Good Day!
Today I have Jenn Sterling here to tell us a little about how she came to begin her writing career. Dreams are amazing things...I often finish off a chapter by dreaming the answer and I'm told it is a natural phenomena. So over to our dream queen Jenn...
First off, I want to say Thanks to Faith for having me here! So… thanks faith!
My name is Jenn, but I go by J. on my books. I write Young Adult fiction and my first book, In Dreams is out now.
The idea for this particular book came from an actual dream I had one night. The opening chapter of the book IS a part of that dream (guy included). It’s been a really interesting experience seeing how people react to this story. There are so many pieces of reality scattered throughout this book- that it blows my mind sometimes at the things people insist couldn’t be true. If they only knew. ;)
When I first set out to write In Dreams, I honestly thought that was the only book idea I had floating around in my head. I used to say, “Who writes only ONE book?” and then I’d laugh. But the most amazing thing happened once I started actually writing. I found that I had a lot of ideas!!! I mean, A LOT! It was like I opened some sort of floodgate into an area of myself I didn’t know was there. Don’t get me wrong- I always liked to write and I’m a fairly creative person, but In Dreams was the first time I’d ever attempted to write an entire novel. I wasn’t certain I could even do it. And I definitely didn’t start writing with the intention of having a follow up book. Or any other books.
It’s funny how things change. How we grow when we allow ourselves to.
As for my writing style, it’s…chaotic to say the least. I always have parts of the story in my head...like I’ll know the main idea of the book, how I want it to start and certain events I want to take place. But I usually don’t know how the story will end and I don’t ever write with outlines. Is that weird?
I write the opening scene first and then I write all the really emotional or dramatic scenes after that. All the big moments- I am so driven to write them right away because that’s the good stuff! But then I’m left filling in all the parts in-between the good stuff and at some point I usually look up from the computer crying like, “THIS BOOK IS SO BORING! OMG, IT SUCKS!” But that’s because I’m writing all the filler-and it’s so not exciting! Along the way, my characters usually take on a life of their own. How I started out writing them may completely change. The ideas for how I wanted their personality to be, sometimes doesn’t last. They start to create themselves...it’s pretty cool actually.
Right now I’m finishing up my second book called Chance Encounters. It’s a love story about what happens when we meet someone who makes us question everything we already thought we knew. It’s about following your heart for the right reasons, as opposed to your head for the wrong ones. It’s headed to the editor in a matter of days! I can’t wait.
Then I plan on finishing the next book in The Dreams Series. It’s called Before the Dreams and it takes place in the past, during one of our characters past lives. I can’t wait to finish writing that story. Talk about characters who won’t leave me alone- they drive me crazy. Or maybe I’m just crazy?
Alright, like a typical girl, I’ve gabbed your ear (eyeballs) off! Thanks for listening (reading)! :)
Thanks Jenn, you had me laughing when I first read this piece as I could visualize you so easily! In Dreams sounds a great YA book and the sequel(s) too. Good luck with your writing!
Thanks for reading the posts, guys and thanks to Jenn for allowing us this insight into her writing - have a great week everyone
Faithx
Today I have Jenn Sterling here to tell us a little about how she came to begin her writing career. Dreams are amazing things...I often finish off a chapter by dreaming the answer and I'm told it is a natural phenomena. So over to our dream queen Jenn...
First off, I want to say Thanks to Faith for having me here! So… thanks faith!
My name is Jenn, but I go by J. on my books. I write Young Adult fiction and my first book, In Dreams is out now.
The idea for this particular book came from an actual dream I had one night. The opening chapter of the book IS a part of that dream (guy included). It’s been a really interesting experience seeing how people react to this story. There are so many pieces of reality scattered throughout this book- that it blows my mind sometimes at the things people insist couldn’t be true. If they only knew. ;)
When I first set out to write In Dreams, I honestly thought that was the only book idea I had floating around in my head. I used to say, “Who writes only ONE book?” and then I’d laugh. But the most amazing thing happened once I started actually writing. I found that I had a lot of ideas!!! I mean, A LOT! It was like I opened some sort of floodgate into an area of myself I didn’t know was there. Don’t get me wrong- I always liked to write and I’m a fairly creative person, but In Dreams was the first time I’d ever attempted to write an entire novel. I wasn’t certain I could even do it. And I definitely didn’t start writing with the intention of having a follow up book. Or any other books.
It’s funny how things change. How we grow when we allow ourselves to.
As for my writing style, it’s…chaotic to say the least. I always have parts of the story in my head...like I’ll know the main idea of the book, how I want it to start and certain events I want to take place. But I usually don’t know how the story will end and I don’t ever write with outlines. Is that weird?
I write the opening scene first and then I write all the really emotional or dramatic scenes after that. All the big moments- I am so driven to write them right away because that’s the good stuff! But then I’m left filling in all the parts in-between the good stuff and at some point I usually look up from the computer crying like, “THIS BOOK IS SO BORING! OMG, IT SUCKS!” But that’s because I’m writing all the filler-and it’s so not exciting! Along the way, my characters usually take on a life of their own. How I started out writing them may completely change. The ideas for how I wanted their personality to be, sometimes doesn’t last. They start to create themselves...it’s pretty cool actually.
Right now I’m finishing up my second book called Chance Encounters. It’s a love story about what happens when we meet someone who makes us question everything we already thought we knew. It’s about following your heart for the right reasons, as opposed to your head for the wrong ones. It’s headed to the editor in a matter of days! I can’t wait.
Then I plan on finishing the next book in The Dreams Series. It’s called Before the Dreams and it takes place in the past, during one of our characters past lives. I can’t wait to finish writing that story. Talk about characters who won’t leave me alone- they drive me crazy. Or maybe I’m just crazy?
Alright, like a typical girl, I’ve gabbed your ear (eyeballs) off! Thanks for listening (reading)! :)
Thanks Jenn, you had me laughing when I first read this piece as I could visualize you so easily! In Dreams sounds a great YA book and the sequel(s) too. Good luck with your writing!
Thanks for reading the posts, guys and thanks to Jenn for allowing us this insight into her writing - have a great week everyone
Faithx
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