{"id":4129,"date":"2019-03-13T16:39:59","date_gmt":"2019-03-13T23:39:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.dianastevan.com\/?p=4129"},"modified":"2019-03-13T16:40:06","modified_gmt":"2019-03-13T23:40:06","slug":"mystical-surprises-on-the-writing-road","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.dianastevan.com\/uk\/2019\/uncategorized\/mystical-surprises-on-the-writing-road\/","title":{"rendered":"Mystical Surprises on the Writing Road"},"content":{"rendered":"<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Have you ever been surprised by some wonderful phrase or sentence that you&#8217;ve written on your writing road? Have you ever wondered how it ended up on the page? <\/p>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Organicity<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Whenever I&#8217;ve looked at something I&#8217;ve written that seems magical, inspired, or downright surprising, I attribute it to the art in myself. We all have it. It happens when we access our right brain, the part that isn&#8217;t always logical. The part of the brain that can come up with ideas or thoughts in the abstract. It&#8217;s the genius in all of us. That wonderful outpouring that isn&#8217;t planned or controlled. It just happens when we let it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\"><figure class=\"aligncenter\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"330\" height=\"487\" data-attachment-id=\"4135\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/www.dianastevan.com\/uk\/2019\/uncategorized\/mystical-surprises-on-the-writing-road\/attachment\/330px-hildegard_von_bingen_liber_divinorum_operum-2\/\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.dianastevan.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/03\/330px-Hildegard_von_Bingen_Liber_Divinorum_Operum-1.jpg?fit=330%2C487&amp;ssl=1\" data-orig-size=\"330,487\" data-comments-opened=\"1\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;0&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"330px-Hildegard_von_Bingen_Liber_Divinorum_Operum\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"&lt;p&gt;From Wikipedia on Mysticism&lt;\/p&gt;\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.dianastevan.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/03\/330px-Hildegard_von_Bingen_Liber_Divinorum_Operum-1.jpg?fit=330%2C487&amp;ssl=1\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.dianastevan.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/03\/330px-Hildegard_von_Bingen_Liber_Divinorum_Operum-1.jpg?resize=330%2C487&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"writing road\" class=\"wp-image-4135\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.dianastevan.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/03\/330px-Hildegard_von_Bingen_Liber_Divinorum_Operum-1.jpg?w=330&amp;ssl=1 330w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.dianastevan.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/03\/330px-Hildegard_von_Bingen_Liber_Divinorum_Operum-1.jpg?resize=203%2C300&amp;ssl=1 203w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 330px) 100vw, 330px\" \/><figcaption>From Wikipedia on Mysticism<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\">A Surprise on my Book Cover<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Not that long ago, I posted the book cover of my upcoming historical fiction, <strong><em><a href=\"https:\/\/www.dianastevan.com\/uk\/2019\/writing\/the-hunt-for-the-right-book-cover\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" aria-label=\"Sunflowers Under Fire (opens in a new tab)\">Sunflowers Under Fire<\/a><\/em><\/strong>, on <a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" aria-label=\"my Facebook Author page (opens in a new tab)\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/dianastevan.author\" target=\"_blank\"><strong>my Facebook Author page<\/strong><\/a><strong>.<\/strong> One of my relatives saw it and noticed something on the cover that I had missed. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Below the woman&#8217;s left hand that holds the flowers, is an orb. The round faded part on the woman&#8217;s skirt. My cousin said, &#8220;I&#8217;d like to think it represents spirits of love ones joining your journey.&#8221; Of course, she was thinking of my grandmother (her great-grandmother) whose story is at the heart of my novel. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\"><figure class=\"aligncenter\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"366\" height=\"535\" data-attachment-id=\"4133\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/www.dianastevan.com\/uk\/2019\/uncategorized\/mystical-surprises-on-the-writing-road\/attachment\/sunflower-front-ebook-very-small-size\/\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.dianastevan.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/03\/sunflower-front-ebook-very-small-size.png?fit=366%2C535&amp;ssl=1\" data-orig-size=\"366,535\" data-comments-opened=\"1\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;0&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"sunflower-front-ebook very small size\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.dianastevan.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/03\/sunflower-front-ebook-very-small-size.png?fit=366%2C535&amp;ssl=1\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.dianastevan.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/03\/sunflower-front-ebook-very-small-size.png?resize=366%2C535&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"writing road\" class=\"wp-image-4133\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.dianastevan.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/03\/sunflower-front-ebook-very-small-size.png?w=366&amp;ssl=1 366w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.dianastevan.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/03\/sunflower-front-ebook-very-small-size.png?resize=205%2C300&amp;ssl=1 205w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 366px) 100vw, 366px\" \/><figcaption>Coming Out on May 7th<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Spiritual Guides<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I like that, because I was raised in a family not only deeply religious but also spiritual and superstitious, a family that relied on dream books and fortune tellers. My cousin&#8217;s notice of the &#8220;orb&#8221; in the photo was a nice surprise. The fact that she found it significant was also a gift. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">That otherworldly theme is prominent in my debut novel, <a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" aria-label=\"A Cry From The Deep (opens in a new tab)\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dianastevan.com\/uk\/books\/a-cry-from-the-deep\/\" target=\"_blank\"><strong>A Cry From The Deep<\/strong><\/a>. It&#8217;s a time-slip novel that raises the question, have we been this way before? The fact that psychics and spirits have a role in that story suggests that this is a subject I love to explore. That there is something more at play. Or at least, I want to believe there is.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\">The Art in Yourself<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Anyway, what I love about my writing road is finding that kind of mysticism in a turn of phrase or an idea that comes out of nowhere. I find these moments delicious. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">What about you as a writer or a reader? Have you had any mystical experiences on your writing road or any other road? Have you allowed the art to appear in yourself? <\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Have you ever been surprised by some wonderful phrase or sentence that you&#8217;ve written on your writing road? Have you ever wondered how it ended up on the page? Organicity&hellip; <\/p>","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":4134,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[1],"tags":[609,604,78,1040,1021,33,5],"class_list":["post-4129","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-a-cry-from-the-deep","tag-book-cover","tag-diana-stevan","tag-historical-fiction","tag-sunflowers-under-fire","tag-writer","tag-writing-2"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.dianastevan.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/03\/330px-Hildegard_von_Bingen_Liber_Divinorum_Operum.jpg?fit=330%2C487&ssl=1","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p1LuVB-14B","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":484,"url":"https:\/\/www.dianastevan.com\/uk\/2011\/writing\/right-brain-left-brain-of-the-writer\/","url_meta":{"origin":4129,"position":0},"title":"Right brain, Left brain of the Writer","author":"Diana Stevan","date":"30 \u0427\u0435\u0440\u0432\u043d\u044f, 2011","format":false,"excerpt":"I'm marketing again. It's not what I want to do, but a necessary part of writing. I'd much rather switch on my right brain than use my left brain and go through the hassle of pitching to agents or publishers. Like the dark lines on the Mask my husband sculpted\u2026","rel":"","context":"\u0423 &quot;Writing&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Writing","link":"https:\/\/www.dianastevan.com\/uk\/category\/writing\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.dianastevan.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/06\/Mask-225x300.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":1531,"url":"https:\/\/www.dianastevan.com\/uk\/2013\/uncategorized\/a-life-lesson-from-robert-frost\/","url_meta":{"origin":4129,"position":1},"title":"A Life Lesson From Robert Frost","author":"Diana Stevan","date":"23 \u041b\u0438\u0441\u0442\u043e\u043f\u0430\u0434\u0430, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"There is something about a walk in the forest to calm my senses. My mind is always whirling with what I\u2019ve written and what I want to write as well as the regular family business, you know, the worries about children and grandchildren. On our recent trip through New England,\u2026","rel":"","context":"\u0423 &quot;Life&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Life","link":"https:\/\/www.dianastevan.com\/uk\/category\/life\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"IMG_1638","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.dianastevan.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/11\/IMG_1638-300x225.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":1748,"url":"https:\/\/www.dianastevan.com\/uk\/2014\/writing\/looking-for-love-in-a-mad-world\/","url_meta":{"origin":4129,"position":2},"title":"Looking for Love in a Mad World","author":"Diana Stevan","date":"21 \u041b\u0438\u043f\u043d\u044f, 2014","format":false,"excerpt":"I\u2019ve been so troubled by what\u2019s going on in Gaza and the Ukraine, that I\u2019ve been glued to the news on TV and my Twitter timeline. I\u2019ve been neglecting my writing, which I love to do. It\u2019s hard to fathom why people want to kill someone else. When I became\u2026","rel":"","context":"\u0423 &quot;Life&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Life","link":"https:\/\/www.dianastevan.com\/uk\/category\/life\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"IMG_5890","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.dianastevan.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/IMG_5890-300x225.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":1187,"url":"https:\/\/www.dianastevan.com\/uk\/2012\/writing\/where-would-we-be-without-books\/","url_meta":{"origin":4129,"position":3},"title":"Where Would We Be Without Books?","author":"Diana Stevan","date":"4 \u0413\u0440\u0443\u0434\u043d\u044f, 2012","format":false,"excerpt":"I find it incredible that through books, we can visit exotic places, meet interesting characters, and sometimes learn a little about ourselves in the process. Books teach us about the intricacies of life and the human condition. They engage all of our senses, making us laugh or cry, or angry\u2026","rel":"","context":"\u0423 &quot;Life&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Life","link":"https:\/\/www.dianastevan.com\/uk\/category\/life\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.dianastevan.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/12\/Salvador.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":908,"url":"https:\/\/www.dianastevan.com\/uk\/2012\/writing\/not-your-typical-fairy-tale\/","url_meta":{"origin":4129,"position":4},"title":"Not Your Typical Fairy Tale","author":"Diana Stevan","date":"1 \u041a\u0432\u0456\u0442\u043d\u044f, 2012","format":false,"excerpt":"Growing up reading fairy tales and seeing films with a happy Hollywood ending, I expected more or less the same kind of ending \u00a0when I got married. I soon found out it took more than love to keep a relationship working. 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A first draft is often stuffed\u2026","rel":"","context":"\u0423 &quot;Writing&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Writing","link":"https:\/\/www.dianastevan.com\/uk\/category\/writing\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dianastevan.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4129","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dianastevan.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dianastevan.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dianastevan.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dianastevan.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4129"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.dianastevan.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4129\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dianastevan.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4134"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dianastevan.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4129"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dianastevan.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4129"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dianastevan.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4129"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}