Tag Archives: authors

Screenwriting Tip: Fear and How to Beat It

chit-chatting with Cat, screenwriting, Tips October 28, 2022 Leave a comment

IMG_5625

 

Cue Taylor Swift's Anti-Hero song

 

Yesterday, I was suddenly motivated and determined to keep on writing my short film for the first time in two weeks. When I sat down with an iced coffee in front of my Macbook Air, then page to my Arc Studio Pro's project at the ready, I felt dread blooming and I thought for no apparent reason:

 

"I see, so that's why I haven't been writing. I still shouldn't write it because I'm afraid–"

And, I shit you not, I immediatly reacted to this thought with:

 

"Oh noooo, not YOU again!"

The fear!

 

And then I burst out laughing as I remembered the scene in Swift's music video when she opens the door and sees… herself!

 

 

I pictured the same scene with me and my fear, where she waves and smiles at me and says the brilliant lyrics:

 

"It's me, hi. I'm the problem, it's me."

 

Because, yeah, she's damn right! My fear is the problem.

My fear of succeeding, of not being good enough (or at all!), of failing, of others' mean critics, of being laughed at, of… You see?

 

This, this fear, is my problem in writing.

What is yours?

 

It can be the same as me, or it can be writer's block, lack of self-esteem, deeply-rooted negative opinions of yourself or constant exhaustion…

But if it's the fear, please keep on reading.

 

I then realized that whatever I'd do, no matter how hard I slammed the door to Fear's face, shouted at her, pulled at my hair, cried myself to a puddle, or–gasps!–listened to her… The Fear would always be there. She'd stay around. Like a nosy someone.

She'd hover over my shoulder, making me feel afraid and doubt myself.

But you know what?

She would win… only if I let her.

I'm the one in control.

I'm the writer.

 

She's only real if I let her.

Just like a story, and a bad one at that…

 

And so, what did I do after picturing this scene and laughing?

I took a sip of my iced coffee and kept on writing. And I made progress.

I keep on writing and making progress even now.

 

Okay, sure, Fear is annoying.

But now I don't let her write my story.

 

Instead, I suggest you do this when she shows up at your doorstep:

 

  • Open the door, and smile
  • Invite her in calmly
  • Tell her: you can sit or hover, but I've got writing to do.
  • Sit down and write.
  • When she makes you afraid, tell her you know she's there, but she's fictional, too…
  • Then say, proudly: 

 

"And I'm the writer after all."

 

I hope this bit of life helps you!

It sure did spur me into action and yes, I do the suggestion I gave you now, and yes, I keep on writing. 🙂

 

She's not invincible, the fear. She just wants you to think she is. 

 

See you next post, darlings!

A New Blog Post Series – Artists & Writing: Interview with Valentin Romero, Illustrator & Graphic Designer

Artists & Writing, Interviews, My Projects August 4, 2021 Leave a comment

Introduction

Hello, lovely folks!

So, today I bring you a new series of blog posts: Artists & Writing. I want to focus on the artists, to elevate the stunning and inspiring work they do, and to link all kinds of inspiration and art with writing. Because in my own view, writing is art, too. 

As for the artists, I welcome all kinds, whether they're illustrators, home interior designers, fashion designers, animators, film producers… I want to expand people's view and understand of art. And to perceive its connection to writing and words and imagination overall.

I hope this series touches you in some way or perhaps inspires you.

My first guest? 

Please welcome the amazing illustrator & graphic designer, Valentin Romero! He was kind enough to agree to this interview when I contacted him. I thought he would be a great person and artist to feature on my blog as he seemed to like my idea for this series and he is quite inspiring. His work is just jaw-dropping.

Enjoy the interview, loves!

 

137Mighty Thor / Jane Foster by Valentin Romero, @valentinromeroart, 2021.

 

Interview with an Artist: Valentin Romero

 

1- What is your greatest achievement and why?

I remember that my greatest achievement was going to my 1st Convention, it was in 2019. It was in a big city that was about 100 km from my hometown. At the time I was on the other side of the country, due to university, but I was free at the time, so I took a plane there. It was great, I met a lot of my fans, talked to them and more. I had a nice time. Some of my friends came to congratulate me, and family members too. I had many other invitations to other conventions, but due to Covid they were canceled, so it's a shame, but safety comes first so we'll have to wait.

2- How did you come to work on Mortal Kombat, and what exactly was your main task?

It was an incredible opportunity, since I was a kid I played Mortal Kombat so it was a great moment to be able to officially collaborate. Mortal Kombat had collaborated with rapper Megan Thee Stallion, which I adore so it was a great opportunity. Megan was going to do a streaming video playing MK and she had also done a cosplay of the character of Mileena. My task was to design a poster of Megan as Mileena to transmit during streaming. Megan's reaction was so sweet so thanks to Megan and all the Mortal Kombat people who trusted me.

3- When did you start illustrating and graphic design as a hobby, and what attracted you to it?

I started illustrating digitally at the same time that I opened my Instagram account, about 2 years ago. All as a hobby since I recently graduated from high school. What brought me to this world was seeing that there were more possibilities to make art separate from the traditional. Being a cinematographer and artist, the movie posters, the concept art, the effects, the color palettes, etc., caught my attention. So I started using Photoshop from scratch and no one ever taught me anything, it was learning curiosity and investigating each function. Over time I got some digital tablets and that improved my techniques

4- What made you realize art was what you wanted to do as your career?

I was always an artist so more less I always knew that I was going to end up doing something related to art. I am currently studying Graphic Design, they do not teach me things related to programs or Morphology. The market is updating every day so I think the university should do it too. But if I'm honest with you, it would really be a dream come true to be able to play Wiccan in the MCU, I have studied acting apart from design, I am the right age and I am physically perished to the actor Julian who played him in his child version and also in the version adult from comics. Besides being gay, I would love to be able to give an excellent representation in this world of superheroes.

5- What is your professional journey?

My professional career was always based on commissions and these collaborations like Mortal Kombat. My followers ask me to transform them into a character and I love it, it is a good way to get out of the ordinary. I was also in a design studio for a few months learning about machines and it was a good experience.

6- As an illustrator and graphic designer working online as well, do you find it easier to find jobs online or in person, for example via conventions?

In my case, I live in a relatively small city so in person I don't see it as a viable option. The internet has given me more possibilities by having a greater exposure and I am always open to job proposals either in Argentina or abroad. One platform that has served me a lot was LinkedIn and obviously Instagram.

7- What made you choose digital art over traditional art?

I think that what led me to choose digital was the fact of realism. As I told you, I really like posters and photography and being able to combine it with a design software like Photoshop that gives you infinite possibilities is a great advantage. But in the same way I always sketch some ideas before starting a design in photoshop.

8- I watched your videos on your YouTube channel where you transform an actual picture into posters or other versions of the characters. Can you tell us what motivates you to do that and keep improving?

What always motivates me is to continue creating everything I imagine and to be able to give life to projects or ideas that I have in my mind and I would like to see them realized. Also give my followers constant content. But whenever I have a good idea and it motivates me, I put all my attention on making it as perfect as possible. I always practice new techniques "off camera" so I can apply them later. I have to buy better equipment, I always wanted to be a youtuber and have my content, but I don't have to have time to edit. Also as I mentioned I do a lot of practice outside the camera but I would also like to do something more of the lifestyle channel or something like that but I am locked up a lot so I do not know. There are days that I want to do everything and other days I just want to be with myself. But I would really like to do it, really.

9- What does a typical day look like for you as an artist?

Well, as we are in a pandemic there is not much to do, but I live in a relatively small city so we have a little more freedom. I am studying my first year in a virtual way at the university. I do not like it very much since I miss meeting new people or going to campus, so now I take classes 3 times a week via webcam but that alone so the process is quite boring and slow. But since I have most of my free time, I like to draw sketches all day. It is always good to practice. I also play Valorant online, it is a game that I discovered in this pandemic and I love it so I always play. I live 5 minutes away from the Atlantic ocean so I always go by bike for some long walks, on the other side of the city is full of mountains so it is also good to go for a walk. I also take my time every day to respond to comments or messages and check my networks a bit.

10- What advice would you give artists to break into the art world?

Artists who are just starting out in the networks always ask me what advice I could give them, or how I learned, etc. I think the best I can tell you is not to be ashamed to upload your art, out there they think that it is not so good to publish it but not all of us are born learning so there is no need to be ashamed of anything. After consistency is something important, always be practicing to improve and in the long run you will see the results .. And finally, publish what you want, do not pigeonhole into a single topic because otherwise you will get bored quickly.

11- Do you have specific study methods to improve your skills?

I think not, basically I am drawing all day, perfecting anatomy, postures, expressions etc. As for photoshop, I'm always trying new techniques or seeing how I combine my images and bringing my ideas to life. I always keep in mind details like lights, color palettes. The key for me is consistency and daily practice. That's it.

12- What are your favorite learning resources?

I love Pinterest, there are many ideas out there. I took some online courses at Domestika but they were mostly to perfect little things. YouTube always has some advice to implement but I don't like to copy the tutorials exactly as I like to develop my style. My last design class was one given by the designer Gina DeDomenico, she is a conceptual artist and did work for "Titans" "Stargirl" "The Boys" among others

13- Has any book inspired you, or is there any book you found helpful, whether fiction or non-fiction?

I have always read a lot since I was a kid. My dad was always giving me books, some were "Pride and Prejudice" "The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn" "Martin Fierro" "The Little Prince" "To Kill a Mockingbird" among others. These books always gave me a lot of imagination and opened my mind. Then I started reading the comics and one of the ones I read recently and I liked a lot was "young avengers by gillen & mckelvie" the truth is that I loved that style of illustration too much, along with the colors and the characters so it is one of my marvel favorites.

14- What are your thoughts on the different types of art? Do you feel inspired by movies, tv shows, books, crafting…?

Yes, of course. I find a lot of inspiration in movies, series, music videos, comics, etc. I really like to experiment with textures or colors that I see for example in music videos. Doja Cat is one of the artists who puts the most style in her videos in terms of art, so I really like talking about her videos, for example. I really like "Avengers Assemble" , the animation I liked a lot when I saw it. I also like the simple sketches, I think that not everything has to be complex to be beautiful. I love crafting, I used to make bracelets when I was 14 I remember with some rubber bands in school.

15- Do you think an art type can feed the other art types and vice versa? How does this affect you?

I think so. For example, I'm a lot of sketching poses, faces, costumes all day, and then I like to use markers to finish that drawing. I do this many times before starting a piece in digital. Since I don't like doing sketches in digital so much, I got used to pencil and paper. So I am always combining these techniques in my creative process. I also took painting classes for 3 years and I really like it, so it helped me a lot with environments and painting techniques, some of them I apply in digital with some digital brushes, maybe for environment, clothes, skin texture, etc.

 

Valentin Romero

LinkTree

Art Shop (InPrnt)

Instagram

Twitter

YouTube

 

As a final word, I really hope you enjoyed this exclusive interview with this incredible and friendly artist. He was a joy to work with! If you'd like to be featured on my blog as an artist, please do reach me at catherinegv.writertranslator@gmail.com with an example and description of what you do! If you're not an artist in a "traditionally known way" (such as architects, and so on) but think it might count as art, I highly encourage you to contact me as well so we can discuss your idea! I think the more art types are known, the better we'll be for it.

Let's spread art, woohoo!

Thank you for being with me on this adventure, darlings, and see you next post!

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How Being a Book Reviewer Will Help You As An Author

chit-chatting with Cat, Tips March 31, 2020 Leave a comment

Girly Going Away Party Blog Graphic

Introduction

When I started as a book reviewer eight years ago, I never expected it to get this big nor the greatly positive surprises it would come with. But the most important thing I’ve learned is how the publishing world works while being one of its gears.

I will show you what I learned and how being a book reviewer will help you on your path to becoming a published author. Because what’s better than knowing how it works from the inside and helping others succeed at the same time?

Be prepared to work a lot AND have fun while making friends or partners. I’ve learned so much and I am still enjoying the path I’m on, discovering new things and concepts. I promise, being a book reviewer will help you as an author. But it doesn’t happen overnight, you need to put in the work and the enthusiasm and diligence.

I’m sure you’ll find the rewards are more than worth it, though.

 

 You will forge good and lovely relationships with authors

This is a bonus I never expected, but I am so grateful for. It’s heart-warming just to think about all the good relationships I made with authors. I started out on OnlineBookClub where authors can actually interact with our reviews. Afterwards, whenever I published a high-rating review of mine, I went and searched for the author on Twitter. And then I sent tweets to them along with DMs (when allowed) so as to tell them I’d be willing to read more of them and sending them personally the links to my review.

After a while, I noticed a few authors kept interacting with me, even on Instagram! It seemed we liked each other as people in the same business. I love being Internet-close with them because there’s a kinship and respect you don’t get from just posting your reviews.

I was given a great gift by reviewing them: friendship.

Notably, with these charming ladies and fellow:

  • Catherine Kopf (author of one of the most unique stories I know, The Breaking Order series)
  • J. M. Sullivan (author of one of my favourite retellings, The Transmissions Series). Read my review of Second Star here.
  • Chris Babu (author of one of my few favourite dystopian stories, The Initiation Series, and whom I also had great fun interviewing ). Read my reviews of the first two books here and here.
  • Marissa Price (author of my favourite Shakespearian retellings, such as Romeo & Juliet). Read my review of The Vault of Verona here.

I am grateful for all of them and I greatly encourage you to forge such bonds with authors as a book reviewer. They’re happy for the reviews and the time you give them. So why not nudge them when you particularly love their work? Of course, don’t invade their privacy! But just a nudge or lovely comment with your review will help. 🙂

Moreover, these relationships mean that you have an author circle! So when you become one (being published), you will already have author friends who can back you up and stand by you. Help and kinship are always welcome! So, don’t miss out on this opportunity.

 

 You will forge meaningful relationships and partnerships with publishers

This is very similar to point one, but they don’t become your friends. Instead, you become colleagues or partners, which is great! They trust you will provide them with reviews, and you get free books and insider news. But what’s interesting as an author here is you get to see how promotion and street teams work from the inside as a book reviewer.

Why is this important?

Whether you choose to go self-published or traditional, you will need book reviewers AND a street team to help you with promoting your work with love. So if you learn about it, like I said, from the inside, chances are you’ll be rolling with it from the moment you’re ready to publish or be published! Also, publishers love when authors get in the train and know how it works and promote or actively participate.

So, I’d say it’s win-win in this case: you get free books and insider news AND you learn for your future on how to promote your books.

 

 You will experience surprises such as interviews and cover reveals, which will teach you on how to proceed when your own time comes

Another important point is that you will encounter surprises such as interview opportunities and cover reveals! I have to say this is a delight; interviews are fun, if a bit stressful, and cover reveals are exciting and help the authors you like.

But again, why is it noteworthy?

Same as the above point, you will learn how to conduct yourself during interviews in the future. As for cover reveals, you will now know how to manage them, how to contact the book reviewers and your street team, and how to actually do a cover reveal. Okay, as a book reviewer, you might not manage it, but you hear about it from the publishers and authors so you can prepare the cover reveals together.

And that is precious information. It also takes away future stress from it—or helps to, at least.

 

You will learn about the publishing world and how it works.

Now, you’ll be an insider. Maybe not on the writing side, but definitely an insider. Why? You’ll learn how ARCs and reviewing work, how blog tours and book tours are planned, the publishers’ different catalogs and preferences, Web sites used and how they work with their people (that can tell you a lot about how they might treat their authors as well!). Finally, you’ll get to participate in insider surveys, develop ideas to promote books and reviews, and you’ll get an inside look on their publishing calendar and how it works (that applies to self-published authors too, only they’re the ones to decide when and how they publish).

 

Conclusion

Through meaningful relationships with authors and publishers and learning about the publishing world, you’ll find yourself grasping the big gears of how publishing works for when you’re done writing your own book. And you know the bonus? You’ll have a hella great time going about it, too! Whether you’re new or already published, I believe you can learn from being an insider—there’s always something new to discover!

Tell me, have you thought about reviewing? And if you’re a book reviewer or an author, has reviewing helped you?

I’d love to hear your thoughts, so please leave a comment below!

See you next post, lovelies!

How An Authortube Video Helped Me Win Against (Severe) Writer’s Block 

Tips September 19, 2019 Leave a comment

How An Authortube Video

 

I watch YouTube a lot (guilty as charged, dang) and love to learn through tutorials and how-to videos. I didn't venture into book reviews BUT Authortube caught my eye as an aspiring author myself… And I must mention Miss Kate Cavanaugh is my new obsession (Whoa! I mean in a "I'm watching all of her videos non-stop" and not like a creep, okay? Okay!) 

Most importantly, she just saved my Heaven's Army: Down to Earth series with one of her methods. 

How did she contribute to saving my cherished story? 

And also, why do I appreciate Kate's videos so much?

I'll first list all her qualities and what makes her videos the best, in my opinion. Then, I'll introduce you to the specific video which helped me and what I realized and what I proceeded to do. Lastly, I'll explain how it works and what's new on the horizon for me and my story as well as this seemingly innocent technique. All interspersed with images and wishing Miss Cavanaugh the best (and please, do make other awesome videos so I can binge-watch them, oki-please??)

Ready?

What About That Kate Cavanaugh?

I'll be blunt here: her videos are the best and the most inspiring I've found because 

* She's hilarious both in what she says and how she edits her videos

* She's so lively it's sweet and entertaining and cannot not move you into action (talk about motivational!)

* She finds different angles to tackle the eternal struggles for writers and explores various methods

* She has an amazing series where she writes like a famous author (using their own routine!) and it's both extremely funny and useful to see what works and how you can tailor it for you!

* She's honest and kind and enthusiastic

* Kate deals with writers's problems, her own progression, tips and tricks, "I tried writing like…", honest talks about writing and money (and so on), and amusing topics like "Sh*t writers thinks // Coffee Shop Edition".

If after such compliments you still don't want to take a look at her videos, you… Who the heck are you, then?! (Just joking. Nah.)

The Life-Changing Video

There is one video that affected me more than the others in terms of resounding with me and the potential technique. If there is one thing you need to know about me before I go into explanations, it's that even though I read eBooks and own three ereaders, paper is always the best (and it smells SOOOO enchanting). 

So, what video am I talking about, the one that changed the course of my problems with Down to Earth and helped me beat writer's block with this story? 

Well, here it is:

And the Lightbulb Was Turned On!

As for the issue with my story, I was stuck. The plotting never seemed good enough, and I’d had terrible feedback and gratuitously mean comments. So, nothing I ever did worked (plotting and character-wise), and I was pretty hurt. So, sadness took over.

I spent months working this issue over…. Okay, I’m lying. Years. But then, a week ago I watched Kate’s video and it hit me!

I have to print the goddamn story like a book (or at least, as professional-looking as I could right now)! And I did. Like she says, it doesn’t cost much (it was $32 for me at Staples) and it looks GORGEOUS what with those white spirals, protector sheet and hmmmmm all those sheets with written words on them. My words.

DSC00822_WIP_Down to Earth Manuscript

 

While it’s beautiful, do you want to know what’s best about it? 

It works!

The Innocent-Looking But Powerful Technique 

It might not seem much and you’ll probably go “Well,

Duh
You just had to print it to advance.’’ 

But nah uh! Printing it out is only half of the issue solved. What makes it work is having it look professional and not just sheets you took out from your home printer and stapled together. The answer lies in its appearance and practicality. 

Okay, sure, it’s easier to do with your home printer. But it’s less striking, and most importantly, less inspiring. And that’s the trick. You need to hold your story (completely drafted or not) and feel closer to your goal. You need to look at it and go: “Wow, I did that?!’’ With the protector, colour cover and spirals, you’ll feel it’s going somewhere and, I hope, have your confidence renewed! Desire and drive to get somewhere with that story will come at your beck and call after that!

“But what did it give you honestly?’’

Well, since you asked, I’ll answer it in the next section!

I See the Horizon!(And Glimpse at What It Holds)

I envision my completed novel, at last. The feel of just-printed pages and the smell of just-fresh ink. And at last, written in big, bold letters at the very last page: "The End".

This might be in a little while, but now it's much clearer and tangible for me. I see and feel it. I *know* I will reach that vision.

And in the end, isn't it what counts?

Thank you so very much to you for reading and to Kate Cavanaugh for inspiring me with every upload. Please go and check out her channel.

What tip have you tried and loved?

Is there any you learned through Authortube?

See you next post, lovelies!