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Journey with me through the elements... 


These past few weeks have been crazy! I have been working hard to tweak the website and to get people to come visit. It's my humble abode in the world wide neighborhood we call the Internet. I hope you had a chance to check out my most recent blog, "Welcome to my new burgage (website)!" It talks about some of the cool things you can find and where to find them. 

I have also been working on the elements of being an author--like platform building and writing--and the elements of telling my story--especially the mythological ones. Join me as we talk about these things.
Quill tips

I have discovered how easy it is to do all of the things an author needs to do EXCEPT WRITE! It is easy to get caught up in social media and building an author's platform (a means of building an audience) and forget to spend time writing the tale and creating characters for the readers to love or hate. Here are 5 things to help keep focused.
  1. Create a schedule for writing and stick to it. For me, that time is when the kids go to bed. For you, it might be at lunch time or first thing in the morning. It has to be like your job. If you don't do it, you will never be see the reward for your labor of love.
  2. Set a time for building the platform. It should be after you have written for the day. That way, you won't get lost on Facebook with shiny-object syndrome.  
  3. Pick a theme for your social media engagement that is related to the scenes you are creating or editing. Tweet about your main character, for instance.
  4. If you find yourself spending too much time on the web, shut it all off. When you write, only have one app up--the one you are using to write.
  5. Write about something you LOVE. If you are writing on a topic you don't enjoy, there will be plenty of temptations to pull you away from it.
 
Conversation

I have something to share with you that made me really excited. I got the opportunity to interview with Ms. Sutherlin from Fantasy Faction Blog. I would love to know many of the same things about you. So, I added a topic to the Authors forum: Passion for your writing. Remember that y
ou can always send me a scroll to let me know your thoughts, concerns or ideas, or just let me know you are having a fantastic, or horrible day. Just give it to the brownie. (Brown delivers!) You can send it via good or evil brownie, depending on your mood. I will always make time to get back to you.


 
Myth and Magic

The elements are fascinating and cultures around the globe have looked at elements for centuries as an intriguing part of their mythology or belief systems. Many cultures believe there are characteristics that go along with each of the four elements: earth, water, air, and fire. (Some say that the spirit makes a fifth, but we will leave that for discussion in the
Tavern.)

Those whose characteristics are similar to the earth are both solid and unyielding. Once they have committed to something, they are "all in". They are practical and grounded, and once they decide where they stand, they can be impossible to move. They believe in the value of home, and welcome people into their own. They are conscientious and reliable, respectful and punctual. They are dependable, loyal, sturdy and well-balanced.
 
Those who relate to water are very different. Time, when it is important at all, is just a rough guideline. Water people are understanding and trusting, almost to a fault. They are intelligent and compassionate. They heal all wounds they are able to mend, even when they were not the ones who inflicted the injuries in the first place. Those who associate with water feel, rather than think. They "go with the flow."
 
People who associate with air are kind-hearted. They are also very smart. They are abstract and big-picture people. Air people get so focused on the big picture that they sometimes do not pay attention to the practical implementation. When they are aware of implementation, they would rather be distracted to other lofty thoughts. They are light on their feet and do not let the wind of change hurt them, but rather take advantage of it.
 
Finally, those who associate their personalities with fire are powerful and passionate, even to the point of sometimes being hot tempered. They have both courage and creativity and are "on fire" with ideas and causes. They can be rebellious. They are both impulsive and natural leaders.

So, which one are you? Let us all know by taking the poll
here.
Copyright © 2016 AJ Benson, All rights reserved.

Our mailing address is:
ajbensonauthor@gmail.com

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