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My thoughts on writing and other random things as they come up. |
| This is a blog where I keep my thoughts and daily comments about writing and WDC. |
| From the Chronicle of Higher Ed. http://chronicle.com/article/Poetry-Makes-You-Weird/136151/ Best from the overwhelmed, Sil |
| When I happen to think about it, I buy a lottery ticket. I buy one set of standard numbers that I select, and one random set (two chances). I choose power play, and the lottery ticket costs me $6.00. Today the clerk commented "When you can find hope for $6.00, you better take it." The world is full of people saying amazing things. I thought that was a really great quote. I'll have to write a poem about it. What are you hopeful for today? Happy Wednesday, Sil |
Yesterday I met my friend Linda (from memoir class) for brunch. We each had a mimosas (champagne and orange juice) and pancakes and talked about writing, art, and the community. It was AWESOME. I really needed a break and some good company. I had never had a mimosa before so it was an interesting experience. I felt like a proper, genteel southern lady. I keep trying to recruit Linda to WDC. Hopefully I'll talk her into it soon. She's a wonderful writer, with so many life stories and experiences to write about. I did get some Christmas shopping done after brunch. Not much, but some. And we put up the tree yesterday (finally). I hope everyone is having a great weekend! Best wishes, Sil |
The local writing group needed a webmaster, and I'm the only one with rudimentary skills, so I've added that to my plate. While I was at it I created a facebook page  for the group. This is kind of fun but a little scary. All the web creation I've done previously had easy templates. I'm going to have to create this one from scratch. Graphics are NOT my strong point.In addition to the upcoming Just Fiction series , we are working with William Bernhardt to develop a series of online non-credit writing classes through my institution. The idea was to create (6) classes just like the (6) workshops he is presenting in the classroom in the spring. We'll use the same material, supplement it with videos and discussion board, and allow open enrollment online. This will allow people who are unable to attend the in class workshops, or those who miss one, to pick it up later. We plan to start offering the online classes in October.It's an exciting project, but it's a boatload of work. And expensive! In other news, we're having a media day in Stillwater in March when we are doing TV and radio interviews promoting Just Fiction. How fun is that! I'm sure learning a lot with this project. My writing journey sure has positive influences on my career. On the other hand, my career is having negative influences on my writing journey. I have had almost NO time to write, and I've had to eek out time to do reviews and keep up with my blog and facebook posts for other writers. I'm putting in long days at work and working through lunch most of the time. I haven't got any Christmas shopping done. But I'm having fun! I'm hoping over Christmas break I'll have time to write and/or polish up a few things for OWFI. Hope all is well with all my friends. Best wishes, Sil Sil |
These things seem to keep dropping into my lap: http://www.rachellegardner.com/2012/12/free-webinar-7-secrets-of-effective-autho... Free webinar by a literary agent about author websites. Hope you can attend! Thanks |
My husband's horse of 25 years, Molly, got sick and died this weekend. The vet said he thought she had colic. I'm not sure that is what it was. The standard treatment for colic didn't work all that well - and 28 years old is pretty old for a horse. I was glad we were there with her though, and doing what we could pain management wise. My husband had Molly when we met, so she's been in the family longer than I have been. It was a pretty traumatic weekend. We're going to miss her. Back at work today and still 'snowed under' with things to do. Hope all is well. Sil |
| Jeanetta Calhoun Mish shared this link on facebook: "Kurt Vonnegut term paper assignment." . What an EXCELLENT idea for a term paper assignment. I love how he used letters as his form of instruction instead of the standard "first do this ...it's worth x points." What an awesome idea for a class! Hmmmm...as if I don't have enough on my plate with coordinating two upcoming classes, "Popular Fiction" and "Just Fiction." I am excited about reading Maass's book "Writing the Breakout Novel" for my upcoming class Just Fiction. I was looking for another book at the store yesterday and stumbled on to Maass's new book, Writing 21st Century Fiction. . It just came out in October. I read the first two chapters in the store, and again in the coffee shop. Really enjoy the book so far. Since I've started my new job, I have a constant focus on "how could I turn this into a class." I think we might be able to start some new online non-credit classes next year (this idea has me really excited). The Coursera model has taught me so much. I wonder if Maass would like to teach a MOOC (he probably already does if I was guessing.) Hope all is well with everyone, and have a great weekend! Best, Sil |
| I'm looking forward to the Woolgatherer's workshop tonight at 9 EST. We've been reading Anatomy of a Story and so far I like it a great deal. I also enjoy the discussion we have. It's a great group, and if you haven't already, consider joining up. I also read a great post today at Write Anything . It's about how we get so much more when we give, and I thought it set an appropriate tone for the upcoming holiday season. It made me think about my friends here, who are always ready to read and review my work. I can't tell you how much you mean to me. You push me to improve, and I need it.I hope you get something (other than a headache hehe) out of the process as well. Best, Sil |
This free webinar from Writer's Digest looked interesting, so I thought I would share it here with my friends. |
| I'm very excited to be working with William Bernhardt on a new series of non-credit classes called Just Fiction. . This series of classes will cover novel basics, kind of like Woolgatherers did with Larry Brooks Story Engineering. But in much more detail! I'll also get the chance to read "Writing the Breakout Novel" and the accompanying workbook during the course. My favorite part of this class is the affordability. You can pay per class, instead of paying for lot of them up front. I like the al la carte feel of it. We'll see how that works from an administrative standpoint. I hope everyone had a great holiday! Best, Sil So excited about all these writing opportunities! |
| I received some good news today. Mused, Bella online's literary journal, has selected my poem "The Painter" (For Ted Ramsay) for publication in the Winter Solstice issue. I was so excited to receive this news. Mused accepts poetry, fiction, non-fiction, art and photography. Mused is listed among the approachable markets on Duotrope with a 29% acceptance listing.One of my favorite things about the magazine is it's great poetry submission advice. . You can tell they really want to help writers succeed. I sincerely appreciated the time they took to put together some very helpful tips for beginning writers. I would recommend Bella online to anyone who is looking to publish in an electronic journal. Happy Thanksgiving! Sil |
| The Stillwater Writer's Group and the Public Library hosted Anna Myers yesterday. She's written mostly YA historical fiction, but she's got a picture book and an adult novel coming out (I don't mean ADULT adult, just a grown up book). It was fun to listen to her path to publishing. She spoke about many different things but the primary topic was about writer's voice. I also learned a lot about how the writer needs to be willing to 'step aside' and let the character take over. It's not about the writer, it's about the character and the story. How you almost have to give up yourself to be a vessel for the story. I'm not sure I'm doing credit to what she was explaining - but it was an interesting study in psychology. I never really thought about how many psychological sacrifices you have to make if you are serious about writing. I was aware of the ones where you might 'get hurt' if someone doesn't like your writing. But I wasn't aware of some of the rest. I guess this is what is meant by going deeper. She also suggested physically studying the structure of books you enjoy. Read them twice, once for the story, once to study the writing. Then - take them apart, (as in CUT THEM UP! EEK!). See how the author handles the rising action, where the put the climax and resolution. This related to how woolgatherer's was examining the Brooks method, so I got it, but I think Anna's method might work well for me. Hands on concrete visuals instead of abstracts. I really enjoyed listening to her, she's a very great speaker and a teacher at heart, so it was time very well spent. Blog updates are probably going to get few and far in between. I'm incredibly busy at work and the holiday season is coming up soon. Best. Sil |
My Dearest Sil, You are not writing very much. You keep telling yourself that you are thinking about writing. That things are 'gelling' in your mind. You are"marinating" the next big idea. Yeah, suuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuure. I know you keep thinking that all this reading, all these classes, all this book learning is going to translate into beautiful poetry or skillful prose. I know you think that someday, someday very soon - you will put a pen to paper and it will be magical, effortless. Things will start to click into place. But you know better. And ...Sil - YOU HAVE TO DO THE WORK. It's not going to be easy. You knew that. And it's not going to happen at ALL if all you do is THINK about writing. MOVE your brain, move your FINGERS. WRITE SOMETHING. And then realize that even though it's crap, at least it's on the page, and that is one step ahead of where you were yesterday. Staring at a crappy BLANK page. DO THE WORK Sil. Happy Friday. Your Muse |
When I started this writing journey, I admitted to myself that there would need to be sacrifices. I was willing to sacrifice my ego, for instance, in the name of progress. I'm not sure I've done that well at it, but I'm trying. But I've noticed something I'm not really excited about. Something has been sacrificed that I never intended to give up. The journey to become a better writer has made me a very picky READER. I've "put down" more books this year. I used to be able to finish almost everything. Now, it doesn't take much to meet my 'put it out of its misery' threshold. I want a good story, and I want it to be well written. I'm shocked at how many middle of the road books are out there. I'm shocked by how many of them I buy or check out at the library. And - I miss my blissful reading fog. I used to sail through a book without thinking about the writing. It was all about falling into the story. Now, I see how the prose could be tighter. I cringe over adverbs. I wince every time I come across a loaded dialogue tag. A quarter of the way through a poorly written book, my body is a mass of spasms. I LOVE to read. I'm passionate about reading. I read a lot. I would read all the time if I thought I could get away with it. Now that I am writing, I have less time to read. And I'm more demanding about what I will read. I know I'm not a better writer. I'm not published, they are. I do the same things they do. But I only notice it when THEY do it. And if someone had told me this would happen to me, I'm not sure I'd have been ready to make the sacrifice. I miss being able to read and enjoy - mediocre books. Best, Sil |
Today my boss and I are having lunch with Bill Bernhardt. .I'm hoping Bill will be interested in helping us put together a writing conference in Stillwater. I'm looking forward to meeting with him, and enjoying the great food at Taylor's dining. Have a great day, and Happy Friday. Sil |
| I'm having a busy day at work today, so I will keep this short. Found this very interesting article today and wanted to share it. I never thought about writing about zombies in exactly this light! .The important message was that writers can use what is 'hot' as a vehicle for getting noticed, and HOW to do that. I think the same might even be said for vampire or romance or erotica. But I've never really thought of it the way the author stated it in the zombie article. I may have to read a zombie novel this weekend. Best, Sil |
Today poetry is too much work. I'm listening to my Coursera class video, and they are disscussing Ron Silliman's Albany. .It's very interesting. But today, i just don't want to work that hard. I want to fall down into a warm fountain, and let the poetry waters flow over me. I want to recognize it is beautiful just because it is beautiful. I don't want to go down into the dirty coal mines and take a sledgehammer, then a pick, into a piece to discern meaning. I understand that there is much to be gained from the work. I understand that sometimes the work is necessary to truly appreciate some poetry. But today, I'm just too tired. I want poetry that just is...poetry. Best, Sil |
| Tonight at Memoir II we are having a special guest, JC Hallman. . I'm getting the feeling I'm going to so many conferences and taking so many classes I'm not getting very much writing done. I think I'll take a break, and hold off on any more conferences till OWFI in May. I'm really feeling the need to write a quality short story. Wish me luck. Sil |
| I attended the Nimrod conference yesterday with my friend Linda. The trip was easy, and the University of Tulsa was easy to get to. They have a beautiful campus. There were about 200+ people at the conference, and I enjoyed the sessions. In the last session, I listened to a poetry panel by Philip Levine and Francine Ringold. I asked Philip Levine how he had developed into such a good reader. I know it was a developed skill because I listened to several of his earlier audio recordings on the web, and the difference between those and his readings now is huge. He said many years ago he attended a reading and afterwards, one of the other poets told him his reading was terrible. The author commented that he had a great voice, but his reading was just awful. So he went home and asked his wife, who a former actress, what he was doing wrong, and she replied that he wasn't leaving enough room for his voice to range (up and down on the tonal scale) naturally. In other words, he was starting at too low on the scale. After the seminar he signed books. I purchased the one that won the Pulitzer Prize and he signed it for me. Kind of neat. I appreciated that he came to Oklahoma and I hope he enjoyed his visit. But I left this conference thinking that I really am not ever going to be a poet. Maybe it's going to be enough for me to just enjoy other people's poetry. Happy Sunday! Sil |
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