Ask the Author: Crystal Crawford
Answered Questions (10)
Crystal Crawford
My birds disappearing from a locked cage (my theory is a portal opened right where the cage was hung).
Crystal Crawford
My child just looked at me and said, "I hear them whispering." He's one month old.
Crystal Crawford
I've mostly been reading nonfiction/writing craft books this summer. However, I did also read Autumn Awakens by M.J. Padgett, and I'm currently reading The Story Peddler by Lindsay A. Franklin.
Crystal Crawford
This is a hard one, because so many of my favorite fictional worlds are full of dangerous and unpleasant things! But I think I would say Narnia... right at the beginning, to watch Aslan bringing the world to life.
Crystal Crawford
My most recent book in the Arameth series was inspired by a combination of two things: (1) a rabbit-hole of strange internet research on whether plants feel pain or have cognizant thoughts, and (2) the question, "What do story characters do when the writer abandons the story?"
Though the story isn't directly about either of those things, the combination of those two led to an entirely different idea for a story.
Though the story isn't directly about either of those things, the combination of those two led to an entirely different idea for a story.
Crystal Crawford
I get inspired by lots of things. Sometimes an idea just hits me out of nowhere like a lightning strike. Other times inspiration is sparked by a small moment in life... a snippet of a dream I had the night before, or part of an overheard conversation in the store, or even the way a lizard looks at me while I'm out walking. I try to observe the world around me, because lots of great ideas come from something small that never would seem like a "story" but which triggers a whole flood of ideas. Also... I write even when I don't feel "inspired." I've learned to write regularly, even if I'm not particularly feeling like it that day, because I know the more frequently I write, the better I get and also the more I can produce... and generally if I sit down and get started writing, something good comes of it, even if I resisted it at first.
Crystal Crawford
A short story collection set in Arameth (the world of my Lex Chronicles trilogy), as well as a stand-alone novel that ties in to the Arameth universe. I have several other books "in progress" or in planning, as well, but those two projects are the first on my list to complete before moving on.
Crystal Crawford
By writing. I know, it's a terrible answer. But... really it is the best way. I play mental games with myself, like "Just write for five minutes, it doesn't even matter if it's any good, and then you can stop..." But generally once I finally get started, it's far easier to keep going.
Crystal Crawford
Watching a whole world emerge from nothing. Seriously, even when I'm the one "making" the world, there's a bit of magic that happens in the process. Things emerge I didn't even plan, and they somehow all click together. I always end up feeling like the characters and world already "were," and I just had to uncover them.
Crystal Crawford
Read, read, read... as much as you can. And not just fiction. Read books on craft, blogs on writing... learn as much as you possibly can and never stop learning. But don't forget to write while you're doing it! Everything you write teaches you something, and if you're also learning alongside it through what you're reading, then you can augment your growth that much more.
(Also, I'm so sorry it took me so long to answer this! I literally did not even see these questions until today somehow when I logged in to answer more recent ones! They somehow slipped through the cracks.)
(Also, I'm so sorry it took me so long to answer this! I literally did not even see these questions until today somehow when I logged in to answer more recent ones! They somehow slipped through the cracks.)
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