Making Time to Write

By Clarissa Johal

If you’re like me, you juggle writing time with other obligations. It can be extremely difficult to carve out writing time. In my case, it’s not just the time I need, but isolation. Isolation allows me to listen to the voices in my head, and experience what my characters experience. That may sound a bit cuckoo, but most of you will get it.

Last year, when I started writing THE ISLAND, I mentioned to my husband that I was having difficulty finding “isolation” time. I was also struggling with concrete details of where my story was situated. The story takes place on a remote island off the coast of Canada. I grew up around the area, but hadn’t visited the island since I was a kid.

My husband is my hero. As a surprise, he gave me a writing trip for my birthday. I’d never been away from our kids for longer than one night, so this was a big deal to me. But I took it. My agenda was to take an airplane to Canada, a ferry to one particular island, and then kayak to another, smaller island. There, I would reconnect with what was essentially the heart of my paranormal horror novel.

It was quite the trek but totally worth it. I was able to recapture the details I’d been missing. That feeling of remoteness and isolation.  That feeling of wilderness. That feeling of, “what if everything went haywire and you were stuck here?” Plus, I spent a week doing what I love to do—hiking, exploring, and day-dreaming. Crucial things to my writer brain.

I’m going to do another one of these writing trips next year. This time, I’m searching for a lighthouse. One that I can sleep in, and preferably abandoned. If it’s haunted, that would be a plus. More exploring, more isolation, and more day-dreaming. All of what make up a good paranormal story.

If you’re intrigued, take a peek at my new release, THE ISLAND…which isn’t as abandoned as it seems. 

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Clarissa Johal is the author of paranormal novels, THE ISLAND, VOICES, STRUCK, PRADEE and BETWEEN. When she’s not listening to the ghosts in her head, she’s dancing, taking pictures of gargoyles, or swinging from a trapeze. She shares her life with her husband, two daughters, and every stray animal that darkens their doorstep. *Member of the Horror Writers Association Find Clarissa Online: Author Website  Blog   Facebook  Twitter  Goodreads Amazon Author Page  and Pinterest

Procrastination Can Be an Author's Friend

by Jonna Turner

Never do today what you can put off until tomorrow. No, you read that correctly. For much of my writing life those have been words I have lived by.

Lots of my days begin with good intentions. Today I’ll vacuum, dust, fertilize the plants, spend thirty minutes on the elliptical, do laundry, and then spend several hours writing. That doesn’t work for me. If writing takes last place in my day, it’s not ‘gonna’ happen. Putting off the domestic tasks until I’ve finished writing for the day works best for me. The dust will still be there; it’s not going anywhere.

A good writing day for me is to have breakfast, straighten the kitchen, check e-mail and Facebook, and then start writing. If the writing flows, the next time I look at the clock, three to four hours have passed. If it’s not a good writing day, the least little interruption, such as a red-tailed hawk flying through the pines on the back property, can stop my writing in its tracks. When this happens, I find something else to do that is connected with writing.

That something else can be research to make my writing more authentic. For Shiloh and the Cave, I spent a lot of time talking with Colorado State University students about the layout of the campus, what the main floors and dorm rooms look like, and who monitors non-residents who enter the buildings.

For Finding Alan, I sought out interesting locations in Seattle. An author friend, J.D. Hylton, told me about the historical Smith Tower. I called the docent there and learned several interesting facts about the building that I could use, sparingly of course, to add believability to the story, such as the glass blocks in the sidewalk in front of the building. Below these glass blocks are an underground city. I loved learning this and touched on it in the story. And, I used the building to house the office of the attorney in the story.

Or, if I don’t need to do more research, I work on marketing or just plain connecting with readers or friends. Friends are a writer’s most important asset. If people like and respect you and your heart, they are more likely to buy your books and pass the word along to their friends. 


So won't you join me and put of until tomorrow that which you shouldn't do today?
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Jonna Turner is an award-winning author of five mystery-suspense novels, short stories, motivational radio scripts for Art Linkletter’s The ART of Positive Thinking, and feature articles for newspapers and magazines. A former Memphian, she lives on the northern edge of the Palmer Divide in Colorado with her husband, a retired FedEx pilot. 

We'd love for you to connect with Jonna online on Facebook, at her website, on Amazon and on LinkedIn.