Quotes

You cannot change the past nor control the future.

“Live in the present, since you cannot change the past or control the future.” — B. Lynn Goodwin Marlene’s Musings: Good advice for anyone, especially writers. Just do your best to be the most authentic writer you can be. Your truth and your genuineness will come out in your writing. Your poignancy, your humor, your unique “you-ness” will bring a freshness and honesty to your writing. Be your best self . . . who else can you be? Except from “Celebrate Your Uniqueness,” by B. Lynn Goodwin B. Lynn Goodwin is the owner of Writer Advice, www.writeradvice.com, which is currently holding its 10th Flash Prose Contest. She’s the author of You Want Me to Do WHAT? Journaling for Caregivers, and a YA called Talent, which Eternal Press will be publishing this year. Her short pieces have been published in local and regional publications. Lynn will be on a panel of…

Quotes

Your Story Is Buried Treasure.

“Writing is therapeutic. It saves lives. Your truths are eager to come out. Let them spill onto the page, and see what doors writing opens for you. Your story is buried treasure. One of the simplest, most private places to write is in a journal. It allows you to vent, delve into issues, and untangle messes. It lets you analyze or celebrate. It allows you to finish a thought without interruption. The journal validates your right to be who you are.” — B. Lynn Goodwin, “Celebrate Your Uniqueness” in Inspire Me Today. B. Lynn Goodwin is the owner of Writer Advice, which is currently holding its 10th Flash Prose Contest. She’s the author of You Want Me to Do WHAT? Journaling for Caregivers, and a YA called Talent, which Eternal Press will be publishing this year. Her short pieces have been published in local and regional publications. Lynn will be…

Guest Bloggers

Take Your Writing to the Next Level

Guest Blogger B. Lynn Goodwin talks about Taking Your Writing to the Next Level – A Look at Editing and Polishing So you’ve been inspired, found the time, and drafted a story or memoir that you really want to share with the world. Maybe you’ve even shared it with a critique group, or had a good friend read it to you so you could hear your own glitches. What do you need to do to take it to the next level and make it ready for publication?  Look at the content. Does everything contribute to the story you’re telling, or do you have extraneous material? Do your characters struggle, try, and give it their all? If not, is there a clear reason not to? Does that change before the end of the story? Now that you’ve drafted it, what is your story about? It might have several themes or messages….

Book Reviews

B. Lynn Goodwin – You Want Me To Do What? Journaling for Caregivers

B. Lynn Goodwin has written an excellent book with helpful writing prompts.  Her book, You Want Me to Do What? Journaling for Caregivers, is a wonderful resource for writers . . . a fabulous compendium of writing prompts. Lynn writes “The months and years devoted to caregiving can be vital, critical, limiting, and frustrating. They seem endless while you are in them. You Want Me to Do What? Journaling for Caregivers gives writing tips and over 200 sentence starts to help hassled and harried caregivers process their feelings.” I have used Lynn’s writing prompts in my writing life with great results. Lynn writes, “I began journaling steadily during my first year of ‘Mom Care,’ a name I invented when my mother refused outside help. Journaling let me vent, process, and keep my mouth shut at critical moments from 1994 through August 8, 2001.” B. Lynn Goodwin is the owner of…

Prompts

Today I feel . . .Prompt #20

Today’s prompt is inspired from You Want Me To Do What? Journaling for Caregivers (available on Amazon) by B. Lynn Goodwin, founder of Writer Advice,  promoting authors through interviews. Writer Advice also publishes experienced and emerging writers, showcasing fresh ideas and high quality writing. Prompt:  Today I feel . . .

Guest Bloggers

Guest Blogger B. Lynn Goodwin asks: What Would You Do With a Goal and a Deadline?

NaNoWriMo, www.nanowrimo.org, invites you to draft a 50,000 word novel in one month. I’m doing it for the second time, and I’m going for higher word totals than the 1667 suggested daily allotment. I just want this first draft out of my head. I want material to work with. Not a fiction writer? You can still achieve a 30-day goal with memoir, biography, or any other form of non-fiction thanks to author and writing coach Nina Amir’s WINFIN, http://writenonfictioninnovember.com/about-2/. WINFIN (Write Nonfiction in November) is “an annual challenge to create a work of nonfiction in 30 days.” The rules are simple: Decide what you’re going to complete and go for it. You can create “an article, an essay, a book, a book proposal, a white paper, or a manifesto” The program “operates on an honor system…no word counts logged in here. It’s a personal challenge, not a contest.” Simply describe…