Ask the Author: Morgan C. Talbot
Answered Questions (7)
Morgan C. Talbot
The fourth book has been mostly written for a few years, but I fell very ill while writing it, and I think that scared off my muse. I would love to find some time to finish it and get it published, though. It is on my long-term to-do list. I hope you can be patient with me.
Morgan C. Talbot
Well, my writer's block is probably different from most authors'. I get into this mode where part of me wants to write, and I'll make half-hearted attempts to start, and then I'll just deflate under the pressure of another part of me saying, "Gah, I can't do this right now. Let me take a break and do something else for a while. Or maybe just take the day off and try again tomorrow."
That's my depression talking. Mine is a high-functioning sort, which for me means that weeks can pass without me realizing I'm in another bout of depression. And then weeks can pass where I'm not depressed at all. It looks very subtle from inside. I only catch it in retrospect. And then I get mad, because I realize I did wanna write on all those days, and my depression convinced me I didn't. That tiny little bitch!
Some days, I fight through it. Other days, I can't. So I just do what I can do, when I can do it. That's how I move forward. I am the Tortoise, and I plan to win in the end.
That's my depression talking. Mine is a high-functioning sort, which for me means that weeks can pass without me realizing I'm in another bout of depression. And then weeks can pass where I'm not depressed at all. It looks very subtle from inside. I only catch it in retrospect. And then I get mad, because I realize I did wanna write on all those days, and my depression convinced me I didn't. That tiny little bitch!
Some days, I fight through it. Other days, I can't. So I just do what I can do, when I can do it. That's how I move forward. I am the Tortoise, and I plan to win in the end.
Morgan C. Talbot
If you don't think you can live without writing, then don't live without it. Practice. Learn. Explore. Travel. Get inspired. Study. Critique. Submit. Edit. And read. Read like your career depends on it.
Morgan C. Talbot
I'm working my way through the sequel to Smugglers & Scones. Currently calling it Burglars & Blintzes. It's set in the summer, and things get a little crazy all around. It's gonna be a blast!
Morgan C. Talbot
You know in the animated version of Beauty and the Beast, when Belle's singing that first song, and her voice literally shivers with glee when she sings, "But she won't discover that it's *him* 'til chapter three!" That thrill, OMG. It's the best drug. Knowing what happens next, planning a story's twists, having characters feel as real to me as actual people do, and feeling the awesome power of holding their fates in my hand...
I'm spouting like a Disney villain right now, aren't I? Sorry about that.
I both love and hate surprises. I want to solve every question in existence. Anything I see that offers me a puzzle, I'm immediately drawn to it. I want to discover the right answer so it can't surprise me anymore. I read mysteries with a rather desperate urgency to figure out whodunit before the story tells me. And when I come up with my own conundrum--something good enough to set at the heart of a mystery novel--I feel awesome! Now I, too, can offer people a fun puzzle to play with. That joy just never gets old.
I'm spouting like a Disney villain right now, aren't I? Sorry about that.
I both love and hate surprises. I want to solve every question in existence. Anything I see that offers me a puzzle, I'm immediately drawn to it. I want to discover the right answer so it can't surprise me anymore. I read mysteries with a rather desperate urgency to figure out whodunit before the story tells me. And when I come up with my own conundrum--something good enough to set at the heart of a mystery novel--I feel awesome! Now I, too, can offer people a fun puzzle to play with. That joy just never gets old.
Morgan C. Talbot
My muse moved from the Willamette Valley to the Oregon Coast. I had to follow her, right?
Seriously, I just woke up one morning in the spring of 2014, around 5am, and there was the series idea, already formed in my mind's eye. I really should sign my writing credits over to my subconscious.
Seriously, I just woke up one morning in the spring of 2014, around 5am, and there was the series idea, already formed in my mind's eye. I really should sign my writing credits over to my subconscious.
Morgan C. Talbot
The dress code.
Okay, no. It's the constant feeling like I'm getting away with something. I get to sit around all day making up the most delightful lies, and people find that worthy enough that they help me pay my bills. What kind of amazing paradise have I wandered into?
Okay, no. It's the constant feeling like I'm getting away with something. I get to sit around all day making up the most delightful lies, and people find that worthy enough that they help me pay my bills. What kind of amazing paradise have I wandered into?
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