Wednesday, June 3, 2026

IWSG Wednesday AND Did You Know Thursday

 


 

The first Wednesday of every month is officially IWSG day. IWSG was formed by Ninja Captain Alex Cavanaugh. Members post about their doubts and fears, discuss struggles and triumphs, and offer words of encouragement to others who are struggling.

 

Twitter handle: @TheIWSG  

Hashtag: #IWSG 


Let’s rock the neurotic writing world!


Our Twitter handle is @TheIWSG and hashtag is #IWSG.

The awesome co-hosts for

June 3 posting of the IWSG are Victoria Marie Lees, Sarah Foster, Natalie Aguirre, and C. Lee McKenzie!


Every month, we announce a question that members can answer in their IWSG post. These questions may prompt you to share advice, insight, a personal experience or story. Include your answer to the question in your IWSG post or let it inspire your post if you are struggling with something to say. 

Remember, the question is optional

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?

 

That’s an interesting question.  I’d have to say all over the place. I’ve written books around a particular book title I’d decided on, an unusual topic on the news, and movies and movie stars that inspired me. One of my books was written at the request of my brother. He was fascinated by an 1873 Model Winchester that was found in the Great Basin National Park leaning up against a juniper tree in 2014. How it got there was a mystery. Hence Geller’s Find.😊.

 

May/June Reviews in no particular order.

* Disclaimer. If I run into an occasional typo, I ignore them and don't factor them into my review.

 

GIANT SHREWS FROM OUTER SPACE by Sylvia Kay Rose

SHREWS is another dark comedic, sci fi horror written in Rose’s uniquely audacious style. Teenager Claire Lawford and her mother Linda end up in the dying town of Abundance, Ontario when Linda’s car gives up the ghost. Unfortunately, the town’s residents aren’t particularly friendly to strangers and gouge Linda for everything she has, which isn’t much at this point. But that’s the tip of the iceberg for our heroines’ travails. The people in town are disappearing and being murdered in a particularly gruesome fashion. Now it’s up to Claire and her new friend Andy, that she meets while she and her mother are stranded, to save the town and its people. Throw killer shrews from outer space and ghosts from an abandoned mine into the mix and you have an entertaining read that’s hard to put down.

The characters are well-developed. The conversations are fun and engaging. And the world-building is first rate. I highly recommend it for readers that enjoy humor and sci fi intertwined with their horror or those that just want an entertaining, well told tale by an author who delivers.

Available at Amazon 

 

 

HOMEPORT by Nora Roberts

An art expert—Dr. Miranda Jones—and an art thief—Ryan Boldari—find themselves joining forces when Dr. Jones reputation and life are on the line. This is probably my favorite romantic suspense by Nora. She delivers a strong romance interwoven with chilling suspense that will keep you reading.  A must for Nora fans.

Available at Amazon 

 

 

 

 

 

DIE TRYING by Lee Child

I’m a huge Jack Reacher fan. DIE TRYING is one of Child’s earlier Reacher novels and like the rest of the series, delivers. As usual, Reacher finds himself in the wrong place at the wrong time.

When a young female FBI agent gets abducted, he gets caught in the net too. Unfortunately, the FBI thinks Reacher is one of the kidnappers and plans to deal with him according.

If you are a Reacher fan and haven’t read this one yet, I highly recommend it.

Available at Amazon 

 

 

 

LOST SISTER By MK Alexander

In Book 4 of the SEVEN SISTERS Series, Milo and his crew set off for the Lost Colony. A voyage from which no one has ever returned. The journey is filled with peril and unexpected challenges, along with a new birdman friend and a mechanical man, whose handshake dispenses Urchin worms. One obstacle after another is thrown in their path but they persevere until they finally arrive at the Lost Colony where they will face the greatest challenge of all.

I thoroughly enjoyed the read and recommend it to anyone who loves steampunk sci-fi or a well-told tale.

Available at Amazon 

 

 

THE SECRET OF SECRETS by Dan Brown

Dan Brown once again weaves an intricate, suspense-filled puzzle with his latest rendering. As with his other novels, there’re unexpected twists and turns when Katherine Solomon’s—Robert Langdon’s current love interest—manuscript on consciousness is stolen and destroyed, and people they know are being murdered. Once again Professor Langdon’s knowledge of symbols and codes will help him solve the mysteries of the murders and discover who has gone to such lengths to make sure Katherine’s manuscript is never published…and why.

 Available at Amazon

 

AND

Did you know, the phrases: In a pickle, Green-eyed Monster, Dead as a door nail, All of a sudden, Off with his head, Night owl, Wear your heart on your sleeve, and Fair play all originated with Shakespeare?

For more information: 150 Interesting Facts About Our Favorite Authors [Infographic] 

 


 

35 comments:

Jamie said...

That Giant Shrews space book sounds funny to me. I love how inspiration can strike from so many places.

Donna said...

I wish I could write but alas…😒
Happy week!
Hugs
Donna 💕🌷💕

Alex J. Cavanaugh said...

That is weird about the rifle.
Reacher stories are always great. I can definitely picture the the giant shrews story as a movie. Hopefully not on the SyFy Channel...

Liza said...

That’s pretty cool that you could write a story on demand for your brother!

Nick Wilford said...

Giant Shrews is a great title to start but sounds like a good read too (incidentally I'm impressed you could start writing based on a title alone - it's frequently the last thing I have!) Where would we be without Shakespeare?

L. Diane Wolfe said...

What an interesting thing to find in a park. And something no one else found first.

Ronel Janse van Vuuren said...

Great Shakespeare trivia! The books sound interesting, too.

Sarah Foster said...

Love the places you get ideas from.
That Giant Shrew book sounds like it would make a great creature feature.

Crystal Collier said...

I knew most of those came from Shakespeare, but not all. =)

It's incredible to me how many peopl take their inspiration from all over and how many have a couple special sources.

cleemckenzie said...

Shakespeare coined so many idioms. What a genius he was.

Jacqui Murray--Writer-Teacher said...

Interesting inspiration for Gellers Find. I loved that book.

Sandra Cox said...

Giant Shrews is a fun read, especially if you like dark humor:) And it is amazing where inspiration can come from, isn't it, Janie?

Fundy Blue said...

Stories come from everywhere, Sandra. You are a master at turning ideas into compelling books!

Sandra Cox said...

You are an artist at cooking and quilting and would probably do great if you turned your hand to writing. Hugs received and returned.

Sandra Cox said...

Alex, It is very strange about the appearance of that rifle for sure.
I love Reacher stories. The only one that beats him out, as far as I'm concerned, is Dez Limerick. AKA The Gatekeeper.
I'm sure Sylvia will be thrilled that you can picture Shrews as a movie.

Sandra Cox said...

Liza, You do what you got to do for your sibs, right? :)

Sandra Cox said...

Ideas are everywhere for sure, Natalie. My brother was very sick at the time so it was doubly important to me to get that written. Thanks for co-hosting:)

D.L. Finn said...

I get my ideas from all over the place. I added Giant Shrews to my Kindle. I didn't know Dan Brown has a new book, put it on my wish list
Great reviews xo

David M. Gascoigne, said...

I did not know that those familiar phrases all originated with Shakespeare, so my thimble of knowledge is overflowing this morning, Sandra. The services you do render to me!

Sandra Cox said...

Hi Nick:) Giant Shrews is a great title and a great read:)
On some of my stories, I have to wrangle the title too;)
We'd be lost without Shakespeare wouldn't we?

Sandra Cox said...

Isn't that something, Di? An Eva Jansen found it. It had been exposed to the elements for decades. If your interested you can do a quick search. It's out there on line. It's fascinating.

Sandra Cox said...

Shakespeare was amazing, wasn't he, Ronel? Glad you find the books interesting. All good reads.

Sandra Cox said...

Thanks, Sarah. Also thanks for co-hosting.
Giant Shrew would make a great creature feature, wouldn't it?

Sandra Cox said...

The Shakespeare phrase that surprised me was 'All of a Sudden'. Who'd a thought?
I'm heading to your place now, to find out where your inspiration comes from:)

Sylvia Kay Rose said...

Hi everyone, I definitely wouldn't get any early bird awards! Thanks so much Sandra for your wonderful review and kind words about Shrews, it is a wickedly funny one and "Horror Lite" in comparison to the gorrific-ness of Squirrels. Thank you, friends, for your inspiring and uplifting comments! Right now I'm on a rush push getting an anthology together but hope to spend more time with you soon! Gratefully, Sylvia :)

MELODY JACOB said...

Happy IWSG Wednesday! I always love checking out your posts for this, it really is such a comforting community Alex built to help us all realize we aren't alone in this beautifully chaotic writing world.

Your answer to the monthly question is absolutely fascinating! The story behind Geller’s Find completely blew me away. A real-life 1873 Winchester rifle just found leaning against a tree over a century later? Oh my goodness, your brother was so right to be captivated by that, and what a brilliant spark for a book! It proves that inspiration really does just strike from the most unexpected corners of reality. Do you find that those real-world mysteries are the most fun to plot out, or do you prefer the ones that come purely from a random title idea?

Sandra Cox said...

He was amazing for sure, Lee. Congrats on your upcoming release and thanks for co-hosting.

Sandra Cox said...

Thanks so much, Jacqui. I'm always pleased to get the Jacqui seal of approval. Makes my day:)

Sandra Cox said...

How kind of you to say, Louise, and yes, stories do come from everywhere don't they? Cheers,

Sandra Cox said...

And fine writing ideas they are, I might add.
Thanks for the download. I'm sure Sylvia is thrilled.
Thankee kindly. xo

Sandra said...

Why thank you, David, 😊

Sandra said...

My pleasure, Sylvia. It was another great read. Good luck getting that anthology together. Cheers,

J.Q. Rose said...

What a list of popular authors in your reviews. Love Nora. And what a good sister to write a book for your brother, but what a topic! Amazing the rifle was there.

Sandra Cox said...

Thank you, Melody. And thanks for stopping by.

Sandra Cox said...

It is amazing about the rifle, Cuz. And apparently it had been there for decades.