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Lindsay Elizabeth

Fantasy/Romance Fiction & Creative Living

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I’m Lindsay, an author and creative living blogger. I'm sharing advice on writing, tackling creative blocks, and building a life around what you love.

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That feeling when you find the *perfect* name for

That feeling when you find the *perfect* name for a character 🤌🏻

Here are some resources for good character name inspo (save this for when you’re feeling stuck!):

𝟻 𝚁𝙴𝚂𝙾𝚄𝚁𝙲𝙴𝚂 𝙵𝙾𝚁 𝙲𝙷𝙰𝚁𝙰𝙲𝚃𝙴𝚁 𝙽𝙰𝙼𝙴 𝙸𝙳𝙴𝙰𝚂
⇢ MAGAZINES. In most magazines, there's a section toward the front with a list of all the contributors for that issue, including writers, editors, and photographers. You can also check out articles on online magazines and media outlets for more ideas. This is especially helpful for surname ideas.

⇢ HISTORY. Looking through names of historical figures, royalty, and celebrities from bygone eras can provide some rich inspiration to pull from and names that are a little more off the beaten path, especially if you are looking for a unique name for a particular character.

⇢ NAME GENERATORS. There are tons of handy name generators for writers (just Google 'name generator'), including genre-specific ones, that provide hundreds of ideas. Even if you don't use one of the generated names, they can be a great jumping off point to get the creative juices flowing.

⇢ ROOT MEANING. If you want a name rich with symbolism and meaning, start by listing out words, themes, and metaphors that suit the character and what you want to convey. You can then look for names that directly translate to that deeper meaning or names from history that reflect it.

⇢ BABY NAME FORUMS. Sometimes, people go to message boards and ask for name ideas with a specific vibe. For example, they may ask for 'sweet Southern baby name ideas' and receive hundreds of responses. Try Googling what you're looking for or going directly to baby name boards and searching.

𝑯𝒐𝒘 𝒅𝒐 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒖𝒔𝒖𝒂𝒍𝒍𝒚 𝒄𝒉𝒐𝒐𝒔𝒆 𝒏𝒂𝒎𝒆𝒔 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒄𝒉𝒂𝒓𝒂𝒄𝒕𝒆𝒓𝒔?

As a bonafide plantser (planner/pantser hybrid, th

As a bonafide plantser (planner/pantser hybrid, though I tend to lean more to the ‘planner’ side), outlining was a game-changer for me once I started doing it. Now, it’s a must for all of my projects.

Here’s my current process for outlining a novel:

𝙷𝙾𝚆 𝙸 𝙾𝚄𝚃𝙻𝙸𝙽𝙴 𝙰 𝙽𝙾𝚅𝙴𝙻
⇢ DETERMINE CHARACTER ARCS. What transformations will each of my main characters experience through the course of the story? How will they change from beginning to end?

⇢ OUTLINE THE STORY BEATS. This gives me a great, solid structure to work from and prompts to follow to keep me on track. I love to use Blake Snyder's story beats but there are others you can try, including ones for different genres.

⇢ TURN BEATS INTO A DETAILED OUTLINE. Once the story beats are outlined, I break them down into a more detailed outline to flesh out every individual scene in the novel.

⇢ BONUS TIPS. When outlining, I start by writing down any scenes I already know will exist in the story and then fill in around them. I often refer back to my character arcs, themes, hook, and love lists for ideas, too.

✨ You can grab my printable Story Planner bundle to help you plan out our your novel via the link in my bio ✨

𝑫𝒐 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒐𝒖𝒕𝒍𝒊𝒏𝒆 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒃𝒐𝒐𝒌𝒔 𝒐𝒓 𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒑𝒍𝒆𝒕𝒆𝒍𝒚 𝒘𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒊𝒕?

These are four questions I ask about every charact

These are four questions I ask about every character I write to help get to the core of who they are:

𝟺 𝙺𝙴𝚈 𝚀’𝚂 𝙵𝙾𝚁 𝙲𝙷𝙰𝚁𝙰𝙲𝚃𝙴𝚁 𝙳𝙴𝚅𝙴𝙻𝙾𝙿𝙼𝙴𝙽𝚃
⇢ WHAT DO THEY WANT + NEED? What is motivating them on conscious and subconscious levels? What is it they desire and what is it they actually need (whether they realize it yet or not)?

⇢ WHAT DO THEY LOVE + VALUE MOST? Who and what do they love most in the world? What do they value most (i.e. freedom, justice, family, etc)?

⇢ WHAT ARE THEIR BELIEF SYSTEMS? What do they believe about the world, life, people, spirituality? How does this affect their actions and perspective?

⇢ WHO/WHAT STANDS IN THEIR WAY? What are the worst possible barriers that could stand in the way of them getting what they want and need most?

✨ You can grab my printable Character Planner bundle to help you plan our your novel via the link in my bio ✨

𝑾𝒉𝒂𝒕'𝒔 𝒐𝒏𝒆 𝒐𝒇 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒇𝒂𝒗𝒐𝒓𝒊𝒕𝒆 𝒒𝒖𝒆𝒔𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒔 𝒕𝒐 𝒂𝒔𝒌 𝒘𝒉𝒆𝒏 𝒅𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒍𝒐𝒑𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒄𝒉𝒂𝒓𝒂𝒄𝒕𝒆𝒓𝒔?

Authors spin ⁠reality.⁠⁣ Create something ou

Authors spin ⁠reality.⁠⁣
Create something out of nothing⁠.⁠⁣
If that's not magic, I don't know what is.⁠⁣
⁠⁣
An important ingredient for bringing anything to life is commitment — to your craft, to the art form, to the project, to the process.⁠⁣ To doing it right.
⁠⁣
It's challenging to bring a vision into reality. It's a mental game that challenges your ego, skills, passion, and endurance.⁠⁣
⁠⁣
The magic is in the commitment.⁠⁣
⁠⁣
Project Coastline (my urban fantasy series WIP) has taught me this. I've been working on it for years. It's gone through multiple iterations (it even started in a different genre). I'm chipping away at draft two of this particular incarnation of it. I've split it into two phases: Draft 2A and Draft 2B.⁠⁣
⁠⁣
𝙳𝚁𝙰𝙵𝚃 𝟸𝙰: Revamping the outline (again) and drafting several new scenes and completely rewriting several others. I completed that last week.⁠⁣
⁠⁣
𝙳𝚁𝙰𝙵𝚃 𝟸𝙱: Polishing everything (it's a fucking mess right now; imagine a new house with concrete floors and dust everywhere). Fixing up the prose (because all of the new stuff is completely bare bones just to get the foundation right) and adding the flourishes.⁠⁣
⁠⁣
I'm taking a break for about a month or so before starting on Draft 2B. In the meantime, I'm working on the outline for the second book in the trilogy.⁠⁣
⁠⁣
Sometimes, I literally feel like I'm going crazy because I've been working on this project for so long. But then I remind myself:⁠⁣
⁠⁣
The magic is in the commitment.⁠

Learning about other writers’ creative processes

Learning about other writers’ creative processes has always been super fascinating and inspiring to me. I love to try new things. So, I thought I’d share my own writing process (as it currently is — it evolves all the time, lol) as a series. Let me know if you’d like to see more or if you have any specific questions!

𝙷𝙾𝚆 𝙸 𝙳𝙴𝚅𝙴𝙻𝙾𝙿 𝙰 𝙽𝙴𝚆 𝚂𝚃𝙾𝚁𝚈 𝙸𝙳𝙴𝙰
⇢ MOOD BOARD + PLAYLIST. One of the first things I do is start compiling a mood board and playlist to help me capture the feel of the story and inspire me whenever I'm working on it.

⇢ GENRE + TROPES. I determine what the genre and sub-genres are, list out any tropes I know I'd like to incorporate, and look at lists of popular tropes for the genre(s) for potential inspiration.

⇢ THEME. I try to get a general idea of the theme and heart of the story I want to tell. This usually evolves as I go, but it's good to have a starting point.

⇢ THE HOOK. What's cool and unique about the story? What drew me to it to begin with and/or keeps drawing me back to it? What would I tell someone if I could only say one thing about it?

⇢ LOVE LIST. I expand on the hook and make a list of everything I'm most excited about with this project - moments, tropes, themes, characters - that I can refer back to whenever I'm feeling lost or uninspired.

✨ You can grab my printable Story Planner bundle to help you plan our your novel via the link in my bio ✨

𝑾𝒉𝒂𝒕'𝒔 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒇𝒂𝒗𝒐𝒓𝒊𝒕𝒆 𝒑𝒂𝒓𝒕 𝒐𝒇 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒆𝒂𝒓𝒍𝒚 𝒅𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒍𝒐𝒑𝒎𝒆𝒏𝒕 𝒑𝒓𝒐𝒄𝒆𝒔𝒔 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒂 𝒏𝒆𝒘 𝒔𝒕𝒐𝒓𝒚?

Who are your favorite villains or morally grey cha

Who are your favorite villains or morally grey characters this meme applies to, either from fiction you love or one of your own projects?⁠
⁠
This definitely applies to Eric from my urban fantasy WIP, Project Coastline. 😅

As I’m whittling away at the second draft of my

As I’m whittling away at the second draft of my WIP, Project Coastline, I thought I’d share its aesthetic because, why not? Any excuse for a mood board is a worthy one in my book.

𝙵𝙰𝙲𝚃𝚂 𝙰𝙱𝙾𝚄𝚃 𝙿𝚁𝙾𝙹𝙴𝙲𝚃 𝙲𝙾𝙰𝚂𝚃𝙻𝙸𝙽𝙴
⇢ Adult urban fantasy series with multiple POV’s + a heavy dose of romance
⇢ Dynasty × Game of Thrones × The Vampire Diaries (the glamour + drama of classic soap operas, the political layers of GoT, the magic + romance of TVD)
⇢ Takes place on a fictional island off the coast of Florida within the Bermuda Triangle
⇢ Morally grey characters galore
⇢ Forbidden/star-crossed lovers
⇢ Family rivalries, mysteries + twists

𝑾𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒂𝒓𝒆 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒇𝒂𝒗𝒐𝒓𝒊𝒕𝒆 𝒖𝒓𝒃𝒂𝒏 𝒇𝒂𝒏𝒕𝒂𝒔𝒚 𝒃𝒐𝒐𝒌𝒔, 𝒎𝒐𝒗𝒊𝒆𝒔, 𝒐𝒓 𝑻𝑽 𝒔𝒉𝒐𝒘𝒔?

Five ways to protect your writing time (because it

Five ways to protect your writing time (because it’s important!):⁠
⁠
⇢ SET A SCHEDULE. Incorporate your writing sessions into your schedule the way you do any other appointment: set aside a dedicated time frame and put it in your calendar.⁠
⁠
⇢ SET BOUNDARIES. If you live with anyone or have someone who contacts you regularly, let them know when you'll be unavailable during your writing sessions ahead of time so they know not to reach out to you during that particular time frame.⁠
⁠
⇢ PUT TECH ON SILENT/DND. Put your phone on silent and all notifications (including ones on your computer) on 'do not disturb' or focus mode so you won't have any unnecessary distractions while you write. You can even set up an automatic response to send to people who text or call you.⁠
⁠
⇢ FINISH OTHER OBLIGATIONS. Build in time before your writing session to finish up any obligations that could potentially get in the way of your writing time or distract you, including chores, phone calls, etc.⁠
⁠
⇢ MANAGE YOUR ENVIRONMENT. Make sure there is nothing around to distract you in your environment. This could mean closing the door, getting rid of distracting noises, or even going somewhere like a coffee shop to write if that will help you focus better.⁠
⁠
Want more writing and creative living tips? ✨Download✨ your FREE resources via the link in my bio or at lindsay-elizabeth.com

𝙲𝚄𝚁𝚁𝙴𝙽𝚃𝙻𝚈 𝚁𝙴𝙰𝙳𝙸𝙽𝙶: The Power of Now by Eckhart Tolle⁣
𝙲𝚄𝚁𝚁𝙴𝙽𝚃𝙻𝚈 𝚆𝚁𝙸𝚃𝙸𝙽𝙶: The second draft of Project Coastline (urban fantasy)⁣
⁣
When I zoom out, it gets overwhelming to think about how many steps there are left between now and publishing. ⁣
⁣
I’m constantly reminding myself that I have control over where my attention goes. Just because a thought comes up doesn’t mean I have to stay with it and follow where it’s leading me. It’s important to be mindful of what you need at any given moment to serve where you want to go.⁣
⁣
When you’re driving, you’re not just staring at the map the entire time. If you were, you’d get into a car accident. You have to pay attention to the road directly in front of you and only glance at the map when you need it for guidance.⁣
⁣
(Same with looking at your rearview mirror. Stare at that thing too long and you’re going to end up in a ditch.)⁣
⁣
There’s no sense in worrying about the road that’s ten miles ahead or fifty miles ahead because 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘢𝘳𝘦𝘯'𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘺𝘦𝘵. The conditions could change by the time you get there.⁣
⁣
Those future conditions don’t exist yet. Hell, you may take a fun detour you didn’t expect, or end up changing the destination altogether.⁣
⁣
Don’t think about the scenes you have left to write, focus on the one you’re working on now.⁣
⁣
Don’t think about whether the book is going to be a bestseller or not. You’re not there yet. Neither your “success” or “failure” have happened yet. It’s irrelevant to the stage of the writing process you’re in 𝘯𝘰𝘸.⁣
⁣
And you won’t ever get THERE unless you give your all to where you’re at NOW. The Future You is waiting on the Present You to do the work you need to do. To keep your hands on the wheel. To keep driving.⁣
⁣
This place where you’re at 𝘯𝘰𝘸 is full of possibility, where you’re creating and crafting and playing. Focus on the road directly in front of you. Enjoy the music on the radio, the scenery you’re passing, the breeze blowing through your hair.⁣
⁣
And when it gets frustrating, remember—⁣
⁣
You won’t be here forever. You have plenty of road to look forward to up ahead.

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