Inspired by Life ... and Fiction

Novelists bound by the pen, sisterhood, & more

How Important Is Talent in Reaching Writing Success?

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How important is talent to a writer? Is talent required in order to become successful? Is talent necessary to rise above the competition? I'd be remiss to throw out talent altogether and say that it doesn't matter in the least. The truth is a bit of natural talent can probably help to a degree. Some people are born with wild imaginations. Some have the ability to embellish a story. Others have … [Read more...]

Long Ago and Far Away

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In March 1981, I took a yellow legal pad and wrote the opening line of what would become my first published novel. While I had toyed with writing both in high school and as a young adult, I hadn’t given serious thought to writing a novel until the fall of 1980. A number of things played into this growing desire inside of me, but the final straw was reading a book with an ending that didn’t satisfy … [Read more...]

What Makes a Great Villain? 

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I’m happy to say I officially signed off on The Deadly Shallows a few weeks ago. It’s finished with editorial and on to paging. Phew. That book was literally the hardest I’ve ever written. I couldn’t tell you why. Well…five surgeries between the end of May and the end of August didn’t help, but well before that, this book was wrestling inside of me. It ended up causing me to have two years between … [Read more...]

What Is the Difference Between a Historical and a Historical Romance?

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I recently received an email from a student at Colorado Christian University in the Creative Writing program. She asked if I would define the difference between historicals and historical romances. If you’re a writer or reader, you might have wondered what the difference is at one time too. I’ll give you what I think are the top differences, then be sure to chime into the comments with your … [Read more...]

Cover Reveal x2

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As you know, I’m re-releasing my Anne Mateer books under my real name—D’Ann Mateer. Same books, new author name, new covers.  I’m so excited to share the next two with you, both designed by author extraordinaire, Roseanna White.  It’s funny, but reading these books back to back (and for the first time in over 10 years!) to get all the typos, etc, made me realize how similar the … [Read more...]

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