Author Archives: margaritagakis

Where do you get your ideas from?

Date: August 22, 2013

Author: margaritagakis

Reposted from my blog tour

Yes, the most often asked question of writers, and the first one that comes to my mind as a reader : Where do you get your ideas?

I imagine like most authors, I would initially answer, “I don’t know. They just sort of come to me,” but that’s a really boring and unhelpful answer so I put my thinking cap on and sat down and tried to analyze my process.

What I realized was this – all my ideas all come from ‘somewhere’ or something tangible. Even if it’s not readily apparent. Thinking back on my most current working ideas [the ones I’ve recently written or am actively working on], the ‘biggest’ contributor is just the question, “What if?”

I tack that question on to a lot of stuff in my everyday life and mostly, it’s pretty boring. My inner monologue goes something like this:

What if I’m late?
What if I don’t pack a lunch? What will I eat?
What if I don’t do laundry today? Can I make it a few more days with what I have

SNORE. But! Sometimes, I find I’m asking bizarre “what if” questions based on stuff that’s going on around me. My inner monologue then goes something like this:

Jeez, that’s the fourth time I’ve seen that billboard, “WAKE UP!” What if it’s a message to me? What does it mean? Why am I getting it? What if I’m in a coma and this is all coma-world and all those messages are telling me to wake up?
I was almost run over by that lady’s shopping cart and she didn’t even see me! Whoa, what if I was invisible? What if I died at some point this morning and I didn’t even realize it and now, I’m a ghost and no one can see me?
The harvest moon is always so big and low. But it scares me sometimes. What if in a past life, I died while looking at it and now, whenever I see it hanging low and heavy on the horizon, I feel a little sick because somehow, my soul remembers that? I wonder what I did to ‘get dead’ while looking at the moon?

I kid you not, those are all LEGITIMATE thoughts I’ve had. Sometimes I get a thought like that and it turns into a short story, or a book, or even just a snippet for my slush pile. Other times I laugh at myself or just shake it off. Sometimes I say them out loud and get really strange looks.

I’ve gotten some ideas from other places too – snippets of a song I heard, or artwork, or maybe some overheard dialogue as I walk around. But the number one place I get them is just by stopping sometimes and wondering, “What if…?”

Side note – the “WAKE UP!” billboards turned out to be for a new morning radio show. Took me WEEKS to figure it out. I was really starting to be sure I was in a coma. True story.

Beginning with the End in Mind

Date: August 18, 2013

Author: margaritagakis

Categories: Books, writing

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Originally posted at http://mymidnightfantasies.blogspot.com/ as part of my blog tour!

As part of my day job, I was fortunate enough to have the opportunity to take the workshop, The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People [created by Stephen Covey]. It’s really about how to make the most out of what’s important to you. It’s not about being successful, or rich or famous, although if those things matter to you, I guess it could be. The habits are about how to structure your life and your time so that you use it to the best of your abilities and you get what you want – what you consider important. One of the habits talked about was “Beginning with the End in Mind.” Basically, it’s about knowing what you want to get out of something before you start. Whenever I learn something new in any avenue of my life, I try to sit back and think about how I can apply it to my entire life – work, hobbies, family. In this case, Beginning with the End in Mind, has helped me with structuring and writing my book. Here’s how:

The early stages of developing a story are very exciting! Characters, plots, scenes, dialogue snippets – they’re all swirling and percolating in your mind and your fingers are just ITCHING to start typing. The beginning sometimes seems to just pour out of you – your writing is fast paced, voluminous and you’re happy-happy-happy.

But, do you know where you’re going? If not, you’ll probably be like me and all of a sudden it grinds to a halt and you’re not really sure why. It was going so well! You had a rhythm! There was a flow! And now? NADA.

It could be because you don’t know where you’re going. I don’t necessarily mean you need to have every plot point of your story mapped out in the early stages, but knowing generally what your book is about and how it ends can be a real game-changer for your writing.

So, how do I do that? I try to write the synopsis of my book BEFORE I start the book, or while I’m still working on the first pages – while I’m still in that super-exciting stage. The synopsis is your book jacket or your book’s teaser – it’s what your book is about. It generally doesn’t contain any real spoilers or a step by step plot outline, but it does tell you what to expect.

But, “it’s complicated”, you say, “I’ve a lot going on! This happens and this happens and there’s this woman from the past and we don’t know what her motives are and she’s got connections to the protagonist. It’s all tangled and complex”.

I’m sure it is! That makes for a great book!

But at it’s core, what’s your story about? Who is your story about? What is the essential struggle? Everything else is the ‘dressing’ or the ‘extras.’ If your book is an ice cream sundae, the synopsis is the ice cream. You can add whipped cream, cherries, nuts, sauces and anything else you want to make it as fantastic as possible. But you gotta have the ice cream first! At the risk of mixing my metaphors, I’m going to go so far as to say if your ice cream is NOT readily viewable or noticeable to the reader, they’re going to wonder what all these extra toppings are for.

Also, knowing what your book is about will really help you when you get stuck. I keep my synopsis on a doc that I can see while I write. When I get stuck, I read over it and think, “Is this scene telling that story? Does this moment propel the narrative toward this goal? If not, is that why I’m stuck? Am I telling the same story now that I started out with? What would need to happen next to get me to where I’m going?”

Sometimes, I get really excited about a new set of characters or a scene I want to write and I think, “I’ll just start and the ending will come!” That RARELY works for me. If you can do it, I envy you. I usually end up with some great writing that I’m excited about and then it just peters out and stops at some point and I’m never able to get it going again. Mostly because I don’t know where I’m going with it.

Additionally, if YOU don’t know where you’re story is going, how will the reader? Will they feel the same sense of wandering and disjointedness while reading it that you felt writing it? Probably.

So, while it’s hard and it can be it’s own trial, writing the synopsis of your story before you start can be a great anchor for your work. It lets you know that you know where you’re going. You don’t have to know how to get there, but you do need to have the destination in mind!

Genre/World Building in Supernatural Books

Date: August 10, 2013

Author: margaritagakis

Categories: Books, writing

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Originally posted as part of my blog tour on August 2nd at Mythical Books

One of the most exciting and creative part of writing a book in the Supernatural genre [witches, vampires, werewolves, ghosts etc] is that it’s generally an opportunity for a significant amount of world building. Most authors are excited to put their own spin on lore and tropes, and it’s always fun to play around and see what you can come up with.

It can also be nerve-wracking and difficult. Deciding on the ‘rules’ for the ‘universe’ of your book [or series as the case may be] can end up defining a lot of your plot and character limitations. In my own writing, I try to stick to a few easy rules:

1. Be Consistent. I find fans are willing to accept almost anything with respect to rules and world building, as long as you’re consistent. Ideally you want to make sense AND be consistent, but fans will even forgive logic flaws if you’re consistent. We’ve all read books that set up clearly defined rules and limitations for the supernatural elements only to find those rules and limitations broken or ignored later on. As a reader, it’s incredibly frustrating. You’ve spent all this time investing in this world and when the rules are broken, especially when it seems as though they are broken for convenience, it feels like a big cheat from the author. I feel betrayed when this happens. I feel like I can’t trust the author now, because anything they say may be tossed out the window later on when it’s convenient for them. I guarantee if you break your rules, your readers will want to lynch you. LYNCH YOU.

2. Build in kryptonite for both protagonists and antagonists. We all want our heroes/heroines to be powerful in some way. Similarly, we all want the ‘bad guys’ to be powerful and to be worthy opponents. But, heroes and villains without limits are boring and dangerous. Why would anyone oppose them? How can anyone oppose them? If your hero or heroine has no faults and/or no limits, there’s no suspense. He/she cannot fail. Without the suspense, why is the reader reading? Look at the classic TV show MacGyver. We all know MacGyver will make it out, he’s our hero! But there’s always that small chance he won’t. Because he’s human. Because he uses his brain and he only has what’s in front of him. That tiny suspicion of his weaknesses, his fallibility, keeps us on the edge of our seat. What if he doesn’t have what he needs? What if he doesn’t know everything he needs to know to get himself out? Similarly, we need our villains to have a weakness. If they’re all powerful, how can they be defeated? And as a tie in from above, if the hero breaks our world-building rules to defeat the villain because there’s no built in kryptonite, the reader will feel cheated.

3. Add elements of the real world. In my book, I consider using magic like doing gymnastics. Sure, my characters can do a backflip. Do they do one EVERYDAY EVERY TIME they go to the store? No. Because real life isn’t like that. People don’t do the things they are capable of every day. Why? Because it takes effort or it’s tiring or it gives them a headache or they need special tools or it’s ‘not allowed’ – whatever it is, if you can make it like the ‘regular world’, your reader is familiar with it and will probably accept it. We all have special skills and abilities we don’t use everyday. Tell me why your characters don’t and I’ll probably believe you. If you fail to tell me why though, every time someone’s in peril, I’m going to be asking, “Well, why don’t they just use BLAH BLAH BLAH to get themselves out?”

4. Write the rules down. Okay you don’t physically have to write the rules down, but having them laid out sure can make your life easier later on. If you have them written down, you’re more likely to follow them. Also, this leads to number 5….

5. KISS – Keep it Simple, Stupid – Ah, yes, the KISS rule that so many of us learned in school. It’s true. KEEP IT SIMPLE, STUPID – this is where writing your rules down helps. If you can write them down, chances are they’re pretty simple to follow. If you CAN’T articulate them, is it that they’re too hard? Remember, you want your reader to focus on your characters and your plot – you don’t want them so caught up in the rules that they lose interest in your book! Keeping it simple makes it easier for the reader (and you!) to remember.

Nothing in the above means you can’t be outlandish or take risks. You shouldn’t feel hemmed in. It’s your world, BUILD IT. In the immortal words of “Field of Dreams” (the movie) – “If you build it, they will come.” But you also want people to enjoy your world and, in my humble opinion, by following the above guidelines, they will!

Blog Tour Schedule!

Date: July 22, 2013

Author: margaritagakis

Categories: Books, Busy Squirrell, Covencraft, The Book, writing

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I’m going on tour!

From July 29 to Aug 26, I will be ‘On Tour’ with Bewitching Book Tours promoting my book, Trial by Fire!

The tour runs on Weekdays, links below so you can stop by and check stuff out. I’ll be updating this post as I create guest blog posts so you’ll know what I’ll be discussing.

What will happen on the book tour? I’M SO GLAD YOU ASKED:

Guest Blog – A post written by me – I’m still looking for the perfect place to write my post on “The Importance of Being Miss Piggy”, but for this tour, I’ll probably stick to writing, elements of writing, supernatural stuff and/or items feature my book.

Spotlight – Will feature excerpts from Trial by Fire

Interviews – will feature my responses to interview questions. I was very excited to do my first “Character Interview” for July 29, featuring answers by Jade!

Review – Will feature a book review of Trial by Fire [Gotta admit, this one has me biting my nails a bit]

Le Schedule

Monday	Tuesday	Wednesday	Thursday	Friday
July 29 Character Interview [Jade] Laurie’s Paranormal Thoughts and Reviews Author Interview The Official Blog of A.C. James	July 30 Spotlight 3 Partners in Shopping, Nana, Mommy, & Sissy, Too!	July 31 Author Interview A Writer’s Mind	August 1 – Day off!	August 2 Guest blog – Genre World Building Mythical Books
August 5 Guest blog – Character Interview [Paris] Christina McKnight Blog	August 6 Spotlight – Excerpt 1 Kelly P’s Blog Spotlight – Excerpt 2 Reviewing in Chaos	August 7 Guest blog – Where do your ideas come from Buffy’s Ramblings Review of Trial by Fire Escape Into A Book	August 8 Spotlight – Excerpt 3 Share My Destiny	August 9 Spotlight – Excerpt 1 Krystal’s Enchanting Reads … Spotlight and review of Trial by Fire [excerpt 2] wicca witch 4 book blog
August 12 Review of Trial By Fire Ella Gray	August 13 Guest blog – Begin with the End in Mind Itara @My midnight fantasies	August 14 Spotlight Zombiegirl Shambling	August 15 Guest blog – Deleted Scene from Trial by Fire Bookworm Bridgette’s World	August 16 Author Interview Fang-tastic Books Spotlight Mommasez…blog
August 19 Author Interview Roxanne’s Realm Review of Trial by Fire Nicky Peacock author	August 20 Spotlight Reading In Twilight	Aug 21 Spotlight Books & Tales	August 22 Spotlight Elfie Books	August 23 Spotlight and Review of Trial by Fire Faerie Tale Books
August 26 Author Interview Pembroke Sinclair Spotlight Jodie Pierce

I’m super excited and a little nervous! I think August will be a busy month for me!

Trial by Fire – Fun with Wordle!

Date: July 21, 2013

Author: margaritagakis

Categories: Books, Covencraft, The Book

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Wordle is a Java Web app that creates a mosaic of any text you enter.

An it’s AWESOME.

You can paste a bunch of text or a link to a web page and then you hit GENERATE and the magic happens. You can mess around with FONT, LAYOUT, COLORS, SHAPE – basically, you can have your Sunday sucked away by playing around.

As a writer, I’m FASCINATED by this visual representation of my work. I LOVE IT. I put the entire text of Trial by Fire in there and played around. You can’t save the images, (something about it being a Java app – I read the deets, it made sense, so my brain accepted the logic and then tossed out the reasoning – it’s how my brain works) but you CAN screenshot your results.

GO PLAY. it’s SO MUCH FUN

Weighty Issues

Date: July 14, 2013

Author: margaritagakis

Categories: madrant, oneofthosedays

Comments: 3 Replies

Internets, I try to be positive but sometimes, I just need a good rant. There’s gonna be language below. STRONG OPINIONS. Those with delicate sensibilities should avert their eyes.

Let’s talk about weight.

I’m overweight. Chubby. You could even say the f-word – Fat. I’ve struggled with my weight my entire life. Consequently, I know a metric fuck ton about weight loss and calories and metabolisms and working out.

Let’s face it: if you want to know about weight and how it all works, don’t ask a thin person – someone who’s been fit their whole life. Ask a fat person. I GUARANTEE the fat person will know more. You can disagree, you’d be wrong.

This week my FAT BUTTONS got pushed when I was speaking with someone about weight and this person proceed to spout off that all people needed to do was burn as many calories as they ate. This person said that he/she burned ‘at least 5000 calories a day’ by moving and so could I if I chose.

CLEARLY THIS PERSON DID NOT KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT WEIGHT LOSS. After talking more it turned out that they also never really liked sweets and always preferred vegetables anyway.

So yeah. KNOWS NOTHING. perhaps is lucky by nature to be the kind of eater that promotes a healthy weight, but in terms of knowledge, isn’t knowledgeable. But! Because they are slender, they are seen as ‘an expert.’

So, what would I, a 37 year old woman who weights BLAH BLAH BLAH [sweet Jesus you didn’t think I would put my weight down did you??] have to do a day to burn 5000 calories? According to my research [google I love you] SEVERAL HOURS OF EXERCISE. So, if I had say, 5 hrs to kill and an elliptical trainer and I went ALL OUT for those FIVE HOURS, I could expect to burn 3500 calories. ALL OUT FOR FIVE HOURS ON AN ELLIPTICAL TRAINER.

You let me know if you have that kind of time and I want your day job.

Now! Let’s talk about LIES THE WEIGHT LOSS WORLD HAS TOLD ME AND OR USELESS ‘TIPS’ in every mag out there:

1. Are you feeling hungry? Drink water! You may just actually be thirsty! – I drink 2 litres of water a day. I’m pretty sure I’m fucking hungry. So hungry I feel sick. And the more water I drink the MORE NOTHING ABOUT THAT CHANGES.

2. Eat some veggies if you’re hungry! – I did. I was hungry 20 minutes later. You fuckers. And my tummy hurts because raw veg are tough on me, but I don’t carry a steamer around to blanch them a bit so if I want to eat veg on the go, it’s raw or bust.

3. Make sure you get protein at every meal! – listen, I have the BEST diet of people I know. I’ve seen a nutritionist to help me ensure that I’m getting all I need. I’m still hungry like a MOFO 70% of the day.

4. Eat every few hours to keep your metabolism going – I DO. Still hungry folks.

5. Cut out those sugary drinks! Full of empty calories – I DID. WHEN I WAS 17. TWENTY YEARS AGO.

6. GET MORE SLEEP – Uh, listen. there’s a limited number of hours in the day and I already go to bed at 11 and get up at 5.45 REGULARLY. I’m pretty strict with my sleep schedule. I’m not sure where I’m supposed to fit MORE SLEEP in.

7. LIFT WEIGHTS – I DO.

8. I’M JUST RANDOMLY CAPSLOCKING NOW BECAUSE TALKING ABOUT WEIGHT ALWAYS MAKES ME ANGRY

9. Throw that scale out! – Everyone I know that has done this GAINS weight. It’s the WORST advice out there. I don’t need to get rid of the scale, I need to manage my reaction to it. Getting rid of a scale is like…. Telling me to get rid of my hammer because I don’t like hammering nails, but then telling me the nails still have to be hammered in. You’ve pretty much just crippled my ability to do anything. and now I feel worse about it.

10. After a couple weeks, you’ll find working out is a habit you just don’t want to break – LIARS! I did a bootcamp for TWO YEARS [LOVED My trainer and my fellow work out people], I worked out with a personal trainer [Liked my trainer, saw results] for a YEAR – I still don’t like it. It’s STILL a struggle to do. I’m just not a person who enjoys working out. I’ve found stuff I like to do as far as exercise goes [dancing, ballet, cardio aerobics] but I still have to grit my teeth to get started. EVERY TIME. I don’t like it. And let me state for the record, that I really did have the BEST bootcamp trainer out there. Her name was Michelle. SHE WAS AWESOME. She worked us HARD but she was SO GREAT About it. I never had a fitness person motivate me positively before while still getting me to work as hard as I could, but she did. So it wasn’t that I had a bad experience. I loved Michelle! She was great! I still don’t like working out.

The whole weight thing always makes me want to just… stomp around and yell and hit things. It’s one of the few things in my life that makes me angry, upset, irrational, anxious, embarrassed and self-righteous all at once. I’ve been fighting my weight since I was 9 [that I can remember] and I’ll be fighting it until I die. It’s exhausting. I don’t even know how to wrap this post up. I wish I had some silver-lining advice or zen-like realization that I’ve come to. All I know is it’s all-consuming and if I didn’t have to worry/agonize over my weight, I feel like so much of my brain would be freed up to work on other things.

A Cello song to soothe your soul

Date: July 8, 2013

Author: margaritagakis

Categories: Cello

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Even if you don’t know much about the cello, you’ve probably heard one of the Bach Cello Suites at some point. Most people are familiar with Cello Suite 1. But personally, my favorite is Cello Suite 2 in D Minor [prelude].

I could listen to this song all day long. I invite you to give it a listen.

It’s tough to have swan arms when you’re a rhino

Date: July 4, 2013

Author: margaritagakis

Categories: Busy Squirrell

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Look. I’m not graceful. Anyone who’s seen me do … well… anything can attest to that. I also have a MESS of scars on my body from times when I was in the middle of doing something and then POOF. No longer upright. The reason your mum tells you not to run with scissors? *jerks thumbs at self* Right here, y’all. Right here. I did it. got the scars to prove it.

Actually, I wasn’t even running, I was going up STAIRS, like an EVERYDAY occurrence and BLAMO.

but I digress!

I do like to try different things for exercise though, especially since I started having this sciatic nerve thing about a year ago. What it boils down to is NO TREADMILL FOR ME. Which was kind of a bummer since getting on and just checking out mentally had been my go to workout for forever.

I hate the stationary bike. and the stairclimber and the rower. Pretty much the only machine I could stand was the treadmill and that was no longer an option.

But I like to dance.

Hey, I’m not very good at it, but I like it. And as long as I don’t have to do it in front of other people? SCORE.

So I got some dance videos. and dance type videos. So far my faves are:

Tracy Anderson Metamorphosis (Hipcentric) – it’s like 30 min of good, old fashioned cardio aerobics. WEAR GOOD SHOES, for the love of god. It took two months for my shins and calves to get used to the bouncing and jumping but they finally adjusted. but it’s fun! and I’m not really good with coordination so I have to concentrate while I work out and that makes it go by faster.

Ballet Beautiful Body Blasts – SWAN ARMS MY GOD HOW CAN YOU BE SO HARD?? I just like to watch Mary Helen [the instructor] move. She’s so…fluid. and calm. And just exactly like a ballerina should be. I try not to catch site of my own shadow or limbs as I do this. Best not to ruin the moment. Even though I know I’m not very good at it, I really like it AND MAN! do I feel the burn. I did the butt#1 work out the other day and I felt the good burn. the one that lets you know, you did good work!

So that’s what I’m into right now. I like to work out at home. With the blinds pulled and the door shut. Then I pretend I’m a dancing SUPERSTAR. It’s actually WAY MORE FUN than the treadmill ever was!

Office Makeover!

Date: July 1, 2013

Author: margaritagakis

Categories: Busy Squirrell, writing

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I wish I could tell you that I do most of my writing from an old mahogany desk in a library with a huge bay window where I can look out upon the grounds of my English Manor Maze Garden.

The truth is, I write from my bed. It’s the WORST for my back and legs. It’s also bad for my sleep habits.

I have an office type room in my house and I used to use it for some working from home when I worked at my last job. I also used to be really into scrapbooking and cardmaking. I currently only use it for cello practice. I thought if I tossed a coat of paint and finally hung up some of the art I had, I could make it into a writer-type place.

It’s getting there! Although I’m still writing this from my bed, lol.

: so sue me, flowers are pretty

: last one of flowers!

: Ye Olde Computer from 2004 that still works!

: Mostly I just had posters up before with no frames

: Most of the stuff on this shelf stayed except for the top row

So! with me starting Camp NaNoWriMo tomorrow, I hope to put this space to good use! Click here for my novel profile at camp!

Author vs Storyteller

Date: June 29, 2013

Author: margaritagakis

Categories: writing

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Copy of a guest post I wrote for Say What, Savannah Mae? on June 27

I’ve always struggled with calling myself an author or even, at times, a writer. I tend to think of myself as a storyteller – I just like to write them down.

If this were five hundred or even one thousand years ago, I think I would be just as happy sitting around a hearth or an open fire with my family and friends saying, “So, this is what happened….”

But in this day and age, the art of oral story telling is mostly forgotten. We tend to gravitate toward written words that we can enjoy on our own time, picking and choosing what we like most. But does that make everyone who writes a story or tale down an author? I tend to disagree. And I don’t mean that in a mean or spiteful way.

To me, an author is someone that picks and chooses their words carefully. They tend to write prose instead of just words. When I’m reading a book by someone I consider an author, I can happily stop and re-read several sentences over and over again simply because they’re lovely, separate from the information they relay or how they move the narrative on. A good author can have a character open a can of soup and it’s lyrical.

A good storyteller is worth just as much. A good storyteller draws you in with what’s happening, with the characters, with the scenery. The words all propel the story forward and at times you can’t stop reading, it’s so good. You take your book on the train, to your work, on your way to the shower – all because you must know what happens next. You can be both. You can be neither. You can be one or the other.

There are many successful books out there today by great storytellers. But I hesitate to call them authors. As I said, it’s not a slur or a slight – they told a great story! I couldn’t put those books down! But, as far as word choice, usage and prose, I consider it no better nor worse than average.

There are other books out there that are gorgeous in their construction. Each word feels as though it has been hand selected to sit exactly where it does, in that exact sentence, in that precise spot on the page. In those types of books, I almost feel as though nothing needs to happen. I would be content to simply read about things existing.

I’m very happy to call myself a storyteller! I think there’s a magic in crafting a compelling story with characters people care about and empathize with.

But I think I’ll hold off on calling myself an author. For now.