Writers & Readers Websites Wednesday

I don't really know what to say about Squidoo, but it is a site worth looking at for most everyone. You can research information about topics - discover information on all sorts of miscellanea, set up lenses to promote your writing; use your imagination. 

Yes, there're a lot of promotions here, some are fun, some, well...

Still, it's worth a visit and a thought about how it might be of help to you in whatever fashion you deem appropriate for you - write/promote, read/research. 

Take a few minutes to look around. If nothing else, it can be a lot of fun.

The Craft of Writing

Today, a simple list on how to develop your craft of writing, how to keep it crisp, engaging and tell your story.

Yep, just a list. Things I’ve learned in years of writing. Agree, disagree, make use or don’t. Your choice. But whatever you decide, keep on writing.

1.               Keep it simple.

2.               Don’t overwrite.

3.               Keep a light touch with your settings and descriptions, sprinkle information through your story, don’t feed it in huge lumps.

4.               Forget multitasking – focus on monotasking – give yourself uninterrupted time for your writing – put down the phone, no texting, nothing, just write.

5.               Think before you include an expletive. Does it fit the character? Does it give the situation more punch or is it just there for the sake of a bit of shock value? Some people find such words offensive – if you’re going to use them make maximum use of their punch.

6.               Use simple, declarative sentences unless absolutely necessary.

7.               Avoid the passive voice – engage your reader.

8.               Cut the crap. Really. Listen to Elmore Leonard – if it sounds like writing, rewrite it.

9.               Watch out for adjectives and adverbs. Keep them to a minimum.

10.         Never rescue your hero or heroine. They have to learn to do that for themselves.

11.         Watch your paragraph lengths. Keep them shorter unless absolutely necessary ~words as well, writing is not a vocabulary contest.

12.         Try visualizing who you’re writing for.

13.         A broom is not a long-handled kitchen cleaning implement, it’s a broom! Clear on that?

14.         Write the way that works best for you.

15.         Write first without worrying about spelling, grammar, punctuation fixes. Let your right brain run wild.

16.         Write from the heart. 

Oh, and don’t listen to too much advice, clear your own path. 

Now go write something.

Writers & Readers Websites Wednesday - Books!

Reader? Writer? College Student?  

Education Insider offers lots of places where you can get free, unabridged books and audio books.  Lots of resources - some that lead to even more resources. Mostly classics but other offerings as well.  Definitely a site worth visiting. 


And when you have a minute check out these other blogs as well: 
EMTalkery: http://www.emtalkery.blogspot.com/
Sci Fi Writer M Pax: http://www.mpaxauthor.com/blog

Some Young Writer's Notes

It’s about time we talked about the kids.

            Kids write too.  Some quite well, others just trying their hand at the craft.

            Sometimes we forget.  I don’t know how many of you out there began writing at an early age, but I was about 12.  Managed to write an entire novella without describing hardly a thing!  Quite an accomplishment that.  Thank heavens for a Godmother who read my work and pointed out that little failing.   

            When I started writing there was no internet where I could go for mentoring, research, or anything else.  My mentors were physically present. A Godmother who was game.  A good teacher.  Finally a published writer who agreed to read some of my work.  She gave me feed-back – mostly diplomatically negative, but welcome nonetheless. 

            I wrote through my teen years, jumping right into novels.  I was at home writing when most kids were out doing the social two-step.  Never did do short stories or articles back then.  I had my goal – to be a published novelist.  I reached that goal when I was 21 when my first Western novel was published by Doubleday.  There are kids out there now with the same single-minded pursuit, I have no doubt of it.

            Being mentored by another writer is mostly quite a few years back now, but I had one additional mentor who set me on another path of writing just a few years back.  Funny how people and things change the direction of your life ~ especially when you keep yourself open to it. 

            Having a resource such as the web at our fingertips (all our fingertips) is a pretty magical thing. (yeah, yeah, be blasé, like it’s nothing special, always been there.)

It is.

It hasn’t.

Still, the web can also be isolating – yes even more so than the writer’s life already IS isolating.  And for kids, that can make things even more daunting.  The arrival of the web has created a strange balancing act between having the world open up with almost any information you need right there at hand, and doing little but stare at a computer screen because of it.  Not to mention you don’t even have to get up from the computer to go to the library to find information you need – and you can find lots of wrong information on the web.

            So if you’re a kid and write, kudos to you, keep it up! Work at it, enjoy it, research places to publish your work and to sell it.  They do exist.  There are places directed exclusively at young, enthusiastic new writers; websites and magazines that offer opportunity to the young, new writer. 

Check out Stone Soup – the magazine by young writers and artists at www.stonesoup.com (that’s for the 8 to 13 crowd).

There’s WattPad at http://www.wattpad.com/about for the over 13 crowd.

Go to http://www.fundsforwriters.com/newsletters/ and scroll down to subscribe to the children’s markets for young writers called Writing Kid for free. 

Do google searches for research and to find sites where you might be published or sites of hard copy magazines receptive to the young writer.

That’s not to say the local avenues of getting your writing out there should be passed up.  Write for a school paper.  See if your local newspaper has a young adult/kid’s section written by kids and find out what it takes to get your work published there.  Discover where writing fits into your life.  And don’t forget to get out and experience life so you have something to write about!

            And, if you’re an old hand, a writer with a track record, how about mentoring a kid who’s seriously writing?    How about trying to get a kid who’s not interested in writing interested?  I’ve been to both places.  It’s rewarding, frustrating, uplifting and infuriating.  Quite the roller coaster but worth every minute invested.  

** And if you're reading this on Aug. 27 don't forget The New Grown Ups Guide to Disney World  is free today.

And a couple of other blogs I want to mention: 

Drunken Space Penguin on reading & writing.

Sci Fi Magpie Sci Fi writing & reading & observations

Writers & Readers Websites Wednesday - Acronyms

Yep, it's that day again and I have a good one for all you readers and writers out there. 

Have you read all those initials, abbreviations and acronyms out there?  Get confused and wonder what the heck some of them mean?  

With over 1,000,000 definitions sure you can find the info you need here. 

Whether you're a writer or a reader searching for answers to that burning question - what the heck does that mean?  the Abbreviations and Acronym dictionary is for you.

Have fun!

Writer’s To Do List

Have a lot to do?  I know I do.

But in the spirit of procrastination I do find time to wander the web a bit between projects and I came across a rather long post (the equivalent of three pages with – oh horrors – no illustrations) on how to write a writer's ‘to do’ list and manage it.

Really?

Now I don’t to be too sarcastic here and really I don’t intend a slight – in fact it’s good to come across these things so they inspire me to keep it tight, keep it short. Folks just don’t have that much time. Save the long writing for a novel that just insists it wants to keep going.

So I’m going to keep my comments on the lengthy writer’s ‘to do’ list minimal. 

Here it is.

I realize there are many folks different from me and I applaud them – I like difference.

However, the question nags. How does one come up with more than three pages on a subject such as a ‘Writer’s To Do List’? I might be able to do it myself, but it would be a stretch and I’d probably find myself getting repetitive.

So I’ve decided to give my own advice on a Writer’s To Do List. And I do keep a running list on my desk in a spiral notebook, my supply of which usually comes from a well-known office supply store around back to school time when I can get them from $.01 to $.05 each.  When a page fills I rip it out and recycle (trying to be green conscious).

Pretty straight-forward advice:

1. Create the To Do list  - i.e. write stuff you have to do in a list on the page.

2. Follow Your list – i.e. read it once in a while to see what you need to do next. First thing in the morning might be good.

**Check off what you manage to accomplish.

To the point? Clear? Got it?

-- Of course I am rambling on here as well.  Maybe the fun is in the rambling on…I, too, on occasion love to ramble on.

And don't forget a couple other cool blogs: 

Seumas Gallacher's blog:  http://bit.ly/1bPVb1b

David Lender's Blog:  http://bit.ly/13OZAfA

Kevin Hanrahan's Blog:  http://bit.ly/1dpx2jM