tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-31333504865879486012010-03-06T16:22:41.962-05:00Pains Takerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13335671253923142632writingpanes@hotmail.comBlogger24125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3133350486587948601.post-27979488953444358332010-03-01T05:00:00.004-05:002010-03-01T05:00:05.836-05:00

Cold Mountain by Charles Frazier is one of my all-time favorite books. Whether as literature or history, this book is a wealth of writing inspiration for all levels of creative writing courses . Writing students can learn from Frazier’s varying degrees of deprivation, attention to detail, and characterizations. I would love to talk to Mr. Frazier about some of the passages in Cold Mountain. If

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Whether writing is a full time job or not, skill building is an important step towards getting published. Meet Skill Bill. My homework, assignment, writing prompt, note taker. When I study the craft of writing, I shift into student mode. I underline in my books, write comments in the margins, and work my assignments in Skill Bill. Page After Page and Chapter After Chapter both by Heather

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Last Tuesday, I panicked, when I thought I left my briefcase in the conference room. My Infernal Journal. What if someone takes it out, just to ID the case? What if the page spills open to where I'm calling names, less than nice, spurred by incompetent, rude work associates. An email, notice pops up. Subject: "I read your journal. Your are messed up." OMG. My heart could not pound harder. I

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Keep a notebook, a suggestion echoed by writers since time began, my time anyway. The value of toting spiral notebooks in my back pack didn't weigh much until I gave each book a name. The one I scribbled in today is Blog Heaven. In one thunderous brainstorming session, I jotted down topics for seven (7) weeks of blogs. Celestial, huh? It is for me. Magically, when I visit Blog Heaven I root

Pains Takerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13335671253923142632writingpanes@hotmail.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3133350486587948601.post-75781729228165230752010-02-15T09:13:00.002-05:002010-02-15T09:15:32.615-05:00

Encarta defines craft as "a profession or activity that requires skill, training, experience, or specialized knowledge. Master crafters are the best of the best. And being a master takes years of practice, learning, perfecting. Endless hours serving as an apprentice. Dedication lives in the heart of a master. For writers, this means writing every day, studying other writers, and rewriting to

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A 500-sheet pack of paper, $12.00; a 1950's Royal typewriter at a yardsale, $5; two boxes of ribbon for the typewriter, $10; my mother's memoirs, priceless. Mom was my best friend, and losing her in September was devastating. The dysfunctional family situation surrounding her funeral was traumatic and enough to send lesser women to a therapist for life. But I have my mother's strength, a fact

Pains Takerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13335671253923142632writingpanes@hotmail.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3133350486587948601.post-52822069417583571242010-01-16T08:55:00.002-05:002010-01-16T19:51:31.699-05:00

My 2010 reading list includes The Bible. Now, I'm not like a super religious person or fanatic. And I don't consider myself a Christian Writer, though I don't write (or read) porn. I think there are lots of advantages to reading The Bible cover to cover. First, the stories are bountiful. Writing prompts and ideas springboard off the books and chapters in The Bible. Second, there are some great

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10 Steps to Becoming a Better Writer by Brian Clark                   Brian knows what it takes. Thanks, Brian. These 10 steps are from his website copyblogger.com where you'll find lots more writing help. Write. Write more. Write even more. Write even more than that. Write when you don’t want to. Write when you do. Write when you have something to say. Write when you don’t. Write every

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I got a little insight about relationships from John Steinbeck's writings published online at The Paris Review, in a compiled interview, compiled as opposed to live or face to face, Steinbeck wrote "The human mind, particularly in the present, is troubled and fogged and bee-stung with a thousand little details from taxes to war worry to the price of meat. All these usually get together and result

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A day or two ago, I encouraged you to write out your goals for 2010. The next thing is to be accountable to somebody. That's why I'm listing my 2010 writing goals and reading goals (good writers are good readers, too). You're invited to hold me accountable, and I hope you do. 2010 Goals 1)     Write 12 short stories 2)     Submit 36 short stories 3)     Start new children's book series 4)    

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Goal setting is our GPS on the road to publication. Sure, you can arrive without the directions, but you run the risk of getting lost and waste valuable time winging it. The first step in setting new goals for 2010 is taking a backward look at 2009. List the successes you enjoyed this year. How many times did you sub a single story, essay, or memoir? How many different stories, essays, or

Pains Takerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13335671253923142632writingpanes@hotmail.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3133350486587948601.post-80226803084948712202009-11-21T02:58:00.018-05:002009-11-23T20:30:28.450-05:00

I've spent some time at the Paris Review website reading interviews that span six decades. These interviews share insight into The Art of Fiction through authors like Faulkner, Hemingway, Wilder, and Capote, Welty, Vidal, Shaw, and Steinbeck, Kerouac, Updike, White, and many more.As writers, we can learn from these masters, these idols. In his interview, William Faulkner stated that he read Don

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I like using alliteration in my writing. Not a lot. Once or twice in two thousand words. It's a technique to get into the minds of readers, and stay there. How? It's poetic, rhythmic, and can draw attention to a comparison or contrast.It's a legitimate writing skill, underused in my opinion. It's right up there with assonance, analogy, and allusion.We sat sad-eyed and sorrowful as we sang songs

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My writer friend, Reggie, has a fast track story mind. She's never at a loss for story ideas. Some writers say this is the definition of a writer.But if we must have a deck of stories shuffling in our brain to be a writer, where does that leave those who love to write but struggle finding stories, essay topics, or memoirs? Are we wannabees? No. We are writers, too. Say it. I am a writer.Our

Pains Takerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13335671253923142632writingpanes@hotmail.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3133350486587948601.post-46270048273106127262009-08-19T05:38:00.006-04:002009-08-19T05:55:19.677-04:00

Writers talk about having conversations with their characters, listening to what their characters say. It's a concept that's hard to grasp, until it happens to you.I freaked out the first time a character came to me. She said, "I like the feel of dirt on my tongue." As I listened and asked questions, she spoke more, and every time, I repeated her words into my recorder.It's an awesome experience

Pains Takerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13335671253923142632writingpanes@hotmail.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3133350486587948601.post-85573002799144776782009-07-26T06:08:00.002-04:002010-01-01T08:45:07.147-05:00

I admire writers who create stories with pen and paper. Since I worked for a newspaper, where all our stories were typed and sent to the proofreader, I bang out my work on a keyboard. So, I'm a tech writer. Give me yWriter5 to outline my next project or Sonar3 to track my submissions. I keep up with my writing group using Yahoo Groups. I like Free Mind for brainstorming my plots or developing my

Pains Takerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13335671253923142632writingpanes@hotmail.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3133350486587948601.post-78428022399107398432009-07-23T05:34:00.000-04:002009-07-23T06:18:02.294-04:00

My writing group meets this evening. So, I thought it would be a good time to post a few words about writing groups in general. When I joined my group, we were about fourteen people strong. Each member had a unique writing talent dissimilar to the others. It was a great group, a fun group.Then, some of us wanted to do our own thing, and my writing group came together. We had high hopes and set

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Some people must have the last word. The rest of us allow it. We could keep it going, but choose to drop it. Let Last Word Lucy have her way.Last words are never as important as at the end of a short story or novel. Here, as writers, we have the last word; and, it needs to carry so much impact our readers want to keep it going. They're not ready to drop our characters or leave our story world.The

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Self-editing and rewrites can be a writer's demise. Some of us are in such a hurry to get our stories down, we don't take much time to polish. Let me say this. No polish. No publish.Like any other writer activity, edits and rewrites take discipline and practice. On my desk, I keep a copy of Harbrace College Handbook and Gramattically Correct by Anne Stilman. Spell checker isn't enough. Both books

Pains Takerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13335671253923142632writingpanes@hotmail.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3133350486587948601.post-9930406640253159132008-12-08T05:11:00.001-05:002010-02-09T20:07:51.064-05:00

Let's agree on this. We can't make time to write. We all get 24 hours a day. No more. No less. Making time is not an option. That leaves take time to write. Out of your busy schedule what can you eliminate or spend less time doing? Try this. Reduce TV time by 30 minutes a day to add 3.5 hours a week to your writing time. Come on. It's one mindless sitcom. One re-run. Get up 30 minutes earlier

Pains Takerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13335671253923142632writingpanes@hotmail.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3133350486587948601.post-3499607762913341902008-11-16T15:32:00.000-05:002009-07-12T18:56:08.248-04:00

Readers enjoy the experiences of story, plot, and character. We identify with the good guys, despise the bad ones, travel to new places, and root for a happy ending.Writers like story, plot, and character, too. We identify the three-act structure, analyze the depths of major characters, and watch for POV changes.Reading like a writer takes practice. It's a skill that can be learned. Here's a few

Pains Takerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13335671253923142632writingpanes@hotmail.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3133350486587948601.post-81751571814220345362008-10-09T03:32:00.000-04:002009-07-12T18:54:22.070-04:00

Today, I sit in a hospital waiting room. The surgery is underway. I'm thinking about writerly things to keep my mind on pleasantries and off the potential hazards of being put to sleep.On the table next to me, I find multiple copies of four local publications all marked "Complimentary", which means I can take one. And, I do. I view these publications as four new markets where I can submit my

Pains Takerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13335671253923142632writingpanes@hotmail.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3133350486587948601.post-13729585072977526222008-09-30T05:59:00.002-04:002009-12-23T05:55:53.998-05:00

Here's a few words about writing workshops. Not all of them are worth the money. Yep, I said it. With all the hype and buzz how do you know which to pay for and which to pass on?The answer might be: it comes with experience. Or, you can try this.Make sure the speaking authors are great writers. Find out who they are and read some of their published works. If you like what you read, you may enjoy

Pains Takerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13335671253923142632writingpanes@hotmail.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3133350486587948601.post-22979695391769572622008-08-26T03:34:00.001-04:002009-12-23T05:52:07.382-05:00

Welcome to the first post of Writing Panes. As a published writer, I hope to help you reach your writing goals. So for starters here's a few writing tips.Stay focused. Jumping from one writing project to another without completing any is...Well, it's trashy. If you can multitask and get published, kudos. Most writers, especially newbies, can't. Now pick out your favorite and put aside the rest.

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