tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-47586731263479889052024-03-13T11:58:28.535-04:00One Significant Moment at a TimeAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01899768909313326172noreply@blogger.comBlogger330125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4758673126347988905.post-23862367562233600222013-06-12T06:49:00.000-04:002013-09-24T18:39:02.492-04:00Co-Author the Story with your Reader
Australian novelist Morris West, who during his lifetime sold 60 million books in 27 languages, once said: "[The writer] has to be the kind of [wo]man who turns the world upside down and says, 'Look, it looks different, doesn't it?'"
For me, there's something that separates an author from the pack, and that thing is the author's instinctive ability to ignore obvious descriptions. Instead of Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01899768909313326172noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4758673126347988905.post-39072079452664302842013-02-21T07:45:00.000-05:002013-09-24T18:39:15.290-04:00Hook 'Em Good
Writing is my oxygen, and I don't hold my breath on any given day. Lately though, life has forced my focus away from fiction, as my job in Public Relations involves writing in various nonfiction categories. It's required a complete rerouting of my creative circuitry, as you can imagine. There is one element that remains essential across all fiction and nonfiction genres: the all-important HookAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01899768909313326172noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4758673126347988905.post-83969950617516421662013-02-12T17:07:00.002-05:002013-02-12T20:48:28.961-05:00The End(ing)
A story, like all “good things,” must come to an end. The ending, also known as Denouement, is as important to the story as the Beginning and the Middle . A good ending leaves the reader with a sense that the story has come to a logical, satisfying conclusion. For writers, it's important to remember what an ending shouldn't do. By understanding what Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01899768909313326172noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4758673126347988905.post-28495496706156665722013-02-09T12:56:00.000-05:002013-09-24T18:39:40.823-04:00Life in a Subway
A subway car is a microcosm of life. Its riders are a random sampling of society, the characters in that scene from life's novel. Look at this picture. Who are these people? What would happen if a disaster struck, if the train jumped the tracks moments after this picture was snapped? The answer depends on the personalities of the people thrown together and what they carry with them in Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01899768909313326172noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4758673126347988905.post-32725673043609788622012-12-28T07:09:00.000-05:002012-12-28T07:09:03.834-05:00Life's Little Miracles
Photo Source
It's been a crazy ride. Here in the United States in the span of a couple weeks, we bore witness to the horrific pain one human being can inflict on a community and a nation, and we turned around and celebrated the biggest holiday for 'giving' on our calendar. Human perseverance is truly miraculous. Miracles have been on my mind, in fact. What constitutes a miracle, Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01899768909313326172noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4758673126347988905.post-16192914026941285972012-12-10T08:10:00.000-05:002012-12-10T08:12:30.615-05:00Best of Vine Leaves Anthology 2012
Today launches an exciting anthology of micro-fiction and poetry, the creative brainchild of authors Jessica Bell and Dawn Ius. The Best of Vine Leaves Literary Journal 2012 is a wholly unique project; there isn't another collection out there like it. Here's Vine Leaves's twist: Every selection within, whether prose, poetry or script, is a vignette.
"Vignette" is a word that originally Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01899768909313326172noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4758673126347988905.post-1830512877710336302012-11-28T08:04:00.003-05:002012-11-28T14:26:27.232-05:00Na-NOW WHAT-Mo
December is Na-Now What?-Mo
National Novel Writing Month is nearly over. For marathon writers everywhere, the end of November cues a collective sigh of satisfied relief. The rigid, daily ritual of vomiting out 1660-word bucket-fulls of raw, creative genius will slacken, and like coming off any intense schedule, participants will often be left physically exhausted and emotionally drainedAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01899768909313326172noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4758673126347988905.post-48229039362766154732012-11-14T08:11:00.000-05:002012-11-14T08:11:53.149-05:00Show & Tell in a Nutshell
Click to add me to Goodreads!
Have you been told there's a little too much telling in your novel? Want to remedy it? Then this is the book for you!
In Show & Tell in a Nutshell: Demonstrated Transitions from Telling to Showing you will find sixteen real scenes depicting a variety of situations, emotions, and characteristics which clearly demonstrate how to turn telling into showing. Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01899768909313326172noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4758673126347988905.post-33717674809839388842012-11-02T06:13:00.003-04:002013-09-24T18:40:39.809-04:00Semicolon: Old-School or Archaic?I'll admit it; I am fond of the semicolon. Some may accuse me of sounding like an old-school grammarian, but I hold the English language and all the grammatical rules that govern it in high regard. They are the authorial tools that allow me to communicate with accuracy. Thoughts flit through the mind, intangible and abstruse, and capturing their essence is a writer's first challenge. Without Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01899768909313326172noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4758673126347988905.post-4587099645895405322012-10-31T16:38:00.002-04:002012-10-31T16:41:07.197-04:00Happy Halloween!
A little poem for your Halloween enjoyment!
I'm A Vegetarian Vampire
By Nicole DucleroirI’m a vegetarian vampireCursed with eternal lifeRoaming the night in search of foodI can cut with a butter knifeMy skin crawls, my stomach churnsat the thought of sinking my teethinto the flesh of an animal’s neckand sucking what runs beneathFrom sundown to dawn, I dig aroundin Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01899768909313326172noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4758673126347988905.post-28671839100773034702012-10-29T06:00:00.000-04:002012-10-29T06:00:02.769-04:00Dance on Fire Sequel Released Today
The wait is over for fans of horror author James Garcia, Jr. Today, the sequel to his popular 2010 debut novel Dance on Fire is released. Heroes and villains we loved and hated -- and loved to hate -- in the first installment of this crossover vampire series have returned to reek more havoc in Kingsburg, CA. Members of this small community are still recovering fromAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01899768909313326172noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4758673126347988905.post-61911078059966130942012-10-26T13:58:00.001-04:002013-09-24T18:41:07.582-04:005 Tips to Create a Writer's Retreat at Home
A typical item on every Writer's Bucket List is "Attend a Writer's Retreat." In a perfect world each one of us would be granted time away from jobs and household responsibilities for a couple days every year, where we'd gather with fellow creative souls in mountaintop chalets, seated in deep-cushioned chairs around roaring fires in stone masonry hearths, and we'd write. Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01899768909313326172noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4758673126347988905.post-70501451562653497092012-10-04T06:58:00.003-04:002013-09-24T18:41:28.370-04:00I Shouldn't Be Alive
Two scuba divers surface in open ocean to find the dive boat has left them behind, miles from shore. ~~ On a ski vacation, a father and his eight-year-old son are caught in an alpine storm and find themselves miles off course, somewhere in the Sierra Nevada wilderness.~~ A cinematic photographer and his crew are filming footage of an active volcano when their helicopter Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01899768909313326172noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4758673126347988905.post-21743581288948841642012-09-28T08:25:00.001-04:002012-10-30T14:28:34.569-04:00Mormon Diaries
It's my pleasure today to promote Sophia Stone's autobiographical essay collection, Mormon Diaries. It is a personal and honest story of one woman's faith crisis, and the journey she took to find answers to her burning, questions on spirituality.
"Brought up in a religious home, Sophia believes the only way to have a forever family is by following church leaders and obediently choosingAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01899768909313326172noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4758673126347988905.post-22064924929268750492012-09-06T07:39:00.001-04:002012-09-06T07:39:17.148-04:00It's In The Mail
September 6, 2012
Dear Blogger Friends,
I used to write letters. I guess we all did, right? As a society, I mean. Back Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01899768909313326172noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4758673126347988905.post-56255693760316427382012-07-11T09:11:00.000-04:002012-07-11T09:11:36.931-04:00Mary Sue, I Can't Stand You!
Artwork by ~Neeja at DeviantArt.com
"Mary Sue" (or her male counterpart, "Marty Stu" or "Gary Stu") is a character who is perfect in nearly every measurable way. She is drop-dead gorgeous, amazingly intelligent, and highly skilled in whatever urgent task needs performing. Her biggest flaws are trivial, like being younger than every other character, or having a short-temper, or possessing Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01899768909313326172noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4758673126347988905.post-26459878523134339212012-07-02T09:58:00.000-04:002013-09-24T18:42:24.570-04:00No Longer (New Poem For the Broken-hearted)
No Longer
It’s over,
this day and a lifetime
of love; of love
I have known
nothing but
his tender goodbyes.
Hello! Hollow sound
drowned by the roar of the surf,
Solitary footprints in the sand
gilded in the glow of
a setting sun, a sun setting
on my fool’s paradise.
Wash them away, heartless ocean
Tide me over ‘til death, ‘til Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01899768909313326172noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4758673126347988905.post-18830439245344172902012-06-13T07:48:00.000-04:002013-09-24T18:42:46.153-04:00Life's a Beach
It'd been five years since we'd vacationed on Cape San Blas, a narrow peninsula that points its finger away from the Florida panhandle and out into the Gulf of Mexico. Coming back to one of our favorite beaches was exciting, but for me, it held a special significance. The fall following our return from the Cape in 2007, I discovered Writing.com. And the first fictional story I posted there that Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01899768909313326172noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4758673126347988905.post-86265572446593176312012-05-17T10:08:00.000-04:002012-05-17T10:12:20.443-04:00Remember when...?
My fourteen-year-old son was born into a comfortable world of modern conveniences.
His parents have always driven their own cars, carried their own telephones, and possessed their own personal computers. His home is an ambient 74˚F year-round, thanks to central heat and air. There has always been a television in his playroom, where over the years Sesame Street and Barney Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01899768909313326172noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4758673126347988905.post-5172049019634447922012-05-15T05:00:00.000-04:002012-05-15T05:00:02.216-04:00"Fabric" by Jessica Bell -- Check It Out!!
Today I'm celebrating the release of Jessica Bell's new poetry collection, Fabric ... Wait! Please don't close the tab at the the mention of poetry! Trust me, just watch the trailer and then read a little note from the author herself before deciding to disappear ...
Jessica says:
My poetry will not baffle you with phrasing that scholars award for academic genius and that can Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01899768909313326172noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4758673126347988905.post-52560566444982423682012-05-07T10:17:00.000-04:002012-05-07T10:17:37.474-04:00Weekend in the Water
A great weekend is one when you chip away at your bucket list, coming one step closer to checking off a life goal. I had one of those weekends. And it was fab-U-lous.
With my husband, I participated in two training-intensive days of scuba classes. The course we're taking is called Open Water Diver and is Scuba Schools International's (SSI) basic certification curriculum.
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01899768909313326172noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4758673126347988905.post-10504139664412401712012-04-11T09:32:00.002-04:002012-04-11T09:36:28.932-04:00Fast Forward
Life moves forward at break-neck speed, and last week was no exception. (Kelly Rippa and her co-host today Carson Kressley just informed me April is Stress Awareness Month. I don't need a movement to be aware, I can tell you that.) In addition to the kids being on Spring Break and eager for at least one adventure a day, I had the refinancing of our house to contend with.
PuttingAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01899768909313326172noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4758673126347988905.post-31420594681772190932012-04-03T07:54:00.002-04:002012-04-03T08:44:49.499-04:00Reminder for the Gentle Soul
Pillow Cover by textile artist Chloe Owens
Your work needs to be independent of others' work.
You must not compare yourself to others.
No one can help you. You have to help yourself.
Criticism leads to misunderstandings and defeatism.
Work from necessity and your compulsion to do it.
Work on what you know and what you are sure you love.
Don't observe yourself too Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01899768909313326172noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4758673126347988905.post-4897171839147487482012-03-28T15:49:00.001-04:002013-09-24T18:44:08.116-04:00What's Up With Me (?)
I'm a Libra, and for me, life is all about balance. I'm in constant pursuit of it, off-kilter when I don't achieve it, and of the mind that true success comes with it. So, here's how elusive balance has affected me lately.
I have two passions, both which require enormous amounts of time and energy. One is writing. The other is running.
When I am fully engaged with one, there is not Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01899768909313326172noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4758673126347988905.post-25665319149403597582012-03-13T08:24:00.000-04:002013-09-24T18:44:27.153-04:00Don't Mess With Me
Living in the eye of the storm this week. I'm doing it all: nursing sick kids and husband while doing my best to stay healthy, supporting a sister who's facing troubling challenges in her life, holding down the household, and writing a series of articles on voice and tone in literature -- all while gearing up for Sunday's half-marathon race. My diet should be better...and I should be Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01899768909313326172noreply@blogger.com0