This morning, I’m very excited to be sharing the news of Harmony Kent’s latest release: Creative Solutions.

I just got my copy today, and I already know I’m going to enjoy reading this one, and learning some new tricks, along the way! Without further ado, I’ll turn the digital floor over to Harmony now.

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Hello everyone. Harmony here. I’m excited to share my latest non-fiction book with you all today. Huge thanks to Marcia for hosting me today.

Creative Solutions for the Modern Writer does what it says on the tin (or cover, lol), and offers tools to fire your imagination. With chapters on things such as using chess and tarot to develop stories, plots, and characters—as well as adopting the principles of nursing triage, Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, horoscopes, and more—this little guide is full of fun tips and tricks to get your muse working overtime.

This excellent writer’s companion is available to purchase from October 9th in both ebook and paperback.

Here’s an excerpt for you:

I got the idea for using the ancient game of chess for storytelling while playing the game with my husband one day.

Truly, I’m no expert. I’m still learning and lose frequently, lol. All you need is a rudimentary understanding of the pieces, which I list below for you:

• Pawns
• Knights
• Castles
• Bishops
• Queen
• King

You have eight Pawn pieces, two Knights,  Two Castles, Two Bishops, one King, and one Queen. Of all the various pieces, the Queen has the most flexibility and manoeuvrability. In a nutshell, that’s all you need to know to begin making up a story from the different players.

You can write a character for each and every piece if you want, or keep to the main players. I like to include the lowly Pawns because they can show the smaller picture within the bigger picture. And, who knows, perhaps the little unknown soldier will end up saving the day.

… Here, you can see two Queens facing off with each other while the King and his courtiers stand by and watch. Meanwhile, the Castle threatens the King. This scenario fired my writer’s imagination. Needless to say, having gotten so distracted making up stories, I lost this particular game!

Even though I lost this round, my King stood bravely to the end with one last pawn by his side. The battle was bloody and bitter … utter carnage. All the big guys, generals, bishops, etc., bragged and boasted, thinking they would win the day, but it just goes to show. The battlefield isn’t necessarily where you’ll find all the action.

To use chess as a story prompt, arrange the pieces randomly on the board and ask yourself some questions about what you see.  First up, assign identities to your pieces. Using my layout as an example, you might ask:

• What are the two Queens saying to one another?
• How did the Light Queen get all the way into the Dark Court?
• Is the Light Queen a hostage or a negotiator?
• What manipulations and subterfuges might the other pieces be up to? The Bishops? The Knights? Etc.
• Choose one of your Pawns. What’s his or her story? Could that player end up as the new leader?
• What subplot could a Pawn offer to the main plot of the power players?
• What started this conflict?
• What might resolve it?

You don’t have to stick with these classic court interpretations of your pieces. You can set them in the future in settled space if you so wish, or on an alien planet. It’s your game and your imagination, and you can do whatever you want when creating storylines.

Buy Creative Solutions HERE

Author Harmony Kent

After spending around thirteen years as an ordained Buddhist monk, living in a Zen Buddhist temple, and six years after a life-changing injury following a surgical error, Harmony Kent returned to the world at the tender age of forty.

Now, she is famous for her laughter, and has made quite the name for herself … she’s also, um, a writer … and fairly well known for that too. She’s even won a few awards. Harmony lives in rural Cornwall with her ever-present sense of humour, adorable husband, and quirky neighbours.

Harmony is passionate about supporting her fellow authors. 

You can reach Harmony on Social Media here:

Website 
Story Empire (co-authored)
Amazon Author Page 
Twitter: @harmony_kent
LinkedIn: Harmony
Goodreads: Author Page
BookBub