Guest Post & Giveaway: Jenna-Lynne Duncan

The Larks are happy to welcome Jenna-Lynne Duncan to the nest today. She's got some goodies for our readers - a guest post, an excerpt from Hurricane, & a giveaway!

Be inspired to write! 

 How to become inspired to write. 5 ways to find inspiration and ideas for your writing. 

By: Jenna-Lynne Duncan

 1. READ. Sounds like the easy solution and maybe even counterproductive if you want to get any actual writing done but reading really does help you become a better writer. Every writer reads, it’s how they decided to become a writer in the first place. Reading can inspire your story and I don’t mean plagiarism. The ‘What if’s’ or formulas or even wishing for a different ending can have you typing in no time. 

 2. DREAM. I get a lot of inspiration and ideas from my dreams. Many times I can’t remember what I had dreamt or I forget; so it’s best to keep a notepad by the bed so when you wake up you can jot ideas down. Of course the really influential and passionate dreams stick with me and won’t leave my head until I write them into a story, hence the kidnapping scene from my novel Hurricane. 

 3. YOUR CHARACTERS. I always like to fill out character questionnaires for each of my main characters. For one, I like to fill out questionnaires. Period. And two, because it lets me get to know the characters. You can even go back and use some of the information from the questionnaires and put it into the story. You never know what new scene will develop from simply answering a question about your character! 

 4. MUSIC. Whether your one of those writers who needs complete silence to pound out your masterpiece or you like to listen to music while you write, a soundtrack for your novel can help. I like the idea of soundtracks for novels and created one for Hurricane. You can have an overall ‘theme’ song or you can have specific songs for certain scenes. What’s nice is once you start to think about what music you want to include on your soundtrack, you may hear a song come across the radio and you start thinking about which character is listening to it, what they are doing while listening to it and the ideas start flowing! 

 5. TRAVEL. The best way to get inspiration for your fictional world is to go out and experience your real world. For me, different cultures and people are very inspiring. I love to travel and wanderlust runs in my family. I just came back from an eye-opening trip to visit family and friends in Africa. Not possible for everyone but travel doesn’t have to mean going across the world. Get out around your city, into places you normally wouldn’t frequent. People watch. You never know when you will find your next character.

Hurricane Excerpt

“When I woke, Hayden hovered over me. I was outside, lying on the hard gravel of an unpaved country road. 

 “What purpose does this serve?” Luke spit as he leaned against the front of the truck. 

“Quiet. She just needs some fresh air.” Hayden was kneeling down beside me, his body so close I could feel the sweet heat of his breath as he spoke. I didn’t want to move, but I couldn’t ignore the reality of the situation. I was being kidnapped and heading deeper into the swamp, where it was likely my body would never be found. The alligators would eat my remains, and soon there would be nothing left of me. I could see the headlines in the fictional newspapers in my head. I didn’t hesitate to think out an escape plan. Before I knew it, I was on my bare feet taking off in the other direction. I didn’t think about the alligators that were likely in the water next to me. I just knew I had to get to the main road. 

 “She’s running away?” I heard Hayden say in a surprising tone. 

 “Go get her!” Luke yelled from behind me. “

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Adriana couldn’t decide what was worse—that Hurricane Katrina was heading for New  Orleans, or that she might not survive her kidnapping to see its potential effects. She had trusted Hayden, even fallen for him, and now he and his brother  Luke were taking her deeper and deeper into the Bayou. Why had two of her classmates, the mysterious Boudreaux brothers, kidnapped her? Why had Adriana’s dreams started predicting the future? Most importantly, would she  make it out of the Bayou alive…

About the Author 

 Jenna-Lynne Duncan graduated from the University of St. Thomas with degrees in Political Science, International Studies, and Middle Eastern Studies. Hurricane is her debut novel and she is planning a series. She welcomes those to contact her through her website.

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