Category: dreams

Bringing Dreams to Life

On By Betty OwensIn A Gathering of Eagles, dreams, ebooks, Happiness, Jael, Lady of the Haven, Walt Disney2 Comments


If you can dream it, you can do it. ––Walt Disney

Wikipedia Commons
Artist: John Bauer

I think Walt Disney was probably the best at bringing dreams to life. He was my hero at one point in my childhood. Lying on the floor in front of the TV, chin propped on my palm, I watched Tinkerbell flit across the screen, depositing fairy dust on everything. The fairy dust brought dreams to life. It was magic.

Inspiration took root in my young heart. I was a dreamer. Over the years I spent a lot of time on my own as we moved from one place to the next. I was shy, so it was difficult for me to make friends. On the inside, in my “happy place,” I had lots of friends. My own creations, or characters I’d first met on the black-and-white TV screen. Lively characters who made me laugh and loved me, even though I was a bit odd. They traveled with me, back and forth across the United States.

I grew up, married, and raised three sons, and still the dreams inhabited my down time. In 2005, Jael drifted into my mind. I tell a little of her story here.

In preparation for the re-release of The Lady of the Haven and A Gathering of Eagles, I thought it might be nice to interview her, as many of my author friends have done with their main characters. But Jael is a bit like Tinkerbell. She’s illusive. And she doesn’t like to talk about herself. And she will not discuss her rather unusual gifts. So I decided to interview William instead.

Here’s a short excerpt of that interview:

Me: Welcome to my blog, Your Majesty.

King William of Coldthwaite’s dark hair is pulled back, tied at the nape of his neck. He’s dressed in an indigo tunic cinched at the waist with an intricately carved leather belt. Highly polished black leather boots end just below the knees of his suede leather britches. He wears no crown, but a rather large sapphire glints from its setting in a gold band on his right pinky. He exudes strength, eyes sparkle with life, and the smile … be still my heart …  

King: I am honored to be here, Lady Owens.

Me: You don’t really have to call me … Nevermind. (I kind of like being addressed as “Lady” and wow, he’s so handsome!)

(End of Excerpt) OK. Stop back in next week to see what this king has to say about his lady.

I’ll also be previewing some of the really nice gifts I’m offering at the re-release of the books. Here’s my grand prize: Audible version of The Message Bible. You’ll love this easy-to-understand version, and now you can take it with you everywhere. Listen in your car or on your I-Pod or other devices.

Watch for more information coming in the next few days. “Like” my Facebook page to stay up with all of the latest announcements about these books and other books I’ve written. I do have a book due out later this year from Write Integrity Press: Amelia’s Legacy, Book One in the Legacy Series, a historical novel set in the 1920’s. I’ll tell you more about that one in a few weeks.

Thanks for stopping by!

Top portrait is a Wikipedia photo of an illustration by John Bauer. “At that moment she was changed by magic to a wonderful little elf.”

Dreaming in the Rain – Hello, April!

On By Betty OwensIn A Gathering of Eagles, adventure, Carroll, CS Lewis, dreams, fantasy, fiction, Frank Baum, George Lucas, JRR Tolkien, Steven Spielberg, The Lady of the Haven, Writing2 Comments

The month of March was a lot of fun for me as I interviewed four of my favorite authors. If you missed any of those posts, I’ve linked them here so you can catch up. Dreams are a vital part of a writer’s life. In fact, dreams can be useful for everyone. What do you hope to achieve in life? If you can dream it, you can do it. Yes, I know dreams can be wild and crazy and maybe we don’t want to go there, but some of the wildest, craziest dreams have come true.

For instance, consider the wild and crazy worlds that have been created by writers and envisioned by filmmakers – Tolkien, Lewis, Carroll, Baum, Lucas — just to name a few. These writers dreamed a dream that caught on to our imaginations and voila! We can live these dreams by watching movies. They’ve become real.

I first met William du Frain, a prince of Coldthwaite, in a dream. Mortally wounded, he fell from his horse into a raging, flood-swollen river. Downstream, below a fifty-foot cascade, a young woman waited. In my dream, I gave her special powers. Enhanced hearing and acute vision. She actually heard William fall from his horse into the river, several miles away. She heard the change in the water’s path as it carried the semi-lifeless body into the cascade and deposited it in the fall’s basin.

I gave her a name, Jael of Rogan. She became known as The Lady of the Haven. I published the book in 2007. It was my dream, and I loved it. I went on to write another chapter of her life in A Gathering of Eagles, when the shadows of war darken the kingdom of Coldthwaite and beyond. William is called into action once more and Jael must step into her destiny.

Throughout the month of April, I will share my memories of these two stories in celebration of my dream. What became for me a wonderful adventure into a fantasy land inhabited by believers in a powerful God. Then, about halfway through the month, I’ll launch my campaign for the re-release of The Lady of the Haven and A Gathering of Eagles. I’ll be offering a couple of valuable prizes, and showing off the beautiful new cover art for these two stories.

I hope you’ll stop in often to see what’s happening here at my blog. Or you can stay in touch by liking my Facebook author page at https://www.facebook.com/betty.owens.author

I’m @batowens on Twitter and you can find me on Pinterest and Google+ as well. I hope you’ll stop by and enter the contest for some really nice prizes and be around to download the books when they become available. If you like fantasy adventure that won’t embarrass you or your younger family members, you’ll love Jael’s story. She’s family friendly. I don’t know about you, but that’s important to me.

Here are the links for the “Dream” Interviews –

Ann Gabhart
Nike Chillemi
Fay Lamb
Elizabeth Noyes

Thanks for stopping by!

A Writer’s Life – In Pursuit of Dreams – Elizabeth Noyes

On By Betty OwensIn A Dozen Apologies, author, dreamer, dreams, Elizabeth Noyes, fantasy, fiction, Harriet Tubman, Interview, March, mystery, suspense, Write Integrity Press, writer4 Comments

  • Every great dream begins with a dreamer. Always remember, you have within you the strength, the patience and the passion to reach for the stars to change the world. ––Harriet Tubman

A writer’s life is built on dreams. We learn to weave fine threads of fact and fantasy into stories to entertain, to educate, and to inspire. During the month of March, I’m stepping aside to allow four fellow writers a chance to tell about their particular journeys through the fanciful world of fiction, romance, mystery, and suspense. 


Elizabeth Noyes debuted in February in the collaborative novella, A Dozen Apologies, from Write Integrity Press. She has kindly consented to an interview. I hope you’ll enjoy her candid answers as much as I did.

Would you consider yourself a dreamer?

Elizabeth: The banner on my website reads – Professional Writer. Aspiring Author. Dedicated Dreamer – so yes, I do consider myself a dreamer.

Daydreams or night dreams? How else do you come up with ideas?

Elizabeth: Daydreams, night dreams, the daily grind, and a troupe of characters who’ve come to life in my head help me write. Seriously, ideas come all the time: two women hug and – poof! Long lost sisters separated at birth are reunited at the reading of a will. An abandoned car on the side of the road becomes a woman fleeing from an abusive marriage. Or a mother feeding her toddler bits of food in a restaurant morphs into a young woman traumatized by an attack that left her unable to have children…except now she’s stolen someone else’s child for her own. Ideas are everywhere. All we have to do is see them and play the what-if game. 

It’s the nighttime, though, when my scenes come together. For more years than I care to count, I’ve composed scenes, complete with dialogue and action, while “sleeping.” Experts today call it Focused Dreaming. I call it designing my own pleasant (or sometimes not so pleasant) stories. At other times, all I have to do is sit down at the keyboard and my characters write their own story. Sometimes I have to throw the outline out and let them have their way. It makes for an interesting ride, sort of like reading a new book because you have no idea where it’s going to take you.

What steps do you take to bring your dreams to life?

Elizabeth: Using a scene conjured up from something in real life, I envision the characters’ physical and temperamental characteristics, add dialogue, spice it up with a bit of action and angst, and let it play like a movie through my head. Somehow it stays cemented in my brain until I can get it down on paper. That usually gives me the germ of an idea.

From there, I need visual confirmation. The next step is a visit to Mr. Google for images – young woman with blue eyes, man in suit, blond-haired toddler, crooked-tooth smile, black truck, red sports car, mountains, dogs, and even particular pieces of clothing. If I can see I can describe it, and the possibilities are endless. Next is the character study where my hero and heroine (and sometimes villain) comes to life. I use a comprehensive list of interview questions to get to know them. After that, I may write their backstory. It takes longer, but it makes my characters real people with a history and memories and hang-ups. I can often use bits and pieces of their background in the story.

Filling in the middle: how do you keep yourself moving forward?

Elizabeth: Wow, let’s talk discipline now. I have my outline, complete with inciting incident, plot, story arc, a few scenes already in mind, and how the story ends. I have my visuals. I have some scenes. To make it all work (for me) requires immersion in the story. I’m not one of those lucky writers who can slap/dash off a chapter in 30 minutes here or an hour there. I need large chunks of time. I become the characters. I’m in the action. Time becomes another dimension for me. I’ve given my husband permission to poke me if I don’t move for six hours, but he’s never to question my tears, hysterical laughter, or odd contortions as I put my boys and girls through their paces. He does give me strange looks now and then. LOL


Do you have any advice for other dreamers?

Elizabeth: I have a quote on my website that speaks to this question. “Dreams are stories set down on paper.” Scads of books and classes are available claiming to know the one sure-fire way to write a successful novel. What I’ve learned is there is no one-size-fits-all. I encourage everyone, not just writers, to believe in their dreams.


Elizabeth Noyes is a professional writer, aspiring author, dedicated dreamer—lives in northeast Atlanta with her husband and best friend, who listens tirelessly while she tells him all the stories clamoring to get out of her head and onto paper. Her days and nights are a balancing act between working full-time, entertaining three grandchildren, participating in church, and a demand (her own) to write, write, write. She is also an avid reader across many genres.

A Dozen Apologies, a novella collaboration created with 11 other authors, is her first published work. It releases on Amazon February 14, 2014. Her first full-length novel, a romantic suspense entitled Imperfect Wings, will be out later this year.

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