In the winter of 2013, my character, Becca, came to me with her story of loss and confusion. I had too many big ideas, not well hashed out characters, a bad setting, and a plot that didn't exactly fit together. None of it mattered. I felt the urge to write in a way I hadn't … Continue reading becoming a student

When I blogged on Friday, I sat in my favorite cafe, drinking a delicious coffee, eating wonderful pastries. The weather outside felt spring-like, warm, sunny, full of life. There were people out, milling around the small town, going in and out of shops. My partner sat across the table from me, reading, journaling, making me … Continue reading living the drama

Yesterday, I shared my struggle with my fiction writing over the last two years. This draining of creative energy, falling apart of my personal life, rebuilding a new life. There have been months of ebb and flow, a tearing away of the old. I dismantled how I had lived my life; I inspected the pieces, … Continue reading pictures, characters, names

I'm edging close to two years since my last post on this blog, A.R. Stanley's Musings. That feels almost unbelievable to me. If I'm honest, when I looked up the last date, I thought it had been close to 1 year, then I remembered it is 2021. We've made it past 2020, which means it … Continue reading coming back after two years

My writing routine consists of a lot of coffee. It feels cliché, hot beverage, empty room, writer or artist creating all the things. But it's just part of it. You know? There's something about getting the right beverage that just begins to set the stage. Finding the Groove I love hiding away in my studio … Continue reading My Writing Routine

When I was little, we had this kid record player and one of the records we had was The Hobbit. I remember listening to it a lot. I loved fantasy and adventures and mythical creatures. Finding My Voice In the '90s a TV mini-series of Merlin aired with Sam Neill playing Merlin. I'm embarrassed to … Continue reading My Writing Genre

Do you have a designated area that's for writing or doing art? This is my desk in my studio. I had to face the window. Had to. I love looking out at my backyard all year long. It isn't really about the space I've moved around the house with my writing and creativity. I started … Continue reading My Writing Space

I am not sure if this is my favorite motivational quote of all time, but it is for sure a favorite, perhaps even a mantra of this year. This year I started a Pinterest board for my word of the year, Process, and a board for the year in a more general sense. When I … Continue reading Favorite Motivational Quote

It keeps me sane. That feels like the easy answer. Maybe it isn't the 'easy' answer but the answer a lot of people might say. Why is that? What about writing draws the writer back time and time again? Keeping my sanity while I bleed on the page Have you heard the quote from Red … Continue reading The Reason I Write

I talked a little in my last post about how self-promotion took me about a year to figure out. I am not saying I am perfect at it either, I am always learning from the experience. The other piece of this self-publishing writing journey I am learning about this year is business. Selling books When … Continue reading Business Mind