Blog Archives
How Hobbies Can Improve Your Writing
What is a hobby? As defined by the dictionary, it is an interest or activity to which a person devotes time for pleasure. Things or activities that a person does for relaxation or enjoyment.
Hobbies help to invoke passion in your life which in turn helps revitalize your writing, often by pushing your boundaries. When you give your characters interests or hobbies it fleshes out their personalities and helps the reader to be more invested and care about them. If they care about your characters, they’ll be more likely to enjoy the story and be able to make a connection. You as a writer need that passion as well. Without that enthusiasm there is little motivation to get up in the morning, head to your computer keyboard or pick up your pen and write.
Quite a few fiction writers paint. Painting helps you to look at things, create things, and show things. Anything that helps you to see is advantageous to your writing in creating characters, storytelling, locations, etc. for your books.
Giving quality time to activities you enjoy helps your performance in creative problem-solving which affects your brain’s abilities and supports your performance in life in general, as well as writing. Hobbies tend to build confidence and self-esteem. They are excellent for your mental health, they increase productivity, and can spark new ideas. When we get excited about something, it activates the reward system in the brain and motivates us to stick with it.
If you’ve ever had writer’s block, you know that sometimes you need that motivation to continue to the next chapter of your book or article. A hobby forces your mind to focus which is the enemy of writer’s block and a friend to the writer. Recharging your mind with something new or different can make all the difference in your outlook and productivity.
Hobbies give us a kind of resilience and keep us engaged so that we can write that next great novel that might be an inspiration for someone else who needs it. If you haven’t found what helps inspire you to greatness, do some exploration. There are countless ways to spark your mind!
Solitaire
Five Equally Valuable and Enlightening Sites for the Week
May is Mental Health Awareness Month!
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Since 1949, the month of May has been designated throughout the nation as mental health month. Each year millions of Americans face the reality of living with a mental illness. During May, NAMI (National Alliance on Mental Health) joins the national movement to raise awareness. Their site provides support for those who deal with this everyday, along with their families.
I found a blog on LULU Books called Mental Health for Writers that applies not only to writers like myself, but has some great links for mental health in general.
After the last two years of pandemic living, many people are realizing that stress, isolation, job loss, and uncertainty have taken a toll on their well-being. To help slow the spread of coronavirus, many schools and childcare centers across the U.S. closed and transitioned to virtual instruction for at least some time. With these closures, children and their parents were experiencing ongoing disruption and changes to their daily routines. Throughout the pandemic, anxiety, depression, sleep disruptions, and thoughts of suicide have increased for many young adults. It has hit just about everyone in some form or fashion.
Personality may also influence how we manage in difficult times. How we endure uncertainty and our ability to tolerate distress are related behaviors that appear to make a difference. Some people are less comfortable with struggle or the unknown than others. Feeling afraid, depressed, or anxiety ridden has seemed to hit an all time high in our world right now.
We can’t always self-improve our way out of pain and difficulty. Facing it is the only answer, and there are ways that we can get help and help ourselves. This is one of those times when life really is harder by a little bit or a lot, depending on your situation. We need to work to feel better, stay connected, and help others however we can.
Solitaire
Have You Watched These 10 Movies About Time Travel?
Image by Solitaire on Emporeum
Time travel is described as the concept in which people are able to move backwards into the past or forwards into the future. This subject is one of my favorites, and I have written a few science fiction/fantasy books which focus on time travel in my Dragomeir Series. You can check them out at my website – www.solitaireparke.com
What is it about time travel that keeps us coming back for more? First of all, is it even possible? Yes, and you’re doing it right now – moving forward into the future at the rate of one second per second. But this isn’t the kind of time travel that has made science fiction writers so prolific, or movie makers so fascinated that Wikipedia lists over 400 titles in the category “Movies about Time Travel.” Traveling by way of a time machine or by using some other means into the past or future is what is really intriguing. If you are one of the many who find time travel to be incredible, you might want to check out the following ten movies.
- The Adam Project – “After accidentally crash-landing in 2022, time-traveling fighter pilot Adam Reed teams up with his 12-year-old self for a mission to save the future.
- The Tomorrow War – A family man is drafted to fight in a future war where the fate of humanity relies on his ability to confront the past.
- Tenet – Armed with only one word, Tenet, and fighting for the survival of the entire world, a protagonist journeys through a twilight world of international espionage on a mission that will unfold in something beyond real time.
- Palm Springs – Stuck in a time loop, two wedding guests develop a budding romance while living the same day over and over again.
- Boss Level – Trapped in a time loop that constantly repeats the day of his murder, a former special forces agent must unlock the mystery behind his untimely demise.
- 12 Monkeys – In a future world devastated by disease, a convict is sent back in time to gather information about the man-made virus that wiped out most of the human population on the planet.
- Looper – In 2074, when the mob wants to get rid of someone, the target is sent into the past, where a hired gun awaits – someone like Joe – who one day learns the mob wants to ‘close the loop’ by sending back Joe’s future self for assassination.
- Avengers: Endgame – After the devastating events of Avengers: Infinity War (2018), the universe is in ruins. With the help of remaining allies, the Avengers assemble once more in order to reverse Thanos’ actions and restore balance to the universe.
- Time Machine – Hoping to alter the events of the past, a 19th century inventor instead travels 800,000 years into the future, where he finds humankind divided into two warring races.
- Donnie Darko – After narrowly escaping a bizarre accident, a troubled teenager is plagued by visions of a man in a large rabbit suit who manipulates him to commit a series of crimes.
To all the Travelers out there – Be Safe!
Solitaire
Annual Smashwords Read an Ebook Week Sale!
March 6 – March 12, 2022
Hello Readers! This is the 13th annual Smashwords read an Ebook week sale and you are invited to check it out on the Smashwords Ebook site at this location –
Thousands of Smashwords authors and publishers will offer readers exclusive discounts on their ebooks. It’s a great opportunity to fill your cart with the books from favorite authors and future favorites. Ebooks will be offered at 25% off, 50% off, 75% off, or for FREE.
If you love stories about dragons, otherworldly creatures, lots of adventure, and other sci-fi/fantasy topics then check out my site at Smashwords here –
You can also learn more about me and my books at my website –
If you love to read, here is your chance to stock up for the Spring and Summer with ebooks of every genre. You won’t want to miss it!
Solitaire
SMASHWORDS – End of Year SALE!
The fourth annual Smashwords End of Year Sale kicks off December 18th and runs through January 1, 2021. The sale is beginning a week earlier this year so you can take advantage of the Smashwords Store’s ebook gifting feature. You can find books at 25%-off, 50%-off, 75%-off and 100%-off (free). What a great time to stock up on the books you would love to read or give the gift of reading to someone you love or a friend. Visitors to the Smashwords Store will find the sale prominently featured at the top of the Smashwords home page starting December 18th. So, encourage your friends to visit the website and check out this amazing sale!
Have a wonderful Holiday – Merry Christmas to everyone!
Solitaire
SMASHWORDS July Summer/Winter ebook Sale!
Hello Readers!
Welcome to the
Smashwords author discounts on their ebooks.
Why is it called “Summer/Winter?” Here in the Northern hemisphere, it’s mid-summer. Readers are loading their e-reading devices for summer beach reading and vacations in the age of COVID-19 – staycations. South of the equator, readers are now in the middle of winter. They’re ready to curl up in front of the fireplace and enjoy a great read too!
So, check it out and stock up on your favorite genres of books at great discounts!
You’ll find my Dragomeir Series, which includes the new fourth book, Back from Oblivion, as well as the Daughter of the Dark Lord Series (Prequel to Dragomeir), and others. Also listed at my website along with other extras. (Only ebooks at Smashwords are discounted)
Have a safe and happy summer.
Solitaire
AUTHORS GIVE BACK SALE – EXTENDED TO MAY 31ST – FREE AND DISCOUNTED BOOKS!
Smashwords 
authors are reaching out to do their part by using the power of their books to help minimize the emotional and economic hardships we all face in every country. Many of us are faced with having to stay at home and stay isolated from others in order to contain this global pandemic. So we, as authors, want to do our part by offering LARGE DISCOUNTS of 30%, 60%, or even FREE on select ebooks. We are continuing our sale through May 31st. So please browse Smashwords’ many selections and enjoy reading!
We hope that all of you readers might find comfort and enjoyment from them and it might make your day a little brighter. If you find a favorite book during the sale, please consider reading their other books as well. There are 140,000 authors that publish at Smashwords from every country around the world. They are all your friends and neighbors.
You can find all my Smashwords’ books here: https://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/solitaireparke
The first book in the Dragmeir Series – The Emerald Dragon – is FREE
https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/446935
The first book in the Daughter of the Dark Lord Series (prequel books to Dragomeir)
Daughter of the Dark Lord, The Burning Sky) – FREE
https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/707732
Please spread the word, take care and stay safe!
Solitaire
AUTHORS GIVE BACK SALE – NOW UNDERWAY – FREE BOOKS!
Smashwords authors are reaching out to do their part by using the power of their books to help minimize the emotional and economic hardships we all face in every country. Many of us are faced with having to stay at home and stay isolated from others in order to contain this global pandemic. So we, as authors, want to do our part by offering LARGE DISCOUNTS of 30%, 60%, or even FREE on select ebooks, starting now through April 20th.
We hope that all of you readers might find comfort and enjoyment from them and it might make your day a little brighter. If you find a favorite book during the sale, please consider reading their other books as well. There are 140,000 authors that publish at Smashwords from every country around the world. They are all your friends and neighbors.
You can find all my Smashwords’ books here: https://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/solitaireparke
The first book in the Dragmeir Series – The Emerald Dragon – is FREE
https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/446935
The first book in the Daughter of the Dark Lord Series (prequel books to Dragomeir)
Daughter of the Dark Lord, The Burning Sky) – FREE
https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/707732
Please spread the word, take care and stay safe!
Solitaire
15 Quotes to Celebrate Father’s Day
The third Sunday in June every year is Father’s Day. A great day to let your Dad know that he is important and you care, with a card, a gift, or just a hug and a visit. Fatherhood is rarely a smooth ride, but one that’s full of ups and downs, with both joyful and sometimes tragic experiences. You learn to find joy in the everyday pleasures and count your blessings, because nothing in life is guaranteed. So, live simply, don’t take yourself too seriously, live your life intentionally and with a sense of humor. Cherish each one of life’s moments that you have.
Here are some quotes from a handful of Fathers:
“A Father carries pictures where his money used to be.” – Steve Martin
“One Father is more than a hundred schoolmasters.” – George Herbert
“No man stands taller than when he stoops to help a child.” – Abraham Lincoln
“What you teach your children, you also teach their children.” – The Talmud
“A two year old is kind of like having a blender, but you don’t have a top for it.” – Jerry Seinfeld
“There should be a children’s song: If you’re happy and you know it, keep it to yourself and let your dad sleep.” – Jim Gaffigan
“It’s on ongoing joy being a Dad. ” – Liam Neeson
“The older I get, the smarter my Father seems to get.” – Tim Russert
“When my Father didn’t have my hand, he had my back.” – Linda Poindexter
“A daughter needs a Dad to be the standard against which she will judge all men.” – Gregory E. Lang
“Having a kid is like falling in love for the first time when you’re 12, but every day.” – Mike Myers
“My Father used to say, ‘It’s never too late to do anything you wanted to do. You never know what you can accomplish until you try.’ ” – Michael Jordan
“A Father doesn’t just tell you he loves you; he shows you.” – Unknown
“My Father taught me not to overthink things, that nothing will be perfect, so just keep moving and do your best.” – Scott Eastwood
“Daddies don’t just love their children now and then. It’s a love without end.” – George Strait
Happy Father’s Day!
Solitaire
Solitaire Parke - Sci-Fi/Fantasy Books 