Every story begins somewhere; every writer finds their inspiration in a different place. We might all begin in the same place — with the same phrase or picture or idea — but each story by each of a thousand writers will be unique and individual. Some writers are inspired by history, others by the future. Some writers are inspired by writers who have come before them, wanting to follow in the footsteps of their heroes.

Where to begin? Who? Why? What?

For me, it's all about that tiny flicker of a lighter in the darkness of an auditorium. It's always one tiny thing. I don't have a big idea. I never say I'm going to write a book about…anything. I never think, wow, what a great piece of history and I really want to tell that story. I never write an outline or figure out a plot or begin with a couple who need to get together.

When I look back at the dozens of stories, the hundreds of poems, the novels and novellas, I realize that every single one of them has started in a similar way.

What turns my mind to story is a phrase, a title, a single word, a quick glimpse out the car. It's a nugget, a quick flash of gold in a stream, a sentence heard in passing. It might be a piece of graffiti, a small part of a quote or a story. I've written a novel because of a phrase I read in The New Yorker; a series of stories based on a piece of graffiti on a city wall; another book because of the 30 second glimpse of an abandoned drive-in outside a bus window.

The year I spent $10,000 on a dead dog.

A friend used this phrase the other day and I've been carrying it around in my head ever since, knowing that it will stick with me until I begin the story. I have absolutely no idea what the story will be, don't know if it will be a short story or a novel. I don't know if that sentence will even end up in the story — often it doesn't. Or it starts the story and then gets cut as I get further into the writing of it.

Why does this happen? I think, though I really can't be certain, that the thing that grabs me by the throat is a feeling. I can't tell you what that feeling is, can't be as clear as sorrow or joy or fear, but it keeps me writing until I reach the end. And then the thing that got me there may or may not belong in the story I've written.

The series of ten linked stories I'm writing right now began with a brief mention on the radio of Stevie Wonder. I started singing Part Time Lovers — don't ask me why that song because my favorite is I Just Called to Say I Love You — and voila! Ten stories, 80,000 words, all from that single title.

Inspiration is as individual as a snowflake and what works for me probably won't work for you. For me, I just try to respect that process, try to pay attention to the singularity of the moment when that phrase or glimpse passes by. Because I don't ever want to miss one of them — they're miracles.

About Josée Renard:

Josée Renard writes women's fiction, magic realism, paranormal and erotica. She writes short fiction, poetry and novels. Josée blames her good friend Anna Leigh Keaton for getting her into writing erotica — she loves Anna Leigh's books and wanted to try one herself — now she can't stop. She blames her mother and her two grandmothers for her reading and writing obsession — all of them were avid readers, and they passed the books and the obsession on to her.

She also writes women's fiction as Kate Austin. You can check out her alter ego at www.kateaustin.ca.

Josée has generously agreed to give away one e-copy of Treat Myself. Comment to win. The winner will be drawn on September 12th. (open international)

Occasionally, I am found in WriteChat, writing my pretty little head off during challenges. After twenty minutes, we all share our word count, and mine are, most of the time, in the 700-1000 word area. Yes, you've read correctly. Though I'm definitely not the only writer out there who writes at the speed of light, I'm one of the few. So, how do I do it?

Throughout my MA writing program at Johns Hopkins University, our professors always told us in workshop that you should “keep writing” and “don't go back until you are finished.” If I had a dollar for every time those two pieces of advice were given, I would have been rich by the end of the program. But, it's true.

There are a few different types of writers: the “oh-my-god-my-sentence-is-not-perfect” writer, the “is-this-word-good-enough” writer, the “chapter's-done-time-to-revise-it” writer, and then there's the “I'm-gonna-keep-writing-until-my-manuscript-is-finished” writer. Trust me, and you know, there are a who lot more types, and you may be looking at these four and thinking to yourself that you fit in more than one category, and that is okay! In fact, I'm not saying it's not okay to be any of these things, but I am saying that if you try to be the last one, you'll start to write faster and more efficiently.

Get your words down. Your sentences can be perfect later. You can substitute words as you go through your first pass. Your chapter is going to be there when you finish your manuscript, I promise. All of these things can wait. When we interrupt the creative process, it's like sticking a fork in a blender. Every time you stop your writing to look back or revise, you are seriously screwing up your blender. Why not let the blender run a little while, and you can go back and add some goodies to it and walk away with a banging milkshake?

Let's face it. Everyone loves a milkshake.

But, in all seriousness, the next time you sit down and write, set a timer for yourself and write ALL THE WAY THROUGH the timer without going back, without stopping to use the synonym-finder in your word program, without having to get up and grab a snack, feed the husband (or wife!), or anything. Just write. Try doing this in twenty minute spurts and compare it to how much you normally write in a day. I bet you that you'll churn out more words, and on top of that, every time you do this exercise, you'll get better at it and not everything you write down will be crap.

There are programs out there that challenge you in this way, and I look at them as being the weights on our workout machine. Write or Die, for instance, is this annoying little program that blares out annoying little sounds when your writing slows down, or you stop for too long. You can set the time and write, write, write and keep ahead of the clock, unless you like the sound of a million babies crying over screeching violins. This will not only break your habit of stopping in the middle of your writing, but it forces you to keep going forward, and the more you move forward, the more words you are getting down on the page, just like the more weight you put on your machine, the easier it will get to lift them after doing it over and over again.

Me, personally, I prefer the Write Chat method, where you can come in and chat with other writers (most are romance writers, but don't let that stop you if you are writing something else), participate in the 20-25 minute challenges, and share little blurbs of what you wrote. I find it to be an extremely rewarding experience, to sit down, write something, and then get some feedback on it right there and then.

I wish you luck in your writing, and I sincerely hope that you try some writing sprints to get yourself in writing shape. Set a word count goal for yourself and see if you can't raise that by the end of the week after using these methods to “keep writing” and not “go back until you are finished.”

Leia Rice is a historical fiction and YA writer from Baltimore, MD. She lives with her wonderful husband, her rambunctious puppy, and her annoying lovebird who won't shut up, even when she's writing. Leia holds her M.A. in writing from the Johns Hopkins University and is currently published with Harlequin.

Her current book out is her Spice Brief titled The Queen's Consort.

Recently, Hero Material and I were discussing what success was. What do you need to achieve it and how do you define it?

He said he heard a podcast with someone who basically said the following (paraphrased):

If you interview very successful business people about what you need to be successful, they say, “Some money (to fund your venture), good employees / people, experience, a good product, good service, hard work.”

If you interview a group of new college grads on the same topic, they too say, “Money to fund your business, good employees / people, experience, a good product / service, hard work.”

If you interview a group of high school kids, they too say, “Money, good workers, a good product, good service, hard work.” (They didn't put much emphasis on experience.)

After the survey, the podcaster decided that basically, everyone knows what it takes to be successful. You don't need a fancy MBA to figure it out. And yet, most people are not successful.

So he said success is “the uncommon application of common knowledge”. Interesting, no?

I'll post a follow-up on this in a week or two.

August is probably the hottest month where I am. It's muggy and scorching. That doesn't mean I get to rest. :-)

I turned in edits on The Last Slayer on July 28th. I need to wait on my editor's feedback. I'm really hoping we get done w/ the final round (copyediting) by the end of August.

On a somewhat related note — on July 23rd I started the 500 Words a Day challenge. I have over 4,500 words written on the sequel to The Last Slayer, even though I've been writing no more than 650 words a day. As a matter of fact, my daily word count ranges between 509 and 636. Something I realized through the process is that I don't have to write a lot. I just have to write some to get the momentum going.

I plan to continue with it in August. If all goes as planned, I'll be done with the sequel by the end of the year, if not sooner.

Here's a non-Slayer related news item: Bettie Sharpe and Stella from Ex Libris gave five-star reviews to Carnal Secrets and A Happily Ever After of Her Own, respectively. Bettie's review is found here and Stella's is on her blog. :)

I also signed up for Kindlegraph. You can view my profile here and request digital inscriptions for any Nadia Lee titles you have on Kindle.

Finally, I'll leave you with the latest picture of the Boy. So many people have asked about a new picture, so here it is. (He's over 12 pounds now…!)

Hope you all have a fabulous August!

I just started the 500 Words a Day Challenge that runs from July 23 until the end of the year. A few writers are doing 1,000 words a day, and I wish I could do that, too. But with the Boy and all, I don't want to commit to writing 1,000 words when I'm not sure I can meet the goal. There are days when he's a perfect angel, but there are also days when he is just impossible to please or creates lots of work. For example, on Saturday he was responsible for creating three loads of urgent laundry. (I never thought a human being that weighs only twelve pounds could do that!)

I suppose I could take time off until the end of the year, but I'm afraid that I might get rusty. I can't speak for others, but for me writing is like playing the piano. The more I write, the better I become.

500 words is doable if I manage what free time I have carefully. If I must, I can stay up after the Boy has fallen asleep at night (he doesn't sleep much during the day). 500 words seems so much more manageable than 1,000 words, and the psychological effect can make me knock out those words even though I'm tired.

It may not seem like a lot to those who are really prolific, but if I write at least 500 words a day until December 31, I'll have 81,000 words written. And that's a novel.

The winner of Confessions of an Improper Bride by Jennifer Haymore is Tia (le********@ya***.com). As my newsletter subscriber, she had two automatic entries to the giveaway.

Congratulations, Tia! Please check your email for information on how to claim your prize. :)