Writing quote for 8-24-10

Everything in writing begins with language. Language begins with listening.


--Jeanette Winterson

another work in the mail

A reprint, a work that had previously only been available through the (now-defunct) Amazon Shorts program.

Hope I get a chance to write today.

Not a good comment.

I have to make the time to write today.

Writing quote for 8-23-10

And by the way, everything in life is writable about if you have the outgoing guts to do it, and the imagination to improvise. The worst enemy to creativity is self-doubt.

--Sylvia Plath

got a story into the mail

have about eight more that need to go out.

Want to use two of them for writing contests coming up but we'll see 'cause I've once again rejoined the workforce.

Writing quote for 8-22-10

The greatest rules of dramatic writing are conflict, conflict and conflict.

--James Frey

Yellow Springs Ohio/Antioch Writer's Workshop

So it's been a minute since the workshop. Met some wonderful people/writers. There was a presentation for the scholarship awards-- didn't know that was going to happen or I'd have dressed a bit differently-- ha!

But it was wonderful!

What happened (from a post I placed on a discussion board elsewhere):

I went to the Antioch Writer's Workshop and came home with two new characters with stories I want to follow.

I met the wonderful Crystal Wilkinson and someone I met at the conference bought me her two books and when I asked her to autograph them, she said that even though she'd never read me, she knew I'd won a scholarship to the workshop and wanted me to submit something to her print mag.

I signed up to pitch to an agent. I changed my mind and scratched my name off the list. Then I heard her talk and she was this wonderful funny lady so I signed up again.
Before my eight-minute pitch session, I was on the phone trying to get through to the unemployment benefits people 'cause I was laid off my job and it had been six weeks since I'd applied. There were 18 calls before me and I was told my wait time would be about 41 minutes which would put me two minutes into my pitch time. Hang up? Explain the situation to the agent? A minute before my session, I went to the assigned room and the work fellow guy told me that things were running late and I had to wait about 5 minutes which was wonderful 'cause then the unemployent people answered.

I went into the session and I never got to pitch the book, not really. We talked about the story that won the scholarship and my publications.

In her talk she'd said collections were hard to sell. I told her I was trying to pitch a short story collection.

She sighed, but not in total resignation. She said, "You're going to send me this collection and I'm going to love it."

"You are," I told her.

"Okay, this is what you do. . . "

She said (One)to send a query so I could get into her computer system. "I'll reply and ask for the collection."(That was #2)
"And then, three," she said, "is the Big Wait."

So I sent the query and two of the stories and she said that she liked what I sent and she'd be glad to read the whole thing.

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Just gotta get it done.

back to the keyboard

Busy with the bearmaking and life in general. Put the writing aside but tomorrow opportunity to jump back in.

Have been working on a short mystery to send to this weekly woman's publication. I thought it would be easy, but not so!

Some contests I want to enter by the 31/1 so I need to get going.

writing quote for 8-18-10

Writing is an exploration. You start from nothing and learn as you go.

--E. L. Doctorow

Writing quote for 8-17-10

All I'm writing is just what I feel, that's all. I just keep it almost naked.

--Jimi Hendrix

new story published

B.O.B. up at the wonderful online pub Poor Mojo's Almanac(k) yesterday and today it's featured at FictionDaily! Way cool.