Guest Post with Angela Morrison - Again!

Hey guys! Here's Angela Morrison! Read her guest post! They're always SUPER interesting!

Regie wants to know how my mood and surroundings affect my writing. Nice topic, huh. No one else has asked me this.

My surroundings--places I've lived or visited--play a huge role when I develop ideas and flesh them out with setting

When I'm actually creating, I go back to those places in my memory, through pictures I've taken or found on-line. I fill a big bulletin board in my office with maps, notes and pictures. I like to be able to stare at that when I need to figure out what happens next or go to it for authentic details. Photos and video help with that, too.

I work best in silence, either propped on feather pillows in my bedroom or barricaded in my office. But I can write just about anywhere. We flew so much when I lived in Switzerland and Singapore that I've become an expert at writing on airplanes.

Mood plays a big role, too. The most creative time of the day for me is when I first wake up, and I'm still dreamy. Is dreamy a mood? I'm making it one. When I'm in the middle of a novel, my characters will often have a big fight or intimate conversation as a I drift awake. I scribble that down quick before I forget it, and then add setting details, action and emotional response when I type the scene up.

When my awakening time gets interrupted (I do have a family), I do my best to recreate that feeling later in the day when I can work again. I play romantic music. (Check out my playlist for TAKEN BY STORM.) Take a long, hot bath, and even get back in bed!

If that doesn't work, I rely on my story to manipulate my mood. As I read back over the chapters I've already written--revising and polishing--I sink deep into my story, reopen my heart, and rediscover the voices of my characters. Then all I have to do is listen.
Thanks for stopping by Angela! Hope you guys enjoyed that!