Throughout our lives we have to make choices. The choices we make may determine a good or bad outcome in our lives. As an author, I get to make choices for my characters, in their back stories and in their present circumstances. Some of my characters have made bad choices in the past, and now […]
Not a Honeymoon
It was supposed to be a honeymoon … a cruise. If only Nathan hadn’t called off the wedding a month before. If only Bree hadn’t given in to their friends who convinced her to use the tickets for the nonrefundable honeymoon anyway. If only Nathan hadn’t done the same, not realizing he was being set […]
Mixed Emotions of Reading (& Writing) a Series + Pre-Order!
Last week, I revealed the cover of the fourth and final novel in my Laurel Cove Romance (LCR) Series. I’ll tell you more about that in a bit, but I’m as my series draws to a close, I’m dealing with a mixed bag of emotions. Since 2014, when I began to write Someplace Familiar, my […]
You Had Me at Sequel
Husband Auditions came out in August, and readers are asking for a sequel. I thought maybe I could satisfy their appetites by writing a short story based on beloved roommate, Gemma. (To read her romance in this month’s edition of Spark Magazine, Falling in Love, click here.) But then my editor asked me to pitch […]
Revisiting Characters
A Texas Bond, book three in my Texas Hill Country series, officially released last week. It was inspired partly by my husband and I dabbling in flea marketing after shopping them for years. The picture I included is the booth we had full of items we created or repurposed. It was fun fitting our […]
Book Themes and Therapy
Welcome to the Inspy Romance Back to School Book Bash season! I hope you’re as excited as we are. If you missed the post, you can visit it HERE. One of the highlights for me this year are listening to podcasts. This is a bit overwhelming to me, so right now I’ve tried ministries/pastors I […]
Whatever Happens Next (not just a book title) + giveaway
Well, it’s release day today for my fourth novel, Whatever Happens Next. Of the whole series, it’s easily my favorite. Not only because it’s my eighth book now, so I’ve learned more and write better. Nor is it the characters, who I absolutely love and were a joy to write. Those are part of why […]
Co-authoring a Series in Pressured Times
Back in October, I did a cover reveal on my post, Of Babes and Book Babies, for Accept Me (Chapel Cove Romances Book 8), which I had hoped to release in December. The busyness of a new grandbaby in the house and my son and his family’s move to Cape Town, put pay to my […]
Backstory
By: Staci Stallings Many, many moons ago on a writing loop I was on at the time, there was a massive discussion about backstory. For those who don’t know, “backstory” refers to a character’s story that happened before the current story starts. Basically, where did this person come from and how did they get here? […]
Creativity on Demand
By: Staci Stallings Creativity is an odd animal. It has to be constantly fed, but there is no routine to its needed diet. You cannot coddle it nor coax it. It will come out and play when it’s ready and not a second before that. Forcing it to do anything will result in it immediately […]