I love hanging out with other writers. Aside from all the useful information I get to hear, I always come away from group events inspired to write better (and for longer) than what I usually does, so I was disappointed yesterday, when I was unable to attend this month's GLVWG (Greater Lehigh Writer's Group) meeting.
On the bright side, I still get to venture into Pennsylvania this weekend when I travel to the Writers Coffee House meeting later today. It takes place at the Barnes & Noble store in Willow Grove (102 Park Avenue, Willow Grove, PA 19090), hosted by the always impressive, Jonathan Maberry.
The meeting starts at noon. If you'd like to come along, I'd love to see you there.
How about you?
What are you up to today?
- Mood:
cheerful
There are nine heats in all. The winners (or joint winners) from heats one - eight go straight through. The second place finishers battle it out in heat nine to see which title joins the others in the final round.
What's at stake?
Bragging rights for the winner? An interview and/or guest post here on An Englishman in New Jersey, as well as signed copy of my book, Fur-Face, and a couple of I are a writer! pens, as shown in the pic below.
Poll #1842793 2012 MEAGER PUDDLE OF LIMELIGHT AWARD FOR BEST SHORT STORY TITLE: HEAT 8 OF 9
Open to: All, detailed results viewable to: None, participants: 17
From the following list, please select any short story titles which you think should progress to the final round
| THEY CAME BEARING DANGEROUS GIFTS |
   8 (17.4%) |
| TRANSLYMANIC |
| 3 (6.5%) |
| UNDER THE PAPER |
| 4 (8.7%) |
| UNITED WE SOAR |
| 1 (2.2%) |
| VICTIM OF LOVE |
| 1 (2.2%) |
| WARBLING THEIR WAY TO WAR |
| 5 (10.9%) |
| WATER TO SHARE |
| 7 (15.2%) |
| WE CAN REMEMBER IT FOR YOU RETAIL |
| 6 (13.0%) |
| WHAT THE CARP SAW (AND COULDN'T TELL WHILE STILL ALIVE) |
| 8 (17.4%) |
| WHEN THE LIGHT WAS ON |
| 3 (6.5%) |
Links to the other Heats and the final:
Heat one
Heat two
Heat three (now returned from it's little walkabout)
Heat four
Heat five
Heat six
Heat seven
Heat eight
Heat nine
Final Round
Voting in Heats 1 through 8 will close on Sunday, June 3rd 2012 at 6:00pm (US/Eastern). Heat nine will take place soon after.
Good luck to all who take part! Vene, vidi, puddli!
- Mood:
excited
Here’s my selection of interesting (and sometimes amusing) posts about writing from the last week:
What Happens After Writing 3 or 4 Books a Year (Elizabeth Spann Craig)
Traditional vs. Self-publishing is a False Dichotomy (Nathan Bransford)
The Art of Pacing in a Novel (Elissa Cruz) [Jon’s Pick of the week]
Why I'm A Writer & Not a Fighter Pilot (Maggie Stiefvater aka ![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif?v=92.1){kind=small}
m_stiefvater)
Sounds Great, No Substance (Mary Kole)
Do We Need An Authors Code for Online Conduct? (Jannette Johnson aka darke_conteur)
Who's helping who in the cover blurb game? (Anthony Horowitz)
by way of April Henry (aka aprilhenry)
How to Win a Writing Competition (Dr. John Yeoman)
All About Advances (Rachelle Gardner)
Damn Yankees, and Other Ways Self-Publishing Holds Itself Back (Sarah LaPolla)
The Highs and the Lows of Becoming an Author (Cassie Alexander)
The scariest question: "Why should I care about this story?" (Juliette Wade)
If you have a particular favorite among these, please let the author know (and me too, if you have time). Also, if you've a link to a great post that isn't here, feel free to share.
If you found these useful, you may also like my personal selection of the most interesting blog posts from 2011, and last week’s list.
- Mood: cheerful
Yesterday, I gave my very first Skype talk (a presentation on blogging at Elizabeth Library, NJ). We had a few technical troubles at the library's end, so we went ahead without any microphone, just pictures.
I have to say, not being in the same room as the audience took a bit of getting used to, but I had a great time,and it was certainly nice to be able to give a talk from the comfort of my basement office.
Due to the lack of sound, when I finished my presentation, the organizer, Lonnie, had to use the keyboard to write out people's questions. While he typed, I had a bit of fun, inventing fictitious questions like 'Are you related to Brad Pitt?'; 'Is that your real voice?' etc.
Ooh, and I discovered a great visual trick you can do which makes your head looks like it's shrinking on screen!
I'll definitely do more Skype talks.
How about you?
Have you ever done, or attended, a Skype talk?
- Mood: cheerful
There are nine heats in all. The winners (or joint winners) from heats one - eight go straight through. The second place finishers battle it out in heat nine to see which title joins the others in the final round.
What's at stake?
Bragging rights for the winner? An interview and/or guest post here on An Englishman in New Jersey, as well as signed copy of my book, Fur-Face, and a couple of I are a writer! pens, as shown in the pic below.
Poll #1842179 2012 MEAGER PUDDLE OF LIMELIGHT AWARD FOR BEST SHORT STORY TITLE: HEAT 7 OF 9
Open to: All, detailed results viewable to: None, participants: 28
From the following list, please select any short story titles which you think should progress to the final round
| STEAM RISES |
| 6 (9.2%) |
| STEP LIGHTLY, CLYDESDALE |
| 8 (12.3%) |
| STEPHEN HAWKING RUNS THE MARTHA M. PARKER MEMORIAL 5K |
| 6 (9.2%) |
| STUMP GRINDER |
| 7 (10.8%) |
| SUNSET KILL |
| 3 (4.6%) |
| SWAIN'S WORLD |
| 3 (4.6%) |
| SWEAR NOT BY THE MOON |
| 13 (20.0%) |
| THE TAMING OF ORCS IS A DIFFICULT MATTER |
| 8 (12.3%) |
| TEARS FOR LAUREL |
| 3 (4.6%) |
| TEUTONIC KNIGHTS OF THE OLD WEST |
| 8 (12.3%) |
Links to the other Heats and the final:
Heat one
Heat two
Heat three
Heat four
Heat five
Heat six
Heat seven
Heat eight
Heat nine
Final Round
Voting in Heats 1 through 8 will close on Sunday, June 3rd 2012 at 6:00pm (US/Eastern). Heat nine will take place soon after.
Good luck to all who take part! Vene, vidi, puddli!
- Mood: excited
First off, I want to thank everyone who gave me such great comments on yesterday's post, 'What do you look for in a writing group?'. I really appreciate all the input. It'll definitely help me start things off in the right direction.
In other news, I came across this excellent video a while back:
I'd forgotten all about it until I saw it again on Ripley Patton's blog (
rippatton) the other day.If you have a couple of minutes to spare, I think you'll find you get the same warm fuzzy feeling I got when I first watched it.
- Mood:
content
If you've some experience of writing groups, good or bad, I'd appreciate your input.
Poll #1841662 Writing groups
Open to: All, detailed results viewable to: All, participants: 38
Are you now, or have you ever been, a member of a writing group
If 'Yes', why did you hope to gain from joining?
| I wanted to get critique/feedback on my own writing |
| 29 (33.7%) |
| workshops/presentations on writing-related subjects |
| 10 (11.6%) |
| Critique groups with other writers in my genre |
| 21 (24.4%) |
| Networking |
| 22 (25.6%) |
| Something else, which I'll explain in the comments |
| 4 (4.7%) |
If 'No', is there a particular reason why not?
| Yes |
| 1 (25.0%) |
| No |
| 2 (50.0%) |
| Something else, which I'll explain in the comments |
| 1 (25.0%) |
When you attended your first few meetings with the group, was there something which made a big impression (good or bad)?
What would make you leave a writing group?
| Not a good fit for me/my writing |
| 28 (19.0%) |
| Membership fees too expensive |
| 17 (11.6%) |
| Too far away |
| 17 (11.6%) |
| Uncomfortable atmosphere |
| 28 (19.0%) |
| Unfriendly atmosphere |
| 28 (19.0%) |
| Too few members |
| 9 (6.1%) |
| Too many members |
| 11 (7.5%) |
| Something else, which I'll explain in the comments |
| 9 (6.1%) |
If there's something not covered in the poll, please feel free to leave a comment anyway. I'm particularly interested in things which made a big impression on you, either in a good or bad way.
- Mood:
curious
I had a lovely time yesterday at the Orange Scholars Academy, in Orange County, NJ. I met several great writers, including Artie Bennett, author of the excellent children's book, Poopendous!
The 4th-6th graders in my first workshop, Brilliant Beginnings, chose their favorite from a selection of opening lines I gave them. Once again, the outright winner was, 'Isaac woke up in a garbage can, again.' taking the total to 22 victories out of 22. One of these days I really must write a story to go with that one.
I had a nice surprise when one lady came up to tell me she was planning on coming to my workshops at the Georgian Court University in July.
This afternoon, I'm off to Hunterdon Public Library (314 State Highway 12, Bldg. #3, Flemington, NJ 08822) for the NJAN panel/Q&A: From Thoughts to Print: Getting Published in the 21st Century, featuring: Helen Henderson (moderator); Donna Galanti; Jon Gibbs; Rachel Haimowitz; Saverio Monachino and Chris Redding. If you're anywhere near Flemington this afternoon, and you'd like to drop by, we'd love to see you.
How about you?
How's your weekend going?
- Mood: cheerful
There are nine heats in all. The winners (or joint winners) from heats one - eight go straight through. The second place finishers battle it out in heat nine to see which title joins the others in the final round.
What's at stake?
Bragging rights for the winner? An interview and/or guest post here on An Englishman in New Jersey, as well as signed copy of my book, Fur-Face, and a couple of I are a writer! pens, as shown in the pic below.
Poll #1841241 2012 MEAGER PUDDLE OF LIMELIGHT AWARD FOR BEST SHORT STORY TITLE: HEAT 6 OF 9
Open to: All, detailed results viewable to: None, participants: 27
From the following list, please select any short story titles which you think should progress to the final round
| REAL DRAGONS DON'T WEAR SWEATERS |
| 13 (21.7%) |
| RED STILETTOS, LIPSTICK, AND DRAGON BANE |
| 3 (5.0%) |
| REMINDERS IN SHADES OF RED AND BLUE |
| 3 (5.0%) |
| RESURRECTION OF THE UNSPOKEN WORD |
| 9 (15.0%) |
| RUINING THE RAPTURE |
| 10 (16.7%) |
| SHADOWS IN THE SILICON REALM |
| 6 (10.0%) |
| SMELLY SITUATION |
| 1 (1.7%) |
| SOMEWHERE IN THE MIDDLE OF ETERNITY |
| 9 (15.0%) |
| SPOTLIGHT ON MURDER |
| 2 (3.3%) |
| STALWART SILVER |
| 4 (6.7%) |
Links to the other Heats and the final:
Heat one
Heat two
Heat three
Heat four
Heat five
Heat six
Heat seven
Heat eight
Heat nine
Final Round
Voting in Heats 1 through 8 will close on Sunday, June 3rd 2012 at 6:00pm (US/Eastern). Heat nine will take place soon after.
Good luck to all who take part! Vene, vidi, puddli!
- Mood: excited
Here’s my selection of interesting (and sometimes amusing) posts about writing from the last week:
Description:It's more than a visual (Kathryn Craft)
What the heck are queries good for, anyway? (Juliette Wade)
Shutting Down, In a Good Way (Cassie Alexander)
The “Brutal” 2000-Word Day (Kristine Kathryn Rusch)
Editing Clauses in Publishing Contracts (Victoria Strauss)
Expressing Thought-Reactions in Fiction (Jodie Renner)
Virtual Safeguards (Lynn Viehl)
7 Bad Habits of Successful Authors (Rachelle Gardner)
Revise/Resubmit Requests (Jane Lebak)
The Esspresso Book Machine [Not a blog post, but an interesting glimpse of the future]
by way of Bart Palamaro
Amazon's knock-off problem (Stephen Gandel)
by way of Gary Frank
If you have a particular favorite among these, please let the author know (and me too, if you have time). Also, if you've a link to a great post that isn't here, feel free to share.
If you found these useful, you may also like my personal selection of the most interesting blog posts from 2011, and last week’s list.
- Mood: cheerful
