Ritual and superstition are a part of a lot of people’s lives. Rather it be a baseball player who never changes batting gloves to the student who taps their pencil on the desk three times before taking a test; we all have some sort of weird thing we do to help us do our daily tasks.

Writing is no different.

When I sit behind the keyboard, there are certain things I need to have around me to feel comfortable. Think of it as things to get my head right for the places I need to go and the things I have to make innocent characters do.

First thing is to turn on my candle warmer. I like having the nice smell of the candle without blacking the ceiling tiles in my office from smoke. Something about it is soothing.

Drinks are next. I usually have a glass of Kool-Aide or water with me. Killing fictional people makes a person thirsty!

I have a few playlists on my computer I will start when I open my WIP. The music is mostly metal, metal, and more metal. There really isn’t music out there outside of metal is there? Most of it is Iron Maiden, Ghost, Slayer, and Judas Priest. What do you listen to when writing?

Lastly, the dog. Drake likes to make sure he’s under the desk when I take my seat at the computer. Granted, I have to sit back a bit because he has a bed set up down there and I can’t push my chair in. Spoiled dog…

Once all the rituals have been performed and the desk fan turned on, I can begin.

What things do you have to do before performing a task? What do you need to begin something?

Those are the things I need to get going and begin the writing process.

And once we begin, we don’t know where the rabbit hole will take us do we?

Right now, the rabbit hole is still sending us down the path of Nora in Dying Days: Zealot. I have an idea for a stand alone tie-in story that will possibly be a chapbook give-away when the book comes out in paperback. It may be one at signings if I can ever get to another con.

Dragonflies is about to be subbed and then we’ll see where we are with the novel. The pre-reader reaction was positive, so I hope it carries over to the publisher and the readers.

Well, Nora and the gang are about to enter St. Augustine with some very important news for any survivors they find. Keep dry and safe in the storms and I’ll hang out with you guys again soon.

Later,

Brent