Wednesday, February 5, 2020

My February IWSG post and a Photograph that Inspired Me


I have deliberately slowed down the pace of my writing in the last few days. In the middle of January I managed to meet my deadline and submitted my manuscripts to my editor and now comes the waiting game. Waiting isn’t easy. But that’s life. In the meanwhile I’ll catch up on my reading, until the revision notes pour in.

Then I realized that it was time for another IWSG. January just flew away like a bird. But I’m glad that I wrote a lot in the first two weeks of the month, but after that it was nil writing. Its Sunday night here in India and I’m scheduling my IWSG post, well in advance. How is that for being organized?

IWSG (Insecure Writers Support Group) is an online group of writers posting on the first Wednesday of the month. Our writing posts usually hover around our writing insecurities and worries and more often than not other writers help us out with their words of advice.

Though I have only met one writer Elizabeth Vardan, when she visited India a few years back, I feel like I know many of these IWSG writers personally, especially Alex J Cavanaugh, who started this wonderful group. Don’t know why I feel a connection with Alex and few other writers, like they are my close friends. Alex Cavanaugh is the author of several bestsellers: CassaStar, CassaStorm, CassaFire and Dragon of the Stars. A warm-hearted human, helpful and kind, he is universally loved, though none of us have even seen his picture. That’s because he is shy.

February 5 question - Has a single photo or work of art ever inspired a story? What was it and did you finish it?

In my case it would be a big YES. Many years back I saw the picture of a dog online and that picture inspired a middle grade novel. Though I did submit it to a couple of agents, it didn’t work out. I hope to revise it in a few weeks and start submitting it.

What about you all? Has a photo or work of art inspired a story or a book?