inspiration | J.R. Johnson

Posts Tagged ‘inspiration’

One More Day!

Posted in Likes, Reviews, Writing, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2023, #WritersOfTheFuture, creativity, Fiction, genre fiction, inspiration, Writers, writing, yay on May 15, 2023| Leave a Comment »

Tomorrow is the book birthday for Writers of the Future Volume 39, which includes my story “Piracy for Beginners” and much more. The publishers went all out, with 544 pages plus a full-color gallery for illustrations, and of course electronic and audiobook versions.

Am I excited? I am. Am I eager for you to meet my fellow authors and illustrators, who are all amazing talents? They are! Will I remind you of these facts again tomorrow? Probably, because I think that anyone with an interest in science fiction and/or fantasy will find something to love in this collection. After reading the book and spending a week with the other new authors, I was impressed and I hope you will be too.

Links!

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Writers of the Future 39 Book Cover with Flaming Dragon

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Mothers and Others

Posted in Holidays, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2023, family, inspiration, Thoughts on May 14, 2023| 1 Comment »

For my mother, and my other mothers, and to all those out there who appreciate flowers, here’s a piece on the history of tulips (one of my mother’s favorite flowers) and their role in art (another of my mom’s favorite things).

Happy Mother’s Day!

A Brief, Blossoming History of Tulips in Art, From a 17th-Century Dutch Flower Craze to Koons’s Controversial Bouquet

There is no other period of art history more closely associated with tulips than the Dutch Golden Age. Marked by economic prosperity, scientific discovery, and flourishing arts and culture, the tulip came to be a hallmark of the Netherland’s successes. There is some disagreement about exactly when and by whom the first tulips were brought to the Dutch Republic, but it is known that they were imported from the Ottoman Empire sometime in the latter half of the 16th century. Already a costly commodity, the demand for specific bulbs of different colors and varieties quickly outpaced the supply of tulips—and thus Tulip Mania, or the Tulip Craze, began. At its height, the price for a rare and prized tulip bulb was on par with a craftsperson’s annual wage.

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*Photo by Sixteen Miles Out on Unsplash*

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Fun Puzzle

Posted in Writing, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2023, #wotf39, creativity, fun, inspiration, Writers of the Future on May 12, 2023| Leave a Comment »

Here’s a puzzle based on one of the illustrations in the forthcoming Writers of the Future Volume 39 (coming out May 16th!). Both the writer and illustrator of this piece are great artists and lovely people. Can’t wait for you to meet them both in Volume 39, but until then, enjoy Death and the Taxman!

Have fun with this story illustration from Writers of the Future Volume 39 depicting the Grim Reaper, trapped in an IRS agent’s dying body, who must regain his powers before he faces judgment for his original sin. Take a good look at the image before you push the re-start button at the lower left side of the page!
— Galaxy Press newsletter

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More More More

Posted in Holidays, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2023, inspiration, nature on May 11, 2023| Leave a Comment »

Boring Covid update: More coughing, more tiredness, more urges to curl up on the closest floor and sleep. These elephant seals from the Piedras Blancas Elephant Seal Rookery know what I mean about that last bit. Here they are basking in the sun.

We went for a soggy visit to Hearst Castle and after, drove a few miles north to the Rookery. We arrived between bouts of light rain. It’s molting season and the beaches were crowded.

The beaches are even busier today. Check out the live webcams for updated views.

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Many Times, One Special Place

Posted in Writing, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2023, creativity, Fiction, genre fiction, inspiration, J.R.R. Tolkien, Middle Earth, Thoughts, Writers on May 10, 2023| Leave a Comment »

This article is for the Tolkien fans among us. Hello all you beautiful hobbits elves dwarves wizards ents

people!

Middle-Earth isn’t a place. It’s a time in (English) history

Although Middle-Earth is most definitely a fictional place, this does not mean it is completely unrelated to reality…. This interpretation argues that the various regions of Middle-Earth visited in The Lord of the Rings were inspired by, and intended to represent, specific moments in English history.

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Knitter vs. Spy

Posted in Other, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2023, inspiration, Thoughts on April 26, 2023| Leave a Comment »

Phyllis Latour Doyle: The Forgotten Spy Whose Knitting Helped Pave the Way for D-Day | A Mighty Girl

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Eco-Friendly Fiction

Posted in Writing, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2023, inspiration on April 22, 2023| Leave a Comment »

Five SF Stories Set in Eco-Friendly Futures | Tor.com

In case you need some reading suggestions. I think we could all use a bit of climate optimism, don’t you?

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Women Who Dared

Posted in Other, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2023, #LadyAdventurers, inspiration, longreads, Thoughts on April 17, 2023| Leave a Comment »

This piece is a longread with a wide range of links to “stories of solitude-seeking, mountain-climbing, jungle-running women adventurers,” including many that were new to me.

There She Goes: A Reading List on Women Adventurers

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The Real Things

Posted in Writing, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2023, inspiration, Thoughts, Writers, writing on April 14, 2023| 1 Comment »

“The real things haven’t changed. It is still best to be honest and truthful; to make the most of what we have; to be happy with simple pleasures; and have courage when things go wrong.”
― Laura Ingalls Wilder

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