I Was Born Under A Wandering Star

Hey all,

It's been a while since I was able to blog here.  But I'm back and hopefully you'll see me every month about this time.  My life has been a bit crazy lately, but for those who don't know what's going on with me, my sweet baboo, Jonathon and I did something AWESOMELY COOL last year.

We ran away and joined the circus.

That's right.  We may be not be kids any more, but we are at heart, and when the opportunity arose to join up with the Corteo Cirque du Soleil in Europe, we were jazzed, excited and packing our bags before the ink dried on the contract!

Jonathon's title is Electronics Maintenance Coordinator, which means he's the go-to guy when something breaks down around the show or site.  He's his own boss which is great, and he absolutely loves the job.

As a writer, for me, traveling around the world is a dream come true.  I've got SOOOOO many things to inspire me, my head is swimming!  I decided before we went on tour that I'd do a series of books--novellas--set in each of the countries/towns we visited.  And believe me, finding the inspiration for The Wandering Star Series of books has been easy!!!

I went into the Natural History Museum in Barcelona, Spain, and bamn--a dream pops up, and I have to stop and write it down.  I walked down the street in the Red Light district of Amsterdam, The Netherlands, and a story is right there, waiting for me to find a pen.

In fact, I just finished doing a final edit on a story that came to me as I was visiting one of the most famous cemeteries in Paris--Père Lachaise Cemetery. I'd no more than looked at one of the many ornate sepulchres they have there, and I had to sit down and scribble the story outline before I could take another step!   So now I have another Ethereal (ghost) story to add to my lineup!

So you see?  Inspiration is everywhere.

Right now we are in Antwerp, Belgium.  We've just arrived, the first show was last night, but already I've found my inspiration for the city.   I was wandering around in a park nearby when I came across this very interesting sculpture.  And, as you can see, it is rife with possibilities.  My mind immediately started spinning a tale of love, loss and revenge, and before I could even say, "Give me a Belgium chocolate!" I had the outline of my newest story sitting in front of me!

Am I lucky or what?

I've already got enough dreams in my head to fill a library, but there's just something about traveling about that makes it all even more special.  I must have gypsy blood in me, because this is a life that I'm totally enjoying!

Of course the books I've already written had a specific criteria as well.  Every story you've seen of mine was set in a place I've actually visited.  And for those books that are set in a fantasy or space world, the world I build is based on a town or area that I fell in love with and wanted to remember in a story.

In a very real way, my books tell a story of my life.  Where I've been, what I've seen.  Whether it's my bestselling Eyes of Fire whose world was inspired by the Northern California Redwoods or my latest release, Second Chances II: Do Me a Favor, which is set in the mountains of West Virginia, and later in Nashville, Tennessee, I've actually been there...done that!

So, how about you?  Have a place you'd love to see a book set?  Maybe I've been there.  Or maybe I'll be able to add it to my bucket list of places to see.  Let me know in the comments below.  

It's good to be back.  And it's a great time to be a writer!

Until next month,

CJ England

 

Follow Your Dreams

http://cjengland.com

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/CJsaysFollowYourDreams/