Tuesday, December 18, 2012

Good-Bye 2012!



Today's WIT is not so witty; it is simply a bit of cheer from the heart:

Thank you for taking time out of your busy day to stop here to view my posts. I hope that WIT has given you some ideas to make your writing stronger and that you are inspired to keep practicing.




Have a wonderful holiday season filled with good times, family, friends, books, and creativity!

The next new post will be January 10, 2013.

Peace, Love, and Wit,
Nancy

Thursday, December 13, 2012

Tips from 3 More Famous Authors


WhOOPs! If you're wondering why today's post didn't show up, it's because I hit the PM button instead of the AM one when I scheduled it. I don't have a good excuse except for the fact that I have Holiday Brain--there's too much info fighting for space in my head.
Onward...
Drum roll please...
bumdedrumbumdedrumbumdedrrrrum!
We are in the presence of a few superstars.

First up, is R.L. Stine.
You probably know this dude best from his GOOSEBUMPs stories.
R. L. says,
"Never sit down and start writing...Always have a complete plan for what you are going to write before you start."
So, R.L. Stein is not a pantster, an importantly writerly term for "writes by the seat of his/her pants." That basically means he is not the type of writer who puts his pencil on the page and writes whatever comes into his brain.
Personally, I agree with Mr. Stine, to an extent. I am a pantster only in the very beginning, but then I backtrack and start planning. Guess I'm a planster.

Second up, is another author who enjoys bringing out the goosebumps in us, Stephen King. You may be allowed to watch a Stephen King movie that's based on his books, but I would recommend waiting. They will scare the pants off of you!
Stephen King says,
“If you want to be a writer, you must do two things above all others: read a lot and write a lot.”
Agreed! And vacation is coming up, so we will all have time to do at least one of those two things.

And finally, James Patterson, author of many thrillers for grown-ups, but also MIDDLE SCHOOL, THE WORST YEARS OF MY LIFE, and MIDDLE SCHOOL, GET ME OUT OF HERE (for kids 8-12).
“I’m always pretending that I’m sitting across from somebody. I’m telling them a story, and I don’t want them to get up until it’s finished.”
I like this advice best of all. To write a good story, make it a story someone will want to hear over and over again.

Look at the advice above. Which author's advice speaks to you?






Thursday, December 6, 2012

Neil Gaiman's 8 Rules of Writing

While researching writing tips on the Internet (a procrastination tool that led to this very blog!), I came across a site called Brain Pickings. Brain Pickings may be a little out there for you young 'uns, heck it's kind of out there for me, a young 'un at heart. The site's creator, Maria Popova, puts it this way,

"Brain Pickings is your LEGO treasure chest, full of pieces across art, design, science, technology, philosophy, history, politics, psychology, sociology, ecology, anthropology, you-name-itology. Pieces that enrich your mental pool of resources and empower you to combine them into original concepts that are stronger, smarter, richer, deeper and more impactful. Please enjoy.

Whew, and WHEW!
Anyway, last month Maria posted Neil's Gaiman's 8 Rules for Writing. You know that Neil is the author of CORALINE, THE GRAVEYARD BOOK, and more, right?

I love Neil Gaiman's rules, and I thought you might, too.

My favorite one is number six.
6. Fix it. Remember that, sooner or later, before it ever reaches perfection, you will have to let it go and move on and start to write the next thing. Perfection is like chasing the horizon. Keep moving.

Be sure to check them all out HERE. Which rule is your fave?