Ask the Author: Charlene Moncrief
Answered Questions (6)
Charlene Moncrief
The best thing about being a writer is being able to create a brand new universe of people, places and things, that would normally never exist had you not put pen to paper and created them. It's also a fantastic way to make sense of all those crazy voices in your head, begging for their stories to be told.
Charlene Moncrief
I wish I could say that FLIGHT came from some divine, brilliant, inspired place, but sadly it came from a really dark chapter in my life. Simply put, I needed to kill someone who had hurt me very deeply. I would never literally kill another person, so I did the next best thing and did it figuratively through my writing. (And no, I won’t ever divulge who that person is, and the three people who do know who that person is will take that juicy tidbit to their grave. Just sayin’.) A trust was broken and it hurt me more than you could imagine. I was so filled with rage and anger and grief that I needed to release somehow. I’m a huge yoga fan, and I’ve tried practicing letting go of negative ideas or instances or people that no longer serve you and only weigh you down. In essence, letting something negative die in your heart so the good stuff can come in. (Sound familiar? Chapter 2 anyone??) I didn’t actually want to kill this person (ok, maybe sometimes I did), but I did need to let this person go and separate them from my life. I think we’ve all been there – feeling anchored to someone you know is only going to bring heartache into your life, and knowing in your gut that you’ve got to cut them off, but you’re too scared to do it. So this idea of death, and letting go of something you once loved dearly sprung into my head and the relationship between Camille and Noelle was born. Their relationship is one of true love, but full of dysfunction and heartache. How do you walk away from that dysfunction even when the love is still very much alive? It’s a journey that I know I needed to take and I couldn’t think of a better way to do it than through this story.
Charlene Moncrief
Good music almost always makes me want to write. Long drives gets me wanting to write, too. But mostly, just being still and being observant almost always starts the writing bug.
Charlene Moncrief
I am currently working on the sequel to Flight, and on a New Adult novel, still untitled. I am very excited about the New Adult novel that I'm writing because I can be edgier, and more daring, knowing that I'm catering to an older audience.
Charlene Moncrief
Most every author will say READ – read EVERYTHING. And that is absolutely true. Read it all. You never know what new genre or author will inspire you unless you read everything you can get your hands on. But more importantly, WRITE. For a long time, I became so obsessed with getting published that I completely neglected the craft of writing. Writing is just like every other muscle in your body – if you don’t write, you won’t get better, you won’t get stronger. Taking a writing class is an excellent way to accomplish this as you’ll be surrounded by other writers who will support you through the process, and a teacher who can guide you along the way. And when you do write, write the story that resonates with you. Everybody has a story to tell – tell your story, not what you think someone else will want to read. If you can get yourself writing regularly, in a voice that is honest and true to you, then you’ve already succeeded as a writer.
Charlene Moncrief
Swear like a sailor at the universe for blocking your creative vision. Truly. It helps. Try not to do it in front of small children. Then I take a deep breath and try to get to my happy place. Here are the ways I can get there:
• Driving with awesome music blaring in the background is a surefire way to get there.
• Being quiet gets me there, too. Best best bestest place to be quiet? The library! Inhaling that awesome library smell of old books and weathered pages, being surrounded by great authors and their work, feeling the energy of people immersed in a good story…there’s really nothing like it. I owe many an inspired moment to my local public library!
• Being open to finding inspiration in the least likely of places (no joke, one of my favorite scenes for FLIGHT was inspired by a scene from High School Musical 3 that I saw in the theaters with my daughters. True story.)
• Being present. Woody Allen once said, “80% of success is just showing up.” Totally true. Sometimes, you’ve just gotta sit and write, even if it is crap, even if it is something that you don’t use later. But you’ve just gotta BE there.
Once I can get to that mental headspace, I write in total silence. I shut off the noise and just listen to the characters in my head that want to tell their story. Doing this late at night when kids and the rest of the world are fast asleep is the optimum time to do this!
• Driving with awesome music blaring in the background is a surefire way to get there.
• Being quiet gets me there, too. Best best bestest place to be quiet? The library! Inhaling that awesome library smell of old books and weathered pages, being surrounded by great authors and their work, feeling the energy of people immersed in a good story…there’s really nothing like it. I owe many an inspired moment to my local public library!
• Being open to finding inspiration in the least likely of places (no joke, one of my favorite scenes for FLIGHT was inspired by a scene from High School Musical 3 that I saw in the theaters with my daughters. True story.)
• Being present. Woody Allen once said, “80% of success is just showing up.” Totally true. Sometimes, you’ve just gotta sit and write, even if it is crap, even if it is something that you don’t use later. But you’ve just gotta BE there.
Once I can get to that mental headspace, I write in total silence. I shut off the noise and just listen to the characters in my head that want to tell their story. Doing this late at night when kids and the rest of the world are fast asleep is the optimum time to do this!
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