Ever thought about how cemeteries can be a great place for character inspiration? No? Well, I have. And they just happen to be my favorite place to get name ideas from.

We see, hear, smell something and our brains go, “Hey, there’s the potential for a story somewhere in that.” Writing requires an insatiable curiosity and an imagination that can fill in the gaps of what-might-have-been.

Everyone has their two cents on how to fight writer’s block, so let me chime in with mine.

So, let’s talk about where ideas come from.

And do you know what? Sometimes—dare I say often—they sneak up on you.

“Beyond Imagining” is the story of twins, Tommy and Jane, who grow up around the turn of the 20th century, an era of invention and progress. Tommy’s spirit for creation is hindered by his tendency to turn every idea into a mess, and Jane seems to have been born to keep an eye on him. As young adults, they find themselves living in a world at war. Jane can’t watch out for her brother, once he joins the war effort, and Tommy will learn that what he can create comes with a cost.

When I say routine, I’m really saying, “Hey, check out this skeleton I made that helps me get stuff done.”

On this day of love, allow me to talk about when writing and stories hit you right in the honey-nut-feelios.

To embark on a project takes some sort of ego, some voice within you stating that you can, indeed, do the thing you’re envisioning…It’s simple boldness that says, I can and I will.

It’s the plot twists you never see coming that mean the most.