Author
Stay safe…
Aspasía S. Bissas
Love Lies Bleeding: Smashwords, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, Apple Books
Blood Magic: Smashwords, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, Apple Books
Tooth & Claw: Smashwords, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, Apple Books
If you prefer a good paperback to an ebook, then order Love Lies Bleeding from an independent bookshop and support small businesses when they need it most. Click here and scroll down for the full list of available online shops.
According to a BBC article, recent research has confirmed that alone time is good for your concentration, health, and creativity. Is anyone else not remotely surprised? Any introvert can tell you that spending time on your own is a necessity, particularly when it comes to creative pursuits.
As much as I enjoy spending time with friends, I seem to never be able to get any writing done when I do. Even if it’s only for a couple of hours, socializing drains me, leaving no energy to think, let alone create. I’m not advocating for isolation (unless that’s your thing), but the more time I spend being social, the more appealing the hermit lifestyle starts to look.
I’m always a little skeptical of people in creative fields who are extroverts. The extroverts I know are constantly on the run, always social, always busy. When do they find time to create? How do they focus? I’m not saying it’s impossible, but it’s difficult to picture someone coming home from a party and feeling inspired to do anything other than sleep it off.
I’m still trying to find a balance between spending time with the people I care about and getting the necessary solitude I need to create. Sometimes I wish texting counted as socializing, or that I could carry on a conversation while mentally working on a chapter or two. How about you–are you an introvert or extrovert? What helps or hinders your creativity? Share in the comments…
Cheers,
Aspasía S. Bissas
Originally posted on 19 March 2018
Happy Canada Day to all Canadians, no matter where they find themselves on 1 July!
Did you know that Canada Day is not our independence day? It’s Canada’s birthday (happy 152nd!) July 1st marks the anniversary of Confederation, or the day the first four provinces officially joined to create the Dominion of Canada.
Long weekends are also the perfect time to catch up on your reading (how else are you going to digest all that BBQ?) Take advantage of Smashword’s sale and get Love Lies Bleeding for half price (and Blood Magic, as always, is free). Support Canadian indie writers and have a good day 🍁
If you want to learn more about Canada, watch this short video by a couple of resident experts:
Cheers,
Aspasía S. Bissas
As we head into the holiday season, it seems like a good time to post something fun. I snagged this from A.M. Molvik’s Ramblings. Feel free to share on your own blog (leave me a comment to let me know if you do). Enjoy…
Unfortunately, yes. I can’t even look at a text on my phone without feeling queasy. It doesn’t help with reading, but I do recommend ginger for the nausea, if you’re also prone to car sickness.
James Joyce. I can’t think of another author like him.
This is a bizarre question, like asking someone to choose between ice cream or a painting of Elvis on black velvet. Are the two even related?
I’m going with Harry Potter, but since HP needs no defending, here are 3 reasons why everyone should forget about Twilight already:
1. It was written by someone who doesn’t like vampires and has no interest in them, other than the ones she writes about. Never read a book by someone who has no respect for the subject.
2. It presents stalking and abuse as “romance.”
3. It’s not so much a story, as propaganda for the author’s religious and moral beliefs. Do yourself a favour and read something else.
If I bring a book along, I usually just hold it (unless it’s small enough to fit in my purse). If I do bring a larger bag to accommodate a book, I’ll also usually put my purse in there (easier than picking out just the stuff I need), maybe a bottle of water, my hairbrush, a camera–whatever I think I’ll need while I’m out.
Not really; I think I’m immune to book smell.
Illustrations are always fun, but not necessary.
A lot of books I read as a kid. I’ve recently re-read some of them and have been disappointed (Gordon Korman, I’m looking at you).
I’m not sure how funny this is, but growing up, I didn’t have a lot of access to books at home other than the Encyclopedia Britannica (yes, I’m that old), Greek history books, and a few of my older sister’s novels. So one of the books I would read (more than once) was the Donny Osmond Mystery (Donny Disappears!)
The really funny part might be that I still have it.
A Dover Edition of Daisy Miller by Henry James (Dover Editions all tend to be slim).
A Suitable Boy by Vikram Seth.
I’m currently published. Find out more about my dark fantasy novel, Love Lies Bleeding, and my free ebook, Blood Magic, here.
I’ve loved reading and books longer than I can remember. When I started kindergarten, my first question to the teacher was when were we going to the library. The kindergartners normally didn’t use the school library, but I was so excited to see the books that they ended up making special arrangements for my class.
Crime and Punishment by Dostoevsky.
English. I basically took every English class my high school offered, and then majored in English Lit in Uni.
I might try reading it again, but if I really hated it I’d probably just keep it on my shelf as a reminder of the person who gave it to me.
I think it’s great when people branch out and read new things instead of different variations on a favourite theme. That being said, I do recommend the (non-YA) Kate Daniels series by Ilona Andrews. It has magic, a dystopian future, shifters, witches, vampires, and a kick-ass female main character.
Meander. I love both the rhythm of it and the meaning. Susurrate is also a good one.
Who doesn’t love applying labels to themselves? Just call me a neo-maxi-zoom-dweebie.
Vampires, always. I like fairies, but fangs beat wings.
Shapeshifters interest me more. Angels can be okay if done right.
Werewolves. Spirits are fine as minor characters, but as a main they’d be unsatisfying to read about and impossible to relate to.
Forbidden love, I guess. Love triangles always make me question why they don’t just try a poly relationship.
Action packed, tyvm. I probably shouldn’t admit this publicly, but I find Jane Austen-style romances tedious. Maybe it’s the lack of Osmond brothers 😉
Anything to add? Let me know in the comments…
Cheers,
Aspasía S. Bissas
I found this on Twitter and I thought I’d share it here too, along with a few additions of my own.
Original Tweet (via @PaperFury):
REASONS TO KEEP A WRITER IN YOUR HOME
• they know weird facts
• they’re low maintenance because all they do is eat and write
• great for midnight chats because they don’t sleep
• if they have to edit they’ll procrastinate by cleaning your whole house
I’ll also add:
Do you know any other reasons to keep a writer nearby? Share in the comments…
Aspasía S. Bissas 