Sabrina's Blog

I've been researching a 3rd W.I.P. the past several weeks. I have my outline, I've drawn my map, assigned climates and cultures to the separate peoples, created the religions, and many, many other details that go into world building. Now I need to choose some names for the main characters. In the other two novels I am working on(books 1 and 2 of a trilogy), I used Old English, Danish, and Russian for character names. This time, some of my main characters are from a large island nation. So I am trying to decide between Egyptian  names or Indonesian. I don't necessarily match a type of culture(Middle Eastern) with the names of specific languages(Arabic) we know on Earth. So though my island might have a more Hawaiian feel, I don't want to use Hawaiian names.  If it makes no sense to you, that's alright. This is my fantasy novel and one of the little idiosyncrasies I have. *grin* So this made me wonder...How do YOU decide what types of names to use? Do you ...

I'm going to be participating in a fun new blogfest in August and thought I'd share the fun with my other writer friends who might also be interested. WHAT IF? Fairytale Madness Blogfest August 13th-17th, 2012 Have you noticed by changing one detail, one event, one character trait, one thought...you can completely alter the rest of the story? For this bloghop, we are exploring "What if?" Not only do we want it to be fun, but it will hopefully be a fun writing exercise and make for some fun reading during the hop.  For rules and to enter go here:  "WHAT IF" FAIRY TALE MADNESS BLOGFEST I have my fairy tale all picked out and plan to enter one of the following two categories.                                              How about you? Shout out if you will be joining me during this fabulous bloghop!

The hubs likes to tell people about how I used to talk in my sleep most nights until I started writing my 1st novel. These days, he can tell when I've been neglecting my writing too much, because I start talking again. The last 2 nights I have had seriously bizarre dreams. For the 1st, I had to have seen a clip of the movie, Alien3 while flipping through TV channels, because my dream starred a woman giving birth to an alien baby. I spent the entire dream wondering how in the heck she got pregnant by an alien in the first place, just like I did way back when I watched that movie. *I cringe just admitting that this was one of my dreams* The 2nd night's dream was even more bizarre, but I don't think I'll share that one because it gave me a super cool idea for a sci-fi novel I'd like to write in the future. *wink* The truth is, the reason I talk in my sleep is because I have vivid dreams. And my dreams are speaking to me, telling me one very important thing...I have...

The last few days I have been combing through site after site looking for information on pine trees in Egypt. I found so many that say there are, in fact, pine trees in Egypt, but none that give a specific name for those trees. Until, that is, I came to a blog that not only gave me 3 names for the Mediterranean Pine-Aleppo Pine-Pinus halepensis, but also told me a ton of useful information about this particular pine including what the Egyptians used it for. I tell you all of this to emphasize the importance of blogging. I have had numerous people tell me, "I don't blog because I have no idea what I would blog about." To this I say, "Bologna!" We all have some job, hobby, or interest that we know more about than most others. From parenthood, cooking, and home remedies to publishing, writing, and creating an author platform, you never know when the knowledge you take for granted may help someone. So if you have an interest in blogging, but have not done...

I opened up my blog today to respond to comments from my last couple of posts and found an award waiting for me. Thank so much, Elise Fallson , for granting me this award. I am glad you enjoy visiting my blog enough to think of me for this. If any of my friends are insect enthusiasts, I would encourage you to head on over to Elise's blog and check out her April posts in which she themed all of her A to Z challenge questions on insects and shared her incredible expertise. Here is her first insect post, A is for Apis mellifera. The rules are: 1. Name and thank the blogger. 2. List seven facts about yourself. 3) Award up to fifteen other bloggers this award. 7 Facts About Me 1. I love to dip hot, salty french fries in soft serve vanilla ice cream. Yum!  2. I am an avid scrapbooker! 3. I cannot draw to save my life, and so really admire those who can. 4. I love to hold costume themed events at my house. Me as Old Mother Hubbard for a Nursery Rhyme Themed BUNCO 5...

I cannot believe it has only been a year since I started this blog. I love blogging and feel as though I have been doing so for a very long time. I have made so many great friends on this journey and I definitely want to do something to thank you all for making me feel so welcome in this bloggy world! So I have decided to post a page from my recently submitted W.I.P. You all deserve to see what your support has helped me to create. I know that I wouldn't have a completed MS without God, my family, and all of my wonderful friends, both personal and bloggy related!  This photo was downloaded from the following site: http://www.thewallpapers.org/desktop/35191/fantasy-space-art-wallpaper Excerpt from my 1st finished novel, The Severing: Raised Under A Dark Shadow *** Ruark watched his mother in silence. Her once beautiful hair, its shimmering white a stark contrast to the blacks and browns of his father’s people, reminded him of a living pearl. Now it lay limp...

I was cleaning my son's playroom today and came across a promotional item I was given at a local wine festival last year. It was one of those little flashlights in the shape of a bottle advertising Captain Morgan Rum. (My son likes pirates...no judging!!! *sheepish-grin*) Seeing this item made me think about promotional items writers use. I know things like bookmarks, business cards, pens, or notepads are popular, but are these things worth the investment? Do they really make people want to buy your book? Also, should you put your name or the name of your book on the promo item? As I get into the submission process and start dreaming about a marketing plan (yeah, I know...roll your eyes), I find myself thinking about things like this. There are so many options. Excerpt books, lip balm, notebooks, pens, pencils, stress balls, posters, computer brushes, bookmarks, post cards, etc. So I thought I'd poll my writer friends with experience for curiosity sake since I am st...

This month marks the half-way point  of my term as President of the Oklahoma City Writers, Inc. As I prepare this week for our 1st summer workshop meeting, I must admit that I am smiling. So far I have managed to do exactly what I set out to do when I decided to take on this new endeavor. 1)I've brought new life into a group that seemed a bit tired. 2)I've reached many new writers that didn't even know this group, that has been around for almost 100 years, was here. 3)I've made so many new friends and valuable connections. 4)I've found a critique group home. And it is only half way!!!! I cannot wait to see what the 2nd half of my term brings. Hopefully a contract from the publishing house I submitted to 4 weeks ago! *wink wink* Do you belong to a writing community? If not, I would encourage you to look around. Google is an amazing tool for finding your local community. That is how I found my group! If you belong to a local group, give them a shout out an...

A Feast of Fantasy http://afeastoffantasy.tumblr.com To all fantasy fans out there, 4 other fantasy writers and myself have started a new collaborative blog project aimed at reaching you. It will feature reviews of books, games, and movies, collaborative flash fiction pieces, and examples of our own individual work. If this sounds like something you enjoy or if you know a friend who would really enjoy checking out something like this, please visit us at A Feast of Fantasy . Our first posts will be about introducing ourselves and today fellow FOF contributor and recently published author, Jessica Therrien, will be kicking off our introduction week with a bang. Leave us a comment and let us know how we are doing. We would love to hear from you.