I was wondering, this week, how different authors base their stories on aspects of their lives. Some authors have been known to find inspiration from their personal experiences. Melville and Hemingway wrote stories with some ties to things they had actually done. Other authors carry out extensive research to build the world they present for the reader. Margaret Mitchell with her Gone With the Wind stands as an example of that approach. Finally, many fiction authors create their stories out of whole cloth, from their imaginations. And, of course, all three approaches may be combined. Tolkien, developed the Hobbit, with the use a vivid imagination. But, Tolkien brought an extensive knowledge of mythology, and a fascination with languages to his creation.

I asked author friends about their approaches. Three authors gave me their responses. Stephanie Barr says, “When it comes to inspiration, I usually lead with my imagination…

Rather than an article, I include below links to two others, with my thoughts on them. I think they show pretty well the current turmoil that the publishing industry is in.

The first is titled “Cover Story: The Quiet Catastrophe, Then Reinvention Of Book Publishing”, by John Birmingham on which-50.

Here’s a notable excerpt:

The last ten years have thrown up such a perfect storm for publishers that it can be difficult to tease out whether the collapse of a chain like Borders has more to do with the recession, the rise of gaming as an alternative to reading for children, the rise of streaming TV as an alternative to reading for adults, or simple predatory action by Amazon — also fondly known as the Beast of Bezos.

In the end it hardly matters, because the industry seems determined to remain in denial anyway. Its methods and patterns of thinking are…