About a month ago, I announced I had been working on some incredibly short flash fiction stories (<300 words) that I planned on entering into a contest at NANO Fiction for the 2015 NANO Prize. I submitted three stories not ten minutes ago.

“The Sun Around Angel Wings” deals with regret.

“The Incongruity” deals with fixation.

“Mr. Brock Meadows” is a faux-letter to a pest control worker.

I am incredibly proud of these stories. I wish I could share them with you, but posting them on here would jeopardize future publication.

Thank you all who have supported me!

Hello everyone! Today I just wanted to drop by and list a couple of my favorite books. Most of these I read while in either high school or college (maybe you read them too!). I just wanted to share.

The Beginner’s Goodbye by Anne Tyler

The first one on my list is one I read in a college class. We read something like 10 books in there, and this one was everyone’s favorite–probably because of its comparative short length. Besides that, it follows a man who suddenly loses his wife in an accident. The story is touching, yet the characters are quirky. Tyler’s solid and brief prose illustrates the poignant emotional journey for the characters. Also, there is a character with “Rust” as a last name, so there’s a definite plus for me.

Slaughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut

Probably Vonnegut’s most famous novel, Slaughterhouse-Five follows Billy Pilgrim as he has become displaced in time and space. Pilgrim survives the bombing of Dresden in World War II. This semi-autobiographical story combines sci-fi, war, and Vonnegut’s signature dark humor. This book made me a Vonnegut fan. So it goes.

The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood

It seems that every list featuring anyone’s favorite books must have at least one dystopian novel. This list is no exception. It is set in a future in which women have no rights under a theocratic, far-right Christian regime where fertility rates are horrendously low. Offred, the book’s protagonist, is one of only a few women who can bear children in this oppressive society. Always a must-read for me. Now where is my copy…?

What Was She Thinking? [Notes on a Scandal] by Zoe Heller

Oh… this book is good. Barbara, a schoolteacher, becomes obsessed with a colleague after she has an affair with one of her students. Heller brilliantly manipulates the reader’s emotions in this thriller. The final few lines never fails to send chills down my spine.  Go forth and get a copy for yourself!

Superman: Red Son by Mark Millar (and several illustrators)

*gasp* A graphic novel/comic book graces my list? That’s right. One of my favorite comic books ever, Superman: Red Son tells the story of an alternate universe in which Superman didn’t arrive in Smallville, Kansas, but in the Soviet Union. The story features other alternative takes on other iconic characters like Batman, Wonder Woman, Lex Luthor, and the Green Lanterns. The art is magnificent and the story is even better. If you like comics, or are willing to give them a chance, please give Superman: Red Son a try.

Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn

You’ve probably seen the movie, but have you read the book it’s based on? If you haven’t, you really need to read the book. I’m not saying the movie is a bad adaptation (in fact, I would say it is one of the best book-to-movie adaptations I have seen), but reading the book is great experience. I have already blogged about the novel here, so go and check out that post and then get the book after that!

Thank you for reading my list of favorite books. These are only a few of them, but they are at the top of my favorites list. Please take time to read some of them if you get a chance. If you have any comments, please don’t hesitate.

Later.

I often think to myself, “what inspires me as a writer?”

I lie in bed and stare out the bedroom window at my neighbor’s trees. I wait for inspiration to arrive, perhaps at my doorstep on the back of a bird or the wings of the yellowjackets buzzing around my window. I sit at my computer, pull up Google docs, and wait patiently for nearly an hour. I have typed nothing.

I blame it on “Writer’s Block.” Or on fatigue, then I stroll to my kitchen and grab myself a Dr Pepper (I don’t drink coffee). I return to my computer, half-hoping that my next great short story or novel was written by magical elves or fairies (or orcs) in my absence. My much anticipated burst of inspiration never arrives, and as a result, I don’t write much or nothing at all.

Big mistake. As a writer, one thing every other writer tells you to do is to write everyday. It doesn’t really matter what you write, as long as you write. You could type an entry into a daily journal, or put work in a story on a daily basis. Or you could blog. Writers have plenty of options and opportunities to write everyday.

Writing everyday is not just a slogan tattooed in the minds of writers. It is something writers must do. It’s in the job description. At first glance, writing daily appears to be an exercise meant to improve your writing skills (it does, but it is only one of its many purposes). It also allows to writer to express him-or-herself creatively. Writers write to make progress on their works as well.

But the most important reason writers write everyday is that it instills discipline in the writer. Discipline in any field is important for success.

I think the real reason older, more experienced writers tell emerging ones to write everyday is because they have learned that one cannot, and must not, rely on bursts of inspiration to work. Do things happen to the writer that inspires them to write a full story? Sure. I was inspired to write “Four Firewoods” after hearing a pecan fall in a mound of leaves outside my window. But that sudden onset of inspiration does not come all that often. One cannot waste time waiting for inspiration to come along. So I, like many other writers before me, learned that the hard way.

Discipline is more reliable than inspiration.