The Writers Network News, March 2010 Issue http://ezezine.com
March 2010 Issue
The Writers Network News
No Rules; Just Write!
Editor: Bobbie Christmas
Contents copyright 2010, Bobbie Christmas
No portion of this newsletter can be used without permission; however,
you may forward the newsletter in its entirety to anyone who may be
interested in subscribing.
Newsletter Sponsor
Zebra Communications: Our editing makes books, magazines, and business
materials more marketable. We are a top-rated Better Business
Bureau-accredited business.
Zebra Communications
230 Deerchase Drive
Woodstock, GA 30188
770/924-0528
http://zebraeditor.com/
Note Bobbie’s NEW Blog: http://bobbiechristmas.blogspot.com/. Add your
own comments, too.
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Welcome to this issue of The Writers Network News
In This Issue
One: From the editor’s desk – Who needs technology? Oh, I do.
Two: Ask the Book Doctor – About Editing, Style, and Point of View
Three: This Month’s Writing Tip from Bobbie Christmas – Anxious and
Eager
Four: Subjects of Interest to Writers
Five: Jobs, Contests, Grants, Agents, and Markets
Six: Creative Writing Assignment – Similes and Metaphors
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To view current and past issues of The Writers Network News, go to
http://tinyurl.com/c4otf6.
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[Note: Some links may include “tiny url” with the help of
www.tinyurl.com, which takes long Web addresses and converts them to
short ones.]
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Writer’s quote of the day
It's hard enough to write a good drama, it's much harder to write a
good comedy, and it's hardest of all to write a drama with comedy.
Which is what life is. —Jack Lemmon
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One: From the editor’s desk — Who needs technology? Oh, I do.
Dear Fellow Writers:
My old cell phone grew erratic. It shut itself off, even when the
battery was fully charged. Sometimes it refused to shut off. At time it
would not hang up after a call. I heard the technology gods whispering
that it was time to buy an iPhone.
I bowed to the altar of technology, bought an iPhone, and taught myself
what I could about it. I didn’t get it going strong, though, until a
(much younger) friend gave me a tutorial. Soon I was up and running,
downloading apps, searching Google, adding ring tones, making videos,
taking photos, adding contacts, identifying birds with an electronic
field guide, answering e-mails, and oh, occasionally answering a phone
call. Within two days I was mad about the device, totally hooked. I was
in technology heaven--for four days.
On day four, the iPhone froze, crashed, and would not start back up.
How could I call anyone? I had all my phone numbers stored on it. What
if someone sent an e-mail while I was away from my computer? What kind
of bird was sitting on the branch near me while I walked my dog? How
could I live?
After going online with my desk computer and reading how to reboot a
dead iPhone, I got the contraption going again, but it made me think.
Do we own technology or does it have a hold over us? I already know the
answer. Will I give up my iPhone, my computer, my electronic
thermostat, my digital camera, DVR, the Internet, or even my microwave,
though? No way! I can vent, but I won’t relent and go back to carbon
paper, mimeographs, party lines, or any of that ancient stuff. I’m a
modern woman, darn it. Meanwhile, if you need to reach me, call my
office; don’t rely on reaching me on my high-tech iPhone.
Folks, I hope you like this new streamlined newsletter, the result of
the feedback I received from my questionnaire last month. I deleted the
least-read sections and concentrated on the information that writers
like you want to know.
Let me know what you think.
Yours in writing,
Bobbie Christmas (Bobbie@zebraeditor.com or bzebra@aol.com )
Author of triple-award-winning Write In Style (Union Square
Publishing), owner of Zebra Communications, and director of The Writers
Network
P.S. If someone forwarded this newsletter to you, please sign up to get
your own copy. Simply go to www.zebraeditor.com, click on “Free
Newsletter,” and follow the prompts. I never share your address or send
out spam.
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Two: Ask the Book Doctor —About Editing, Style, and Point of View
By Bobbie Christmas
Q: Can you tell me if reviewers ever judge based on editing/style? So
many authors/editors do things differently that I guess they just look
for consistency. What I was not sure about was use (or overuse) of
commas. Can you tell me if commas should be in these sentences?
“That’s what I thought,” Mark said with a smile. (comma before “with”)
and “Yeah, such a storm we had..” Mark said sarcastically.
Is it just preference? If so, would it look bad if the author put
commas for some, and not for others?
A: Most reviewers consider everything about the book, including the
cover, content, editing, writing style, plot, characterization, flow,
resolution, and more.
The volume of commas is not important; what is important is that the
commas must be used correctly. How can you know where the commas go,
when we were taught one style in school, newspapers use another style,
and book publishers use yet another style? Book authors (or their
editors) should follow Chicago Style, which book publishers follow,
because it dictates punctuation, capitalization, abbreviation, when to
spell out a number and when to use a numeral, etc. Once that style is
followed, commas will be in the right places and the volume of them
won’t matter.
As for your specific examples, the first example is fine, but the
second one has two periods and no comma before the attribution. It
should be written this way:
“Yeah, such a storm we had,” Mark said sarcastically.
If the attribution were a stand-alone sentence, the example would be
punctuated this way:
“Yeah, such a storm we had.” Mark spoke sarcastically.
Q: Can you tell me if editors (and even reviewers) specifically check
or look out for consistency of viewpoint in a novel? I have been
reading about being consistent with time and with how close you focus
with one or many characters, and it seems a little confusing. Is this
something I should take a class in? I was just wondering if many
published authors keep these things in mind when writing a story.
A: Editors come in many forms. Some simply handle acquisitions for a
publisher and do not edit at all, much less comment on viewpoint. Some
editors edit for grammar, punctuation, and syntax and do not pay
attention to viewpoint. Only an editor or book doctor who also analyzes
the content will pay attention to, point out, or correct viewpoint
flaws, which certainly should be addressed, because publishers want
clear, consistent, and logical viewpoints in novels.
Viewpoint (also called point of view or POV) is a tricky matter. It
refers to which character perceives that particular scene—in whose
point of view the action takes place.
Consistency is important in that the point of view should be only one
per scene (that is, never get into the head of more than one character
per scene). You can get into another character’s point of view by
starting a new scene.
Your best bet is to use only main characters as point-of-view
characters, and the best novels have no more than three main
characters. How the time per character is divvied up, though, does not
matter. The choice is up to the author.
I think it’s easier to find a book on point of view than find a class
that specifically addresses that issue, but no matter how you choose to
educate yourself, if you want to write novels, you do need to know
about point of view and how and when to use it to its best advantage.
Send your questions to the Book Doctor Bobbie Christmas at
Bobbie@zebraeditor.com.
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Three: This Month’s Writing Tip from Bobbie Christmas – Anxious and
Eager
Be sure you understand the difference between anxious and eager; the
two words are not interchangeable.
Anxious means uneasy and apprehensive about an uncertain event or
matter; worried (having anxiety). The president was anxious about
having to give a speech.
Eager means having or showing keen interest, intense desire, or
impatient expectancy. Everyone was eager to see the president speak.
Refine your manuscript using Bobbie’s techniques
If you think you have used the anxious in your manuscript in places
where the word eager would have been the correct word choice, use my
trademarked Find and Refine Method to search for and repair misuses. To
use the Find and Refine Method, pull down the Edit menu in your
software program and go to Find. Next click on Replace. Type in the
word anxious in the Find box and type the word eager in the Replace
box. Check “Match Case.”
Press Enter on your keyboard or Find Next in the dialogue box, and the
computer will stop on the next instance of the word, even if it is part
of a word, as in the word anxiously.
You can probably safely tell your computer to repair all; however, you
will also have find and replace Anxious (capitalized) with Eager
(capitalized) to ensure that the manuscript maintains the correct
capitalization at the beginnings of sentences.
Send me an e-mail if you wish to receive a report on how to apply the
Find and Refine Method to other issues in your manuscript.
For even more opportunities for improvement, buy Write In Style (Union
Square Publishing) by clicking here:
http://zebraeditor.com/book_ask_the_book_doctor.shtml
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Four: Subjects of interest to writers
Where is Bobbie Christmas Speaking?
The January Sisters in Crime meeting was rescheduled because of bad
weather, so mark your calendar.
Sisters in Crime
New Date: Saturday, March 13, 2010
Smyrna Library
Smyrna, Georgia
10:00 a.m. – 12:00 noon
“What to expect from an editor, and what not to expect”
(I believe the meeting is free to newcomers—check the Web site to learn
more: http://www.sistersincrimeatlantachapter.com/
North Georgia Valley Writers Conference
Saturday March 20
Featuring... Terry Kay, Rosemary Daniell, and Bobbie Christmas
* Panel Discussion on "Publishing: Small Press, Large Press,
Self-Publishing
* Panel Discussion on "The Writers Life"
* two Author Meet n Greet and Book Signing opportunities with Rosemary,
Terry, and other Georgia authors!
at the Harris Arts Center 212 South Wall Street / Downtown Calhoun,
Georgia
706-629-2599 / www.harrisartscenter.com
$30 for the full day of events
$5 for the final panel
Scribbler's Writers Conference
St. Simon's Island, Georgia
May 13 - 16, 2010
http://scribblersretreatwritersconference.com/speakers
Subject:
“Yes, you CAN make a living with words!”
The Spring Book Show, scheduled for the Cobb Galleria Center in Atlanta
March 26-28, 2010, is offering two days of workshops for writers in
conjunction with the show.
Authorship 101, “How to Become a Successful Author – The Basics,” is
scheduled for Friday, March 26. Featured presenters include
• Peter Bowerman, author of several books on making a living as
an author and publisher, speaking on “The Well-Fed Self-Publisher: How
to Turn One Book into a Full-Time Living.”
• Ahmad Meradji, president, Apex Book Manufacturing, covering
"How To Get Your Self-Published Book Manufactured."
• David Fulmer, author of several mysteries published by Houghton
Mifflin Harcourt and a Shamus award winner, now creating a new
publishing house in Atlanta, speaking on "New Games in Town - The Shift
in the Publishing Paradigm," and
• Angela K. Durden, author of children’s books, editor of a new
anthology of business essays, publisher, businesswoman, covering
“Problems of self-editing, level of quality to seek, benefits of hiring
an editor, different types of editing.”
Details on program and registration are at
http://anvilpub.net/Authorship_101.htm
Authorship 201, How to Become a Successful Author - Getting Down to
Business," is scheduled for Saturday, March 27. Bobbie Christmas will
be the moderator.
Featured presenters include
• Chris Roerden, author of several books on editing and how to
get published, including Don’t Murder Your Mystery and Don’t Sabotage
Your Submission. Topics: "Secrets of Surviving the Manuscript
Submission Process;" "How to Make a Good Living as a Ghost-writer;" and
"Become the Master of Dialogue, Description, and Show v. Tell."
• Tony Burton, publisher and author who resides in Ranger, Ga.
Topic: "Conflict as the Foundation," about using conflict as the
driving force to build a good story and keep readers interested, and
• Dr. David Ryback, author of five books on various aspects of
psychology, sixth due out shortly. Topic: “The Six Important Steps to
Getting Published Despite All Obstacles: Conceptualizing, Scheduling,
Writing, Titling, Agenting and Re-writing.”
Details on program and registration are at
http://anvilpub.net/authorship_201.htm
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Attention Writers in Metro Atlanta!
The Writers Network has occasional local meetings in the
Roswell-Alpharetta general area. If you’re interested in meeting with
other writers, send me an e-mail (Bobbie@zebraeditor.com) and ask to be
put on a list of local members to be notified if and when we plan a get
together.
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Need to create a pdf and don’t want to buy the expensive software? Go
to http://createpdf.neevia.com/ for converting files into a pdf files.
It’s free.
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Purge Your Prose of Problems
A Book Doctor’s Desk Reference, Fourth Edition
Save thousands of dollars by editing your own book!
This proprietary desk reference book is not available in stores.
Written in easy-to-understand language, the information 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. The metal binder lets the book lie flat for easy use. To
order as a printed book or e-book, go to http://tinyurl.com/4ptjnr.
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Top authors to speak at Tallahassee (Florida) Writers Conference
More than twenty top authors and agents will speak at the Tallahassee
Writers Conference in the Turnbull Conference Center on Pensacola St.
March 19-20.
Speakers include a Pulitzer Prize winner, a Time magazine senior
correspondent, three New York Times best-selling authors, and a New
York editor and agent. Presenters this year also focus on Florida
authors, including many Florida Book Award winners.
Registration forms may be found at www.tallahasseewriters.net. Forms
must be postmarked by Feb. 15 to obtain the lowest rate of $100 for
Tallahassee Writers Association members and $135 for nonmembers.
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A few of Bobbie’s seminars are available as downloads. To view all, go
to http://zebraeditor.com/seminars_on_cd.shtml.
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Pen takes notes and records electronically
Love new technology? You might like the Livescribe Pulse, a computer in
a pen. When you write on the special dot-matrix paper, the pen records
what you’re hearing as well as what you’re writing, and you can play it
back later to ensure you didn’t miss anything. Sounds great for
reporters; my shorthand was never fast enough, but my recorder
intimidated some interviewees. The computer-in-a-pen costs about $200,
plus you have to buy extra notepads or refills, but it also has an app
store, and we can only guess what writer-friendly software will be
written for it in the future.
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Write In Style by Bobbie Christmas teaches her trademarked Find and
Refine Method along with dozens tips that power up your prose. Bobbie
Christmas reveals secrets only a book doctor could know.
http://zebraeditor.com/book_write_in_style.shtml.
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Special reports for magazine writers:
"Writing Query Letters: Use the Same Proven, Customizable Letter This
Veteran Writer Has Successfully Used for Years"
"How to Send 50 Queries Per Week"
"Cut Down on Rejections: Know The Articles Editors Want - and When"
Check them out at http://www.woodenhorsepub.com/spreportssales.html
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Free Tools for Writers from Bobbie Christmas and Zebra Communications
Order PDF reports on correct manuscript format, how to form and run a
critique circle, how to identify weak writing and repair it,
self-publishing versus traditional publishing, and much more. Sixteen
reports are available, and the list keeps growing. Go to
http://zebraeditor.com/free_reports.shtml. Newest report: How to choose
the correct editor for your manuscript. Surprise! It may not be me.
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Great quote from A.Word.A.Day by Anu Garg (Wordsmith.org)
Regarding the parts of speech: Nouns and pronouns name. Adjectives
describe. Adverbs qualify. The best of this lineup are verbs, always
ready for action. Verbs do. They move the plot forward. Verbs bring
life to the story.
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Chicago Style tip I’ll bet you didn’t know: Whereas we are taught in
school (and my Microsoft Word program prompts me) to capitalize
election day, The Chicago Manual of Style says do not capitalize it, if
you want to comply with Chicago Style (preferred by book publishers).
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Are you on Facebook? Do You Twitter?
Keep up with Bobbie’s activities on Facebook (search for Bobbie
Rothberg Christmas) or on Twitter at http:twitter.com/BookDoctor4u.
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Five: Jobs, Contests, Grants, Agents and Markets
Village Writers Group Writing Contest
www.villagewritersgroup.com
VWG will be producing an anthology and welcomes submissions.
Submissions may be stories, poems, or essays, 6,000 words or less.
Other formats or genres will be considered.
Deadline is March 31, 2010; theme: "Love is where you find it." Writing
that fits this theme will be given preference.
Size and price of the anthology will depend on how many entries of high
literary quality we receive, and cost of production. We plan to have
copies in time to sell them at the Decatur (Georgia) Book Festival,
September 3-5, 2010.
VWG members may submit free. Non-members will be charged a $15 fee per
submission. You may send your submission in either of two ways:
1. By e-mail: Send your writing by email attachment in MS Word or RTF
format to anthonygeraldmiller@gmail.com. Non-members please mail your
check for $15 per submission (or $30 for membership; see Membership
page) to:
VWG
Frank Taylor
1136 Atcheson Lane
Dunwoody, GA 30338
2. By US mail: mail your printed submission (with your submission fee
if not a member) to:
Anthony Miller
792 Ridgeview Drive
Lilburn, GA 30047
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On Spec
http://www.onspec.ca/submissions.htm
On Spec, “The Canadian magazine of the fantastic,” welcomes submissions
of fiction, nonfiction, poetry, or artwork, but first read and follow
the submission guidelines on its Web site.
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Saturday Evening Post
Features Editor
1100 Waterway Boulevard
Indianapolis, IN 46202
http://www.saturdayeveningpost.com/about/submission-guidelines
Yes, The Saturday Evening Post is still around, and it accepts
submissions. “Before sending us a manuscript or query, look through
recent issues of the Post to get an idea of the range and style of
articles we publish. You will discover that our focus has broadened to
include well-researched, timely and informative articles on finance,
unusual photo/story packages, home improvement, humor, transportation,
travel, fashion, entertainment, personality profiles, technology, and
communication with a healthy emphasis on medical breakthroughs,
promising new treatments, prevention, and fitness. We like positive,
fresh angles to Post articles, and we ask that they be thoroughly
researched.”
Feature articles average about 1,000 to 2,000 words.
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Robert Astle and Associates Literary Management Inc.
419 Lafayette Street
3rd Floor
New York, NY 10003
robert@astleliterary.com
http://www.astleliterary.com/
Robert Astle and Associates Literary Management Inc. is a literary
agency based in New York City. After working for twenty-five years in
professional theater, he is turning his creative, editorial, and savvy
networking skills into a new venture, representing authors of the
highest caliber. Working in cooperation with the Agency is a team of
sub-agents selling foreign territories, film and media rights, as well
as a select group of professional readers.
We prefer email submissions, and will reply to all -mail queries that
follow our submission guidelines, whether we are interested or not.
After reading our guidelines use the form on the Web site to make your
submission.
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Six: Creative Writing Assignment – Similes and Metaphors
Similes and metaphors change ordinary writing into literature, provided
we handle them carefully, use them wisely, make them fit the situation,
and don’t overuse them.
Keep similes and metaphors simple and sparse, so they add to the
literary effect without adding a great number of words. Overwritten or
overused similes can be considered purple prose, something strong
writers avoid. Here’s an example of a simile that turns into purple
prose: “The wind in my hair acted like a fragile hand, gently caressing
all the strands until they fluttered like symbolic flags in the
scent-filled summer air.” To keep it simple and avoid purple prose, it
might be recast this way: “The wind acted like a hand, gently caressing
my hair.”
When writing similes and metaphors, avoid clichés; if you have heard
the simile or metaphor anywhere else, it is not original and is a
cliché. Examples of simile clichés include the following:
The corpse was as dead as a doornail.
I was so happy I felt like I was floating on a cloud.
Here are some original and tight similes:
Her voice, light as a spring breeze, whispered in my ear.
His housekeeping skills were equal to a dog’s.
For this exercise, I’m going to start a few sentences you will finish
with a metaphor or simile. Warning! Be careful not to finish with
anything you have ever heard before, because it will be considered a
cliché. After you have finished all the sentences, choose one and write
a story around it.
1. Her outfit was as mismatched as…
2. My mother’s voice was like…
3. Whenever I sat in math class, I felt as if…
4. The music was as loud as…
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Tools for writers plus free reports, information, and answers for
writers like you: www.zebraeditor.com.
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Do YOU have news for The Writers Network News? Please send it in the
body copy, not an attachment, to Bobbie@zebraeditor.com. Deadline: The
15th of each month.
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Send a copy of this newsletter to all your writing friends. Tell them
to join The Writers Network F-R-E-E by visiting www.zebraeditor.com and
clicking on “Free Newsletter.”
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With the exception of Zebra Communications, information in this
newsletter is not to be construed as an endorsement. Be sure to
research all information and study every stipulation before you accept
assignments, spend money, or sell your work.
The Writers Network News– a newsletter for writers everywhere. No fees.
No officers. “No Rules; Just Write!”
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