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The Write Spirit by Jenny Jensen

December 19, 2017 by Jenny Jensen in category On writing . . . by Jenny Jensen tagged as holidays, reading, reading about writing, writing

The Write Spirit | Jenny Jensen | A Slice of Orange We’re in the midst of the celebration season: Solstice, Hanukkah, Christmas, Cuanza, Wilkie Thumbnoggin. (Okay, that last one is just me but he’s a dear old friend and I only hear from him at this time of year; he leads such an interesting life. Can’t wait to hear what’s happened since that kerfuffle last year on the Isle of Jersey with the sea lions and Prince Charles.) It’s also the season of giving – or if giving isn’t practical, then sharing.

I’d like to share with you some wonderful books – the fiction kind – about writing. We’re all readers and writers and we all read and write for different reasons. I read to learn something, to escape, to relax, to be entertained and, of course, to edit. But sometimes I read for therapy (as a 21^st century American, I need a lot of therapy). My favorite therapy books are the fictional tales about writers. These stories deal so satisfyingly with the fears, annoyances and obstacles I run up against in my work in the same way you experience them in yours.

There’s nothing like a good writer examining the perils and pains of their craft through the lens of fiction. It’s not only enjoyable but also comforting to read an author’s take on the hazards we all face when we sit down to write. They address the dreaded writer’s block, the struggle for discipline, the angst of working with publishers and dealing with fans (think King’s Misery). The concept of a writer writing about writing is rich with a million possible premises because this business is – and always will be – about limitless possibilities.

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Here are five of my picks. Some you may already have read but if not, I hope you’ll enjoy them.

Foul Matter, Martha Grimes (2004)

Ms. Grimes gives a grand romp through the egos, posturing and Machiavellian plotting of the industry of writing.

Blind Submission: A Novel, Debra Ginsberg (2006)

A wonderful indie look at delicate author sensibilities, the struggle for those next 1,000 words and the uses of an editor.

Piranha to Scurfy and Other Stories, Ruth Rendell (2001)

The title story offers the most satisfying rebuttal (or is it revenge?) to those obsessive readers who cannot let go of what they perceive to be a misplaced comma or an ‘incorrectly’ used word.

The Write Spirit | Jenny Jensen | A Slice of Orange

Plot It Yourself, Rex Stout (1959)

Every writer fears a charge of plagiarism. This tale is about a sort of reverse plagiarism and makes me ponder the infinite possibilities one can spin off an original premise.

Breakfast At Tiffany’s, Truman Capote (1958)

We never learn much about the narrator except that he’s a struggling writer. It’s through this writer’s eye that a rather tawdry story becomes magical. It’s the narrator’s portrayal of Holly Golightly, the way he invests her with an almost mystical quality that reaffirms for me the power of a writer’s vision.

If you can add to this list, I hope you will share. I’d love to read those tales about writing that have given you, if not therapy, at least a little wry solace. So happy reading and celebrate well this season!

Jenny

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H.O. Charles Featured Author

December 14, 2017 by marianne h donley in category Featured Author of the Month tagged as Fantansy, Featured author, HO Charles

H. O. Charles Featured | A Slice of Orange

H. O. Charles

H.O. Charles is an Amazon Top 100 Sci-Fi and Fantasy author of The Fireblade Array – a #2 best-selling series across Kindle, iBooks and B&N Nook in the Sci-Fi and Fantasy categories (#1 would just be showing off, right?)

Okay, it did hit #1 in Epic Fantasy in all those places… BUT DON’T TELL ANYONE because no one likes a bragger.

Though born in Northern England, Charles now resides in a white house in Sussex and sounds like a southerner.

Charles has spent many years at various academic institutions, and cut short writing a PhD in favour of writing about swords and sorcery instead.

Hobbies include being in the sea, being by the sea and eating things that come out of the sea. Walks with a very naughty rough collie puppy also take up much of Charles’ time.

ASCENT OF ICE

SNOWLANDS

FALL OF BLAZE

VOICES OF BLAZE

BLAZED UNION

ANOMALY OF BLAZE

NATION OF BLAZE

CITY OF BLAZE

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The First…by @denisemcolby

December 12, 2017 by Denise M. Colby in category The Writing Journey by Denise Colby tagged as First, First Line Friday, reading, writing

The First…

Several words come to mind when I hear those words…

The First Noel.
The First Time in Forever. Yes it’s a Frozen song.
And a few others I couldn’t quite remember the entire title.

We all know that Firsts are important.

Babies have a first laugh, a first word, their first step, and so on. Every stage of life has a first to it. The first day of preschool. The first day of high school. The first day of college.

There’s always a first for everything.

The dictionary defines first as; coming before all others in time or order; earliest; 1^st; never previously done or occurring.

It’s no wonder that as writers, we all have and celebrate our firsts too:

The first time we enter a contest
Submit our work for a critique
The first time we sign a contract
The first time we are published

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Even within our fictional manuscripts we have firsts:

When our hero and heroine first lay eyes on each other
Their first kiss (which is their last first kiss)
The first time they realize they love the other person.

And part of the fun of writing is to get it right (a whole subjective term, I know, but that’s for a different post).

So, in our first book, getting the first Chapter correct is necessary. Writing the first paragraph in a way to grab readers is crucial. And delivering well, the first line of the book, is essential.

Vital.
Imperative.

I think you get the idea.

First Lines in books.

Now that I understand this in my writing journey, I’ve been tracking the first line in the books I read and study (thank you Leslie for the idea). And let me say, it’s amazing how different these lines are. Some start with dialogue, some start with action, and some start with an inner thought from the main character.

And they all start us on a mini adventure we are willing to sit and explore for hours.

Recently, my critique partner introduced me to her blog posts First Line Fridays, which are hosted by a blog called hoarding books.

Authors and readers write their own post on their blog, then post a comment at https://hoardingbooksblog.wordpress.com/ with a link to their posts. The post includes the first line from whatever book is near them or they are reading. I’ve seen this as a Facebook challenge before, but not as a blog post. It’s a great way to share books and authors with other readers, so I decided to join in the fray and post my first, First Line Fridays post this past Friday.

See how I did that? It’s my first! And I’m super excited about it.

If you’re so inclined to read it, you can check it out here. http://denisemcolby.com/first-line-friday-12-8-17/

And if you want to learn more about the hoarding books blog, you can go to https://hoardingbooksblog.wordpress.com/

Happy Reading,

Denise

P.S. I googled ‘The First’ quotes and found a website that organizes quotes by topic. There are a lot of quotes with the word first in them. Go to https://www.brainyquote.com/topics/first if your inclined to take a look.

Denise Colby |The Writing Journey Although new to the writing fiction world, Denise Colby has over 20+ years experience in marketing, creating different forms of content and copy for promotional materials. Taking the lessons learned from creating her own author brand Denise M. Colby, Denise enjoys sharing her combined knowledge with other authors.

If you are interested in a marketing evaluation and would like help in developing a strategy for your author brand you can find out more here http://denisemcolby.com/marketing-for-authors/

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Royal Noel: This ain’t your mama’s Little Red Riding Hood by Jina Bacarr

December 11, 2017 by Jina Bacarr in category Jina’s Book Chat, Writing

Royal Noel: a fairy tale romance with a twist from Jina Bacarr on Vimeo.

What if Little Riding Hood had other plans than going to Grandma’s house . . . like a castle with a handsome duke?

It’s Christmas and what could be more fun than a new Twisted Tiara story in my Princesses with a Past series for the Kindle Worlds Royals of Monterra.

ROYAL NOEL is a sweet romance fairy tale with a heroine with a past . . . she’s an international jewel thief called The Princess.

Had so much fun writing this with Gennie and her duke . . . and there’s a royal baby, too!

This is Book 4 in my Twisted Tiaras series featuring the Risconti Family in Sariah Wilson‘s Royals of Monterra KW series.

Royal Noel http://a.co/65GYfHH on Kindle and now Kindle Unlimited!

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My princesses with a past in my Twister Tiaras series for the Royals of Monterra Kindle Worlds stories and how I got started writing them.

This month I have an “off script” interview I did re: how I started with The Royals of Monterra.

Jina’s Chat: How I started writing for the Royals of Monterra from Jina Bacarr on Vimeo.

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Time Management Podcasts and Classes

December 9, 2017 by Kitty Bucholtz in category It's Worth It by Kitty Bucholtz, Writing tagged as It's Worth It, Kitty Bucholtz, Online Class, podcasts, Write Now Workshop

Write Now Workshop Podcast I’m excited to tell you about a few pretty cool things coming up! First of all, I’m finally starting my podcast! Woohoo!!

The WRITE NOW! Workshop Podcast is expected to launch on Thursday, December 21, 2017. This will be an opportunity for me to share things I’ve learned with you and anyone in the world who tunes in to listen! I’ll post the link back here when it launches, and in my January 9th post. You’ll be able to listen using the Podcast app on your phone via iTunes, or other apps like Stitcher, or you can listen directly on the website. I’ll even have some of the interviews up on my YouTube channel!

The podcast will have three shorter episodes a week instead of one longer one. (If you listen to Mark Dawson’s Self-Publishing Formula Podcast or The Creative Penn Podcast, my two faves, they are both generally around an hour.) On Tuesdays, I’ll present a short teaching topic on something you can use in your writing right away. On Thursdays, I’ll interview a writer or editor or someone helpful to you in the publishing industry. I’ve already interviewed our own Jacqueline Diamond, James Scott Bell, and several others. Then Sundays will be my Encouraging Words segment. I’m really excited to have an opportunity to share all sorts of encouragement with you. This can be a difficult career, and I love helping people feel like they can make it!

Guest on Self-Publishing Formula Podcast

The other exciting podcast-related news is that I’m going to be a guest on Mark Dawson’s Self-Publishing Formula Podcast in January! Woohooo!!! I’m having a little fangirl chair dance right now because I absolutely love this podcast. I’m excited to be able to share tips and tricks from my time and project management class. I’ll let you know the air date when I find out. And when you listen, you’ll be able to download a free tip sheet as well. I hope this helps you as you plan out your 2018 writing goals.

Online Class for Time Management

If you’d like to get even more prepared, I’m re-opening my online class, Going the Distance: Time and Project Management for Writers, on January 15, 2018. In addition to the over 200 pages of lecture notes I’ve prepared in the past, I’m going to host a half-day live online event on Saturday, January 20, where we’ll go through the process of planning your calendar. Students will also get access to a private Facebook group so they can get time management help all year long. If you’ve already taken this class from me (through OCC or another group I’ve taught for), I’ll give you a $50 discount off the $150 price for lifetime access to the class. (I’ll post a link to the page here as soon as it’s ready, and I’ll mention it in my January 9th post as well.)

Speaking at EVA RWA Chapter

Finally, if you’re interested in getting a little time management help, but want it quick and fast and in person, I’ve been invited to speak at the East Valley Authors chapter of RWA in Azusa, CA, on Saturday, January 6, 2018. I’ll help you get prepared for a super productive year – as best I can in an hour! Haha! This is a great group of writers, and I’m sure it will be a fun morning. You should be able to get more information on the meeting on their Facebook page here: https://www.facebook.com/eastvalleyauthorsrwa

So, was I right? A lot of really exciting stuff coming up! I hope I get to see you at some of it. Remember, the podcast is free, so you’ll be able to listen to all the interviews and writing tips and encouragement every week! Whew! I have more work to do, so I better hop to it!

Have a very Merry Christmas, and incredibly Happy Holidays! God bless you in every way! 😀

Kitty Bucholtz author photo Kitty Bucholtz decided to combine her undergraduate degree in business, her years of experience in accounting and finance, and her graduate degree in creative writing to become a writer-turned-independent-publisher. She writes romantic comedy and superhero urban fantasy, often with an inspirational element woven in. WRITE NOW! Workshop, her website where she teaches and offers advice on self-publishing and time management, is under renovation. Look for the new website near the end of 2017!