of your day.

This episode is also available as a blog post: https://victoriadougherty.wordpress.com/2012/11/27/baby-its-cold-outside/