Nancy E. Dunne: Never Say That Outside the House

Nancy E. Dunne is a multi-genre fantasy writer who has been creating stories since she was a child. She lives and works in the Upstate area of South Carolina with her husband, Simon, and their terrier mix, Willow-Pickle.

Tell us a bit about your most recent work.

I've started a new series in my story universe, the Orana Chronicles. This is a trilogy (at this point) of novellas that dive a bit deeper into some of the characters from the previous novels. The first one is The Wizard's Bond and it is the backstory of the villain from the Nature Walker Trilogy, Taeben. He gets to share why he became what he became and where he is headed next. I'm bad about spoilers so that's all I can say. This fits in between Darkness (first in the Guardians of Orana series) and Red (second in that series). It is out July 1st. 

What are the themes and subjects you tend to revisit in your work?

I have strong female characters who stop waiting for someone to save them. I have strong found family vibes. Also, in my other life I am a sign language interpreter, so language and how it influences characters and plot fascinates me. 

Motivational Monday: Dare To Imagine Brightness

[Link] Darkness in Fiction: 7 Tips for Writing Dark Stories

by Hannah Heath

I enjoy dark stories. I like reading about characters that struggle, worlds on the brink of destruction and in need of saving, words that go into the deep, little-seen parts of the soul. I like writing them, too.

And that's why I'm so disturbed by what darkness in fiction has turned into. It seems like each year the books get darker and darker, and each year they become more and more abused by authors who don't seem to understand (or care about) the ramifications of their words.

As a writer and lover of stories with a dark side, I'd like to point out what makes a dark story good with the hopes that we can get away from the current "Darkness without meaning" trend that's running around like a rabid dog (*cough* or a certain DC director who thought it would be a good idea to turn a certain character into a murderer *cough* *cough*). So here it is: 7 tips for writing a dark story that's not just a black hole of death and depression and strangled puppies.

Read the full article: http://hannahheath-writer.blogspot.com/2016/11/darkness-in-fiction-7-tips-for-writing.html

Nugget #83 -- We Need the Dark

We need to look long into the dark. It’s part of who we are. 

We like to be scared. It gives us context. It gives us control. 

It helps us take the horror of the real world and give it 

shape so that we can conquer it, if only a little. Out of 

discomfort we find comfort. -- Chuck Wendig