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Fortitude - A Daily Magazine for Being Human: They accept any pieces of original writing. I wonder if it's worth submitting a few of my short pieces there. If they make the front page, I'll get $10 for them.
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Writing Words - writing it is the only way of getting it written
There's some people that get it, and some people that don't. The people that don't just can't understand the people who do. The people who do can't understand the people that don't. What is it? It's the thrill you get from the written word.
I have it. Chances are most of the people in Orble do, too. If not, why are you here. Go and find something you enjoy doing.
So what is it that makes the written word so fascinating to some people? Why do some people love to read and others don't?
I think part of it is just how we are wired. One of my sons loves to read. He'll sit there for ages with a book. If I buy him a book I need to wait until I get home to give it to him, or he'll start looking at on the way. The other one isn't too interested. However, he can't read yet. Maybe it will develop later on.
Part of it is also the way we are brought up. My mother was a librarian and I was surrounded by books at an early age. She also kept lots of her own books from her childhood and these were passed on to me and my sister. I was shown that books were fun, interesting and entertaining. I saw books as valuable things that could lead you into another world.
I have my reading preferences, but when you have that thrill of the written word, you will read anything. Good writing is obviously better to read than poor writing. But anything written has the power to capture you and hold you. I feel sorry for the people who do not have that.
One thousand years ago in Europe, most of the people who read were either monks or priests. And the main reason people had for reading was to study the word of God. As more and more people learnt how to read, the reasons for reading grew. People read to study or become informed. People read to correspond with other people. Through reading, people gained an understanding of the world around them and were given the opportunity to see different ideas.
Reading in order to keep up-to-date with current affairs has been around for a long time, but the first newspapers allowed many more people to read for this reason. Novels brought with them the idea of reading for entertainment. In recent years, the internet has made it easier to read for the purposes of interacting with the writer.
There are so many different reasons to read that it would be impossible to list them all. However, these are my main reasons for reading.
1. to become informed about current events and issues.
2. to learn about history.
3. to be entertained.
4. to study the word of God.
5. to read ideas and thoughts that teach me about my faith and help me grow, spiritually.
6. to see the world through different eyes.
7. to appreciate good writing.
8. to hear a person's point of view.
9. to learn how to do a specific task.
10. to better understand various forms of writing.
11. to research material in my work.
12. to interact with other writers.
13. as part of my editing and proofreading work.
There are probably other reasons, but this is what I've come up with today. However, I think my main reason for reading is to think. I don't want to just mindlessly absorb words on a page. I want them to affect me and to make me think about what they mean to be. Even if I'm reading to get information, I want to spend some time thinking about how that information affects how I see the world. I don't care what the form is so much. It can be a blog, a novel, an article or a non-fiction book. But I like to read, so that I can think.
What about you? Why do you read?
One of things that some beginning writers struggle with is how long their written work should be? You often hear questions like "How long should a short story be?" or "How long should a novel be?" or "How long should an article be?" While there are certain guidelines and a rough estimation can be a good thing - particularly in the case of a novel - generally, a written work should be as long as it needs to be to do its work well.
The length of a short story can vary from 500 words to 10,000 words. There's not really any set word length for all short stories. When writing a short story, the best thing to do is to forget all about word count and just write the story you want to tell in however many words you need to tell it. Trying to write for a specific length can create problems for your fiction. You may try to drag on a short story that could be told more effectively in less words. Or you could cut down your short story and end up deleting valuable writing. When your short story is first written, word length should be your last consideration.
When you want to get it published, however, it becomes a different matter. Publications will usually have specific guidelines on the word count of their short stories. If you want to be published in that publication, then you will need to meet that word count. The best way to do this is to pick a short story that has a word count that either fits the guidelines or comes close. You can edit it if it is a little too long or a little too short. Don't take something that falls way outside the word count specified and try to make it somehow fit. It won't be good for your story. The only exception is if you write a short story and feel it would be a better story if it was told in far fewer words, or if you feel there is a lot you could add to make it a longer story.
How you view the length of your view will change, depending on the type of material you are writing. Novels will need to be at least a certain length, and novels that are written for Romance publications may need to meet strict word count guidelines. Articles will often be written for a specific publication, and the word count will reflect their guidelines. Work that is written for the internet is usually shorter than material written for print publications. But don't let these guidelines have a negative impact on the work you want to write. Write what you need to. Use as many words as it takes. If the word count doesn't suit your intended publication, then write another piece that does.
I just had a huge argument with my two little boys about their room. I've been telling them for three weeks now that it has to be tidied. They're not allowed any television or to go to their friends house until the job is done. I've tried offering rewards (if you tidy that area there, we'll have an icecream). I've tried yelling - which never works, but every so often I feel compelled to try it. I've even tried praying to God to please let us see the floor in their room again, because I really miss it and I've forgotten what it looks like. But their room is still a mess.
Now they have an issue with me about all the things they can't do. Their friend comes over and asks them to play and they cry when I say "Not until your room is tidied". They cry when I switch off the television in the middle of their favourite program. Why don't they understand that if they just got on with it and tidied their room then all these privileges would be returned?
But they don't get on with it. They make excuses. They sit in their room and do nothing. They complain that they are too tired or too sick or too busy. They are so much like me.
One of my dreams is to publish a novel. I've published lots of short stories, but I haven't even finished writing a novel. I keep starting, but things always get in the way. I sit in front of the computer and play computer games (or check out the blogs on Orble!). I'm always too tired or too sick or too busy. Why can't I understand that if I just got on with it and started writing, eventually my novel would be finished?
I have a fear that I will reach the end of my life and still will never have written a novel. The way it's looking at the moment, there's probably a good chance of that happening. Because in order to write a novel, I actually have to start writing it. No more excuses! Just get on with it and write!
I think my kids feel that if my put off tidying their room long enough, eventually they won't have to do it. Maybe they think it'll tidy itself. Maybe they think I'll do it for them. (I won't!). But nobody is going to tidy their room. If they want their privileges returned, they have to do it themselves.
If I want my novel written, I need write it. It won't write itself. Nobody else is going to do it for me. I'm the one who needs to just get on with it and write.
It's a common idea that a writer writes when he or she is sitting in front of a notepad or computer. When a writer wants to write, they get some writing material and start putting words to paper. When people complain that they do not have time to write, they are usually thinking about the time needed to do either one of these things.
But thinking time can be used for writing, too. In fact, most of my writing is actually done in my head. It is also when I think things over in my mind for a while that I feel ready to put pen to paper. I use those odd moments through the day to think of plots, characters and themes. I even start structuring sentences and making word choices during my thinking time.
The good thing about thinking time is that everybody has some. Everybody has moments that they can use to start thinking about their writing. Walking, doing housework, having a shower, waiting for a doctor and even sitting on a loo can be excellent writing/thinking times.
Another way that you can get more thinking time is to turn off all the background noises. Many people simply switch on a radio, a CD or the television without even thinking about it. Leave it off. Instead, think! You'd be surprised what you can come up with when you have nothing else to distract you.
If you do start planning your writing in your head, you may need some way of recording what it is you have planned. You can use a dictaphone, a notebook or a voice recorder function on your mobile phone. Or if you're just tossing possibilities around, you may feel you have no need to write anything down until you get to your computer.
There's only one problem with doing your writing in your head. I now no longer have a good excuse to leave the housework undone. After all, I can write when I'm doing it.
Most beginning writers start only with a burning desire to write. They feel as though they have something to say and they want to get their words onto paper. As time passes, however, they begin to wonder how they can make money from their writing. Eventually, they may start to write only for the money, forgetting about what drove them to write in the first place.
The internet is a good example of this. It was once filled with writing wanna-be's, filling the internet with written works just because they wanted someone to read them. Now, it seems you can't write anything for the internet without thinking about how to pull in the traffic and how to make money off the traffic you pull in
[ Click here to read more ]
Fortitude - A Daily Magazine for Being Human: They accept any pieces of original writing. I wonder if it's worth submitting a few of my short pieces there. If they make the front page, I'll get $10 for them.
Xomba - another site where you can use your Adsense. Check it out or ask me about it
[ Click here to read more ]
There are many writers out there who could not function without writing a detailed plan. However, there are many others who refuse to plan anything. What is the best way to go for a writer? Should you or shouldn't you plan?
Like most other things, planning your writing is a matter of preference. There are good points and bad points for both, and you need to see which method works best for you. Don't feel like you have to write a detailed plan if you hate the thought of planning. On the other hand, if you want to write a plan before you begin your writing, then this is what you should do
[ Click here to read more ]
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