Guest Post – Shanda Sharlow – The Psyonic

Guest Post On The Art of Writing – Shanda Sharlow

The Psyonic was the first book I successfully completed. Oh, I’d started at least a dozen fantasy novels, muddling through from when I had no clue how to write to figuring out about little things like copyright laws. I’ve got enough material from unwritten or unfinished stories (actual original stories) to write several more novels. Of course, the problem in finishing them was just that: I crammed so much information and so many storylines into one place I could never finish a story.

With The Psyonic, I actually started out with a very, very simple and short storyline, and worked from there. As it turned out, I actually completed the story and ended up making it much longer and complex than the original idea was.

Sometimes I look back at the story and think about ways I could go back and rewrite it to make it longer and far more complicated. In the end, however, I don’t think it’s necessary. Inspiration and conception should be simple and vague, an allow for natural creative growth. Overcomplicating things before getting started just bogs down the writing and gets you lost along the way.

And really, where’s the fun in writing a story, if you can never make it to the end? Isn’t it much more fun to get stories finished and find yourself with several stories you can share with others and swap around as inspiration strikes, than spending years working on one very long and excruciatingly detailed work you won’t really be able to share until it’s complete? And imagine how the sequels would be. Could you account for everything? Would you have to? Just how many should you plan to, and what if it’s not as popular as you’d like it to be?

Of course many of my favorite novels are extremely long and highly complex, but shorter and simpler novels have captivated me just as much when I read them, and more often than not, they’ve got plenty of sequels to follow afterward. And there’s nothing saying that the longest stories of all couldn’t be summed up in very short and colorful ideas. Think of some of your favorites, and some of the famous epics out there, can you sum up those stories into short ideas? Probably. And that’s probably exactly how most of them started out.

-Shanda Sharlow

Author of The Psyonic.

About the Author:
Shanda Sharlow began writing short stories from the time she could hold a pencil. Through the years, she’s scribbled down thousands of pages of random stories and unfinished novels that were eventually abandoned or forgotten about. In 2005, she set down to finish a full fantasy novel in the form of the Psyonic, which she managed in a few months. For awhile, she shelved the book without any way to get it realistically published. After Amazon Kindle came out, she found the opportunity to release the Psyonic to the public, and is now working on another full novel. Currently, she lives in Vancouver WA with her father and brother, and edits novels for other people when she’s not writing.

The Psyonic:

Hale lived his entire life in hiding, traveling through slums and nondescript villages, never staying anywhere long enough for the people there to recognize his face. Never staying long enough for anyone to ferret out his secret.

When he comes across a woman who recognizes him, he becomes the confidante of a Princess. Yet the halls of the palace hold far more danger than that of the streets, for within its shadows lurk dark mysteries and murderous intent. Desperate to remain hidden from those who hunt him, Hale must unravel the hidden machinations of the gathered royal families before it’s too late, or it will be more than his life that he loses.

Here’s Shanda’s Blog Tour Schedule:

Schedule:

January 10 – Spotlight Feature at http://virtualbooktourcafe.blogspot.com
January 17 – Guest Blogging at http://rhodesreview.com
January 19 – Author Interviewed at http://consciousdiscussions.blogspot.com
January 21 – Guest Blogging at http://hotgossiphotreviews.blogspot.com
January 24 – Guest Blogging at http://kristenhaskins.blogspot.com
Januaary 26 – Guest Blogging at http://writersmovementweb.blogspot.com
January 29 – Author Interviewed at http://myimmortalstories.blogspot.com
February 1 – Author Interviewed at http://deannajewel.blogspot.com
February 3 – Guest Blogging at http://ashleysbookshelf.blogspot.com
February 7 – Author Interviewed at http://kippoe.blogspot.com
February 9 – Author Interviewed at http://immortylcafe.blogspot.com
February 11 – Guest Blogging at http://authorsbyauthors.blogspot.com
February 15 – Author Interviewed at http://immortylrevolution.blogspot.com
February 18 – Author Interviewed at http://margaret-paranormalromanceauthor.blogspot.com
February 21 – Guest Blogging at http://amomentwithmystee.blogspot.com

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One Response to “Guest Post – Shanda Sharlow – The Psyonic”

  1. Tina L. Hill Says:

    This looks like a great book. Something that I would be interested in reading. I’m a sucker for a good mystery.

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