Publish a book?

If you've never truly considered writing a book, take another look at the rubbish filling bookshelves at airport kiosks. The "authors" of that stuff are laughing all the way to the bank. While English majors and real literary types are screaming at each other in the stuffy halls of academia or the pages of The New Yorker, these clowns are quietly rehashing tired plots and making millions for it. You're a smart person, so we see no reason you shouldn't take a crack at making bank as well. (Heck, even if you're a ding-bat, we think you should give it a try. Al Gore's books sold millions.) Here's how you too can tap into the wallets of all those gullible readers out there. 1. The first rule of getting a book published is to avoid writing a book. Agents -- what do they do, exactly? An agent is a separate individual who performs much of this filtering process. Agents, in turn, don't particularly like reading 300-page manuscripts either. But you say, "Wait.

Creativity at Work: The interplay of business, art and science 5 editor’s secrets to help you write like a pro I do a lot of copyediting, both of books and advertising collateral. I’ll let you in on a secret that still surprises me, although I’ve seen it hundreds of times now. If you looked at the raw work of most professional writers, you’d be pretty underwhelmed. Professional writers get work because they hit their deadlines, they stay on message, and they don’t throw too many tantrums. Professional writers rely on editors to fix their clunks. Editing, like writing, takes time to learn. 1. Have you ever heard a four-year-old run out of breath before she can finish her thought? Sentences are building blocks, not bungee cords; they’re not meant to be stretched to the limit. 2. A paragraph supports a single idea. 3. Nouns ending in -ing are fine. (If for some insane reason you want to get all geeky about this, you can read the Wikipedia article on gerunds and present participles. 4. I know we all heard this in high school, but we weren’t listening. 5. Bonus: Use spell-check

Internet Resources - Writers Resources - Writing Links & Writers Links for Writers - Word Stuff Unsorted [/writers] James Patrick Kelly - Murder Your Darlings - "When time comes to make that final revision, however, you must harden your heart, sharpen the ax and murder your darlings." Greda Vaso - Determining the Readability of a Book - includes formulas for Gunning's Fog Index, Flesch Formula, Powers Sumner Kearl L. Kip Wheeler - Literary Terms and Definitions L. Style - Grammar - Errors in English [/writers]American Heritage - Book of English Usage - free download Band-Aid AP StylebookPaul Brians - Common Errors in EnglishCJ Cherryh - Writerisms and other Sins The Chicago Manual of Style FAQ Gary N.

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What Does That Writing Rejection Letter Really Mean? Nobody likes to be rejected. Anything that makes you want to consume and entire bucket of ice cream in one sitting must have serious psychological implications. While it’s tempting to give up on a piece of writing after a rejection or two, that isn’t always the best course of action. Many writers automatically think the worst when they receive a rejection. Types of Rejection No Reponse: This is difficult, because a lack of response leaves you wondering if your submission actually arrived. The vast majority of rejections you receive will be form letters. What Rejection Doesn’t Necessarily Say Sure, you might feel terrible that your life’s work has been so casually dismissed by a form rejection, but that isn’t a death sentence. Rejection doesn’t necessarily say: You are a failure. That said, it’s quite possible your rejection–whether form or personalized– could mean the following. What Rejection Might Mean: Your manuscript isn’t right just yet.

110 Celtx Tutorials In the world of open source filmmaking programs, nothing comes close to competing with Celtx. It is the essential all-in-one media pre-production software package that combines script writing, scheduling, storyboarding and much more all in to one software package. It’s been well over a year since we last gathered the tutorials and since then there have been many new how-to articles and video tutorials created, so this time we doubled the list. So now you really don’t have an excuse – download Celtx for FREE and start planning out you next film! Celtx Support The iPhone/iPad app for Celtx Writers Celtx Script is the only mobile screenwriting app that syncs directly with Celtx desktop software, making it easy to write a screenplay from any place at any time. Download the User Manual Celtx Studio Join the thousands of media creators world-wide using Celtx Studios to manage their Celtx projects. Download the Owner’s Manual Celtx Add-ons Get more creative with add-ons for your Celtx software. Videos

11 Rules of Writing -- a concise guide to important grammar, punctuation, and writing style rules This site is a concise guide to some of the most commonly violated rules of writing, grammar, and punctuation. It is intended for all writers as an aid in the learning and refining of writing skills. Explore each of The Rules to see examples of its application and find references that provide additional explanations and examples on the Web and in print. Buy a book or find a website that will help you to improve your writing skills. Look up grammatical terms in the Glossary. For a wider variety of information, check the related FAQs (frequently asked questions). Visit our new blog for tips and strategies for writing, studying, homework, SAT/ACT, math, and much more at the Junket Studies Blog Want to improve your writing and help support this site at the same time?

6 Ways to Hook Your Readers from the Very First Line Although I consider myself an avid reader, I must admit I have a short attention span when it comes to getting into books. If you fail to grab my attention in the first few lines, I start spacing out. Most readers are like me. Most people don’t want to spend the first 50 pages trying to get into a book. Here are a few things I find annoying in the first lines of a story: Dialogue. The last thing you want to do as a writer is annoy or bore people. (N.B. 1. Put a question in your readers’ minds. “Those old cows knew trouble was coming before we did.” 2. By starting at an important moment in the story, your reader is more likely to want to continue so he or she can discover what will happen next. “It was dark where she was crouched but the little girl did as she’d been told.” 3. Description is good when it encourages people to paint a picture in their minds. “Last night I dreamt I went to Manderley again.” 4. 5. “They had flown from England to Minneapolis to look at a toilet.” 6.

201 Ways to Arouse Your Creativity Arouse your creativity Electric flesh-arrows … traversing the body. A rainbow of color strikes the eyelids. A foam of music falls over the ears. Creativity is like sex. I know, I know. The people I speak of are writers. Below, I’ve exposed some of their secret tips, methods, and techniques. Now, lie back, relax and take pleasure in these 201 provocative ways to arouse your creativity. Great hacks from Merlin Mann of 43 Folders

101 Short Stories that Will Leave You Smiling, Crying and Thinking post written by: Marc Chernoff Email Since its inception eighteen months ago, our sister site Makes Me Think (MMT) has truly evolved into a remarkable online community. As stated on the MMT About page, sometimes the most random everyday encounters force us to stop and rethink the truths and perceptions we have ingrained in our minds. I believe the 101 stories listed below perfectly fulfill that description. What do you think? Script Formatting | Script Writing and Screenwriting Help If there’s one thing that seems to put off prospective scriptwriters more than anything else it’s not knowing how to correctly format a script. There are basically two ways to do this. Either buy a piece of scriptwriting software which does the bulk of the work for you (I recommend Final Draft) or you learn how to do it yourself and use a typewriter or programme like Microsoft Word. If a Hollywood executive comes across a script with poor formatting then he will instantly dismiss it as the work of an amateur and not bother reading it. The script that you are trying to sell is known as a spec script. Basic Script Formatting Script Presentation Formatting Directions Formatting Scene Headings (Includes montages and flashbacks) Formatting Dialogue In A Foreign Language Formatting Character Details Formatting Electronic Dialogue (Television, radio, telephone, computers) Writing And Formatting Effective Description

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