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Drawing Sounds

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POST CARDS FROM THE MUSE

 

Drawing Sounds

By Nandy Ekle

 

Several years ago (ten? fifteen?) We watched a movie called The 13th Warrior. Made from a book by Michael Crichton, it’s the story of an Arabian man who was exiled for having an affair with the wife of an influential noble. He is sentenced to be an ambassador to Northern Barbarians and through a series of events, he is banded with a tribe of Norse Warriors.

In the beginning of the story language is a curious barrier. He wants to understand the culture, but without understanding the language he cannot learn about their way of life.

He tells of traveling with these strangers and paying close attention to the sounds they make until their language begins to make sense to him. Today we call that immersion learning. As he begins to learn their tongue, they are also learning about him. Finally all the fog is cleared and they can then understand each other.

The main character is an educated man, while the Norsemen, one of them a king in waiting, are not. So once they are able to cross the language barrier, they all become friends and the young king in waiting asks a very interesting question.

“Can you draw sounds?”

Of course, he is asking if the ambassador can write. The Norseman wants to learn to read and write.

All these years later I still remember that question. Can you draw sounds.

If you think about it deeply enough you realize that all a spoken language is is sounds that we have assigned ideas to. Each sound is part of a bigger sound we call a word. When we write words we are writing symbols assigned to those sounds. Learning a new language is simply reassigning those symbols to different sounds.

As a student of court reporting and shorthand, I had to learn, in a sense, a different language. Well, it was the same sounds representing the same ideas, but the written symbols were different. And actually, the type of shorthand I learned was the same symbols, just in different orders.

Then I make myself even dizzier by wondering who decided which symbol would represent which sound? This line of thinking can go on and on and on . . .

This is one of the things I love about words.

Congratulations. You have just received a post card from the muse.

Think About It and Become Inspired

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Think About It and Become Inspired

By Rory C. Keel

Recently I found myself bogged down in writing my Novel. My first thought was that I had lost my ability to write. However, I seem to be able to spell and put a sentence together and my computer still functions. My fingers are flexible enough to hold a pen write on the reams of paper I have so what’s the problem, the lack of inspiration.

Inspiration

Inspiration doesn’t fall from the clouds nor is it mystical but it is a product of action.

When we feel inspired, it’s because we’ve been thinking and meditating on information we have taken into our minds through our senses. We take all of this information and then twist it, shake it, mold it and place it into a certain order in our minds that makes sense to us.

We then become inspired.

This process is action that produces inspiration.

roryckeel.com

Submission Format

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Submission Format

By Rory C. Keel

 

When writing a novel or even short works, you will need to format your work.

There are many different format styles. When submitting your work, make a diligent effort to understand and follow any specific guidelines regarding formatting requests.

Below is a good standard format that will be accepted by most editors, agents, and publishers in the industry.

Page Information

  • Margins — 1.5 inches all the way around
  • Font — Courier, Courier New, or other clean monospace serif font from 10-12 pt.
  • Line spacing — Double-space
  • Paragraph indent — first line, 5 pt.
  • Header — right justified, contains the following information: Last name/ TITLE/ page#

A header does not belong on the cover page. Start headers on page one of the actual manuscript.

Cover page — depends on whether you’re agented or not.

      Unagented:

  • Contact information — Name and address, phone number and e-mail address in the top left corner of the page, single spaced, left-justified
  • Title — centered, just above the middle of the page
  • by — centered and one double-spaced line beneath the title
  • Name or pen name — centered and one double-spaced line beneath the word by
  • Word count — centered and rounded to the nearest thousand, one double-spaced line beneath your name or pen name

     Agented:

  • Title — centered, just above the middle of the page
  • by — centered and one double-spaced line beneath the title
  • Name or pen name — centered and one double-spaced line beneath the word by
  • Word count — centered and rounded to the nearest thousand, one double-spaced line beneath your name or pen name
  • Agent’s contact information — Name, business name, mailing address, phone number (e-mail address if you have the agent’s okay first), left justified, single spaced, bottom of the page

First page

Header — should be in the upper right-hand corner of the page, and page number should be 1.

  • Chapter header — can be anywhere from one to six double-spaced lines down from the top of the page, and can be centered or left justified. You can title your chapters, or just write Chapter One or Chapter 1.
  • Body text — drop down two double-spaced lines to begin your story.
  • Scene breaks — drop down two double-spaced lines, insert and center the # character, drop down two more double-spaced lines, and begin your new scene.

Subsequent chapters — start each chapter on a fresh page. Keep chapter formatting and titling consistent with your first chapter.

Happy submitting,

Roryckeel.com

 

The Query Letter

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The Query Letter

By Natalie Bright

www.nataliebright.com

The more I write and study markets, the more I’ve come to appreciate how useful a tool the QUERY LETTER really is.

A good query letter contains so many things: enticement, introduction, story hook, business savvy, word count, genre, reflection of your work, title, key elements of your story, publication history, affiliations…the list is endless. All of this in one succinct page. Sometimes I spend days, even weeks on editing just one query letter.

Here’s the basic information that I use for query letters, written in as few a paragraphs as possible:

1)    Where did you learn about the opportunity.

2)    What are you submitting; word count, genre, theme, hook

3)    What makes you the best person to write this particular story

4)    Brief list of published works (if you don’t have any to list, leave this blank). Don’t make this hard for editors by saying, “check my website…” Make this easy and pleasant for anyone who reads your query.

5)    For nonfiction, a list of sources is sometimes requested.

6)    All of your contact information. I usually go overboard on this and include email, fax, home, cell and office phone numbers, and mailing address. However they want to contact me, I am available.

Example with Positive Result

Here’s the email I wrote to APPLESEEDS Magazine, in response to a callout for submissions. The article is based on the monthly theme (which I restated for clarification) and includes approximate word count and sources cited. I reviewed their guidelines carefully in the market listing and again on their website.

Query / Who Did What on the Frontier

Title: The Legendary Cowboy

Noted bibliographer and western author, Ramon Adams, said, “The cattleman and his cowboys have been the men who most persistently pushed the frontier farther west preparing the way for civilization.”  An estimated 20 million head were driven to the railheads for shipment to eastern packing houses in the mid 1800’s.

Based on information in Children’s Book Insider for your consideration, my 600 word article will expel the myths and convey the truth about the brutal life of the American cowboy. The basic realities of working, eating, and sleeping under endless skies of the frontier will be explained in a fun, upbeat style.

In addition to my research as an historical author and from resources listed below, the article will be based on my personal experiences. My husband and I run a cow-calf operation on one of the oldest ranches in Texas.

My work has appeared in numerous publications including Chicken Soup. A few selected clips are attached. In addition my short story, “A Cowboys Christmas Blessings” was chosen for the anthology, WEST TEXAS CHRISTMAS STORIES, coming in October from Abilene Christian University Press. My novels are represented by Mr. Stephen Fraser, who is currently shopping my historical western for middle grades.

Today the traditions and legend of the American cowboy lives on, and continues to hold a fascination for both children and adults alike. Thank you for your consideration. 

Sources include:

Adams, Ramon F., Cowboy Lingo, Houghton Mifflin Co., (1936) 2000.

Editors of Time Life Books, The Old West series, The Cowboys and The Ranchers, Time Life, Inc., New York, 1973.

Molton, Candy, The Writer’s Guide to Everyday Life in the Wild West from 1840-1900, Writer’s Diget Books, 1999.

Ward, Fay E., The Cowboy at Work, University of Oklahoma Press (1958) paperback edition 1987.

It’s Good to Be Published!

The query was sent in May 2013 resulting in an email from the magazine editor with specific details about the slant of the article in August. A contract was forwarded upon my acceptance with a one month deadline of September 2013. “A Cowboy’s Life” appeared in the March 2014 edition of APPLESEEDS, and payment was received three months after publication.

This is not a fast-paced business, and everyone works at a different schedule. Most magazine staffs work six months or more ahead of publication date. If you’re working on a holiday story, think about submitting those in the spring, for example. For an anthology, I heard back within the same week of submission, while on the other hand a contract hit my email inbox from Chicken Soup over a year after submitting my story. Keep good submission records. It’s crazy out there but there are opportunities for hard-working writers.

Happy writing and thanks for following WordsmithSix!

One Last Read

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Outtakes 158

 

One Last Read

By Cait Collins

 

My memoir, First Love; Forever Love is almost ready to go to my beta readers. While my critique group has read every chapter, the beta readers will read the entire work. These three ladies are as important as the critique group. And for that reason, I choose them carefully. They must be objective. I can’t afford readers who pat me on the head and tell me how wonderful I am. I need someone who will be honest and respectful in their reviews. Telling me where I’ve made mistakes is vital to presenting a finished product to agents and editors.

A final reader can more easily catch errors in the continuity. The hero may have brown eyes in chapter one, and blue eyes in chapter five. These inconsistencies are not as noticeable when critiquing individual chapters. However, when read as a complete work, they prompt a red flag.

When the work is read cover to cover, the reader can better judge the flow of the story. They can pick up on the pacing. Is chapter two slower and heavier than the other chapters? Are there too many short, choppy sentences, or are prepositional phrases over used?

Finally, does the story progress to a logical conclusion? Are scenes contrived to create the intended climax and end? Does author intervention skew the story line and ending?

A good beta reader may not fully understand why a scene doesn’t work; she just knows it is not right. By honestly conveying her unease, the author has a chance to take an objective look at the scene, and rework the chapter. With the beta readers’ final critique, the writer makes a last rewrite prior to writing the synopsis and the query letter.

The author’s final read is his assessment of his writing and the quality of the project. His reading must be just as objective as the critique group and beta readers’ perspectives. He must decide if the story is as good as he can make it. He must resist the temptation to over-write and as a result damage the project. Like a parent, the writer must now give wings to his creation. He must submit the work and move on to the next project.

Submission Format

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Submission Format

By Rory C. Keel

 

When writing a novel or even short works, you will need to format your work.

There are many different format styles. When submitting your work, make a diligent effort to understand and follow any specific guidelines regarding formatting requests.

Below is a good standard format that will be accepted by most editors, agents, and publishers in the industry.

Page Information

  • Margins — 1.5 inches all the way around
  • Font — Courier, Courier New, or other clean monospace serif font from 10-12 pt.
  • Line spacing — Double-space
  • Paragraph indent — first line, 5 pt.
  • Header — right justified, contains the following information: Last name/ TITLE/ page#

A header does not belong on the cover page. Start headers on page one of the actual manuscript.

Cover page — depends on whether you’re agented or not.

      Unagented:

  • Contact information — Name and address, phone number and e-mail address in the top left corner of the page, single spaced, left-justified
  • Title — centered, just above the middle of the page
  • by — centered and one double-spaced line beneath the title
  • Name or pen name — centered and one double-spaced line beneath the word by
  • Word count — centered and rounded to the nearest thousand, one double-spaced line beneath your name or pen name

     Agented:

  • Title — centered, just above the middle of the page
  • by — centered and one double-spaced line beneath the title
  • Name or pen name — centered and one double-spaced line beneath the word by
  • Word count — centered and rounded to the nearest thousand, one double-spaced line beneath your name or pen name
  • Agent’s contact information — Name, business name, mailing address, phone number (e-mail address if you have the agent’s okay first), left justified, single spaced, bottom of the page

First page

Header — should be in the upper right-hand corner of the page, and page number should be 1.

  • Chapter header — can be anywhere from one to six double-spaced lines down from the top of the page, and can be centered or left justified. You can title your chapters, or just write Chapter One or Chapter 1.
  • Body text — drop down two double-spaced lines to begin your story.
  • Scene breaks — drop down two double-spaced lines, insert and center the # character, drop down two more double-spaced lines, and begin your new scene.

Subsequent chapters — start each chapter on a fresh page. Keep chapter formatting and titling consistent with your first chapter.

Happy submitting,

Roryckeel.com

 

Quotes on Writing

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Quotes on Writing

By Natalie Bright

You can’t wait for inspiration. You have to go after it with a club.
–JACK LONDON

The most valuable of all talents is that of never using two words when one will do.
–THOMAS JEFFERSON

There are three rules for writing a novel. Unfortunately, no one knows what they are.
–W. SOMERSET MAUGHAM

Tears are words that need to be written.
–PAULA COELHO

Easy reading is damn hard writing.
–NATHANIEL HAWTHORNE

Nataliebright.com

Creative Writing Exercise

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Creative Writing Exercise
By Natalie Bright

The months of May and June have always been crazy for me. Instead of beating myself up about it, I’ve come to the realization that I most likely will not be engrossed in the old west world of my novel. Instead lengthy session at the keyboard, I use what little snippets of time I can snag to write blogs, short articles, research story ideas, and read writing books. Writing exercises are a good way to keep your skills and muse functioning, even though you can’t dig deep into the WIP.

In celebration of school ending and summer beginning, here’s a great writing exercise for you which will work for both short and novel length stories.

You will need several different colors of highlighters or colored pens.

1. Highlight or circle words which use the 5 senses
2. Highlight or circle dialogue
3. Highlight or circle descriptive phrases relating to place
4. Highlight or circle descriptive phrases relating to people

Were all 5 senses used?

Is dialogue spread throughout the story?

Are descriptive phrases spread throughout?

With a visual picture of your manuscript, you can determine necessary editing components. You should not have large segments of just dialogue or only description. This exercise was done at a writing conference, and I apologize for not making note of who taught the class, but I have done different versions of this over the years.

Wishing you time to write, write, write…

BATTLING THE BEAST

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BATTLING THE BEAST

I gaze into the eyes of the beast searching to find its soul. I am caught in the childhood game of “the first one who blinks looses,” yet he shows no emotion, no rising of brow, no blinking or shedding of tears, just a long menacing stare.

The creature’s leering eye grows brighter with every passing moment, seemingly intent on seeing the space of my existence. My vision is full of his sight, yet I see nothing.

I study his unrelenting look, my mind searching the far corners and deep recesses, constantly swirling, struggling to find some strategy, or weapon or even one simple word that might defeat my enemy and win this mind-numbing battle.

The desire to close my eyes tugs at the lids. The moisture surrounding my orbs in their sockets has become dry and I struggle against the urge to rub them. The creature shows no signs of weakening and continues to counter every glance.

Without my consent, sudden darkness is all I see. I blink. I am immediately torn between two emotions. First, relief. Moist droplets flood my eyes like waters of the sea crashing onto the shore. The fetters that once restrained the rubbing of my eyelids have now been unfastened.

And second, In the darkness of my blink, dread fills my mind as I wait for the wrath of my opponent to be unleashed. Or perhaps he has already struck with such a swift penalty that I didn’t feel the pain. In the deafening silence I dare to open my eyes. To my surprise I find that it was not I who blinked first, but the computer screen upon which I placed these words.

Rory C. Keel