Housekeepers and a school bus

March 13, 2014

Hello, writers,

Happy Thursday! I enjoyed attending Tuesday’s workshop.

Welcome back, Sherri S. and Sandra H. Glad you’re with the group this session!

I just turned in a column on cursive writing to Jax4Kids, a monthly newspaper. Just curious, how many of you write cursive? How many of you print? In columns over the next few months, I’ll share research from educators, students and parents on cursive and printing.  

Meanwhile, an exciting opportunity has come our way. Please keep reading to find out more.

First, though, I’ll share Tuesday’s warm-ups, our critique overview and a few links of interest.

Warm-ups

Choosing from prompts below, we all completed a writing warm-up.

1.       Memorable piece of furniture

2.       Magic markers

3.       Basketball vs. baseball

4.       Daylight Savings Time

After a few of us shared our warm-ups, we introduced ourselves, shared good news and started our critique session.

Critique overview from March 11 CCWW

Kaitlyn S. began the session reading a first-person narrative featuring Bethany, a girl who passes horses on her walk home from school. Members commented on her powerful use of interior monologue and her vivid descriptions (i.e. snapping of twigs; sounds of truck). Connie W. then read another installment of her hemp rope story. Members said her use of smells (i.e. horse and human sweat) and her characterization of Leary (who knew location of Aidan’s mother’s grave) worked well.

Thomas E. continued by sharing more of his story featuring Mia and Mr. Larson. Members commented on the nostalgic tone of his piece as well as his vocabulary (i.e. cacophony). Richard N. then read the last chapter of his Dodge story. Way to go, Richard! Members complimented his characterization (i.e. Dodge needed a sounding board, mental and physical fingers, etc.) and his overall plot.

I, Nancy B., read “Afternoon Routine,” a prompt-based (“on a school bus”) poem. Members said the drama and humor played off each other. Robert O. then shared a descriptive outline of a new story set at a high school. Members said his creative character names worked well. Hayden B. then shared “The Magical Dolphins,” a short story. Members said the octopus, the sea trash and the shark made her plot interesting.  

Sandra H. then read, “Monday,” a reflective prompt-based (“the housekeeper”) poem. Members loved her piece, complimenting the birds as a unifying element as well as the poem’s realistic tone. Cameron S. finished the session with a poem about darkness. Members said her rhymes (i.e. frightful, nightfall) worked as did her reflective and hopeful tone.  

Wonderful writing, everyone!

Links of Interest

Ever dreamed of writing while riding the rails? Amtrak is sponsoring writing residencies. Sounds fun to me!  

More information on how to apply here:  http://blog.amtrak.com/2014/03/amtrak-residency-for-writers/

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Hemingway App

I mentioned this app on Tuesday. It helps writers analyze how often they switch to passive voice, or use adverbs, among other things.  Best of all, it’s free!

Check out the desktop version here: http://www.hemingwayapp.com/

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Creative Writing blog

Don’t let the title fool you. This blog offers lots of information about plotting, characterization, pitching to agents and more. It’s included as one of Writer’s Digest’s top 100 blogs for writers.

More here: http://romanceuniversity.org/

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An Exciting Opportunity

As you probably know, April is National Poetry Month. To celebrate, the Callahan Branch Library is sponsoring a Spoken Word poetry festival. They are looking for poets who are willing to read their work.

If you’re interested in reading your poetry or helping with the festival, please let me know.

More details soon.

Prompts for Tuesday, March 18

The first prompt is signs. The second prompt is at the health food store. You’re free to write in any genre you like (fiction, drama, non-fiction, poetry, etc.). If you’d like to bring a WIP (work-in-progress), please do.

Please keep pieces to 1500 words or less and bring copies if you can.

Looking forward to seeing you March 18 at The Sweet Spot!

~Nancy B.