Don’t Wait! Have FUN now!
Posted on March 8, 2016 2 Comments
Walkway by the Mississippi River – St. Louis
In a week and a half, I’m going to do something incredibly fun. I’m taking a step, planning for fun, and enjoying my life. What am I going to do? Click to Tweet Am I walking in the park? Will I go to my favorite restaurant? While these are all fun things to do, I’m going a bit farther, but not St. Louis this time.
I’m going to Tuscon, Arizona with a friend for four days of fun! My friend Darla is originally from Tuscon, but since moving to Arizona 25 years ago, she hasn’t been back in the springtime. She says, “I can’t wait to see the desert bloom again.” I’m excited for her.
I’m Not Afraid of the 7/7/7 Challenge
Posted on March 4, 2016 Leave a Comment
Writing friend, Kelly Barr, tagged me for this fun 7/7/7 challenge. I hope you’ll think it’s fun, too. #amwriting #777challenge
Seamless Self-Editing––Part III
Posted on March 2, 2016 Leave a Comment
Andy Scheer
In this series, we’re focusing on editing our own work, to make it the best we can, so it has a better chance of being “publish-ready.” More publishers, especially small ones, are headed this direction. The smaller publishers used to be more likely to publish an unknown author. Not anymore. If you’re unknown, your manuscript will have to be pretty-near perfect in order to be considered. Click to Tweet #amwriting #selfediting
This week, we’ll look at tips I received from Andy Scheer, editor and agent. You can check him out at http://andyscheer.com.
Finding Worth in the Work
Posted on March 1, 2016 5 Comments
The last few weeks I’ve been discussing how to handle criticism in relation to the novella I was working on as part of a collection recently submitted to a publisher. It’s been a difficult time, and yet, I’m learning something. I’m beginning to get the perspective that it’s the accomplishment, and not the results, that counts. Click to Tweet #amwriting #perspective
Seamless Self-Editing—Part II
Posted on February 24, 2016 Leave a Comment
Last week, I started a series of blog posts on Seamless Self-Editing. Let’s get our manuscript “publish-ready.” Refer to last week’s post for my definition. Today, we’ll look at basic proofreading. Spell check in Microsoft Word or whatever word processing program you use—is simply not good enough. Click to Tweet #amwriting #publishready #selfediting
The following information is from Kathy Ide, www.kathyide.com. I attended an extended workshop on editing in 2015 in Hershey, PA. Most, if not all this information is in her book Proofreading Secrets of Best-Selling Authors. I highly recommend this resource. She takes the most common rules from the Chicago Manual of Style and explains them in an easy way.
How to Handle Criticism—Part II
Posted on February 23, 2016 2 Comments
via Flickr
What a difference a week makes. I’m more at peace now than I was just six and seven days ago. And I also noticed I’ve put up other posts from time to time about handling criticism. Last week was very difficult for me. I felt humiliated in some ways, and I had to humble myself in others.
But I learned that how I respond to problems and challenges is the most important thing. Click to Tweet #amwriting #criticism
Seamless Self-Editing—Part I
Posted on February 17, 2016 Leave a Comment
You hear it more and more these days. Your manuscript must be “publish-ready” in order for it to be considered. Click to Tweet What does “publish-ready” mean? #amwriting #publish-ready #self-editing
For the next few blog posts, we’ll look at this and how you can improve your raw writing into something closer to “publish-ready.” I’ll be using several resources for this. Today’s resource is The Scene Book, by Sandra Scofield.
First, let’s take a look at what it means. Read More
How to Handle Criticism
Posted on February 16, 2016 Leave a Comment
via Flickr
I hope to bring a fresh perspective to a sensitive subject.
As writers, we’re regularly critiqued, edited, and otherwise told to change our text. It can get downright discouraging if we don’t have the proper attitude toward it. If we have rejection issues (like I do), it can feel personal, when it’s really not. #amwriting #criticism
It’s about our writing, not about us. Click to Tweet
Please Enjoy the Archives
Posted on January 28, 2016 Leave a Comment
Hi there. I am very sorry I haven’t posted new material this week. I have a code id by dose and a really bad cough. Each day has been a challenge to do the minimal amount necessary.
So, please enjoy the archives. It’s also possible, because of a writing project I’m involved in, that I might not be posting for a couple more weeks. If you don’t see anything new here, I apologize ahead of time. I’ll get back to it as soon as possible.
In the meantime, I want to again thank all of you for stopping by, no matter what you’re looking at.
What have been your favorite posts here? Leave a comment and let me know.
How to Handle Disappointment – Part I
Posted on January 19, 2016 Leave a Comment
Webster defines disappoint as “to fail to satisfy the hopes or expectations of, to leave unsatisfied.” Another meaning is “undo, frustrate, thwart.” They’re going to us from time to time. It’s how we handle them that matters. Click to Tweet #handledisappointment #forgivereleaseadvance
It says in the bible that hope doesn’t disappoint, but it’s our hope in Christ that doesn’t disappoint. Our hopes, dreams, expectations of others will disappoint. We live in a fallen world, and people are not perfect, so they will hurt and disappoint us.
I recently emailed a friend to see if she was going to go to a regional writers’ conference we were both at last year. (See Please, Get Your Facts Straight). She actually won something there, but it turned out a disappointment because promises weren’t kept, advice wasn’t given, and my friend’s book is still unpublished.
Neither of us is going back this year. I’ve dealt with my huge disappointment a year ago and yet the memory still stings a little, as when a scar is bumped while it’s healing.
The important things to remember are:
- Forgive what happened, people, events, etc.
- Release the pain (this is vital)
- Advance (move forward, take a step)
In the next few weeks, I’ll concentrate on each of these three. Because we can’t move forward until we release the pain, disappointments, and hurts from the past. It’s a process, but we can move past the wounds into a freedom, joy, and abundance. Click to Tweet #handledisappointment #forgivereleaseadvance
Donna L.H. Smith 