“Hook ’em with the lead. Hold ’em with laughter. Exit with a quip they won’t forget.” — Erma Bombeck
Month: January 2014
Erma Bombeck Writing Competition
Erma Bombeck Writing Competition is now open! Competition closes February 17, 2014 at 8 A.M. (EST) Capture the essence of Erma’s writings and you could win $500 and a free registration to the Erma Bombeck Writers Workshop! Personal essay must be 450 words or less. Submission guidelines click here.
Guest Blogger Amanda Socci: Getting Inspired by Food Boxes!
Guest Blogger Amanda Socci: Getting Inspired by Food Boxes! If there is one thing that writers thirst for, it is inspiration. We have a constant need for things to speak to us, create magic for us, and fill our souls with ideas and information that will make us burst out of our skin and onto the paper. Inspiration is everywhere, but sometimes, writers tend to overlook the obvious, hoping to find deeper meanings in things. Today, I’d like to take this opportunity to lighten things up a bit by talking to you about an unlikely source of inspiration that appears to be boring or meaningless, but really, is just the opposite. That’s right, I’m here to tell you that food packaging is a friend to writers. All kinds of food packaging is interesting, but most specifically, I’d like to chat about cereal boxes. When you go grocery shopping, are you…
Fantasize for a moment. . . Prompt #35
Fantasize for a moment. Money is no object. Time and place are no object. Give yourself an imaginary gift. What would it be?
WRITER ADVICE – 9th FLASH PROSE CONTEST
B. Lynn Goodwin’s Writer Advice seeks flash fiction, memoir and creative non-fiction running 750 words or less. Enlighten, dazzle, and delight us. Finalists receive responses from all judges. DEADLINE: April 18, 2014.
Guest Blogger Patti Trimble asks, “Who cares . . .”
Guest Blogger Patti Trimble asks, and answers, “Who cares if I write?” Sometimes I ask myself, “Who cares if I write, who basically gives a damn anyway?” Then I remember this is a real question that should be asked with a radical change of voice. Who DOES care if I write? Exactly who am I writing for? Writing is a mode of conversation: If I don’t know who I’m talking to, it hardly makes sense to speak. Once, on a beach, not in this country, I watched twenty men pull in a surf net. At least that’s what I thought they were doing. For several hours I watched them pull—knee-deep in surf, hauling in two fat ropes that disappeared into the sea. As they inched backwards up the slope, one man jumped up; then some young people ran down to help pull. The town was into it because it was…
It’s time to . . . .
It’s time to leave behind the beliefs that limit us and embrace the creative beings we truly are. —Suzanne Murray Join Suzanne in one of her many fabulous writing workshops, or personal coaching, or EFT. Yosemite Spring Retreat April 4 – April 6 Journey to the west of Ireland The Heart of Writing – a four week coaching package EFT (Emotional Freedom Techniques) Check out Suzanne’s Blog for ideas on writing, creativity and life coaching.
Twelve years old . . . Prompt #34
Write about your favorite thing to do when you were twelve years old. You can respond from your personal experience, or answer as your fictional character would answer.
What surprises me . . . Prompt #33
What surprises me . . .
Jodi Picoult writes about difficult themes with the grace of . . .
Jodi Picoult writes about difficult themes with the grace of a prima ballerina. In The Storyteller she takes on holocaust survivors, German SS guards and how generations are affected. Picoult knows how to keep readers turning the pages and how to write unforgettable stories. Characters’ lives are intertwined in The Storyteller as Picoult deliciously reveals details. Sage is a baker with a secret that haunts her and taunts her with her facial disfigurement. Josef may, or may not, be who he appears to be. Is Leo a knight in shining armor, or is he a troublemaker? Will Sage learn her grandmother’s story? All questions are answered by story’s end, of course, as well as they mystery of Ania and Aleks. Here are a couple of tantalizing excerpts. “Making bread is an athletic event. Not only does it require dashing around to several stations of the bakery as you check rising…