The Writers Network News, April 20, 2007 http://ezezine.com
April 20, 2007
The Writers Network News
No Rules; Just Write!
Editor: Bobbie Christmas
Contents copyright 2007, Bobbie Christmas.
No portion of this newsletter can be used without permission.
Newsletter Sponsor:
Zebra Communications: We help you write in style, so you increase your
chances of success. We write, edit, and evaluate fiction and nonfiction
manuscripts, book proposals, query letters, synopses, and articles.
Zebra Communications
230 Deerchase Drive, Suite B
Woodstock, GA 30188
770/924-0528
http://zebraeditor.com/
----------------------------------------------
The Writers Network meets next on Friday, May 4, 2006
No dues; no fees
No rules; just write!
If you happen to be in metro Atlanta on the first Friday of the month,
bring questions and business cards and network with us for an hour or
so, starting at 12:00 noon.
We meet at King Buffet, 11060 Alpharetta Highway, Roswell, GA 30076.
See more detailed information at the end of the e-zine.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Welcome to this issue of The Writers Network News.
In This Issue:
One: Kudos to Chris Roerden, Roy A. Barnes, Joan Shaddox Isom, Kerry
LePage, and Betty Wilson Beamguard
Two: From the editor’s desk– When do we finish learning all we need to
know?
Three: Ask the Book Doctor– What do Acquisitions Editors Really Mean?
Four: Subjects of Interest to Writers
Five: Jobs, Contests, Grants, Agents, and Markets
Six: Writing Assignment–Greetings!
Seven: Web Sites of Interest to Writers
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
To view past issues of The Writers Network News, go to:
http://home.ezezine.com/886_2/
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Writer’s quote of the day:
“I am a great believer in luck, and I find the harder I work, the more
I have of it.”
-- Thomas Jefferson
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
One: Kudos to Chris Roerden, Roy A. Barnes, Joan Shaddox Isom, Kerry
LePage, and Betty Wilson Beamguard
Chris Roerden's _Don't Murder Your Mystery_ has been picked up by the
Writer's Digest Book Club and will appear as a selection in July. The
book is also an Agatha Award Finalist for Best Nonfiction Book and a
ForeWord Magazine Finalist for the Reference Book of the Year. Chris
says that the book club hadn't even known of those honors when it
contacted the publisher to offer the deal. Chris says, "My publisher
believes the news about the Agatha made sales on Amazon shoot up to
where the numbers caught the attention of the book club. Ironically,
Writer's Digest Books had turned down the manuscript because the
company had just put out another for writers with ‘mystery’ in the
title." _Don't Murder Your Mystery_ is published by the second house
Chris submitted to, Bella Rosa Books.
Two of my short stories have been recently published for pay. "The
Paperboy" was published in the February 2007 issue of Swimming Kangaroo
at this PDF link (story is second to last page):
http://www.swimmingkangaroo.com/newsletters/feb07.pdf, And _Goblin
Reader_ published my fiction piece "Once Upon A Time in Casper,
Wyoming..." at this link, for its February 2007 issue:
http://www.goblinreader.com/Roy%20A%20Barnes.html --Roy A. Barnes,
Cheyenne, Wyoming
Joan Shaddox Isom has a nonfiction piece, "Gathering at the River," in
the anthology just released by Texas Western Press. Its title is _What
Wildness is This: Women Write about the Southwest._
Kerry LePage writes, “My first professional review! Just shows what a
good editor can do for you! See
http://www.bookreviewjournal.blogspot.com/.” (I’m pleased to say I
edited his book, _Some Day Never Comes._)
From Betty Wilson Beamguard’s unpublished fiction collection, _These
Women_, the following stories are scheduled for publication: “One Too
Many” in _MoonShine Review_, “Up From the Grave,” in the May/June issue
of the _Oxford So & So_, “My Shining Eyes” in the _Whim’s Place Flash
Fiction Collection_, and “Connie Sue Confesses” in the 2007 _Charlotte
Writers Club Anthology_. Apparently Betty understands the best way to
sell a collection of stories is to publish some of them in other
reputable markets first. Way to go, Betty!
Congratulations to these folks. Your successes encourage others, so
please send in your accomplishments for our kudos section.
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Two: From the editor’s desk—When do we finish learning all we need to
know?
Dear Fellow Writers:
I never liked academia and happily left behind the formal part of my
education many years ago. I’ve never stopped taking classes, reading
books, attending seminars, or networking, though. I love gaining
knowledge. In college I learned how to pass a test, but not much else.
Until I joined the working world and witnessed what a skilled editor
could do, I knew nothing.
Real life constitutes a huge, constant source of new information, and
as a writer, the door to learning stays propped wide open. Writers have
the privilege of asking anyone anything. We can follow our curiosity
and get answers to questions we may or may not use in an article or
book.
Writing assignments give me an open ticket to the inner workings of
almost any industry or location. Because of my profession as a writer I
have watched and reported on the manufacture of paper from wood pulp
(can we say smelly?) and the recycling of paper into newsprint (much
cleaner). I’ve witnessed the opening of one of the first
waste-to-energy power plants in Florida and toured a coal plant in
Kentucky. I’ve reviewed the damage from a vapor cloud explosion at a
chemical plant in Texas, uncovered the mishandling of funds at a
government-funded daycare center, and interviewed someone who collected
bugs. I’ve met belly dancers, male strippers, and up-and-coming
authors, and I’ve met and photographed celebrities such as Alex Haley,
Martin Luther King Sr., Jesse Jackson, Waylon Jennings, Charlie
Daniels, Johnny Paycheck, and politicians too numerous to mention. I’ve
spent a day studying the inner workings of a Krispy Kreme doughnut shop
and shadowed a mayor during a typical twelve-hour-long business day.
I’ve traveled to Germany, the Netherlands, Ireland, the Grand Canyon,
Venice, St. Thomas, and more, pen in hand, enjoying the trips and
making money at the same time.
Writing not only pays the bills, it also opens doors and keeps us
learning and growing. I’m a great believer that when you stop learning,
you stop living, and for writers the saying is even more essential.
Even though my jaded mind and inflated ego combine to make me sometimes
think I could give every seminar slated at events for writers, I love
the fact that as a seminar presenter, I can also duck into other
seminars when I’m not working, and when I do, I learn something new
every time.
Many of the questions writers ask me involve knowledge they probably
would have gotten from attending a good writers conference. When was
the last time you took a class, listened to a lecture or reading, or
went to a seminar or conference? If it’s been more than six months, go
online and find events in your area or take advantage of one or more of
the events listed in this newsletter. Keep stretching and growing, and
I hope I’ll see you at one of those events soon.
Yours in writing,
Bobbie Christmas (Bobbie@zebraeditor.com or bzebra@aol.com )
Author of triple-award-winning _Write In Style_ (Union Square
Publishing, an imprint of Cardoza Publishing), owner of Zebra
Communications, and director of The Writers Network
P.S. Thank you for subscribing to our newsletter. Let me hear from you
when you have questions, kudos, markets or any other information to
share with your writers network.
If someone forwarded this newsletter to you, please sign up to get your
own copy. Simply go to my Web site, www.zebraeditor.com, and click on
“Free Newsletter.” I never share your address or send out spam.
%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
Three: Ask the Book Doctor—What do Acquisitions Editors Really Mean?
Q: Recently a member of my writer's group got a letter back from an
acquisitions editor saying that he liked her work but she needs to be
careful with "stock romance imagery" We don't know what he means.
A: What a great tip! Without seeing the manuscript, I can only
interpret the comment without being specific, but here’s my take on it:
Romance novels in the past were famous for incorporating predictable
language and images. All the women had slender waists and slender
wrists; all the men had rippling muscles. The characters tended to be
purely good or all evil. Certain images of the characters, settings,
and events became clichés in the romance industry. Today’s romance
publishers want good novels with unique settings, characters, imagery,
conflicts, and resolutions.
Perhaps the manuscript relied on scenes, characters, settings,
conflicts, descriptions, or other elements that were once standard in
the romance industry, and the publisher would like to see fresh ideas,
rather than stale ones.
Q: I got a letter from an acquisitions editor. It's saying a lot, but
it's not telling me anything. If you would tell me what you think of
the letter below, I would appreciate it.
“It was so lovely to meet you, and I truly enjoyed having the chance to
look at [title deleted]. You are a very promising writer, and I can see
that you will continue to grow as you hone your craft. Unfortunately,
however, I did not fall head over heels in love with the story and the
characters in the way I had hoped. Therefore, it is with regret that I
have to pass.”
A: Most acquisitions editors try not to offend writers, and writers can
be sensitive. I also would not want to offend anyone, but you need an
honest answer. I could be wrong, but with my knowledge of acquisitions
editors, I would interpret the letter sentence by sentence in the
following way:
“It was so lovely to meet you, and I truly enjoyed having the chance to
look at [title deleted].” = “I met you in person, so I will be more
personal to you than I would to someone I have not met.”
“You are a very promising writer, and I can see that you will continue
to grow as you hone your craft.” = “When I say promising, I mean you
show promise, but your writing is not quite marketable, yet. You are
not as bad as some of the writers I have seen, but you have more to
learn, so keep educating yourself about writing.”
“Unfortunately, however, I did not fall head over heels in love with
the story and the characters in the way I had hoped.” = “The story did
not captivate me. It did not capture my attention. I did not hold my
breath to find out where it might lead, and I did not identify with the
characters. The plot must be stronger and more compelling, to make me
care what happens next, and the characters need to be more developed,
so I care what happens to them.”
“Therefore, it is with regret that I have to pass.” = “The manuscript
does not meet my criteria.”
Agents must absolutely love a manuscript to represent it. When agents
are passionate about the manuscripts they represent, they have a much
higher success rate. They get paid only when they sell a manuscript, so
they represent only what they love and feel passionate about.
Sometimes a letter like the one above means only that the manuscript
has not reached the right acquisitions editor or agent yet; and that
the right person will, indeed, fall in love with the story and the
characters. Here are your choices:
1. You can take classes, read, learn, and practice developing
characters and strengthening plots, after which you can rewrite the
manuscript using your newly gained knowledge. Get feedback from peers
and/or from a professional editor, give the manuscript a final polish,
and submit it to the same acquisitions editor as well as others.
2. You can take classes, read, learn, and practice developing
characters and strengthening plots, put the first manuscript in a
drawer, call it a learning experience, and begin a new manuscript
incorporating all the new things you have learned about creative
writing.
3. You can decide you don’t want to learn any more about the craft
and simply send the manuscript as is to twenty or thirty other places
and see if anyone else loves it.
4. You can decide you don’t want to learn more and put the
manuscript in a drawer.
Because good writers never stop honing their craft, I suggest following
one of the first two paths, rather than last two. Writing a book-length
manuscript takes a long, long time, and once we finish, human nature
makes us not want to go back and work more on a manuscript we thought
was finished. We have other projects in mind and want to move on. Only
you can decide if you have the stamina to go back and work on the first
manuscript or chalk it up to experience and move on to a new one,
incorporating all that you have learned. I have heard it said that our
first novel is simply practice, and as we get better, we have a greater
chance of selling our second and future manuscripts. I have heard that
said, but I also hear of authors who sell their first manuscripts, too.
Never give up!
Do you have a question for Bobbie Christmas, book doctor? For a
personal response, E-mail Bobbie Christmas at Bobbie@zebraeditor.com.
New Feature! Would you link to read the Ask The Book Doctor column as a
clear PDF file? Now you can! See
http://zebraeditor.com/files/ask_the_book_doctor.pdf. The column will
be available at that address until about the twentieth of each month,
after which it will be replaced with a new one.
To read more questions and answers, go to http://zebraeditor.com/ and
click on "Ask the Book Doctor."
%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
Four: Subjects of interest to writers
This Month’s Tip from Bobbie Christmas: Suddenly
Editors have a running joke that every novel is allowed only one use of
suddenly. Most writers overuse the word. Find other, better ways to
build or release tension. Usually the word is superfluous, if the
action is well written. In fact, most adverbs are considered
superfluous in good fiction.
Find and Refine: Type into the Find function: Suddenly, then examine
each use and decide if it can simply be deleted or if some other method
is better for showing a sudden change in the action.
Find opportunities for improvement in your own work by using my
trademarked Find and Refine Method. With your file open on your
computer, pull down Edit, then Find, then type in the word you want to
find, and your computer will stop on each one and allow you to ponder
whether you can improve or delete that usage. For more opportunities
for improvement, read my textbook on creative writing: _Write In Style_
(Union Square Publishing).
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
In June 2007, we will inaugurate the First Annual Crazyhorse/Tupelo
Press Publishing Institute, an institute founded to meet the needs of
writers by providing training in the theory and practice of literary
publishing and editing in order to prepare them for successful careers
as publishers and editors.
The institute offers you the chance to earn six hours of graduate
credit while working closely with Crazyhorse Editors Carol Ann Davis
and Garrett Doherty and Tupelo Press Publisher and Editor-in-Chief
Jeffrey Levine. The institute will combine an intensive, four-week
course that chronicles the choosing of the winner in the annual Tupelo
Press First Book Prize (now judged collaboratively by Crazyhorse
editors and Tupelo Press editors) with opportunities to intern at
Crazyhorse.
The institute will run from June 4 - June 30. We hope you'll visit the
Web site at http://crazyhorse.cofc.edu/pubinstitute and/or email Carol
Ann Davis at davisca@cofc.edu for more information.
Carol Ann Davis, Editor
Garrett Doherty, Editor
Anthony Varallo,
Fiction Editor
Crazyhorse
Department of English
College of Charleston
66 George Street
Charleston SC 29424
Phone/Fax: 843-953-7740
E-mail: crazyhorse@cofc.edu
Web site: http://crazyhorse.cofc.edu
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Check out the Copyright Navigator (http://navigator.carolon.net/) by
Lionel Sobel, a professor at the Southwestern University School of Law
and editor of the Entertainment Law Reporter. It offers a step-by-step
interactive exploration of basic relationships of ideas and concepts in
US copyright law. Thanks to Contracts Watch, the newsletter from The
American Society of Journalists and Authors, and The Wooden Horse
Magazine News for the tip.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
_Purge Your Prose of Problems: A Book Doctor’s Desk Reference,_ Fourth
Edition! Save thousands of dollars by editing your own book.
This one reference book covers all you need to know to plow through the
maze of the editing phase: grammar, punctuation, word choices, creative
writing, plot, pace, characterization, dialogue, Chicago Style,
formatting a manuscript, and much more. More than 500 subjects covered.
Printed form lies flat for easy use: $29.95 plus $4.99 shipping at
http://www.zebraeditor.com (click on Tools for Writers and scroll down)
or save almost $5.00 in shipping PLUS get the third edition instantly
as an e-book with clickable links and bookmarks that zip you directly
to any subject you choose. To order the e-book, go to
http://www.booklocker.com/books/2225.html
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Letters from members
Dear Bobbie,
Thanks again for your monthly newsletter. It's great! Especially want
to thank you for the Web site, Common Errors in English.
Sincerely,
Rayma Johnson
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Writers workshops and retreats with Rosemary Daniell and Zona Rosa in
America, Italy, Ireland, etc. See www.myzonarosa.com.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
HELP WOODEN HORSE GROW AND GET ACCESS TO THE MAGAZINES DATABASE
Wooden Horse is growing and we have more work than we have people for.
We also know that many just-starting-out professionals can't afford
even the reasonable fees that we charge for access to the Magazines
Database. When we can, we offer access to the Database for free to
individuals who are willing to take on an on-going, small project for
us.
The work is easy, ongoing, and usually of a clerical or research
nature. It shouldn't take longer than a few minutes a day, or 15-20
minutes per week. Past assistants have performed such duties as logging
in to our email system and mailing 3-5 emails a day, or searching the
Internet for new sites or blogs. Most of the time it will be work
performed on your computer. We will work with you and match you with
responsibilities that suit you.
As long as you continue to perform these small chores to our
satisfaction, we will provide you with full access to the Wooden Horse
Magazines Database.
Our assistants are also the first to know about permanent openings, and
we have often selected successful candidates from this group.
No other compensation beyond access to the Magazines Database is
offered. These positions are intended to be of assistance to
individuals starting out in their careers and therefore not able to
afford our regular subscription fee, so past and present Magazines
Database subscribers are not eligible.
If you are interested, email Meg at mweaver@woodenhorsepub.com and let
her know who you are and why we should select you.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Bobbie Christmas seminars on CD
“Write In Style and You Write to Win”
“Travel Writing for Fun and (a little) Profit”
“Write it and Reap: Make Money Selling Your Expertise”
“An Editor’s 10 Secrets to More Persuasive Writing”
“I’ve Finished My Book; What Should I Do Now?”
Take seminars in the comfort of your own home. Repeat as often as you
want. Invite your friends to join you. To order, go to
http://www.zebraeditor.com/tools.shtml and scroll down to see all the
seminars available on CD.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Can you make money if you self publish?
Forty percent of all self-published books are sold to the authors, and
most of the other 60 percent are sold online, according to Susan
Driscoll, CEO of subsidy publisher iUniverse. The company has published
17,000 titles. Of those, only 84 have sold more than 500 copies. Only
six have ever made it to Barnes & Noble shelves. [Excerpted from
Southern Review of Books, an online newsletter for publishers, authors,
book lovers and booksellers
http://www.anvilpub.net/southern_review_of_books.htm.]
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Where is Bobbie Christmas speaking?
Georgia Writers Spring Festival of Workshops
Learn from the experts about Editing, Agents, Contract Negotiation,
Publishing, and the Writing Life
All workshops are 50 minutes in duration
Saturday, May 5, 2007
Smyrna Community Center
200 Village Green Circle
(off Atlanta Road)
Smyrna, Georgia 30081
For more information or to register, go to the following site:
http://www.georgiawriters.org/Festival-2007.htm
Summer Book Show 2007 Author-Publisher Seminar
Looking to learn more about getting your book written and published?
About marketing your book? Summer Book Show 2007 Author-Publisher
Seminar August 10-11 in Atlanta might be just the ticket!
The Southern Review of Books is putting together an outstanding faculty
that will inspire and inform you. The seminar theme is "Making Money
with Books - By Writing, Publishing and Selling Them."
The seminar is scheduled for August 10-11 at Atlanta's downtown Georgia
World Congress Center. It's being held in conjunction with the Summer
Book Show. For a full schedule of presentations and registration
information, go to http://www.anvilpub.com/summer_seminar.htm
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
_Ask the Book Doctor: How to Beat the Competition and Sell Your
Writing_ is a 122-page e-book by Bobbie Christmas that answers all the
questions you wish you could ask an editing expert. Electronic
bookmarks allow you to go directly to your preferred subject, and
clickable links take you to Internet resources for additional
information. Whether you write books, short stories, articles, reports,
or anything else, learn more about how to write, edit, and sell your
work, To order go to http://www.booklocker.com/books/1906.html
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
_Write In Style: Using Your Word Processor and Other Techniques to
Improve Your Writing_ by Bobbie Christmas teaches the Find and Refine
Method ™ to locate words and phrases you can delete, upgrade or rewrite
to power up your prose. Bobbie Christmas reveals secrets only a book
doctor could know. First Place winner of the Royal Palm Award for
education, Best in Division (Georgia Author of the Year Awards), and
Finalist in USABookNews Best Books 2005. Union Square Publishing; Simon
and Schuster, distributor. Available in bookstores and Internet
retailers. To order at Amazon.com DISCOUNT prices, see
http://zebraeditor.com/bookstore.shtml.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Free Tools for Writers from Bobbie Christmas and Zebra Communications
Order e-mailed reports on correct manuscript format, how to form and
run a critique circle, how to identify weak writing and repair it,
self-publishing vs. traditional publishing, and much more. Fifteen
reports are available, and the list keeps growing. Go to
http://zebraeditor.com and click on “Tools for Writers.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
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Five: Jobs, Contests, Grants, Agents and Markets
Mom Writer’s Literary Magazine
Mom Writer’s Literary Magazine features writing by mom writers on the
many faces of motherhood. We are looking for creative nonfiction
essays. We also look for profiles on mom writers and book reviews.
Review our mission statement and read the work on our site to get a
feel for what we are looking for before submitting. See guidelines at
http://www.momwriterslitmag.com/WritersGuidelines.htm.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
City Scoops, a new magazine in New York, will cover dining,
entertainment, real estate, finance, travel, health & fitness, and
sports for the residents of Manhattan. Editorial director Stephen Hanks
will oversee the new magazine, which will publish nine issues a year. I
could not yet find a Web site or writers guidelines, but keep checking
for information if you want to cover stories in that area of the
country.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
KOMENAR Publishing
1756 Lacassie Avenue, Suite 202
Walnut Creek, CA 94596
KOMENAR Publishing accepts fiction submissions, specifically novels and
short story collections. “We are committed to publishing compelling,
page-turning books by talented and cooperative writers. We are
different from many other publishers in that we are committed to
helping the author and the novel succeed long after the initial
publication date has passed. Our goal is to give our authors the best
opportunity to succeed in a competitive publishing marketplace. We will
consider most fiction genres, such as literary, historical,
suspense/thriller, science fiction, mystery, and even young adult
novels. We do not publish nonfiction.” For complete information and
guidelines you absolutely must follow to the letter, see
http://www.komenarpublishing.com/writers_submit.htm.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
B is a new, free Canadian monthly beauty, wellness and anti-aging
publication that is being published by a pair of makeup artists and the
Star Media Group. See
http://canadianmags.blogspot.com/2007/03/b-magazine-debuts.html for
information on this and other Canadian magazines.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
WNC magazine, Mountain Living in Western North Carolina
WNC magazine covers topics about living in and around the mountains of
western North Carolina. Articles cover local personalities and artists,
style, history, residences, dining, travel and events. Eric Seeger
edits the bi-monthly magazine, which debuted with its March/April
issue. See http://www.wncmagazine.com/contact.html.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Angels on Earth
16 East 34th Street
New York, NY 10016.
Angels on Earth publishes true stories about God's messengers at work
in today's world. We are interested in stories of heavenly angels and
stories involving humans who have played angelic roles in daily life.
The best stories are those where the narrator has been positively
affected in some distinct way. Look for unusual situations; we have a
surplus of stories about illness and car accidents. We are also
especially on the lookout for recent stories. For full-length
manuscripts (1500 words) pays $100 - $400. See full submission
guidelines and other information at
http://www.angelsmagazine.com/writers_Guidelines.asp.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
ORGANIZE Magazine premiers with a July/August 2007 issue and is looking
for articles. Did you make a big change to a small space? Send your
article to smallspaces@organizemag.com. Do you have a great solution to
an organizing challenge? Send your solution to
realsolutions@organizemag.com. For a media kit with its editorial
calendar, see http://www.organizemag.com/pdf/mediakit.pdf. Web site:
http://www.organizemag.com/. Boston-based Joyce Dorny, a professional
organizer and member of the National Association of Professional
Organizers, founded the new bi-monthly magazine and is its
editor-in-chief.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Russia!, an English-language quarterly with an initial print run of
20,000, aims to serve as a reality check to Western conceptions of
Russia as a place populated with spies, vodka-guzzling chess players
and mail-order brides. Its target reader is the Westerner who may not
know much about the country but is interested in it, said Michael Idov,
main editor of the next issue. See entire article in The Moscow Times
at http://context.themoscowtimes.com/stories/2007/03/30/106.html.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
GOOD HOUSEKEEPING is revamping to maintain its boomer-age female
readers while capturing the interest of female Gen X’ers in their late
30s and early 40s. With the May issue Editor-in-chief Rosemary Ellis
will add eight to ten editorial pages with two new sections: Good
(Enough) Housekeeping, that gives quick steps with great results and
The Goods, which covers product testing results. It plans more
organization tip articles and beauty and fashion content, along with
more fast and wholesome recipes.
http://magazines.ivillage.com/goodhousekeeping/.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The Georgia Poetry Society conducts contests in the fall of each year,
with an October 15 postmark deadline for all entries. In addition to
earning cash prizes, the top three poems in each contest may be
published in _The Reach of Song_, the annual GPS poetry anthology. For
descriptions of the contests, along with contest-specific requirements
see http://www.georgiapoetrysociety.org/contests.htm.
%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
Six: Writing Assignment: Greetings!
This exercise was inspired by an e-mail I received, allegedly
greeting-card messages written when the writers at a greeting-card
company were having a bad day. Here are a few of the hilarious
examples:
Congratulations on your wedding day!
Too bad no one likes your husband.
As the days go by, I think of how lucky I am . . .
That you're not here to ruin it for me.
Congratulations on your promotion.
Before you go . . .
Would you like to take this knife out of my back?
We have been friends for a very long time . . .
Let's say we stop.
I'm so miserable without you
it's almost like you're here.
Congratulations on your new bundle of joy.
Did you ever find out who the father was?
Your friends and I wanted to do
something special for your birthday,
so we're having you put to sleep.
Your assignment is to think about greeting card ideas you might write
that begin with the lines or ideas from the lines below. The exercise
is intended to make you think in new ways when you hear standard lines
and clichés. Your results can be funny, insulting, or serious. Write
down the following openers, then complete them with your original
second, third, and/or fourth lines.
Whenever I think of you . . .
Today is your birthday, so I wanted to tell you . . .
I’m so sorry to hear of your loss . . .
Since you’ve been away . . .
Congratulations on your new job . . .
So you’re about to graduate . . .
Best wishes on your wedding day . . .
Next use one of the greeting cards you have written as the basis of a
short story, poem, or the opening of a novel or chapter. The lines
might appear as dialogue from a character, words of a narrator, or a
card or letter a character reads, writes, or receives. Let your
imagination run wild in every way it can with this exercise.
%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
Seven: Web Sites of Interest to Writers
Note: Some of the links listed in this section may have the words “tiny
url” in them. The reason is simple. Some Web addresses are more than
150 characters long, and to simplify them, I use a Web site called
www.tinyurl.com. It takes long addresses and converts them to short
ones for convenience, and the short addresses work equally as well as
the long ones.
The Word in Writing with BJ Muntain: The latest in publishing news for
fiction writers, including short story markets, novel markets, as well
as recent market updates. There’s a fee, but if you’re in the business,
it may be worth the investment. See http://theword.zentao7.com/.
Booksquare.com: “Dissecting the publishing industry with love and
skepticism.” http://www.booksquare.com/
Improving business and interpersonal communications:
http://www.communitelligence.com/index.cfm.
Rules for using figures of speech: http://tinyurl.com/2s97t9.
Magazine Publishers of America:
http://www.magazine.org/home/
If you write advertising copy, you may be surprised at the information
in this article, which appeared in Business Week Online:
http://tinyurl.com/32s2hw.
Publications seeking submissions:
http://www.bellaonline.com/articles/art2022.asp
Free or paid reviews of your book: http://tinyurl.com/bvb8m
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Information about the meetings:
Because it's a buffet, come into the meeting room, set down whatever
you brought, and go get food, if you plan to eat. You are under no
obligation to eat if you attend the meeting, but if you do eat, you may
pay and tip as you leave.
While we eat, we have introductions. After the introductions are over,
we discuss questions and answers. After the introductions are completed
and at any time until we leave, you are welcome to get more food or
leave when you need to do so.
Directions to meetings:
Our monthly meetings are held at noon on the first Friday of each month
at King Buffet, 11060 Alpharetta Highway, Roswell, Georgia. 30076. The
restaurant not only gives us a private meeting room, but it also offers
a buffet with a variety of food, primarily Asian.
The restaurant is on the left after you enter the Roswell Shopping
Center, on the same side of the strip mall as Patterson Furniture and
High Point Furniture. Roswell Shopping Center is on the left if going
north toward Alpharetta, a few blocks past the Mansell Road
intersection and across the street from Mattress King, about a block
past Andretti's. Once you are inside, the meeting room is through an
archway on the left past the cashier.
Restaurant phone: 678-352-1606.
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