Guest Post by Randy Lindsay — @randsay @anwaconf16

Exciting, exciting! The conference is less than three weeks away! Have you registered yet? The door prizes are being collected, and the book review contest is being put together. Have you seen the awesome donations? Be sure to stop by. 

This week we are being treated with a guest post by the amazing Randy Lindsay. Check out his spotlight and his website. Let him know what you think, and Enjoy!

STRUCTURED EXPERT OR FREEFALLING ADVENTURER?

For me the journey through the enchanted land of Authordom has been an exciting adventure. At each stage, I have savored the moment that I worked so long to reach. My first contract offer from a publisher. My first book signing. My first peek at the cover for my newest book. And now the opportunity to write a guest post for the ANWA blog. 

Each of these mileposts on the journey has multiple component parts that are in their own way special and exciting. Take the guest post opportunity, for instance. The invitation itself is a stop and enjoy it moment that leaves you with an important choice to make. How do I react to the invitation?

Option 1: Arch an eyebrow in a sophisticated manner and say, “It’s about time someone recognized me for my complete and utter writing brilliance.” Yeah, probably not the best approach. 

Option 2: Call my author friends and ask, “I was invited to write a guest blog for ANWA, were you?” And then when they say they weren’t, laugh and hang-up. My friends might think it was funny, but why take the chance?

Option 3: Read the e-mail a second time in order to savor the moment and then write a post where you pretend you weren’t seriously considering the first two options. 

Alright, enough goofing around. What I really wanted to address was a specific part of the offer to write a guest blog—the topic. Is it better to be given a topic to write about or to have it totally open for the author to choose?

Some of you may be asking yourselves, “Who wonders about stuff like that?” Apparently, I do. It’s part of what makes me The StoryMan. If that happens scares you, then join the club. 

I’m The StoryMan because literally everything is a story idea to me. Television commercials, political debates, even conversations I overhear at the grocery store all have the potential to bloom into a story. So then why do I prefer to have a topic assigned to me? Why do I feel more comfortable with a predetermined starting point?

I don’t know. I’m an author Jim, not a psychiatrist. 

What about you? Do you prefer author’s choice or assigned topic?

Spotlight on Randy Lindsay — @Randsay @anwaconf

First off, Happy 4th of July. I hope we all remember the freedoms we enjoy (like the freedom to write what we want to write), and those who sacrificed for us to have said freedoms.

Please jump on over to the door prize page and check out the new door prizes that have been donated.

And last but not least, this weeks spotlight . . . Randy Lindsay! He will be teaching JUMPSTART YOUR CREATIVE JUICES WORKSHOP and KEEP 'EM READING at the conference in September. Be sure to check out his website, his book, as well as amazing writing prompts he has on his website. You can find him on Facebook and Twitter. Check out his awesome interview below and keep an eye out for a guest post from him soon. Don't forget to register for conference and Enjoy!

*What is the first childhood memory that comes to mind? (That you’re willing to share of course)

When I was very small, my father and I were outside and I spotted some railroad tracks. I went to see what they were just as a train arrived. The train blew its whistle and I ran back to my father as fast as I could, my heart pounding like it was going to push itself out of my chest. 

*What made you decide to become a writer?

Aliens from space visited me one evening and told me that the world would end if I didn't write the greatest story ever told. Not really. I read a book that I didn't like and thought I could write a better one.

*What's your favorite thing to write?

I'm fascinated with ideas involving angels and devils. I like to write stories that take place in either of their realms. 

*What method do you use to write?

I plot my stories before I write them. I use both The Writer's Journey and Save the Cat to give me ideas of what scenes should be in the story and then I string them together. 

*What was the book first and latest book you've read?

My first book was The White Mountains by John Christopher and my latest book was The 13th Reality by James Dashner. 

  

*What is something you wish you would have known going into the writing world?

The importance of writing what you love. 

*If you could travel back in time to when you began your writing career, what would be the advice you would give yourself?

Don't get distracted. Make a plan. Stick with it. 

I wrote my first two books. Then I designed a card game, wrote a musical, and looked into doing voice acting. At this point, I have two novels I want to publish and realize that I only have enough time and energy to do one of them.  

*What would you tell any writer at any stage in their writing?

Enjoy the journey. You don't need to sell as many books as Stephen King to be happy with your success. 

If you happen to be Stephen King, then all I can say is, "Congratulations, you made it."