Fiction

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When a Character Won’t Let Go

Leave a Comment Fiction Julie Bawden-Davis

Since I released The Past Life Prism Time Travel Romance Series, I’ve heard from readers about a character who really stayed with them: Ophelia, Sophia’s grandmother.

I received so many notes from people saying they loved her presence, her steadiness, her wisdom, and the way she seemed to know more than she was saying, that it got me thinking. What if I went back even further and told her story?

How The Past Life Prism Series Prequel Came to Be

Ophelia is the one who helped shape Sophia into who she is. She passed on her gift to her granddaughter and has guided her, grounded her, and taught her everything she knows about past lives and the unseen threads that connect us.

This prequel is my way of honoring that lineage. One woman quietly helping another learn how to navigate a bigger world with courage, compassion, and trust.

Ready to meet Ophelia first?

You can read Suspended: The Prequel free on Amazon US.

What Steinbeck Taught Me About Story

Leave a Comment Fiction Julie Bawden-Davis

A Reader’s Love for the Long, Immersive Journey

One of my favorite authors is John Steinbeck. When I read The Grapes of Wrath years ago, I was fascinated by the saga portraying the Great Dust Bowl and the Great Depression.

In that book, and in others, Steinbeck takes you on a journey that makes you want to keep turning the page to find out what happens to the characters, while you’re also learning about a significant time in history. His character development is incredible, too.

Steinbeck’s books are heavy on description, and the endings aren’t what you’d call happily-ever-after. But they give you something that not many books truly do—an immersive, “you’re right there” feeling that stays with you.

Realizing I’d taken on a Similar Kind of Challenge

I realized recently that in some ways, I took on a similar kind of task when I wrote Book 1 in The Discovered Truth Series, Discovered Secrets.

Discovered Secrets portrays another significant period in history, a time that affected about 75,000 Americans known as Zonians, who had lived in the country of Panama for decades. In the book, you experience it all through the eyes of Jesse, a Zonian and the story’s hero.

Page-Turning Tension with an HEA

Readers have told me they kept turning the page to find out what happens next, and that they loved the descriptions. And I’ll admit that makes me happy on multiple levels. Because here’s the best part: In The Discovered Truth Series, there’s always a happily-ever-after.

Want to start the series?

If you’re curious about Jesse’s story and the world of the Zonians, you can start with Discovered Secrets.

If You Chew Gum, You Might Want to Know…

Leave a Comment Fiction Julie Bawden-Davis

Every once in a while, someone asks if I drink copious amounts of coffee while I write, or if I have some special ritual I must do to create. I don’t have anything quite that dramatic. But there is something I often do when I’m writing. I chew gum.

And when I discovered research suggesting gum chewing may help people stay focused longer on tasks that require sustained attention, I have to admit I felt a little vindicated.

In one study in the British Journal of Psychology, gum-chewers held up better as time went on, showing less of that “focus fade” that tends to happen when you’re doing something that requires continuous attention.

So yes, now I smile a little when I unwrap a piece of gum at my desk. It feels less like a habit and more like a tiny writing tool.

When Characters Get a Little Loud

Leave a Comment Fiction Julie Bawden-Davis

The Writer Brain is Always “Open in the Background”

One of my favorite things to do—not surprisingly—is talk to other writers about writing. Not so much about technique, but about that peculiar little world that goes on inside our heads, and how it occasionally leaks into real life.

Dinner Conversations with a Side of Imaginary Dialogue

A few years ago, I was chatting with my good friend Sharon (we met in a writers group ages ago), and she laughed about how she will be out to dinner with someone and her mind can’t help wandering back to the last scene she was writing.

And honestly? I knew exactly what she meant. When you’re deep in the middle of a book, the characters can get downright persistent—like they’re tugging on your sleeve, insisting you come back and listen. So, you find yourself having that tiny half-second delay between, What did that person just say? and What’s the appropriate response here?

It’s not boredom at all. It’s just that the story is running in the background, and sometimes the people in your imagination are talking a little louder than the people sitting across the table.

The Strange, Wonderful Side Effect of Living with Stories

If you’ve ever found your mind drifting into a daydream (or a memory, or a “what if?”) in the middle of an ordinary moment, you’ll understand the feeling. It’s one of those strange, wonderful side effects of living with stories—whether you’re writing them or simply carrying them around in your heart.

And it’s also part of why I’m always grateful for readers who love stepping into these worlds with me.

Want more behind-the-scenes notes like this?

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Odd Notes to Myself

Leave a Comment Fiction Julie Bawden-Davis

Recently, my son, who maintains my computer, was migrating my email. He noticed I email myself quite often with what appear to be random subject lines. I explained that when I have an idea for a book or an article or blog post that I’m writing, I email myself my ideas.

Often the notes are pretty cryptic. And taken out of context, they could seem quite odd.

That conversation reminded me of my second year of college when I worked at a tooling company doing filing and delivering parts. At the time, I was writing for the college newspaper, as well as short stories and working on my first novel.

If you’ve done any filing or driving for work, you know there are lots of hours to think. I spent those hours dreaming up new storylines and characters. I’d jot the ideas down on bits of paper and store them in my desk drawer at the tooling company.

It was a small front office consisting of me and my boss, Sandy, and the owner, Benny. The rest of the staff were in the warehouse doing tooling.

One day, Sandy came up to my desk and said, her tone very serious, “I need to talk to you about something.”

I nodded and waited, wondering what I’d done wrong.

“Benny was going through your desk and found a bunch of odd notes. He wants to know what they are all about.”

When she asked this, her expression becoming even more serious, I suppressed a smile and held back a laugh.

“Those are notes for my writing projects,” I replied.

Sandy’s eyes narrowed. “They aren’t notes about Benny or the office?”

By now I could barely stop myself from laughing. Not able to speak at first, I shook my head. Then I managed to assure her. “Nothing like that. Like I said, they’re notes for what I’m writing.”

When I gathered my things at the end of the day, I put the notes in my purse. I don’t know if Sandy or Benny believed me. But I did have a good chuckle when I got home that night and read through the notes—many of them cryptic—from their perspectives.

From then on, I made sure not to leave any more notes in my desk. But I bet that didn’t stop them from checking!

How and When I Got Started Writing

Leave a Comment Fiction Julie Bawden-Davis

I started writing at a really young age. When I was five years old, I became inspired to begin writing sweet, little romance books for my grandma. My mother would make me blank books out of notepaper that she would fold and staple together. Then I’d fill them with writing and drawings.

My mom told me several years ago that I would work on the books as we traveled by car across the country from the East Coast to visit my grandmother in Montana. By the time we arrived at her door, I had several books to give her. I guess you could say that was my first book series.

Initially, the books were pretty rudimentary. But as my vocabulary improved, so did the stories. Although I must admit the drawings never really did improve all that much. So, I stuck to writing!

I had forgotten about those little books until my grandma reminded me one day a few years ago. I wasn’t sure if maybe her memory was playing tricks on her regarding how young I was when I started writing the books—until I saw an old movie my dad had shot of me at five years old with one of those little books, and I was writing in it!

Today, my dad reads my books, which is also really fun. And it’s even more enjoyable to think that he saw me start writing “way back when.”

My love affair with writing has continued since those early days. Today, I write at least six days a week, sometimes seven. In fact, if I miss more than a couple of days writing, I get a little cranky. I’m truly in one of my happiest places when I’m writing. It’s something that has stayed with me all these years.

I often think about what drives me to write.

There’s something about the process of creating worlds with words. It just can’t compare to anything else for me. I never know where the pen (or computer keyboard) will lead me, but I’m always enthralled to find out.

When I sit down and the characters step onto the page and begin talking and acting, I can’t wait to see what happens next. So, I keep writing, and before long, I’m delighted at where the writing has taken me.

It’s even more fun when the story hits close to home. This happened with my Past Life Prism Series, which is set in the Southern California neighborhood where I live today.

I also love the fact that I’m writing for you, my readers. Just like it was a thrill to have my grandma and mom read my books way back when, I’m equally as thrilled and very grateful to have you reading my words.

It’s even better when you let me know how much you enjoy my books and articles. Feel free to comment below and let me know what you like and why. And please let me know if there is anything you’d like to see me write in the future.

Happy Reading,

Julie

P.S. I have a new book coming out soon—subject yet to be revealed. I’ll keep you posted!