Inspiration is a tricky thing, and unfortunately I can’t write without it. What hooks me as a writer – and hopefully hooks my readers when I’m done – is a character. Perhaps that comes from roleplaying a person I’m not every Friday night; perhaps it’s how I’m wired. But I need to be struck by a character and his or her situation, to want to explore that, before I can write anything interesting.
Usually inspiration occurs when I am reading a history book and some side character is mentioned – an emperor who started out imprisoned or a general’s wife known for meddling. Without fail I begin thinking about what it was like to be that person, the side character, the one caught up in events, the person thrown into the pool who had to learn to swim. (more…)
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This year, 2011, was supposed to be my last year as a writer. In January of 2010, I was in a really bad place. It had been five years since my last new fantasy novel, three years since my last published book. 
