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Posts from the ‘Writing Life’ Category

Dec 15

Thirty-two best books of 2011

Mary Ann Gwinn, book editor for The Seattle Times, recently published a list of top 32 books for 2011. Read her article here, including her criteria for placing a book on the list. She admits any “top books” list is “squishy” and depends on the criteria you use. I’m sure we could find many more “top books” list for 2011.

What I love about The Seattle Times list is the variety of books represented: fiction, non-fiction, and even poetry.

As a writer, I love reading the blurbs for each book. One of the most useful tips I learned as I began writing my current novel was to have a one or two sentence bullet for my book that contains my original idea. This helps keep me focused as I write and will come in handy as I begin to pitch and promote the book. Also, book blurbs are goldmines for ideas. Read more

Dec 13

How Chicken Raising Tales inspired me

Chicken Raising Tales is a wonderful little book with stories and photos by different families about how raising chickens has touched their lives. Bainbridge Island’s Tour de Coop began in 2008–local chicken farmers and families agreed to open their doors to the community for an annual tour and fundraiser.

These families build coops that reflect their artistic and eclectic sides, with names such as: Slightly Askew Chicken House, Sin Gallo Coop, Murden Cove School for Chickens, and Coopacabana. A variety of materials are featured, including a recycled stage set and a wheeled chicken tractor for moving around the yard.

In these fun vignettes, we learn not only about raising chickens but how chickens have enriched the lives of their humans. Read more

Dec 12

3 Comments

Propel your writing career by entering a contest

Part of being a writer is getting your writing out into the world. Entering your stories, poems or screenplays gives you the opportunity for publication and recognition.

Entries for these four contests are due at the end of December or early next year. For information about other upcoming contests, check out writing magazines, including Writer’s Digest, The Writer and Writer’s and Poets.

Meridian’s 2012 Editors’ Prize Contests – poetry and short story

Fiction writers may submit one story of 10,000 words or fewer. Poets may submit up to four poems totaling 10 pages or fewer. Entrants receive a subscription to Meridian’s electronic edition. Two prizes of $1,000 each and publication in the Spring/Summer issue of Meridian are given annually for a poem and a short story.

Deadline: December 30, 2011

Entry Fee: $8

For more information and contest rules, check out the website. Read more

Dec 9

5 Comments

Writers and their cat muses

“I wish I could write as mysterious as a cat.”  ~Edgar Allan Poe

I own three cats–two orange brothers (Teddy Bear and Simba) and an older gray and white female cat (Precious Chase aka P.C.) who acts as their surrogate mother. Not only do my cats provide love, affection, and constant entertainment (I believe they were stand-up comics in a previous life) but they have, on occasion, acted as muses.

A few years ago, as I was finishing my thesis for my MFA program, I’d been having trouble with a particular chapter near the end of my book. I walked into our sunroom one day to find Teddy Bear, our 15-lb orange boy, literally eating my chapter–tearing it into little pieces and swallowing them. He made me see that the chapter had to go and instead of rewriting it, he was going to help me shred it. Read more

Dec 8

3 Comments

Apply your writerly skills to a holiday letter

It’s time to bust out your pen or keyboard and write your annual holiday letter.

One of my favorite things to do when I go home for the holidays is to read all the letters that my parents receive from relatives and family friends. I know that some people like to make fun of them, but I love to read them all.

As writers, the bar for us may be just a bit higher for this annual missive, so if you’d like some tips for writing your letter, read on.

Remember your audience. Write for the recipients, not yourself. Think about the topics that would be especially informative or inspiring to them. Read more

Dec 7

1 Comment

Stretch your writing comfort zone

“One can choose to go back toward safety or forward toward growth. Growth must be chosen again and again; fear must be overcome again and again.”
-Abraham Maslow

As I grow into being a prose writer there are times when I feel like a fraud or a fake. I feel uncomfortable in this new territory. Sometimes, I want to run away from it all. Throw down my pen. Burn all those awkward sentences. When I start to feel this way—like an absolute and utter failure—I go back to poetry.

Poetry is my comfort zone. I feel safe there. I know I can create there. When I write poetry, the words, images and metaphors are my abacus, my rosary, my worry beads. To me, poetry organizes my world. I feel most comfortable in that space. But how can I use this comfort zone to help me grow as a prose writer?

Years ago, I read a little business book that promoted the idea of building on our daily small successes. When you have a success, use that to build your next success. Read more

Dec 2

2 Comments

Want to publish? Approach your writing as a career

Sure you want to get your work published, but have you thought about your writing in terms of a career?

It’s easy to focus on the work at hand — the current short story, memoir, or novel in progress. But a couple years ago, I gained a new perspective from literary agent Donald Maass, who says:

Writing is a long-term profession that you must approach as a career. And that career is ultimately in the writer’s court.

First and foremost, Maass says, a writing career begins with good storytelling. Studying craft and writing daily is step one. Maass, author of Writing the Breakout Novel, teaches writing and how to propel your storycraft to the next level in his book and workshops. His advice made me think about what it takes to build a writing career.

Consider these career-building strategies.

Hook into your town’s writing community. Writers are everywhere, so whether you live in a town, tiny burg, or big city, you should be able to find a community of writers (even if it’s small) who share your interest. If you can’t find what you’re looking for, consider starting your own writer’s group. Writing MeetUp Groups are another good way to find a writer’s group focused on writing in general or by genre. Read more

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