The Write Spot Blog by Marlene Cullen

Tag: The Write Spot Blog

  • Warm-ups

    You have ideas what to write about. But how do you get started? Do you sit at your computer, fingers poised above the keyboard . . . ready. . . but your mind swirls, goes blank. . . at a loss how to get started.

    How about starting your writing time like many famous author do? With warm-ups, using writing prompts.

    There are many blogs and websites with ideas for writing. One of them is my interactive blog, The Write Spot Blog. You can post your writing (~600 words) and receive comments on your writing.

    You can also use prompts posted on my Facebook Writing Page and writing prompts on my website. http://www.thewritespot.us/writingprompt.html

    The joy of writing freely . . . that’s what these prompts are about.

    How do you start your writing time? What are your rituals? Your writing habits?  Or, do you Just Write?

    Lola.200

  • Favorite food or drink. Prompt #99

    Write about your favorite food or drink and the last time you had it/them.

    Meals from the heartPhoto of fruit salad, prepared by Meals From The Heart at the French Market in New Orleans.  If you go there, go to this Cafe. Seriously good food. The BEST gluten-free crabcakes!

  • Life is just a . . . Prompt #98

    Today’s prompt:  Life is just a . . .

    Set your timer for 15 minutes and finish the thought. . .

    Life is just a . . .

    cherries

  • A man opens his mail box and finds. . . Prompt #96

    Today’s writing prompt is inspired from the September 2014 issue of Writer’s Digest magazine.

    “A man opens his mailbox to find an envelope containing a set of instructions.”

    Set your time and write for 20 minutes.  Set it aside for twenty minutes. Then read. Tweak, make a few changes, but not too many. The energy from that first and fast writing is usually spot-on.

    Write a short story of 750 words or fewer based on this prompt and enter Writer’s Digest Contest #60.

    Send your story using the online form at writersdigest.com/your-story-competition or send via email to yourstorycontest@fmedia.com (entries must be pasted directly into the body of the email; attachments will not be opened).

    DEADLINE: August 25, 2014

    IMG_1453

  • Unsolicited submissions = fossil fuel for Barrelhouse

    “Thanks for thinking of us as a home for your work! Unsolicited submissions are the fossil fuel that keeps the Barrelhouse moped puttering along on the side of the literary highway.” — Barrelhouse

    BarrelHouse:

    •  an independent non-profit literary organization.
    •  bridges the gap between serious art and pop culture.
    •  a biannual print journal featuring fiction, poetry, interviews, and essays about music, art, and the    detritus of popular culture.
    •  a web site that regularly posts new short fiction, nonfiction, interviews, and random stuff.
    •  produced by writers for readers who are looking for quality writing with an edge and a sense of humor.
    •   offers 8-week online workshops where writers get the straight dope on their work.
    •  wants to be your weird Internet friend. You can also follow Barrelhouse on Twitter and Facebook for all the latest jibber jabber from Barrelhouse, our contributors, and the indie lit scene.

    BarrelHouse accepts submissions through a Submittable.com account only. No previously published work; simultaneous submissions are OK. Submit one piece of fiction or nonfiction at a time, or up to five poems in a single document. Essays must be pop-culture related.

    Barrelhouse

     

  • Guest Blogger Maria Murnane reveals her secret to getting past the sticky parts.

    I recently read a blog post by Maria Murnane at She Writes and asked Maria if I could share it with you. She graciously said yes.

    Maria writes:

    I’m currently working on my seventh novel, and one of the most valuable lessons I’ve learned about the writing process is when to hit pause on a particular scene/sentence/description and move on. If you’re a perfectionist or Type-A personality, that can be hard to do, but it’s extremely important. Trust me.

    I use all caps to keep me focused on progressing the story.

    When I was writing my first novel, if I wasn’t sure where to take the story next, I would spend countless hours tweaking, editing, refining, and tinkering the words I already had written. Where did that get me? Nowhere! The problem with spending too much time on a particular area of the book is that you aren’t moving the story forward, and if you don’t move the story forward, you will never finish the book. I’m convinced this is why it takes some people 10 years to complete the first draft of a novel. They work so hard making every sentence perfect that it takes forever to get to the finish line.

    A good trick I’ve learned is to use the ALL CAPS function. My current manuscript is filled with notes in ALL CAPS such as:

    • WRITE SOMETHING FUNNY HERE
    • FLESH OUT THE DESCRIPTION OF THIS RESTAURANT
    • ADD IN SOMETHING HERE ABOUT WHY THEY GOT DIVORCED
    • FIX THIS- SOUNDS WEIRD
    • MAKE THIS DESCRIPTION BETTER
    • DOES THIS MAKE SENSE?

    It would be easy to spend days, if not weeks working on the above issues, but at the end of the day, they are details that aren’t critical to the story. If I want to finish the novel, my focus has to be on progressing the story. 

    Once you finish the first draft, then it’s time to go back and fix all the problem areas you’ve put in ALL CAPS along the way. That’s where the fun begins, because you know you’re in the home stretch!

    Maria Murnane six book coversBooks by Maria Murnane

     Note from Marlene: I was so inspired by Maria’s wisdom and fun attitude that I signed up to receive her blog posts in my email inbox. Click here to read some of Maria’s inspiring posts. You can also sign up to receive The Write Spot Blog posts in your email inbox (scroll down, look on the right side for the sign-up box).

    Maria Murnane.2Maria Murnane is the best-selling author of the romantic comedies Perfect on Paper, It’s a Waverly Life, Honey on Your Mind, Chocolate for Two, and Cassidy Lane. She also provides consulting services on book publishing and marketing. Click here to learn more about Maria and her consulting services. 

    Katwalk, Maria’s latest book, will be released August 12th.

    To order a copy of any of Maria’s books, please click here.

    This blog post originally appeared on CreateSpace.com. Reprinted with permission. © 2014 CreateSpace, a DBA of On-Demand Publishing, LLC. All rights reserved.

  • Jiffy Pop! . . . Prompt #92

    Today’s prompt. . . look at the photo and write whatever comes up for you.

    Jiffy Pop!

    Jiffy Pop

  • It doesn’t matter whether the story is set in the present day, 100 years ago hence, or . . .

    “It doesn’t matter whether the story is set in the present day, 100 years ago hence, or in a place that has never and could never exist outside the pages of a book: The writer’s job is to present an utterly convincing and wholly seamless world,” Simon Morden, author of fantasy novel Arcanum. — The Writer Magazine, July 2014

    Ireland Countryside. Jim C. March

     

     

    Photo by Jim C. March

  • “I just want to stay authentic and keep dreaming my dreams.” — Katy Perry

    “A lot of times I write these songs because I need to reinspire myself,” Katy Perry, in the July14, 2014 issue of People magazine.

    “I need to find my voice again. I need to be heard.”

    How about you? Are you writing to be heard? Is anyone paying attention? We are. . . here at The Write Spot Blog.

    Choose a prompt and then write. Post your writing on The Write Spot Blog. Maybe the person who most needs to hear what you have to say will be reading.

    Katy Perry“I just want to stay authentic and keep dreaming my dreams.” — Katy Perry

    Me too, Katy, me too~!

    Let’s gather ’round the table, put pen to paper or fingers on keyboard and Just Write!

  • Stroll down memory lane . . . Prompt # 81

    Today’s writing prompt is inspired by Rebecca Lawton’s May 26, 2014 blog post, which begins:

    “Candles of buckeye blossoms and their subtle fragrance have always confirmed the return of summer. Seeing them this week reminded me that certain sights, sounds, and smells trigger strong memories. The whisking sound of a broom on stairs recalls family vacations at the lake, where our host rose early to sweep fallen live oak leaves. The musky scent of open water reminds me of being on a raft enjoying the primal sensations of floating a muddy river. The first bars of a Beatles song bring back the excitement of junior high school dances. Sipping tequila reminds me of kayaking from Loreto to La Paz on the Sea of Cortez.”

    Click here to read the rest of the post.

    Writing Prompt: Stroll down memory lane . . . pause when a remembered event causes a visceral reaction: you might feel a sensation in your gut . . . write about that event, using sensory detail.

    You can use the Summer Prompt as a starting place. Not the “how I spent my summer vacation” September school essay. Focus on detail . . . using sensory description in your writing. Capture that musky lake smell, the charred wood campfire smell. Go with tactile detail: the sticky marshmallows on your fingers, the feel of a rough floor on your bare feet, the bright sun fighting closed eyelids. Wake up! Go deep in your writing. Reach out and capture those feelings. . . whatever they are.

    BuckeyeAfter you write, take a look at the responses to Prompt #77    (scroll down) . . . folks used wonderful detail writing about summer.

    Join us! Write your freewrite. Post your writing on The Write Spot Blog.