Shout-out to Alex and the awesome co-hosts for today: Victoria Marie Lees, Sarah Foster, Natalie Aguirre, and C. Lee McKenzie!
June 3 question -
Do most of your story ideas come from one place (the news, dreams, etc.) or do they hit from all over the place?
The Existence series is based on an ancient myth/legend that was passed down to me. Here's a look at some others:
Lumber Of The Kuweakunks — Mystery, Novella, Fantasy, Speculative Fiction
I was working on a mystery story for the IWSG anthology, and it turned into this. Not your typical whodoneit story, this is the lore of a fictional Native American tribe mixed with a current-time story of missing children.
Jewels of Darterra — Fantasy, Speculative Fiction, Portal Fantasy, Novelette
This exists because of the A to Z Challenge. I wondered what would happen if friends grew up to become enemies. Takes place on a non-human world.
Writing Book Reviews As An Author: Inspiration To Make It Easier — Writing Reference, Literary Criticism
Writing Book Reviews As An Author: Inspiration To Make It Easier — Writing Reference, Literary Criticism
Again, this exists because of the A to Z challenge. I created a formula, more or less, to quickly and easily write decent book reviews.
Preparing to Write Settings That Feel Like Characters — Writing Reference
This actually exists because of a tweet. I did end up making A to Z challenge posts. But, initially, an agent posted that they were looking for books where the setting was a character, and a dozen writers asked what and how to do that. I knew! So I wrote a book to share the knowledge.
Preparing to Write Settings That Feel Like Characters — Writing Reference
This actually exists because of a tweet. I did end up making A to Z challenge posts. But, initially, an agent posted that they were looking for books where the setting was a character, and a dozen writers asked what and how to do that. I knew! So I wrote a book to share the knowledge.
Unfinished... there's also a book with a character named Anah. It was an A to Z Challenge story. I combined common misused expressions with news, but tossed in a supernatural twist. So, it isn't political. It would be impossible to publish it in the United States right now without it being the most thinly veiled metaphor of all time. 🧊 May as well paint a target on my Native-American skin, which already is a target... HEY, let's not talk about that book. Maybe after January 2029.
Onto another writing topic:
June is 🌈RAINBOW BOOK MONTH 🏳️🌈
https://www.instagram.com/patatgiovannisroom/ Check out the oldest continuously running LGBTQ+ and feminist bookstore in the United States. It's in my area! 😎
May was a good month for Fractions of Existence purchases. Many were from the "Stuff Your Kindle" event, but not all. Hopefully, the 11 ratings on Amazon will increase to 20 (and the 9 reviews on Goodreads will increase as well). 🤞🏽
Book Below was one site I used for the "stuff your Kindle" event. It was easy to use. I could see my book on the site during the event. I feel comfortable recommending them to fellow authors.
I also used the hive. It was recommended by BookBub and some other noteworthy sites. It was difficult for me to navigate. I could not see my book, or any other book, during the event. The admin team said the site sometimes doesn't work on certain devices or browsers. So, I just have to trust that it was there, I guess. I had no way to promote links to the event, because I could never access it. I would absolutely suggest that anyone planning to use this FIRST checks an ongoing event to be sure they can see books. I'd post a screenshot, but I couldn't see any books during the event. I paid for a Gold membership. My books are listed in the hive "library" at least. Which I can find via Google search:
The hive does require authors to check book links and information is displayed correctly on the event page prior to any events. So, again, use this ONLY after verifying you can see event books! (Which I could not.) They have a zero tolerance for AI writing and book covers, so be aware of that before signing up, too. 
Have you heard of "Stuff Your Kindle" events?
Native American news:
A 60 to 70-foot swath through the Las Playas Intaglio, a 1,000-year-old, 272-foot-long fish-shaped geoglyph located west of Ajo, Arizona, within the Cabeza Prieta National Wildlife Refuge has been destroyed by the US government. Las Playas Intaglio is a sacred site for the Tohono O’odham and Hia-Ced O’odham people.
📚💙 — J (he/him 👨🏽 or 🧑🏽 they/them) ~ Speculative Fiction & Reference Author and Co-host of the April Blogging #AtoZChallenge
https://bsky.app/profile/jlennidorner.bsky.social My current favorite social media site.
https://amzn.to/41QBB4P Author page on Amazon — please consider following and supporting this indie author!
https://www.bookbub.com/authors/j-lenni-dorner I'm grateful for follows! https://www.goodreads.com/j_lenni_dorner
#AtoZChallenge a-to-zchallenge.com Kindly check out the blog hop's website. Watch for special features!
https://www.myrandommusings.co.uk/2026/06/anythinggoes-linky-477/ Link up for blogs.
Looks like your best ideas came about from the Challenge and the IWSG.
ReplyDeleteNot sure about "best," as the Existence books have more sales, ratings, and reviews. Which seems to indicate something, because the other books are not Amazon-exclusive. The short fiction isn't on Amazon at all. 🤔
DeleteI love stuff your Kindle events. I find so many interesting authors that way.
ReplyDeleteI wish I could have gotten books from both events. I'm disappointed that I didn't realize the hive wouldn't be an event I could participate in as a reader.
DeleteThe A to Z Challenge really inspires you.
ReplyDeleteYes it does.
DeleteYou should write a book about the formula you came up with for the A-Z to write a book.
ReplyDeleteYour creative well will never run dry, I think.
ReplyDeleteIt's cool how your anthology story became a book.
ReplyDeleteMystery and fantasy, now those are two genres that need more representation. I love mashups!
ReplyDeleteJewels of Darterra sounds like something I'm putting in my TBR.. Friends who became enemies and fantasy---wow
ReplyDeleteIt's fun to take legends and turn them into stories.
ReplyDeleteYou had great sales! Congrats! My country only renames places without community consent, they at least don't destroy sacred sites. I remember that story of Anah! Finish it and publish it when it's safe for you to do so. Oh, and why not write a post about how you market your Existence series vs the shorter books? I'm sure it will be helpful for all of us :-)
ReplyDeleteMyths are a never-ending source, aren't they?
ReplyDeleteI just want to comment that I love the covers for Lumber and Jewels. (Can you tell I'm at the 'cover design' stage again? :D). Keep writing, and I hope that someday it will be safe in this country to be something other than a cis white male.
ReplyDeleteLooks like you find ideas wherever you look. Lucky you. :-)
ReplyDeleteIt is fascinating how our stories transform during the writing process. Sometimes, the end result has almost nothing in common with the seed that started it.
ReplyDeleteCongratulations on the sales! I hope you get more reviews and sales.
ReplyDeleteAny time I think of you, J, I think of Native Americans, their myths, religions, experiences, and histories. Congrats on your May sales. "Fractions of Existence" is a great book.
ReplyDelete