Jessica McCarty, Author

     Today I'd like to share some of the visuals I've used as inspiration for writing my book, "A Desperate Love." I love visuals! Most of the time, I already have an idea in mind of what a character or place will look like. Usually, I go online and find pictures that best represent what I have in my head. When I get stuck, it's great to have something to remind me of where I want to go.      Images for Lady Olivia's dreams. Lady Olivia is a woman of prayer. Pirate's spend a lot of time at sea. Lady Olivia, a master of the sword. Pirates. True love!!! 💞      I hope you've enjoyed a small glimpse into my creative process! Want more? Check out the songs "Wait" and "Paralyzed" by NF. They were great tools for setting the mood during the creative phases. Love always, J 💙 

     Recently, I've had a number of people say to me that they "wouldn't even know where to start" when it comes to writing a book. I think a lot of people could say that for any number of things that they would like to do, but just don't feel qualified to pursue. There's a quote from Thomas Edison that reminds us that when it comes to our goals we have to be willing to face failure.         We have to remember that every acquired skill was once something we couldn't do or do well. With the Winter Olympics taking place right now, we've had a lot of time to watch some really spectacular ice skaters . . . and some really spectacular falls. The athletes we've been watching are experts at what they do. They have spent years and countless hours learning, growing, and perfecting their abilities. And they still fall! When they were just tiny little kids learning to skate, they fell. And they fell. And they fell. What makes these athletes great is not...

     Last week I wrote about fear and things that help me deal with it. In light of that, this week I'd like to share some quotes. Feel free to use them too! Paste them on your fridge, your mirror, or anywhere else that strikes your fancy. Believe God has great things for you and be inspired! "You have the same amount of hours in a day as Beyonce." "The road to success is always under construction. It ain't ever easy." -Steve Harvey "Sometimes you just have to put on lip gloss and pretend to be psyched." -Mindy Kaling "The minute I let go of the belief that things will get better, is the minute I know they won't." -Snow, OUAT "Sometimes I've believed as many as six impossible things before breakfast." -Lewis Carroll "Be stubborn about your goals, and flexible about your methods." "Stick with the people who pull the magic out of you and not the madness." "The true warrior isn'...

      Can I confess something to you? My biggest hangup is fear. Google defines fear as, "an unpleasant emotion caused by the belief that someone or something is dangerous, likely to cause pain, or a threat." I have spent nearly my entire life dealing with this. It's not easy to deal with, it's not easy to admit, but it's the truth.       My growing up years were filled with comments like: "You're so quiet." "You're so shy." "You don't talk much." As I got older I was often told that I needed to 'get out of my comfort zone'. Of course, anyone with any level of social anxiety can tell you none of these comments helped me. They were more likely to anger me, frustrate me, cause me more fear, or simply make me blend into the wallpaper (I was really good at that).      The thing is we all have hangups. We all have things that stymie us and trip us up. Some of us overcome them in life, others, just learn to deal with ...