Ask the Author: Beth McCue
Answered Questions (3)
Beth McCue
I believe humans are nomadic by nature. There is some debate on this topic but, there is no debating the fact we were nomads for around 99% of our time on the planet.
We are not designed to spend endless hours sitting in front of a screen. Nor are we designed to spend our entire lives in one place,
never traveling more than 50 miles from our home base. We need to experience diversity. Without diversity systems collapse.
We need to see places entirely different from the ones in which we grew up. We need to reach out to people of different ages, races, cultures and engage them in conversations. Not arguments but dialogues. We need to open our minds to possibilities and adventures we would never encounter if we didn't get up and get out the door.
If you are a writer looking for inspiration, go outside your comfort zone. There is no substitute for authentic interactions. They will color everything you create, enriching your words with understanding. It is possible to write a good book without ever leaving home, but it is highly unlikely you will ever write a great one.
You may not ever pen a book or story about specific episodes, but, all of those memories are what will add color and depth to your writing. If you are not an interesting, well-rounded person, your book probably won't be interesting either.
In short, before you try and create a memorable tale, create a memorable life.
We are not designed to spend endless hours sitting in front of a screen. Nor are we designed to spend our entire lives in one place,
never traveling more than 50 miles from our home base. We need to experience diversity. Without diversity systems collapse.
We need to see places entirely different from the ones in which we grew up. We need to reach out to people of different ages, races, cultures and engage them in conversations. Not arguments but dialogues. We need to open our minds to possibilities and adventures we would never encounter if we didn't get up and get out the door.
If you are a writer looking for inspiration, go outside your comfort zone. There is no substitute for authentic interactions. They will color everything you create, enriching your words with understanding. It is possible to write a good book without ever leaving home, but it is highly unlikely you will ever write a great one.
You may not ever pen a book or story about specific episodes, but, all of those memories are what will add color and depth to your writing. If you are not an interesting, well-rounded person, your book probably won't be interesting either.
In short, before you try and create a memorable tale, create a memorable life.
Beth McCue
I am currently working on a story (not sure if it will be a novella or novel) set in Charleston, SC and New Orleans. It involves a murder, ghosts and the spirit of Marie Laveau; a Voodoo woman who lived in New Orleans in the 1800s.
The title is Darker Demons.
The title is Darker Demons.
Beth McCue
I once did a painting of a New Orleans cottage. I liked it when I created it, and I still do. When I began it, I had no clear idea of how it was going to turn out. I just started drawing and let my imagination go.
My first published novel is titled Oceans Ending. The published version has very little in common with the first draft of the book.
What's the point you ask? Whether you are writing or painting or cooking or pursuing any other creative endeavor, you'll never finish if you don't start. If you convince yourself every word you write or every brush stroke you commit to canvas has to be perfect and unchangeable, you will be paralyzed and never create anything.
If you can't decide what to write, write anything that pops into your head. Write a shopping list, a letter to a friend, random phrases, the description of someone you are attracted to, anything! Just keep writing until something grabs your attention and you think, "Hey there's an idea!"
It will happen if you keep at it. It will never happen if you don't. And you need to do it every day whether you feel inspired or not. You need to get into the habit of writing. Even if you end up tossing every word you have written at the end of the day, get up the next day and do it again. Train your brain!
It isn't easy. Sitting down in front of your computer screen, or at your typewriter, or even opening your Moleskine notebook, and putting fingers to keys or pen to paper is daunting when you have absolutely no idea what you want to say, but don't let that stop you. There is only one cure for writer's block; writing.
My first published novel is titled Oceans Ending. The published version has very little in common with the first draft of the book.
What's the point you ask? Whether you are writing or painting or cooking or pursuing any other creative endeavor, you'll never finish if you don't start. If you convince yourself every word you write or every brush stroke you commit to canvas has to be perfect and unchangeable, you will be paralyzed and never create anything.
If you can't decide what to write, write anything that pops into your head. Write a shopping list, a letter to a friend, random phrases, the description of someone you are attracted to, anything! Just keep writing until something grabs your attention and you think, "Hey there's an idea!"
It will happen if you keep at it. It will never happen if you don't. And you need to do it every day whether you feel inspired or not. You need to get into the habit of writing. Even if you end up tossing every word you have written at the end of the day, get up the next day and do it again. Train your brain!
It isn't easy. Sitting down in front of your computer screen, or at your typewriter, or even opening your Moleskine notebook, and putting fingers to keys or pen to paper is daunting when you have absolutely no idea what you want to say, but don't let that stop you. There is only one cure for writer's block; writing.
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