We so often put writing last on our priority list. We feel guilty for “stealing” writing time from our day job, our family, and our friends. Taking the time and the money to go to a writing conference seems selfish. After all, we can learn writing techniques and marketing tips from books and blogs, so why spend the money? Isn’t the time you’d spend at the conference better spent on writing? Sure, you can spend that time on you writing; slogging away at the keyword, pulling the prose out of your soul while you worry about all the other things on …
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This amazing directory of book people who Twitter came through on one of my mailing list, so I have to share it. (Plus, by posting here I’ll always know where to find it.) Highspot Inc. posted A Directory of Book Trade People on Twitter back in 2008, but keeps the list current. The names are sorted into these categories: Book Publishers – Company Accounts | Book Publishers – Individual Accounts | Literary Agents | Bookstores & Booksellers – United States | Bookstores & Booksellers – Canada | Bookstores & Booksellers – Europe & Australia | Bookstores & Booksellers – Online …
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There has been loads of time during my first week here that could be used for writing, but the same thing that always happens when I visit happened again. Spending my days speaking Swedish means I can’t put English worth a crap on the page. My sentences are all wrong. I reverse the noun-verb order and can’t find a synonym to save my soul. My sentence structure becomes super simple and my work read like a first graders’ “What I did this Summer” essay. This visit, I have writing deadlines for paying gigs. So to keep my brain in English …
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Frank Zafiro is the author of the River City crime novels and also writes mainstream fiction under the name Frank Scalise, which is his actual name. Born and raised in Spokane, he joined the U.S. Army after high school graduation and served in Military Intelligence. He’s been a Spokane police officer since 1993 and has served as patrol officer, corporal, detective, sergeant and lieutenant. His current title is captain. Zafiro has written seriously since he was thirteen, starting out with short stories and poetry. Last week I reviewed his River City series for Bark. If you didn’t read that post, …
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(Also posted on Bark) It’s summer, I don’t have to go back to full time teaching until the fall and in between the projects on my to do list for this time off (garden work that will never happen, filling out the paperwork for becoming an American citizen, brushing the dog, planning for lessons, watching bad TV) I thought I would do some writing. However, my motivation to put words on paper plummeted to the lowest low when Monday’s mail brought two rejection letters. Scott, Shira, and Sam have already “barked” on the subject and I don’t have anything to …