The Wannabe's Journal for January 2012
Writing and sharing your stories with friends is like entering a secret garden. We welcome your visit.
Happy New Year everyone. I hope this new year brings good thoughts and inspirations, together with lots of writing energy. There are a number of very good writing seminars and competitions that will be held in the next few months and weeks. We had a good representation at our meeting this month. We had the opportunity to share the wealth of ideas and experiences that makes our little group unique and special.
What's New: Devoted to members discussing their latest pursuits and literary adventures.
Don P: Commented on the critiques that he has been receiving from his other writers group. Apparently the use of "that" has been appearing in his writing too often. At least that is the feedback he is receiving. I have a similar problem in my writing: staying in the correct POV for any story that I try to compose. That is why I have taken on this task for the group...gives me practice.
Don provided the group with a copy of a book which he recently purchased at a reasonable price at Barnes and Noble. The price is less than five dollars a copy. The Title is: "The Little Red Writing Book" by Brandon Royal.
He also recommended that we contribute a book to the Ohioanna Literary Collection in Columbus. They were founded in 1929 and have over 45.000 books of all genres. If you are a published, (sorry no self published books accepted) you may submit a copy of your book to the following address: Ohioana Library, 274 East First Avenue, Columbus, Ohio 43201.
Martha: Surprised us again.... She read a poem about Christmas. Here is a copy of the poem.
Chest Pain Christmas
Merry Christmas, my love!
No response
What is it?
A tightness in my chest!
Call 911?
Not now
Relax, breath deeply
It’s worse, Dial the number
Help arrives – 5 strong men
Questions, IV, monitor, medicine
A fast ride – no sirens, no lights
No traffic
ER – more questions, tests, vampires
Pill under the tongue – Relief!
You should stay
I will but not willingly
New hospital, luxurious room
Pleasant nurses
Christmas afternoon
Twelve visitors
Twenty four gift bags full
Joyous family, anxious laughter
“We love you, Grandpa”
Long night, uncomfortable bed, no pain.
Day two, no sign of dreaded heart damage
Angiogram scheduled
One more night
Tightness returns at sunrise.
Heart catheterization completed
Excellent outcome
No blockages – just spasms
New Medicine
No other treatment needed
Hugs and kisses all around
OK for now
Gratitude for many prayers
80th Christmas
A special one
Almost 2012 - Amen
Jude: She is still writing her memoir but has recently focused her energies on creating a Blog entry for a major publication on a on-going basis. "Crafting a Blog entry in three sentences.... that is an art in itself." She is also investigating opportunities where she will be a guest blogger on other writers and artists blog sites. She believes this will increase her platform exposure when she finishes her memoir and is ready to self-publish her book.
She currently blogs on her own Blog site: Sensuously Sixty at Blogspot(http://sensuouslysixty.blogspot.com/. Her blog site is currently in competition for one of the top blog sites.
Jude also recommended a new book by her fellow writer: Robin's recently self published book of photographs: http://www.blurb.com/bookstore/detail/2724962?utm_medium=social&utm_source=facebook&utm_campaign=bookstore-share
Don H. provided a group an update on the sales that the "Anthology on Christmas Memories" that was produced in early December. With only 8 days of marketing he was able to sell enough books to recoup half of the costs of producing the novel. The editing, formatting, cover design and limited marketing with TV appearance was very successful. Next year we will start the process of marketing and platform identity much sooner in the calendar year with posters, press releases and book signings.
All the authors appreciated the cooperation and support that the Special Education Department provided to our project. The whole project of creating this book was a great learning process for learning what is involved with self publishing. There have been a number of literary projects that were spawn as a result of "Self Publishing Class" which was taught in the spring of 2011. I know of four books that have been created by people who wanted to create either a memoir, children s book or a book of photos and prose.
Don attended the Chicago Book Fair recently and was interested in gathering information on other authors and anthologies. He proposed to the group the idea of publishing another anthology this year by the group. We are seeking input on a possible title(theme) for the book. Obviously if we have a title then we can create a poem or short story that relates to that particular topic. Some of the Titles that have been suggested: Granddhildren 101, Pets and Triumph's and Regrets. Please send me your suggestions for a title for our next collective anthology.
Don also told us the story about the little girl who was asked the name of her new dog. After repeated questions from the patient policeman she proclaimed: "Pincher-Biter" as the dogs new name.
Thomas: Still working on publishing a e book for the Kindle. The short story is about a relationship.
Shulamit: She is going to ask Matt Kish, the local artist who created a drawing for each pages of the novel: Moby Dick to attend a future meeting to discuss his project and what he is currently up to. http://www.pw.org/content/mobydick_in_pictures
She shared with us the feedback she had after teaching her class on photography in the fall. A good author or artists wants to generate a small storm of discomfort in the mind of the reader or viewer. Not everyone is going to agree with your style or message but that does not matter. Famous authors like "James Joyce" or "Ernest Hemmingway" did not care about what the critics thought. I have read many blogs from put down self-published books and their authors as second rate citizens in the literary. It kind of reminds me of my juvenile days when there was that group of students who thought they were cool and better than the rest. When it came to college the fraternities and sorieties took their place for self indulligence. It was like they had a secret on the rest of us. Today the literary word is having a tough time adjusting to the fact that ebooks are out selling the traditioal publishing book giants. Some Bloggers can get over themselves in that some authors do not need an agent and publisher to feel self-actualized and get as much satisfaction from selling 400 copies of their book.
The point here is "Confirm your audience and style".
Announcements:
Kindle Format 8 (KF8), the new format for Kindle, which allows you to take advantage of highlighting, colored text, text wrapped around images, bulleted lists, tables, and more.
Read more about it at: http://us.mg205.mail.yahoo.com/dc/launch?.partner=sbc&.rand=9md3u781lpr3d2. Createspace: As a member with Pro Plan, we're emailing to let you know that Pro Plan is being discontinued as of January 18, 2012. We're now offering industry-leading royalties, low costs on copies of your books and improved distribution options to all our members, free of charge.
The 2012 Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award entry period is open. Enter today!
Each Grand Prize winner will receive a publishing contract with Penguin, which includes a $15,000 advance. All Entries can be submitted through CreateSpace and must be received no later than February 5, 2012.3. Mad Anthony's Writers Workshop
The Mad Anthony Writers Conference
Presenter: Dr. Elizabeth Murray, Forensic Anthropologist
Presenter: Brenda Robertson Stewart, forensic artist specializing in facial reconstruction and mystery author.
Presenter: Gary Good, Bail Bond Agent
Presenter: Sergeant Tia (Pearson) Miller
Presenter: Justin Weber - board registered Medicolegal Death Investigator and Latent Print developer at the Hamilton County Coroner’s Office and member of the American Board of Medicolegal Death Investigators.
Registration Now Open
at www.writelikemad.com
The conference is a great price performer with excellent speakers and a chance to network with some talented people.
5. Writers Digest: Each year, Writer's Digest honors self-published authors with the Annual Self-Published Book Awards. We're proud to be in our 20th year of spotlighting today's self-published works. This could be your year. Whether you're a professional writer, a part-time freelancer or a self-starting student, here's your chance to enter the only competition exclusively for self-published books.
2012 Writing Competitions
Self Published AwardsDeadline: April 20, 2012
Our Next Meeting will be February 17th at 9 AM at UD's River Campus
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