Monday, November 30, 2015
Random Word
Eugene Ionesco: "A writer never has a vacation. For a writer, life consists of either writing, or thinking about writing."
Coda: \Koh-duh\noun\Italian/Latin 1745-55\ The concluding part of a literary work, especially a summary at the end of a novel. Also, in music and ballet - at the end of a composition or final part of pas de deux. Random House Dictionary
Congratulations to everyone who participated in National Novel Writing Month, National Memoir Writing Month, or endeavored to write every day in November. Keep writing and reading and thinking!
* * * * *
If you enjoyed this post, please subscribe to Read With Enthusiasm. It's easy. Look for follow by email at the top right corner of the blog. Submit your email address. You'll receive a follow up email to activate your subscription. Thank you!
Sunday, November 15, 2015
And away we go...
Roberto Saviano (Italian journalist): "Every hour seems pointless, wasted, if you don't dedicate your energies to discovering, flushing out, telling."
We're halfway through November - the month of novel writing (or essays or picture books or memoir). And today is I Love to Write Day.
Are you busy writing every day? Dreaming of impeccable nouns and verbs? Pleased when one perfect sentence is finally written?
Or are you regretting that story idea, ripping up the first draft, and cursing the idea that you ever thought you could write?
Welcome to the world of staring at blank pages and missed deadlines. But there's also the world of that aforementioned perfect sentence or impeccable noun.
If you're stuck or even on a glorious roll, try one of these three exercises from Now Write! Nonfiction, edited by Sherry Ellis.
*In 15 minutes, write about the first 15 years of your life. Don't edit or sabotage - just WRITE. Use a timer.
*Finish this sentence: "I'm the kind of person who _____________ but ______________.
*Find a street corner or a park; sit with eyes closed, and listen to the passing voices. Form an image of what someone looks like...open your eyes. Does your expectation meet what you see?
If you're really stuck, rewrite another writer's essay or chapter - would you finish "The Grapes of Wrath" in the same way? Or, go to an art museum and sit in front of a painting...write what is going on just beyond the frame, to the left (or right!) of the painting. For example, in Renoir's Dance at Bougival, what music is playing? Are other couples dancing? What conversation could be overheard?
There are almost countless books about writing...check your library (shelf 808) or book store. A few ideas:
* Now Write series - fiction, nonfiction, mysteries
* Writing Down the Bones - Natalie Goldberg
*The Writing Life (compilation of essays from National Book Award winners and finalists.
*The Art of Description - Mark Doty
*On Writing Well - William Zinsser
*Bird by Bird - Anne Lamott
*We Wanted to be Writers - Eric Olsen & Glenn Schaeffer
*Write Away - Elizabeth George
*Plotting and Writing Suspense Fiction - Patricia Highsmith
*On Writing - Stephen King
*A Field Guide for Immersion Writing: Memoir, Journalism, Travel - Robin Hemley
*The Discovery of Poetry - Frances Mayes
It's not too late to grab a pencil, take a deep breath and begin to write your story.
* * * * *
If you enjoyed this post, please subscribe to Read With Enthusiasm. It's easy. Look for follow by email at the top right hand corner of the blog. Submit your email address. You'll receive a follow-up email to activate your subscription. Thank you!
Roberto Saviano (Italian journalist): "Every hour seems pointless, wasted, if you don't dedicate your energies to discovering, flushing out, telling."
We're halfway through November - the month of novel writing (or essays or picture books or memoir). And today is I Love to Write Day.
Are you busy writing every day? Dreaming of impeccable nouns and verbs? Pleased when one perfect sentence is finally written?
Or are you regretting that story idea, ripping up the first draft, and cursing the idea that you ever thought you could write?
Welcome to the world of staring at blank pages and missed deadlines. But there's also the world of that aforementioned perfect sentence or impeccable noun.
If you're stuck or even on a glorious roll, try one of these three exercises from Now Write! Nonfiction, edited by Sherry Ellis.
*In 15 minutes, write about the first 15 years of your life. Don't edit or sabotage - just WRITE. Use a timer.
*Finish this sentence: "I'm the kind of person who _____________ but ______________.
*Find a street corner or a park; sit with eyes closed, and listen to the passing voices. Form an image of what someone looks like...open your eyes. Does your expectation meet what you see?
If you're really stuck, rewrite another writer's essay or chapter - would you finish "The Grapes of Wrath" in the same way? Or, go to an art museum and sit in front of a painting...write what is going on just beyond the frame, to the left (or right!) of the painting. For example, in Renoir's Dance at Bougival, what music is playing? Are other couples dancing? What conversation could be overheard?
There are almost countless books about writing...check your library (shelf 808) or book store. A few ideas:
* Now Write series - fiction, nonfiction, mysteries
* Writing Down the Bones - Natalie Goldberg
*The Writing Life (compilation of essays from National Book Award winners and finalists.
*The Art of Description - Mark Doty
*On Writing Well - William Zinsser
*Bird by Bird - Anne Lamott
*We Wanted to be Writers - Eric Olsen & Glenn Schaeffer
*Write Away - Elizabeth George
*Plotting and Writing Suspense Fiction - Patricia Highsmith
*On Writing - Stephen King
*A Field Guide for Immersion Writing: Memoir, Journalism, Travel - Robin Hemley
*The Discovery of Poetry - Frances Mayes
It's not too late to grab a pencil, take a deep breath and begin to write your story.
* * * * *
If you enjoyed this post, please subscribe to Read With Enthusiasm. It's easy. Look for follow by email at the top right hand corner of the blog. Submit your email address. You'll receive a follow-up email to activate your subscription. Thank you!
Monday, November 2, 2015
November
Ray Bradbury: "You must write every single day of your life. You must lurk in libraries and climb the stacks like ladders to sniff the books like perfume and wear books like hats upon your crazy heads...may you be in love every day for the next 20,000 days. And out of that love, remake a world."
Ray Bradbury (Fahrenheit 451, The Martian Chronicles) may have been a fan of National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo). The idea is fairly simple: write a novel in 30 days. Remember, I said the IDEA was fairly simple, not the action itself! If you've ever sat staring at a blank page or screen while your brain screams for the right verb or adjective, you know that "The Grapes of Wrath" or "The Metamorphosis" weren't penned over a weekend. Maybe a decade of weekends.
Writers write. Writers edit. Writers cry. Writers rewrite. Writers whine. Writers read. Writers write again. And sometimes the idea of not writing is even scarier than the blank page.
If you believe you have a story to tell, tell it. Maybe it's a novel or a poem, a picture book or an epic essay. Maybe it's a story about your family or your college years or the cute puppy that understands the true meaning of friendship.
This month is all about writing. Grab a pencil, take a deep breath and start at the beginning. Write your story.
Beatrix Potter: "There is something delicious about writing the first words of a story. You never quite know where they'll take you."
* * * * *
Readers will be thankful to find new books by Michael Connelly, David Balducci, Janet Evanovich, Stephen King, John Irving, Carly Simon, Jeff Kinney, Marissa Meyer, Giada De Laurentiis, Neil Gaiman, Mitch Albom, Rick Steves, Nora Roberts, James Patterson, Douglas Preston & Lincoln Child, Shonda Rhimes, Mary Higgins Clark, and Isabel Allende.
November is National Memoir Writing Month, National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo), Family Stories Month, National Family Caregivers Month, Picture Book Month, National Family Literacy Month.
November Days
1 - National Authors Day
1-7 - World Communication Week
5 - National Love Your Red Hair Day
9-15 - World Kindness Week
10 - Sesame Street Day
14 - World Pickle Day
15 - I Love to Write Day
16-20- National Book Awards Week
19 - Rocky & Bullwinkle Day
21 - Guinness World Record Day
22 - Mother Goose Day
24 - Dr. Who Day
27 - National Day of Listening
30 - National Math Awareness Day
* * * * *
If you enjoyed this post, please subscribe to Read With Enthusiasm. It's easy. Look for follow by email at the top right hand corner of the blog. Submit your email address. You'll receive a follow-up email to activate your subscription. Thank you!
Ray Bradbury: "You must write every single day of your life. You must lurk in libraries and climb the stacks like ladders to sniff the books like perfume and wear books like hats upon your crazy heads...may you be in love every day for the next 20,000 days. And out of that love, remake a world."
Ray Bradbury (Fahrenheit 451, The Martian Chronicles) may have been a fan of National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo). The idea is fairly simple: write a novel in 30 days. Remember, I said the IDEA was fairly simple, not the action itself! If you've ever sat staring at a blank page or screen while your brain screams for the right verb or adjective, you know that "The Grapes of Wrath" or "The Metamorphosis" weren't penned over a weekend. Maybe a decade of weekends.
Writers write. Writers edit. Writers cry. Writers rewrite. Writers whine. Writers read. Writers write again. And sometimes the idea of not writing is even scarier than the blank page.
If you believe you have a story to tell, tell it. Maybe it's a novel or a poem, a picture book or an epic essay. Maybe it's a story about your family or your college years or the cute puppy that understands the true meaning of friendship.
This month is all about writing. Grab a pencil, take a deep breath and start at the beginning. Write your story.
Beatrix Potter: "There is something delicious about writing the first words of a story. You never quite know where they'll take you."
* * * * *
Readers will be thankful to find new books by Michael Connelly, David Balducci, Janet Evanovich, Stephen King, John Irving, Carly Simon, Jeff Kinney, Marissa Meyer, Giada De Laurentiis, Neil Gaiman, Mitch Albom, Rick Steves, Nora Roberts, James Patterson, Douglas Preston & Lincoln Child, Shonda Rhimes, Mary Higgins Clark, and Isabel Allende.
November is National Memoir Writing Month, National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo), Family Stories Month, National Family Caregivers Month, Picture Book Month, National Family Literacy Month.
November Days
1 - National Authors Day
1-7 - World Communication Week
5 - National Love Your Red Hair Day
9-15 - World Kindness Week
10 - Sesame Street Day
14 - World Pickle Day
15 - I Love to Write Day
16-20- National Book Awards Week
19 - Rocky & Bullwinkle Day
21 - Guinness World Record Day
22 - Mother Goose Day
24 - Dr. Who Day
27 - National Day of Listening
30 - National Math Awareness Day
* * * * *
If you enjoyed this post, please subscribe to Read With Enthusiasm. It's easy. Look for follow by email at the top right hand corner of the blog. Submit your email address. You'll receive a follow-up email to activate your subscription. Thank you!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)