Five Links 3/12/19 Loleta Abi

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Five Links 4/1/2/19

Loleta Abi

Writing:

1. https://thestoryreadingapeblog.com/2019/04/07/new-research-discovers-a-formula-for-creativity-by-ruth-harris/ “Genius is 1 percent inspiration and 99 percent perspiration—at least according to Thomas Edison.

The point is that writers (and geniuses) don’t work only when inspired. Much of the time, the reality is that writing a book or parsing the time-space continuum is a day-to-day slog.

Edison also remarked that he’d found 10,000 ways to fail.

Sound familiar?

Like Edison, we need to keep our radar operating whether we’re at our desk/in our lab—or not.

Usually we succeed, whether propelled forward by a deadline, word count or sheer cussedness.

But what about the times we’re out of gas or feeling burned out?”

2. http://booksbywomen.org/making-the-cut-by-b-lynn-goodwin/ “Ever wondered why you didn’t make the cut and weren’t a finalist in a contest? There could be lots of reasons. You have no control over the quality of other people’s submissions. All you can do is make yours as strong, professional, and accessible as possible.

I wanted to share some things that help me decide when I am picking finalists for Writer Advice’s Flash Contests. While other contest judges might not agree or might add additional criteria, this is a starting point for making a good impression in a contest.”

3. https://www.helpingwritersbecomeauthors.com/what-is-the-relationship-between-plot-and-theme/ “Sometimes plot and theme are confused as being basically the same thing. Other times, they’re viewed as so distinct they don’t even belong in the same discussion.

So which is it?

First questions first: is plot basically the same thing as theme? To some degree, the answer is yes. Or, at least, intuitive phrasing often links them.”

4. https://stevelaube.com/that-conference-appointment/ “You snagged one of those valuable 15-minute appointments with an agent or an editor at a writers conference. Now what? What do you say? How do you say it? And what does that scowling person on the other side of the table want? You’ve heard the reputation of that agent as being rough and gruff. What if you blow it?”

5. http://www.publishingcrawl.com/2019/04/08/beating-writers-block/ “When aspiring writers ask me for advice, the most common question I get is about overcoming writer’s block. I think perhaps the reason this question is asked so frequently is that more than one situation is given the label “writer’s block.” Obviously, writer’s block refers to not knowing what to write, but I think it can be broken down into three separate categories:”

Research & Fun Bits:

1. http://www.fantasybookcafe.com/2019/04/women-in-sff-month-2019-april-8-12-schedule-week-in-review/ “I’m excited that the eighth annual Women in SF&F Month is underway. Thank you so much to last week’s guests!

All guest posts for April 2019 can be viewed here, and here’s a summary of last week in case you missed any of the essays:”

2. https://annetterochelleaben.wordpress.com/2019/04/07/angel-messages-april-7-2019/

3. https://nicholasrossis.wordpress.com/2019/04/06/author-inspiration-and-this-weeks-writing-links-27/ “Some more excellent writing links by Staci.”

4. https://coldhandboyack.wordpress.com/2019/04/07/progress-brings-a-new-struggle/ “Today wound up being a decent writing day. For those keeping score, it came to 1850 new words.

My followers are all either writers, readers, or both and I’ve never hidden my author struggles from you guys. I figure if I’m facing some issues, you might be too one day. Maybe something I’ve written will help someone else eventually.”

5. http://jenanita01.com/2019/04/07/smorgasbord-blog-magazine-weekly-round-up-glenn-miller-roses-mexico-new-books-reviews-and-guests/ “The first was the nomination for the blog for the Versatile Blogger Award by Brigid Gallagher which I was very honoured to receive. I know that many bloggers are now award free. I quite understand, as when you are at full tilt, it is tough to take the time to respond to an award and also to draw up a list of willing nominees.

However… even after six years, I still get a kick out of awards and I have met so many wonderful bloggers through other people’s nominees, that it is well worth the effort. And also it is an opportunity to showcase newer bloggers who are still finding their feet or deserve to have some…”

Some Things More Serious:

1. https://beckiesmentalmess.blog/2019/04/07/%F0%9F%98%87april-7-2019-quote-of-the-day-my-thoughts/

2. http://beckiesmentalmess.blog/2019/04/08/%F0%9F%A4%97april-8-2019-quote-of-the-day-my-thoughts/

3. https://charlesfrenchonwordsreadingandwriting.wordpress.com/2019/04/08/the-path-to-genocide-starts-with-the-label-of-inhumanity/ “The Holocaust did not start with gas chambers, death camps and mass killings. It started with words. It started with calling Jews inhuman, comparing them with rats.”

4. https://scvincent.com/2019/04/08/notes-from-a-small-dog-a-catalogue-of-catastrophe/ “It hasn’t been the best of weekends around here, I have to say. All this getting up too early and going to bed too late is not good for us four-legses for a start. Neither is being left behind when she goes out every morning.

I used to be able to go with her sometimes… before my boy’s garden gates stopped closing properly… then I didn’t have to ~~sleep~~ sit at home worrying while she was out, wondering if she would come back at all… I mean, she’s always come back so far. Never leaves me toolong. But, you never know, do you? Once they are out of sight, anything could happen… and plenty of stuff has been happening around here!”

Teaser Fiction & Poetry:

1. https://amdobritt.wordpress.com/2019/04/06/o-you-winsome-devil-you/

2. https://rachelpoli.com/2019/04/07/short-story-sunday-259-look/ ““What do you see?”

Cory narrowed his eyes. He thought about what he saw. He thought real hard. Nothing was coming to mind though. He didn’t want her to think he was stupid, but there wasn’t anything that was popping into his head on what it could possibly look like.”

3. http://erikakind.me/2019/04/08/daily-kind-quote-892/

Book Reviews, Cover Reveals, & Author Interviews:

1. https://mjmallon.com/2019/04/06/welcome-author-marlena-smith-rrbc/ “Welcome to Day 1 of my RRBC “SPOTLIGHT” Author Blog Tour! I am so excited to have you join me! A huge THANKS to RRBC and to my awesome host!!

To kick this tour off, I thought some Q&A would be fun, your chance to get to know the author!

1. You have been writing for a long time now, since you were a child. What were some of your first storyideas?

Yes, my earliest memory of writing comes from 2nd grade. I wrote a story about my mother and received the honor of…”

2. https://smorgasbordinvitation.wordpress.com/2019/04/07/smorgasbord-blog-magazine-the-sunday-interview-getting-to-know-author-ann-chiappetta/ “Ann is an artist and often refers to her love of words as a natural compensation after losing her vision in 1993. Once a designer of acrylic displays and furniture, Ann trained her creative senses to flow over from the visual to the literary arts. Years later, she has become a poet and author, honing her talent in various mediums, including web content for nonprofits, regular bylines for online literary publications, poetry, anthologies and guest editing in online literary journals, just to name a few projects of which she
has contributed.”

3. https://jessicabakkers.com/2019/04/06/prey-for-the-dead-blog-tour-susanneleist-4willspub-rrbc/ “

4. https://owlnpussycatbookpromo.blog/2019/04/07/curl-up-with-a-good-book-once-an-angel-hell-wants-to-keep-him-heaven-wants-to-save-him-by-amanda-mackey/ “Angel turned Demon, Nathaniel has been sent to Earth to tarnish pure souls, then banish them to Hell so Lucifer may recruit them into his army. What Nate doesn’t expect is a chance meeting with Maya at a coffee shop in Mt. Vernon, Washington. He’s drawn to her innocence and purity. At first he wants to lead her into temptation so she may join him in Hell but as he gets to know her, he realizes he also wants to protect her. With a deadline looming and the King of Hades claiming Maya for himself, Nate fights against his evil nature in a desperate bid to keep her safe.”

5. https://mariacatalinaegan.com/2019/04/08/bulwark-by-brit-lunden/ “Clay Finnes is the sheriff of a small town in Georgia called Bulwark. Recently separated from his wife, all he can think about is what went wrong, and will Jenna ever come back to him. He’s troubled by a bothersome reporter trying to build a story from what he thinks is a normal day in his life. Clay has to admit that the fantastical stories, told by an accident victim as well as unusual sightings of wolves, things are getting a bit strange. A visit to the ominous Gingerbread House makes him realize that his life as he knows it will never be the same.”