Conjuring Dreams or Learning to Write by Writing

by Stephanie Barr

An alternate cover for this ASIN can be found here.

Magic-wielders, shape-shifters, mermaids, empaths and diviners and even teddy bears and computer programmers wander through 26 stories, written into life for situations thought-provoking, compelling or absurd. It's a collection of diverse stories, from the first one written when Stephanie Barr (then Beck) was13-14 years old to the last ones finished last year. The tales show off not only Stephanie's eclectic imagination but the growth of her story telling as she taught herself to write (in the way she wanted to) through writing. So it's all fiction and totally autobiographical at the same time.

201 pages, Kindle Edition

First published April 9, 2014

About the author

Stephanie Barr is a part time novelist, full time rocket scientist and mother of three children and slave to three cats. She has three blogs, which are sporadically updated. Anything else even vaguely interesting about her can be found in her writing since she puts a little bit of herself in everything she writes . . . just not the same piece.

Reviews

[David Kent · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Ostensibly it's a book of stories, but it's also a story of the growth and exploration of the writer.

The author provides short preambles to the major sections describing the history behind that group of stories and a sense of the time period in which they were written. Starting in high school and building in length and complexity as she grew older, the sections encompass "The Early Works," "The College Years," "Entering the World of Fantasy," "Single Point Stories," and "Character Building." Several stories are encompassed in each section, and as can be garnered from the section headings, the stories within each focus on specific writing types and goals. They range from short independent works to what essentially are chapters in longer works.

As a writer myself, I appreciate the personal development shown as the author learns to craft more and more compelling stories. I found the last section, "Character Building," to be the most enchanting. I especially enjoyed the psychological exploration in "Back Seat Driver" (involving a computer programmer and his somewhat over-artificial intelligent life). The last four stories are continuations of each other and deftly craft the world of the Tarot Queen and the ramifications of the readings she makes. The book ends with was is ostensibly a fifth story of this series, a preview of the full Tarot Queen book. I found this latter group to be intricately woven and so entertaining I couldn't stop before I finished.

I purchased this Kindle book on Amazon out of curiosity, primarily because the author is an online acquaintance going back several years. I've never read any of her work before and as such wasn't sure what to expect. Now having finished the compendium, I am delighted to discover Stephanie's works and have come away eminently impressed with the depths of her skills.

[C.A. King · Rating 4 out of 5]

An interesting set of short stories written over time. The author documents the time period in which the pieces were written, taking the reader on a tour of the evolution of her literary growth. I like this idea - unique and fresh.