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Welcome to Pairings
Pairings by Jann Alexander include creativity, inspiration, books, writing, photography, art, history, travel, Texas life, lore and more
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Three Women Who Made History Behind the Camera
In the 1930s, these women captured Texas on film—the good, the bad, and the truly ugly.

Jann Alexander
Mar 173 min read


The Dust Storm That Stopped A First Lady
When First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt met a Texas dust storm in 1939, her encounter gave me an idea for my historical novel, Unspoken

Jann Alexander
Mar 105 min read


How Does Art Connect Us?
How does art connect us? Because humans are hard-wired to make connections, art connects us to one another, and to the whole wide world.

Jann Alexander
Mar 73 min read


Exploring the Untold Stories: The Power of Women in Historical Fiction
For Women's History Month, we're reading the stories of women once marginalized or totally overlooked in historical fiction

Jann Alexander
Mar 35 min read


How to Build a Library, circa 1885: Start with a Book Club
All it took in 1885 to build Houston a city library was a book club, begun by women with a desire for "intellectual culture."

Jann Alexander
Feb 242 min read


Milestones That Call for Celebration
There's a Magic to Celebrating Milestones...and It Begins With Champagne (and Books About It)

Jann Alexander
Feb 163 min read


Do Authors Face Choices? You Betcha!
Just like everyone else, we face choices. But the choices authors face aren't exactly like the ones you're imagining.

Jann Alexander
Feb 92 min read


That’s What I Like About Texas
Just when you get used to land, lots of land, and starry skies above, Texas shows you something else. Take a Panhandle road trip in photos.

Jann Alexander
Jan 272 min read


How to Make Space for What Counts
Quitter's Day has come and gone, and with it, 80% of our 2025 New Year Resolutions. It's not too late for this smoother means to success.

Jann Alexander
Jan 206 min read


Where The Best Buzz Words of 2014 Ended Up: In Our Everyday Language
When Mark Twain advised to write tight, he surely hadn't been enchanted by the Buzz Words of 2014. Read on for my Fable of Our Times.

Jann Alexander
Jan 136 min read


When Inspiration Strikes, Authors Hit the Keys
How does inspiration strike? For these authors, it's the random events in everyday life that sparked ideas for their novels.

Jann Alexander
Jan 64 min read


Debunked: Top Five Excuses Writers Give For Not Using Scrivener
Here’s why Scrivener can easily become your go-to tool for organizing your research and writing and pictures.

Jann Alexander
Dec 12, 20245 min read


The Irony of Surpassing Yourself
It’s ironic many extra words writers have to cut once they hit the magic length historical novels are: 100,000 - 120,000. Cue the angst.

Jann Alexander
Dec 12, 20242 min read


The Next Best Thing To Time Travel
When you’re researching historical fiction, it would be so much easier to rev up the Time Machine. Here's how I did without time travel.

Jann Alexander
Dec 11, 20242 min read


Three Things Scrivener Can Do You Probably Haven’t Thought Of
Whether you’re a Scrivener power user or a beginner, here are a few things Scrivener can do that you probably can’t do without.

Jann Alexander
Dec 11, 20245 min read


Suspense That Takes Us to The Edge
Read my review of DAMAGED by Cam Torrens, which delivers the fast-paced, all too real-life suspense prequel Tyler Zahn fans await.

Jann Alexander
Dec 6, 20242 min read


Focus Only on What You Are Writing Now
Henry Miller's own Eleven Commandments of Writing helped him maintain his focus on work in progress. Can they help with yours, too?

Jann Alexander
Dec 4, 20241 min read


How to Have Fun with Panoramas
The panorama feature on the iPhone is Apple’s way of saying, “Go out and have fun with your phone" and use your pano wherever.

Jann Alexander
Dec 1, 20243 min read


How Four Words Got Me Back on the Writing Track
Here's how four words that will become your mantra can help to keep you on the writing track.

Jann Alexander
Dec 1, 20244 min read


How To Handle Flowers With Care
To handle photos of flowers with care, follow these steps.

Jann Alexander
Nov 26, 20242 min read
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