Tag: books

The 2013 Harvest Book Reading

Leave a comment

Mark your calendars!

http://www.manaspirits.org/2013harvestbookreading.html#.Uh1X_RaE5UN

Are you in the Phoenix area?
Do you want a great chance to meet other authors,
browse through books, and maybe find some great reads?

Come to The 2013 Harvest Book Reading!

It’s free. Parking’s free. Authors and their books. Fun.
The first 50 people to arrive get a $15 voucher good for one free book!
 
WHEN: Nov. 9th from 10am to 2pm
WHERE: South Mountain Community Library [Phoenix, AZ]

 

When you get there, tell them you heard about them from Editing Addict!
And let us know if you are going, we just might meet you there!

Writing Tips From Max Lucado, Best-Selling Author

Leave a comment

By Audra  Krell

“It was his first time attending a writing conference. He is a best-selling author who has written more than 50 books and has sold 65 million copies of his work. Yet it was also his first time speaking at a conference. Although he was on unfamiliar territory, New York Times best-selling Christian author Max Lucado spoke of the tools writers have, at the Writing for the Soul conference in Denver in February 2010. Below, find his best tips on subject, discipline and clarity for writers.
*   *   *   *   *
MAX SAYS: BE PASSIONATE
• Your subject must be so worthwhile that it keeps you riveted to your chair.
• Because of your passion, you write without ceasing until it’s finished.
• Strong topics and subjects cause writing to happen from the soul.
• Desire to work your writing through, so the reader doesn’t have to.
 
 
MAX SAYS: STEADY IS AS STEADY DOES
• Make a date night with your notebook. If you sit long enough, you’ll find something to write about.
• With disciplined writing time, you’ll grow to appreciate your work.
• Good words are worth the work.
• The only thing better than writing is when your words connect with the reader.
 
 
MAX SAYS: ON A CLEAR DAY
• Get your book down to one sentence. Every paragraph must pay homage to that sentence, or it doesn’t get to play.
• Every word must earn its place on the page.
• Write concise but not shallow.
• Revise for as long as you can.
 
 

Good writing will go where we never can, and reroutes the trajectory of life. It seeps into the farthest corners of the world and the depths of a reader’s soul. Readers let authors into their private moments by inviting the author to speak through their story. Although it’s a challenging invitation, it’s valuable and authors should accept. Clear thinking will deliver your words to their destination. Most places are far away, and require a long, long chair ride. Do not begrudge the hard work of getting it there, this generation needs the best books you can write.

For his final point, Max reminds the writer to let every part of the process work. “Sentences are like just caught fish. Spunky today, stinky tomorrow.” Let editing do its job. That way, you will put forth good, passionate writing, which will reach readers where they live.”

-by Audra Krell

Writing Non-Fiction…HOW?

Leave a comment
[found on niemanstoryboard.org]

“FINDING THE STORY

    • Every story has its surface-level meaning. Let’s say the surface story for “Titanic” is that a huge ocean liner goes down. But what is the theme of the movie? What is the real meaning of the story? Theme, at least in my view, is the underlying meaning of the story.
    • Stories can have several thematic strings, and especially powerful ones are layered in that way. As a writer, I think you want to figure out what is the most important one, the one that you want to spend the most time on.
    • When doing narrative, you have to sharpen your focus and figure out what your story is really about. Think about one set piece, performance, play or wedding – something that takes place within a set amount of time. There are also natural journeys like a road trip, or internal journeys, like addiction or abuse.
    • If you’re the narrator, we need to see you and to understand who you are.
    • When you’re trying to get readers to care, to get readers in on that, they have to see some of what you have seen. Try to figure out what it is that the reader really needs to know.
    • If you decide to write about deeply personal things, you have to go all the way. If there’s painful stuff you’re holding back, it won’t work. If you’re not ready to go there, that’s fine; maybe let the story sit for a while.

NUTS AND BOLTS

    • You want to engage the reader immediately – start in the middle of things.
    • As you add to the number of characters in your story, the more complicated it becomes, because the reader has to keep track of more people.
    • Once your language is powerful, your next step is to take it and pare it down, read it aloud and see when the sentences go on. When you find that, you either break up the sentence or get rid of adjectives and adverbs.
    • Be simple and clear; don’t let the beauty take over – which is not to say you shouldn’t have any beautiful writing. You want some beautiful sentences, but you don’t want to overdo it.
    • The more you focus your narrative on scenes, the stronger your narrative will become.
    • Really good narrative writers talk about limiting the number of flashbacks. Tom French diagrams flashbacks with loops and tries not to have more than one or two.
    • Metaphors are really hard to carry out. My advice would be to use them very sparingly. You can use so many layers of metaphors that you get confused. A story can be compelling without any overt metaphors.
    • One really useful thing to do after you write your first draft is to see what happens after you remove the first paragraph or two. Often times it’s the second paragraph that’s the real beginning.
    • Watch out for trying to explain too much.
    • You don’t have to put a bow at the end or always have a totally clean resolution. Is there a way for you to evoke an idea without necessarily saying it or explaining it? Is there an image or scene that can convey a feeling or idea to close the piece?”
[found on http://www.niemanstoryboard.org/2010/07/28/tom-huang-narrative-tips-from-mayborn-conference]