Guest Post: Amy Sparling on Writer’s Block + Giveaway

Today I’m pleased to hand the blog over to author, Amy Sparling as part of Phantom Summer Blog Tour hosted by Dianne of Oops! I Read A Book Again! Amy will discuss a little about on how she conquer writer’s Block. She’s also generously offering up a $50 Amazon GC and a signed copy of her novel Phantom Summer below, so make sure to check that one out. Welcome to Blackplume Amy!

Amy Sparling on Writers Block

I was excited when Maricar offered the topic “Writing through writer’s block” as an option for my guest post. I know what you’re probably thinking: Writers Block is sooooooo over-written about, over-talked about, over-advised about. I know, I know, it is. But mine’s different. And I’ve been waiting for an opportunity to talk about it.

The common image people think of when faced with the term Writer’s Block is that of a frazzled writer, sitting at the computer with a frustrated look on their face as they spend hours staring at the blinking curser, wishing they could think of the words to write.

This is SO not the case with me. I have never once sat down and not had any words to write. At any given time, I have a dozen stories swirling about my head, begging to be transformed from an intangible brain-mush into physical words on paper. My form of writer’s block is different.
My block is emotional, not mental.

I’ve been writing seriously since 2008 and it didn’t take me long to notice a pattern with my writing style: If I’m not happy, I’m not writing. The sad and pathetic fact is that any lapse in my mental happiness will send me into a hardcore mental block that will not allow me to write a single word. It doesn’t matter how excited I am about a story, or how well-outlined and detailed my plot is—if I get in an argument with a loved one, or my car gets a flat tire, or my boss yells at me, welp you can forget it. I won’t be writing a single word.

When these things happen, I can’t just suck it up and get over it. I have to make myself happy again. When I’m happy, the words flow out of my fingers like… well, like how something flows out of something else. How’s that for a writerly metaphor?

Here are a list of tried and true things that will take me out of my grumpy mood and into a happy, writing-friendly one:

• Walk the dog
• Go for a run
• Any sort of exercise – the harder, the better
• Grab a Harry Potter book and read a few chapters aloud to my daughter
• Bitch about it to my man until he offers to take us somewhere fun
• Eat obscene amounts of junk food until the emotional pain has been drowned in calories

Whatever I do, I don’t write. Because anything I write while upset will always turn out to be a horrible mess of words that shouldn’t represent me as an author.

If you suffer from the same sort of Writer’s Block as me, remember this: Don’t stress about the words. Write the words when you’re happy again and you’ll be grateful you didn’t force yourself to write when you weren’t ready.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Amy Sparling is a native Texan with a fear of cold weather and a coffee addiction that probably needs an intervention. She loves books, sarcasm, nail polish and paid holidays. She lives near the beach with her daughter, one spoiled rotten puppy and a cat who is most likely plotting to take over the world. Amy Sparling is a pen name for YA author Cheyanne Young.

Find Amy 

Website | Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads

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ABOUT THE BOOK

Title: Phantom Summer

Author: Amy Sparling

Publisher: 336Love

Date of Publication: September 5, 2013

Genre: contemporary YA with ghosts

Book links: Amazon | B&N | Goodreads

Seventeen-year-old Taylor Gray moves to Sterling Island to get over her dead boyfriend. Mom’s cool with letting her crash on the couch, but Taylor needs to get a job before the lights are cut off again.

 

When the tall, dark and crazy Raine Tsunami offers her a position at his thriving ghost tour business, she figures it’s an easy way to make some cash. Taylor isn’t afraid of ghosts–that crap is as fake as her mom’s boob job. She loves their adventures on the historic island, especially the secret places he shows her when the crowds go home. So what if all the ghost stories are just legends?

 

When Taylor comes face to face with a ghost and Raine crosses the line between friend and boyfriend–Taylor’s new life collides with her haunted past. If murdered people end up as ghosts, then that someone she was trying to forget is probably watching her.

The Giveaway:

The giveaway is provided by the author.

What’s up for Grabs?

•  $50 Amazon Gift Card and
• SIGNED paperback of PHANTOM SUMMER

The Rules:

• Open to ALL / International

To enter fill out this form

Good Luck!