A to Z Challenge - M is for Miracles

http://www.a-to-zchallenge.com/

It's time for another A to Z Challenge! This year, I want to tell you about a story that is currently a WIP (work in progress). It's the story I'm writing in honor of my baby lovebird, Robert. It's a fantasy story, but it's really a story about emotional healing. So let's examine it by going through the alphabet!

The letter m is for miracles!

The real Robert performed miracles, whether he knew it or not. He survived an "unpleasant encounter" with a dog that should have killed him. But it didn't. He came back stronger than ever.

Though developmentally slower than his siblings because of the brain damage suffered as a result of said encounter, he always ate well, he pushed himself to learn to climb and perch. Every day, he did a little more. Every little thing he did was a miracle.

The fictitious Robert is a miracle worker as well. He reminds Emmalee of her past. He shows her wonderful things in the magic of Locreya, as well as in his wisdom. He teaches her emotional healing.

He might have been a small bird, but he did some spectacular things in his all too brief life. Robert created miracles because he was a miracle.

Don't forget to come back tomorrow. We are wrapping up the week with the letter n. See you then!

A to Z Challenge - L is for Love

http://www.a-to-zchallenge.com/

It's time for another A to Z Challenge! This year, I want to tell you about a story that is currently a WIP (work in progress). It's the story I'm writing in honor of my baby lovebird, Robert. It's a fantasy story, but it's really a story about emotional healing. So let's examine it by going through the alphabet!

L is for Love, our word of the day.

Love doesn't just mean romance. You can have a love story without being a romance novel.

I am writing this story out of my love for Robert.

Robert loves Emmalee, and Emmalee loves Robert.

Robert loves all of his crew mates, and even the other captives of Tyler, the bad guy.

Robert even loves Tyler in a way (the only way to understand this will be to read it. So stay tuned. I'll let you know when it hits the presses. ;)  ).

Love is a wonderful emotional and connection that we share with family and friends. That kind of love is translated throughout the story of The Good Pirate, Robert.

Check back tomorrow for the letter m!

A to Z Challenge - K is for Kooky

http://www.a-to-zchallenge.com/

It's time for another A to Z Challenge! This year, I want to tell you about a story that is currently a WIP (work in progress). It's the story I'm writing in honor of my baby lovebird, Robert. It's a fantasy story, but it's really a story about emotional healing. So let's examine it by going through the alphabet!

K, today's letter, is for kooky.

You can't have a story about a pirate bird and not have it be kooky.

The story is kooky. The characters are kooky. The setting is kooky. For as much as there is a lesson in this book, it is also meant to entertain. I have done my best to come up with characters who have interesting quirks or interests. I have made the setting something so unusual, kooky is really the best description possible. I made the plot fun, and silly, while also being positive, and healing.

Kooky is fun. Kooky characters are fun. Kooky environments are fun. Kooky story lines are fun. Kooky books are awesome!

Tomorrow, we venture into the world of the letter l. Don't miss it!

A to Z Challenge - J is for Justice

http://www.a-to-zchallenge.com/

It's time for another A to Z Challenge! This year, I want to tell you about a story that is currently a WIP (work in progress). It's the story I'm writing in honor of my baby lovebird, Robert. It's a fantasy story, but it's really a story about emotional healing. So let's examine it by going through the alphabet!

J is our letter today.

J stands for justice.

You might be wondering where and how justice would play into a story like this, one of emotional healing.

I don't want to give any spoilers, obviously. While it may not be our standard definition of justice, there is justice to be found in the story. Take this definition from Google: "1. just behavior or treatment. 'a concern for justice, peace, and genuine respect for people.' synonyms: fairness, justness, fair play, fair-mindedness, equity, evenhandedness, impartiality, objectivity, neutrality, disinterestedness, honesty, righteousness, morals, morality. 'I appealed to his sense of justice.'"

So that fits. But there is also a sense of justice served, if you will. After all, he does "defeat" the bad guy in a way that no one has before. In a way that serves justice for Emmalee, and countless others.

Justice, albeit an unusual element in a story of emotional healing, is a powerful element in the story of The Good Pirate, Robert.

Check back tomorrow as we explore the letter k!

A to Z Challenge - I is for Imagination

http://www.a-to-zchallenge.com/

It's time for another A to Z Challenge! This year, I want to tell you about a story that is currently a WIP (work in progress). It's the story I'm writing in honor of my baby lovebird, Robert. It's a fantasy story, but it's really a story about emotional healing. So let's examine it by going through the alphabet!

Today is brought to you by the letter i, which is for imagination.

This is the first time I have ever attempted any kind of fantasy story. This book pushed my imagination in ways I never knew existed.

People couldn't just be people. Leopards couldn't just be yellow with black spots. They needed to be blue and purple. Locreya had to be a land greater than anyone's imagination.

As someone whose writing is much more grounded in the grit and concrete of real life, this story has challenged me. It has also opened my imagination. My creativity is at a new height. As I write it, I struggle less for the obscure, the unusual, and the unique. The Good Pirate, Robert requires a lot of imagination, but it has also given me my imagination back.

I can't wait to see what j brings us tomorrow. I hope you'll join me!