Last week, I introduced Lyryk Starsong, a bard I played. She helped one of our weekly players catch up to the rest of the party (he was half-level behind, and we were only 3rd level). When Lyryk introduced herself, I had a vague idea that she could be a backup character if Skrie got exceedingly … Continue reading Lyryk Starsong
(C) 2020, JJ Shaun As our online Dungeons & Dragons group became more cohesive and took more risks, I decided to create a “just in case Skrie dies” character. (Skrie is the halfling healer with more than a pinch of rogue that I play in our game.) When I created this new character, I chose … Continue reading Getting to Know New Characters
At the beginning of the year, I started a spreadsheet to track my word count. Seven months into the year, I’ve noticed that my word count is slowing down for the summer. While I managed to write almost 4500 words for this blog in June, I realized that I hadn’t written a new story since … Continue reading Writing Season
(C) 2020, JJ Shaun When I write to a prompt, I don’t always know what direction a short story will take. This is especially true when writing a character’s backstory. I sit back and record what’s going on most of the time. That’s what happened in this next story. I looked at a prompt before … Continue reading Finding Inspiration
(C) 2020, JJ Shaun I recently got some feedback on the first part of an old story I had posted on a writing website a few years ago. So, I went back and looked at the comments from the reader. I decided it needed a new coat of polish. I began editing the piece. Having … Continue reading Revisiting Old Writing
I have this thing about creating different characters and seeing how they act in various situations. The writing prompts I look at daily help a lot. Sometimes, the prompt itself brings a story forward. Other times, I need to put more thought into what to write. This story needed a little reflection, and I wanted … Continue reading Playing With Character
(C) 2020, JJ Shaun A few weeks ago, one of the daily writing prompts had me step out of my usual storytelling style. The prompt had what I considered a challenge this day, so I ran with it. Here’s the prompt: Write a story or poem where: The main character (narrator / POV character etc) … Continue reading Playing With Scenes
I’ve been using a variety of writing prompts to flesh out some of my characters. Because I spent the most time with her, the Trickster Cleric I play in our weekly tabletop game gets the most attention. Skrie Tripfoot is a young halfling who was orphaned in childhood. She is a survivor who refuses to … Continue reading Writing Backstories
(C) 2020, JJ Shaun According to Grammarly, I wrote almost sixty-one thousand words last week. I’m not sure that’s entirely accurate, considering how much copying and pasting I do. What I consider more impressive is that I’ve got writing data going back one hundred and thirty straight weeks. Not only that, but the app has … Continue reading Writing, Writing, and More Writing
(C) 2020, JJ Shaun A couple of weeks ago, I had a weird day. Weird in that I could not hold onto a writing prompt for the life of me. For the two weeks prior, I could look at the requirements for the contest and remember from one second to the next what those words … Continue reading Finding Words
Dream ✨Imagine ✨ Believe
Books, games, music, and life — filtered through the mind of a writer, drummer, and philosopher who thinks too deeply about all of it. If it moves something in your chest, I'm interested.
Tavern Tales
Poetry BLOG By Edge of Humanity Magazine
J.J. Shaun 