Wednesday, May 30, 2012
The Joy of Prosody: The Anapestic Foot
Monday, May 28, 2012
Friday, May 25, 2012
Events for Writers: Seminars, Workshops, Speakers, Book Signings
THE ART OF WRITING SEMINAR
The Art of Writing Seminar, sponsored by the Loon Lake Ink Slingers, announces their agenda for the monthly seminar hosted by Terry Hughes, author of the novel Burning Paradise. The seminar’s venue is The Depot, a Knapweed restaurant, located at 107 Shaffer in downtown Springdale, seven miles west of Loon Lake.
SCHEDULE
The Art of Writing seminars occur on the last Friday of every month from 10:00 a.m. until 1:00 p.m.
Hughes will speak from 10:00 a.m. until 11:00 a.m., and then the guest speaker will discuss the topics listed below, plus chat about their books, until Noon, at which time there will be a lunch break, social hour and book signings. All events will be recorded for audio books by Blue Line Multimedia Enterprises, and will be aired on Spokane’s community access Channel 14.
The current guest speaker schedule is as follows:
May 25 Craig Goodwin author, Year of Plenty, Pastor, Millwood Community Church
Topic: The Art of Living Locally
June 29 Frank Scalise (pen name, Frank Zafiro) author, ten published novels. Frank is also a major with the Spokane Police Department
Topic: The Art of Writing While Earning a Living and Raising a Family
July 27 Dawn Nelson, author of too many books to count
Topic: The Art of Writing While Living
Aug 24 Laura Munson, NY Times Best Selling Author of This Is Not The Story You Think It Is...
Topic: The Art of Getting on the NY Times Best Seller List
There is a five dollar charge for each event. For more details contact: Eve Dubois, 509-844-6650.
FREE WRITING WORKSHOPS
Eastern Washington University's Writers will be hosting a series of creative writing workshops for adult writers. These workshops will consist of craft-based discussion, writing exercises, and mini-workshops to provide feedback to authors. All workshops will be led by graduate students from EWU’s creative writing program.
Writing exercises and writing time will be built into the workshop format. Participants can bring works in progress to work on during the sessions, but it is not necessary.
All workshops will meet in the library of the Student Academic Center on the EWU/WSU Riverpoint campus. The address is 600 N. Riverpoint Blvd. in Spokane. The entrance to the library is on the second floor of the building.
Workshop Schedule:
Sunday, May 27 @ 2 - 4 p.m. – Fiction
Sunday, June 3 @ 2 - 4 p.m. – Poetry
Pre-registration is not required. Questions? Contact the WITC office at (509) 359-7437 or by email at witc.ewu@gmail.com.
AUTHOR BOOK SIGNINGS
There are several author book signings scheduled at Aunties Bookstore in Spokane. For these and other events in the North Idaho area, check the Events page of this blog.
And finally, here’s a fun graphic my about the English language from BusyTeacher.org.
Wednesday, May 23, 2012
Bookshelf Makeover: Keeping Current
We all have our favorite “How To” writing books on our shelves that we purchased years ago and still refer to on occasion. But there are many writing-skills books published each year by authors with new experiences, perspectives and ideas about how to be successful in our writing endeavors.
As writers, it’s important to keep informed not only about the writing and publishing industry in general, but also about the current resources for writers. Even if we have heard the same information from a different author, sometimes it takes the right thing said the right way by the right person at the right time to finally click in our head and put us on a new path toward reaching our writing goals. Keeping informed helps guide us toward better decisions in our writing and our writing careers.
To get a jump on what’s new, here are 10 books about writing due to come out within the next several months. They are available for preorder and will be published in both paperback and ebook formats.
Writing Irresistible Kidlit: The Ultimate Guide to Crafting Fiction for Young Adult and Middle Grade Readers
Monkeys with Typewriters: How to Write and Read Better
Scarlett Thomas
Canongate UK, December 2012
Exploring how fiction works, this manual shows you how you can learn to understand it well enough to crack open any fictional narrative, and, if you like, start creating your own.
Vex, Hex, Smash, Smooch: Let Verbs Power Your Writing
Constance Hale
W. W. Norton & Company, October 2012
A writing handbook that celebrates the infinite pizzazz of verbs.
Wired for Story: The Writer’s Guide to Using Brain Science to Hook Readers from the Very First Sentence
Lisa Cron
Ten Speed Press, July 2012
This guide reveals how writers can utilize cognitive storytelling strategies to craft stories that ignite readers’ brains and captivate them through each plot element.
Writing 21st Century Fiction: High Impact Techniques for Exceptional Storytelling in Modern Fiction
Donald Maass
Writers digest books, October 2012
Donald Maass heads the Donald Maass Literary Agency in New York City, which represents more than 150 novelists and sells more than 150 novels every year to publishers in America and overseas.
Where Do You Get Your Ideas?: A Writers Guide to Transforming Notions into Narratives
Fred White
Writers Digest Books, November 2012
Fred White is a professor of English at Santa Clara University, where he has been teaching courses in composition and literature since 1980.
The Arvon Book of Literary Non-Fiction Writing
Sally Cline
A&C Black, October 2012
The Arvon Book of Literary Non-Fiction Writing offers new insight into the critical impact and nature of this evolving genre, adding to the ongoing debate and offering valuable instruction to authors.
The Arvon Book of Crime Writing
Michelle Spring and Laurie R. King
A&C Black, October 2012
The Arvon Book of Crime Writing captures the essence of Arvon teaching into a practical handbook for writers, packed with tips and advice from leading novelists as well as reflections on the genre itself and practical instruction on great storytelling.
A Year of Writing Dangerously: 365 Days of Inspiration and Encouragement
Barbara Abercrombie
New World Library, June 2012
Barbara Abercrombie provides a delightfully varied cornucopia of inspiration — nuts-and-bolts solutions, hand-holding commiseration, and epiphany-fueling insights from fellow writers, including Nobel and Pulitzer Prize winners and Abercrombie’s students who have gone from paralyzed to published.
So, get ready to discover new resources to add to your library. Consider getting ahead in the line by dusting off your bookshelf, sliding over the old favorites, and making space for the new.
Happy Browsing!
Monday, May 21, 2012
Renovations and Revisions: The Writing life
Working on the boat over the past few days, I couldn’t help but think of the long hours my father had worked on the Pretty Lady when he originally constructed it. He had spent hours on end welding, sawing, hammering and bolting the boat together. And now, nearly 30 years later, I (along with my husband) am spending hours on end sanding and refinishing wood, pulling up old flooring, painting, and shining aluminum, to help bring it back to life.
These patterns are learned, and we follow them in all areas of our lives. In our writing lives we get these patterns from other writers as we study and learn from those who have accumulated knowledge and experience. We mimic their styles as our own style develops. We look to them for guidance, techniques, and tips for improving our writing.
Our goal for the Pretty Lady is to have it seaworthy, comfortable, and aesthetically pleasing. This goal works as well for the books we write.
Like the Pretty Lady, we need our stories to be structurally sound, mechanically correct and in good working order so that they are seaworthy when the day comes to launch them into the publishing world. We also want our books to be aesthetically pleasing. We want our book covers to garner the attention of readers; to entice them to open the front cover and begin reading. We want a comfortable interior layout that has an easy-to-read typeface with clear organization, adequate spacing and white space.
To do this, of course, takes hard work with thoughtful attention. We need to “renovate” our manuscripts again and again to make our stories as compelling as possible. We need to make sure every scene is complete, to cut what is not essential and to add what is essential. We need to revise our prose for the greatest impact on the reader. We want to fulfill our promise to our readers and to try to give them more than they expect.
There are a number of writing-related books that give us patterns for revising our manuscripts. Two I have on my shelf are Revision by David Michael Kaplan (Story Press, 1997), which is one of my favorites. Even though Revision may now be out of print, copies are still available through the Amazon marketplace.
Another book I found helpful was Manuscript Makeover (Perigee Trade, 2008) by Elizabeth Lyon, who goes into great depth about many aspects of the revision process.
A more recent publication is Crafting Novels & Short Stories (Writers Digest Books, 2012) by the Editors of Writers Digest.
Whether we self-publish or contract with a publisher, we want our manuscripts to be strong enough to weather the potential turbulence of the publishing world and have its best chance at drawing readers. And it is those who have come before us that give us that chance, whenever we are ready to climb aboard.
Bon Voyage!
Friday, May 18, 2012
Obstacles in the Way of Love
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow heard the old story of Evangeline and her lost love, while dining one evening at Nathaniel Hawthorne's house. The tale was well know at the time. It told the sad story of lovers parted on their wedding day by the cruelty of the governor of English Canada. Acadia, what is now Nova Scotia, having been happily settled by intrepid folks from the coast of Brittany, in 1640, were now, after more than one hundred fruitful years, under threat of expulsion. If they would swear an oath of allegiance to the Crown and renounce their Catholic faith, they could stay. If not, they would be banished to ports unknown, irregardless of family ties. Evangeline and her Gabriel were separated. She ended up in the swamps of Lafayette where a statue, pictured above, remains to this day. They were reunited only at the end: Gabriel died in her arms.
Longfellow wrote:
"This is the forest primeval. The murmuring pines and the hemlocks,
Bearded with moss and in garments green open and indistinct in the twilight,
Stand like Druids of eld, with voices sad and prophetic.
Stand like the harper's hoar with beards that rest on their bosoms.
Loud from its rock comes the deep voiced neighboring ocean,
Speaks and in accents disconsolate
answers the wail of the forest"
Monday, May 14, 2012
The Clubhouse Turn
There were times as a child, at our farm in the country, when our old crank style phone would clang in the front hall and we would listen for our special ring, as we were on a party line. When my father said, “We'll be right over,” we kids would start jumping up and down. His words signaled the birth of a beautiful colt, or filly and we would excitedly enter the spotless barn and see a glowing mare nudge her new born to rise up on spindly legs, the chief characteristic of the thoroughbred. It was on one of these occasions when we found my grandparents arm in arm, peering into the stall. My grandmother remarked, in reference to the still wet, little filly, “isn't she lovely?” Stricken with cancer, and ill at the time, we were all moved to see her radiant smile. My grandfather, looking at the sight of her, thought his wife had never appeared more beautiful. So he named that horse Jamned Lovely. As if endowed by a special sort of magic, our beautiful filly went on to give us the supreme thrill of winning the Queen's Plate, passing a field full of bigger, and stronger looking colts. When she came around the clubhouse turn and the crowd leaped to its collective feet, we knew she had a chance. My emotional grandfather, a widower, at this point, stood, slapped his racing form to the side of his mourning coat and roared, “Come on, come on!”
Now, on to the Preakness.
I am so thrilled to add this update. 'I'll Have Another,' in a flat out race to the wire, won the 137th running of the Preakness today.
Friday, May 11, 2012
Writer's Celebrate Mother's
*** Note of Interest (Wikipedia) - When Anna Jarvis had the phrase "Mother's Day" trademarked in 1912 she was specific about the location of the apostrophe; it was to be a singular possessive, for each family to honor their mother, not a plural possessive commemorating all mothers of the world.
President Woodrow Wilson also used this spelling when signing the Bill into law passed by Congress making Mother's Day an official holiday in the United States
Wednesday, May 9, 2012
Books About Writing & Food Copy
After accepting the position, reality sank in and I thought , What do I know about cooking. It’s not like I’m Julia Child. I didn't even like to cook. As a high school Freshman, I nearly failed Foods class ! And just prior to my becoming Food Editor I had invited a young man to my house to cook dinner for him. It was a bit deceiving as it wasn't me who prepared the delicious fried chicken that night , it was my brother, Walt. He was always a better cook than me. It took some time before my cooking improved. One of the first meals I fixed for my husband was baked halibut with a special orange sauce. When I placed it on the table the sauce was burnt, and the halibut steak was hard as a brick. Gary looked at it, then looked at me and sweetly said, “Maybe we should go out to eat”.
Monday, May 7, 2012
Latin Alive !
** For more Latin Phrases visit http://www.tameri.com/write/coollatin.html
Sunday, May 6, 2012
Haiku Inspiration--It's All Around You!
I am first with five
Then seven in the middle --
Five again to end.
So get out in that glorious spring sunshine and grab yourself some inspiration. Then write a haiku or two--or three--and submit them to the free Can You Haiku contest. It's that simple!
Friday, May 4, 2012
Do you want to write for Wikipedia?
Wikipedia, the registered trademark name for “the” onsite web encyclopedia, is well known by almost anybody who uses a search engine on a computer.
Anybody can write for Wikipedia or any other wiki farms. Wiki farms are groups that cater to specific subjects and usually contain many sites. Farms host many wikis run from single websites. EX: Wikia, @Wiki, WetPaint, PBwiki, and Wikispace.
Wikipedia is comprised of volunteer editors and writers. You may participate as either or both. Wikipedia is not a directory for everything in existence. It is selective regarding what topics are included. The general categories are: academics, astrophysical objects, books, events, films, music, numbers, organizations and companies, people, sports and athletes and web content. This does not mean you can tweak your article to fit into one of these categories and expect it to be accepted. Your article has to have mass appeal. It will be checked for suitability and quickly deleted if found lacking.
You need to ask yourself if the subject for your article follows these guidelines.
1. Is the topic of enduring notability, not just a flash-in-the-pan, here today interest?
2. Articles about living people have particularly strict oversight. A person cannot be noted for one event only. If event has longevity, the event will be more likely to be covered than that person. Who eats the most rattlesnake meat at the annual Texas Rattlesnake Round Up will not qualify. The Rattlesnake Round Up may not meet the requirements either.
3. Notability is not inherited. If your great, great, great, uncle John signed the Declaration of Independence, an article by you on him is not necessarily notable. There is no “reflected light” theory.
4. Do outside sources back up the research you cite? Are they reliable? Are they independent of the company or special interest groups associated with it? You must provide the sources. Editors at Wikipedia will determine if the subject has sustained interest and has reliable sources.
5. Minutiae, topics of interest to a narrow group of people or field, most crimes or violence of any type do not qualify and most matters in the news considered routine are ineligible.
6. Subjects for merely filling a role, which could be filled by others, are not considered. (Marilyn Williams portraying Marilyn Monroe for instance.)
7. Self-promotion and routine coverage do not create notability. Paid promos, local or occasional notoriety and politicians and political causes do not qualify.
If you wish to write here are the steps, you need to follow.
Go to http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Article_wizard
The guidelines will suggest you practice editing published articles first to get the feel for the writing styles, content, and formatting.
Here are also templates to follow, advice and step-by-step instructions.
a. Find out if your article meets suitability guidelines.
b. Research to see if other articles are included in Wikipedia on your subject. Can you add information to them? Should you amend another article or write one separately? Ask the editors.
c. Gather information and references from authentic sources to supplement your article. See guidelines on “reliable sources.” YouTube, your website and My Space are not considered reliable sources.
d. Ask for feedback from editors on “talk page” before you begin to write on WikipediaProject or “Drawing Board.” There is no sense in wasting your time for something that is not suitable for inclusion.
e. Think about writing your article in your “user space” and asking for editorial help.
Do not promote yourself, your company, your newly patented invention (books included) or what you did on your summer vacation. Wikipedia is not the place for new work including any original theories, opinions or insights. It is a space for reporting strictly notated information of general interest to a large number of people. Pearl diving for Norwegians is not going to make the cut. The topics must be “community oriented.”
Among others, one element not considered when the editors read your article is poor writing; they can fix it. Neither the author nor the motives to write are considered. Qualified research does matter. If the topic is interesting or useful, being liked or disliked by the editors is not a factor. What is considered is if the evidence shows that the world at large deems the subject worthy of notice. In the end, having your article accepted is like filing your income taxes. The IRS ruling is the one that counts. Wikipedia editors control the content, final answer.
This information was provided directly from these sites.
http://webtrends.about.com/do/wiki/htl
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Article_wizard
Google “how to write an article for Wikipedia”