Abby J. Reed writes young adult science fiction and fantasy novels that ask what if. She has a degree in English Writing and is drawn to characters with physical limitations due to her own neurological disorder called Chronic Migraine. Her debut novel, WHEN PLANETS FALL, will be published in April 2017 by Soul Mate Publishing.
Abby lives in Colorado with her husband and two fluffy pups. If her hands aren’t on the keyboard, they are stained purple and blue with paint.
GUEST POST on Writing through Writer’s Block:
Warning: I talk extensively about cupcakes (I have a massive cupcake addiction . . .) and this might make you hungry.
My struggle with writer’s block is probably a little different than others. I don’t really have a problem with coming up with ideas. I get new novel ideas probably 2345 times a day. It’s gotten to the point where I don’t write anything down and only work with what sticks.
My writer’s block problem comes from Chronic Migraine. Migraine pain is like dumping a bucket of ice water onto a warm cupcake. That cupcake used to look good, but now you couldn’t pay me to eat a pulverized soggy cold cupcake. I might be on a creative roll and all my ideas look amazing and shiny, but after I aggravate to a certain point, my creative cupcake gets too soggy and cold to work with.
After several years of writing, I’ve developed ways to make my cupcake last longer. Hand editing is easier for me than computer-editing. Drafting with the screen off makes my sessions last longer. Printing on gray paper is easier for me to read than white. I can bribe family members with candy to read aloud to me when the pain turns really bad and I’m on deadline.
Eventually, I have to leave my soggy cupcake and come back. Some days, it’s magically warm and gooey and smothered in frosting like all cupcakes should be (hungry yet?). Other days, I still won’t go near it. It totally depends on how I’m feeling that day.
On soggy cupcake days, I can still use my wait-and-see-if-it-refreshes time. I’ll daydream about my writing and my characters. I’ll read research books. I’ll think about my outline. And I always always always outline. This ensures I’m not wasting any time and cuts down on major revisions. These always make me excited about the next warm creative cupcake day and cuts back on any normal writing blocks.
On the rare occasion a normal idea block happens—it’s not a soggy cupcake problem. It’s a stale cupcake problem.
I’m just stuck thinking about the problem a certain way and my cupcake got bored.
So, I’ll paint or take a shower. Anything to get my mind motivated on something else to get my subconscious chewing on the problem. By the time I sat down for my next writing session, my cupcake is ready and I can let the words flow!
***
More info on Abby’s debut novel:
WHEN PLANETS FALL (Stars Fall Circle #1)
Author: Abby J. Reed
Pub. Date: April 12, 2017
Publisher: Soul Mate Publishing
Pages: 420
Formats: Paperback, eBook
Find it: Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Goodreads
On a planet where the only difference between three tribes is their blood color, war is on the horizon. Breaker, an amputee, wants peace for his family and home. Malani, a kidnapped POW, wants to return home. Luka wants justice for his home. All three teens come together when Breaker is given seven days to fix a wrecked enemy starship or their home, and peace, is forfeit..
“In this richly imagined start to a new sci-fi series, Reed brings optimism to the goal of solving entrenched violence in a galaxy far, far away . . . A propulsive, sharply crafted tale about a planetary war.” –Kirkus Reviews
Visit Abby:
Website | Facebook | Twitter |Pinterest | Instagram | Tumblr | Goodreads
Giveaway Details:
1 winner will receive a signed paperback of WHEN PLANETS FALL & Swag, US Only.
Jennifer Mary G 
One thought on “Guest Post by YA author Abby J. Reed with a giveaway of her debut novel WHEN PLANETS FALL”