Jennifer Morash

Talking about writing isn't writing. Planning to write isn't writing. Dreaming of writing isn't writing. Thinking of writing isn't writing. 　 There is nothing wrong with any of those things. Some of them can be very important. But there is one thing they are not. They are not writing. 　 Only writing is writing. 　 "Oh, wow. You started writing? You're working on a book? That's so cool. You know. I always thought I could write a book." 　 I've heard variations on that theme from multiple people since I began writing. And they mean what they're saying. They really, sincerely do want to write. And they can always come up with reasons why they aren't. I used to be them. For all of my adult life, I was that person. I knew that I wanted to write. I realized that I was at least passingly good at it. In fact, I knew I could write a better book than at least some of the published works I've read, for I have read some really awf...

I talk a lot on this blog about the fact that I am writing, but haven't ever really said much about precisely what I am writing. The truth is that I seem to be better at writing a story than I am when it comes to describing that story. I thought that this week, I'd give that a go. First and foremost, the big one. My very first novel. I always thought that I should write one, but never did. This one came about because it was something I kept wishing someone would write. No one did. So... I did. Perhaps that means that others have, but there was no market. Perhaps it means I came up with something genuinely new. Only time will tell. It's working title is Joyful. I dout that will be the final title, but we'll see. Joy was one of those kids that was supposed to find a portal into a fantasy realm, go through, have some adventures and try to save the world. The problem was that when she was just about to fall into the lake that served as her portal, a responsible adult sa...

Ablist language directed at the blind never used to bother me. It is just so ingrained in the language that I think I got used to it. Things like "How did I miss that? I must be blind." 　 Actually, something almost exactly like that statement came up in the chat section of a game I play. It is not a game for the blind, but it has been developed to work perfectly for the blind, using the iphone's built-in text to speech. Thing is? I did not miss what they did. I picked up on it immediately. Honestly, I think such things are easier for me. The eyes skip over words sometimes. In fact, they do that a lot, and the brain uses pattern recognition to fill in gaps, often imperfectly. The ears don't work that way. 　 But this is just an example. Ablist language is everywhere. Now, you may be thinking "So what? How harmful is it really to say that you were blindsided by something? Aren't we taking this all a bit too far?" 　 Here's the thing, thoug...

So today, I was perusing the offerings on audible.com, and taking a peek through things they were suggesting. My brain heard "Space Horse" and so I clicked on that, thinking it sounded like a comedic scifi book. 　 Turns out, I heard it wrong. It was Space Force. I'm sure it is a good book, but I was disappointed not to have found Space Horse, the novel. Then I began wondering what Space Horse might be about. Would it be a sentient horse in space complete with equine space suit? Perhaps a space horse is some sort of single-passenger spaceship you ride like a horse or motorcycle, with the passenger being a renegade space cowboy? With a title like that, it would have to be humourous. 　 And this is where my ideas come from. No one has ever asked me where I get my ideas from, largely because I'm not published and not enough people know I write short stories let alone novels, but I am told that many published authors get asked this. 　 The answer is anywhere a...