Tag: writing

Foul Balls and Grand Slams

Written in response to the Daily Post’s Daily Prompt:

Key Takeaway: Give your newer sisters and brothers in WordPress one piece of advice based on your experiences blogging.

————–or————–

If you’re a new blogger what’s one question you’d like to ask other bloggers?

I’m a blogging addict. At least once a week for the past year and a half I’ve pledged to quit, and yet here I am, plugging away. Pledging and plugging in an endless cycle of despair and euphoria.

If new bloggers are looking to me for advice then it’s a very sad state they inhabit. Nonetheless, here is my one piece of wisdom: 

Just write and publish something every single day. Don’t make apologies or excuses, just write.

You’ll hit a lot of easy out pop flies, but occasionally you’ll get a triple, and on that rarest of days, a grand slam home run. Those are the days that stoke the writing fire, and to continue mixing metaphors, feed the addiction. 

And because I don’t follow directions very well, here’s one more piece of advice: Read the work of a diverse mix of bloggers. Interact with them and savor their unique talents. Perhaps the best part of having begun writing has been the exposure to this great wealth of writers, poets, and photographers.

  
Peace, people!

Key Takeaway

Sideways

I fell into your poem sideways,
not top to bottom as you likely wrote
it about love, and loss, and maybe

the taste of food.

A word stood out, midway through
your second stanza, so my brain followed
my eyes and without thinking

i read horizontally backwards.

Oddly enough, it made perfect sense and
I wondered, did you intend for me to
explore your words this way;

did you create a new form?

Only on my second pass did I find your
opening line and its nuances. Beautiful
rightside up and inside out.

A masterpiece.

Stuck in a Whorehouse

Yesterday I wrote that I was fiddling with a draft piece on my blog and my characters weren’t giving me a clear idea of where they wanted or needed to go. In particular my heroine is stuck in a house of ill-repute for reasons I can’t go into at this time.

This afternoon in the middle of a deep tissue massage I clearly saw her, and she gave me a hint as to her dilemma. Apparently, she doesn’t feel stuck in her situation. I argued with her a bit, surely she was being exploited or victimized, but she was adamant. 

If you write fiction, do your characters argue with you? Or am I going crazy? I am weaning myself from the antidepressant, Effexor–could this be a side effect? At any rate, I need someone to proof this piece before I proceed. Any takers?

Peace, people!

  

Blogging

Some days writing posts for a daily blog is a grind. The post you’ve scheduled for publication doesn’t feel quite right, but you don’t have anything else ready so you publish it anyway, or worse yet there’s nothing in your queue and you find yourself scrounging for something, anything, to publish. 

Hey, here’s an amusing picture of a pregnant pig practicing Lamaze. It’ll do! 

But some days are just fun. Like today. I found several gems written by bloggers I follow. Some I reblogged and others I shared on Facebook or Twitter. My own scheduled post turned out well, and I even composed a quick on the spot piece when a flash of inspiration struck during lunch. Yes, I should have scheduled it for a future publication date, but sometimes a writer just needs instant feedback. I’ll worry about tomorrow, tomorrow. 

I also fiddled with a draft of a short story that’s been in the works for awhile. Hopefully one day soon the characters will let me know what they plan to do next. Right now I’m having difficulty getting out of a fictional whorehouse. Don’t judge. It’s complicated.

Maybe the best part of a fun blogging day is the feedback, the comments, and smiley faces. Interacting with fellow bloggers whether about my own writing or theirs is often the bright spot in my day. I have some insanely witty commenters. Don’t even read my blog posts, just read the comments section. Wait, I didn’t mean that. Shhhh!!!
So, if you’re a blogger does this all sound familiar? If you tell me every day is a piece of cake I might just paste a frownie face in your comments section.

Peace, people!

A semi-irrelevant picture of my sELFie and me.

Blank Space

if i were an artist
and this page a canvas
i might simply leave it
just as it is and exclaim,
it is done!
this is it!
i’ll call it
B L A N K S P A C E

curators might declare
my work the best ever done
and offer it at auction for
thousands of dollars,
bidders would clamor to add
B L A N K S P A C E
to their private collections.

but a writer cannot
leave the space blank.
i tried.

and the writer cannot
type
B L A N K S P A C E
on the page because
that defeats the purpose.

it’s a conundrum, really.

  
I need a DIY Abstract Writing Tutorial.

Peace, people!

John Scalzi’s Best of the Year

Check these out!

http://wp.me/p5Fv-7cW

Blogging and Originality

One of my blogging friends commented on a recent post of mine that it was un-original. Her comment didn’t offend me. I didn’t take it as a condemnation, but as her initial thought upon reading my post.

Her comment did make me think about the reasons I blog. It certainly isn’t to become rich and famous, and blogging has wreaked nine kinds of hell on my already lackadaisical housekeeping skills. After thinking and thinking…

  
…I came to the conclusion that I write merely to write.

-Sometimes I shoot for originality. How might I twist this phrase or that to say something banal in a decidedly fresh way? 

-Sometimes I just need to share the moments of my life with a few photos and captions. 

-Sometimes I feel like a kid and need to be silly. 

-Sometimes there’s scarcely a point to be found in my writing, even if I’m the one looking for it.

-Sometimes I write in poetry what I cannot say in prose.

Yes, my friend was right. My stocking post was decidedly lacking in originality. Hopefully I’ll be able to continue writing such pieces for many years to come.

Peace, people!

Day Two of John Scalzi’s Holiday Shopping Guide

http://whatever.scalzi.com/2015/12/01/whatever-holiday-shopping-guide-2015-day-two-non-traditionally-published-books/
Today’s the day John Scalzi, awesome scifi author and all-around good guy begins accepting promotional blurbs from authors who have gone the non-traditional route in publishing. For more information go to his Whatever blog (link above) and read the entire post. Don’t read three or four lines and say, “I don’t get it….” Read the whole thing. Then if you still don’t get it shoot John a question.

Good luck folks, and as always, Peace, people!

John Scalzi Presents!

Hi Friends,

I know that many of my followers and friends are published authors or songwriters. Others are looking for that motivation or big break. It’s difficult to know how to get your work and your name out there. 

Let me introduce you to science fiction author John Scalzi. I’m a big fan of his work. It’s witty, fast-paced, and not so mired in the sciences that a casual reader of scifi will feel lost. I’ve begun following John Scalzi on Facebook and Twitter and strongly suggest that you do as well.

John started as an indie author and has made a big mark in the scifi world. And, he’s a generous guy, it seems. Starting today, he accepts blurbs from folks like us. Each day this week John is seeking posts from authors and other artists with one category featured each day. For instance today he’s accepting submissions from folks who want to promote a book or audiobook they’ve had published through traditional publishing routes.

I could go on and on, but John Scalzi explains it all much more concisely than I on his WordPress site, “Whatever”.

So, here’s the link. Get busy and get some FREE promotion. Best of luck.

http://whatever.scalzi.com/2015/11/30/whatever-holiday-shopping-guide-2015-day-one-traditionally-published-books/

Write Drunk

Ernest Hemingway is supposed to have uttered the phrase, 

  
I’ve been doing some research on the efficacy of Papa Hemingway’s wisdom. Well, to be honest I’ve just been following his advice. Research is time-consuming, and I’d much rather get right down to business.

So far I tend to agree with him, but then it’s difficult to think straight while inebriated. It’s a good thing I’m a cheap drunk. This experiment might become costly otherwise.

Now, normally I’d wait until sober to edit, but here’s where the research comes in. I’m going to publish this without a second reading. Pffffft! That was drunk me sticking my tongue out at my future sober me.

  
My apologies to Ernest. 

Peace, purple. 😉