I’m
about to type THE END on my third and final book of The Tau Cetus Chronicles.
This one is called Programmed For Power, and it centers on Theus, Tau Cetus’ powerful
and intimidating premier, and Leora, the woman whose love tames him. Hopefully
I will have it finished by the end of the month, because I’ll be in New York
City for this year’s Romance Writers of America conference July 22 – 26.
But
along with the satisfaction of finishing a book, comes the anxiety of thinking
about the next one. For the past three years, I’ve been working on this
trilogy, so the writing went from police agent Jai Turner’s story to Beautiful
Doll sexbot Ginger’s story, and now to premier Theus’ story. But what do I do
next?
I
think every writer has experienced those nightmare moments of, “Crap! What if I
never have another idea for a book?!?” That’s the time wise authors take a
week or two off in order to refill their creative well. It can be as simple as
doing something mindless. Not thinking about writing at all. In fact, give
yourself permission to NOT think. Maybe you like to knit or garden or your
passion is tennis. In my case, I’m an insatiable reader, so I just might give
my brain a break for a month or so and enjoy what other authors have written. “Grey”
by EL James is on the top of my TBR pile J
And
while I’m not thinking about thinking, who knows? An idea can come from
anywhere. We all have countless areas of our lives that can inspire us or spark
a great story plot: a difficult boss, a yoga class, an annoying sister, a
school car pool, a monthly book club meeting. Can you create a composite
character from the best or worst people you know? Sometimes that’s all it takes
for your creative juices to start flowing.
In
fact, writing this is helping to ease my own anxiety about my next story. While
in New York, I’m going to see at least four different girlfriends I haven’t
seen since I moved to Florida, and that’s not counting the 2,000 people who
have signed up for the RWA conference. There must be some good stories there, right? Or maybe I’ll just walk the streets of New York in my free time and eavesdrop
on people’s conversations. You never know what might spark an idea!
Wow,
I guess the possibilities are endless. I’ll let you know next month what I come
up with!
How
about you? Any tips or tricks for jump-starting story ideas? I’d love to hear
your advice.
Jenna
