Free Writing Books

I just noticed there are lots of free Kindle books on Amazon about Writing.

The free books change regularly, so check them out soon before the price goes up again.

Ahead of Schedule

With everything else that goes on every day, I'm surprised to be ahead of schedule on the NaNoWriMo book I'm working on. It is actually 7,000 words ahead of schedule, which is a good thing. If I happen to get stuck and can't think of anything to write, I have a couple of days to think about it and catch up.

Clam Chowder for a Blustery Night

Nothing tastes better on a cold night than a bowl of clam chowder. This recipe came from Food.com and it's perfect just the way it is. It's also a quick and easy meal - perfect for a busy writer.

You'll need:

6-7 pieces bacon, cut in half inch slices
1 medium onion, chopped
2 cans clams (I think they were about 6 oz. each)
6-7 potatoes
2 cans cream of celery soup
1 cup heavy cream
1 cup milk
1 Tbs. butter
1 tsp. dried dill

Cook bacon in large pot till crispy. Add onions and cook till translucent. Wash and dice potatoes (I prefer red ones) and add to the pot along with the clam juice from the cans. Cook covered for 15-20 minutes until the potatoes are tender, stirring occasionally.

Add clams, soup, cream, milk, and dill. Stir to mix ingredients. Add butter and melt into the chowder. Simmer 30-45 minutes, stirring to prevent sticking.

Serve with oyster crackers.

2287

Today I wrote 2,287 words on my NaNoWriMo novel. It hardly seemed like any work at all to write that many words. My goal is to write 2,000 words per day for 25 days. If I can write a little more than that each day, it will be great, especially since we will have company for a week during Thanksgiving.

When I get into the zone, two hours can seem like ten minutes. I love that about writing.

Here's what I did for the past three days to get ready for this writing marathon:

1. Outlined the story (though things can change at any time). This story
has been in my head for a long time, so the direction it was going was
gelled already.

2. Researched the things I needed to know to make it believable. I
wrote a list of questions and it took very little time to find all the answers to three pages of them. Since I'm researching two different cultures and their religions, I saved the links on a word page for further references if I need them. There will be other questions that pop up, but I've covered most of them. I still have to search for regional foods and music and a few indicental things like that.

3. Did a name search for given and sir names for the characters and chose
names for them.

4. Found pictures of people who look like I envision the characters in my
mind. I will buy a poster board today and stick the pictures on it so they are fresh in my mind at all times.

That's it. I'll flesh it out as I go and hope for the best! Are any of you joining me on this quest?

Tonight it is supposed to get very cold, so I'm off to the store to get what I need to make clam chowder. Have a great day!

NaNoWriMo

There are 3 more days to sign up for NaNoWriMo - National Novel Writing Month. If you haven't heard of this before, it is held each year in the month of November. As if we don't have enough to do with the holidays coming up, but sometimes when we are the busiest, we get the most done.

That is why I signed up. I tend to write when the mood hits. It's hard to force good writing, and there are days when life gets in the way and finding the time to sit and let your imagination run free isn't always easy.

The premise of NaNoWriMo is that between November 1 and November 30, you will write a 50,000 word novel. It must be original and you can't have a co-writer. No one will read this novel if you don't want them to. The word count is verified by scrambling the novel and sending the words to NaNoWriMo to verify the count. They, then erase it after they have verified the count.

This is an exercise in discipline and should give writers who finish it a great feeling of accomplishment. Your novel will be basically a month long free writing session where you write to your heart's content without worrying about editing. Only a portion of writers who sign up to do this actually finish the task. The ones who do will receive a certificate. Established writers do this, first time writers do it, and writers all over the world do it. You'll be in good company and there are many chapters across the U.S. and probably in other countries as well, that meet to give each other encouragement and have parties at the end to celebrate the accomplishment.

I have a story idea that has been pecking at my brain for a while that I plan to use for this project. Fifty thousand words divided by thirty days is 1666.66 words per day. That's too many sixes for comfort and I want to give myself a little extra time in case I have a day where the words don't flow or I get too busy to do it, so I'm aiming for twenty five days and two thousand words per day.

Many people end up with published books from this project. If you are interested in doing this, go to www.nanowrimo.org to get started.

Channeling Your Muse

Do you have a ritual you do before you sit down to write? Doing certain things before you settle down at the keyboard can put you in the right frame of mind and help you get into the job of writing quicker. http://bit.ly/9hqkn

Like brushing your teeth or reading a few minutes before bedtime can calm you down to sleep, a ritual performed before writing can put your mind on track to write. Your ritual will be different from mine or anyone elses. It may be as simple as preparing your favorite cup of tea or saying a quick prayer. It doesn't matter what it is, as long as you do it each time you write.

What's your ritual?

Writing By the Sexes

This is merely an observation on the sexes in writing - not a criticism of either side.

When I read a book written by a man, I notice that emphasis is put on the action. You don't see anything in your mind's eye of the surroundings. The action is described in exquisite detail. You may know that the character is wearing a leather jacket, from which he pulls an XYZ type of specialized revolver, and you may know the sun is shining in his eyes or that there is a crowd of people through which he is searching for the bad guy, but that's about it. The rest of the scene involves the actions he goes through and what is happening around him - with no descriptions.

If a woman is writing the same story, you know what she's wearing, how hot or cold it is, the architecture of the building she is about to enter, and even though she has a silencer on the gun, you'll hear the bullet as it riccochets off a white marble pillar and sends tiny shards of marble chips flying into a large pot of geraniums with ivy cascading over the edge.

What this tells me is that men and women read differently. It's the Mars/Venus syndrome. Men don't care about the details. They are watching a football game no matter what the action is: play by play, who's ahead, who's penalized etc.

Women are aware of the aesthetics of their surroundings. They like things to be coordinated, pleasant to the senses, and the ends to be tied up in a neat little bow, which generally means they aren't writing an action scene involving guns and other masculine props, but there are always exceptions.

Men like to feel their heart pumping with non-stop action or else looking at a beautiful woman. The beautiful woman is generally where a man will spend the most time with descriptions when he is writing. It's the old Jeff Foxworthy line: Men want three things: a remote control, a beer, and to see somethin' nekked.

Women want their hearts to race with emotions, but their kind of action involves two hearts and sweaty limbs. This and everything else is described in tiny bits that allow you to see the story unfold in your mind.

Hmmmm..... a male/female collaboration sounds like a really good read.

Grrrrrr!

I have a book ready to publish on Kindle Direct Publishing, but I'm having a terrible time with the spacing going awry when I post it on KDP.

The book has graphics and some charts plus some items listed in columns. The pictures aren't coming through, even though I've done them in the format asked by Kindle and the columns are not in columns any longer when I post the book. Is anyone else having this problem? Do you have any tips? I'm pulling my hair out!

Office With A View

As a woman who loves to decorate, I have a folder of home offices saved for inspiration when I have the space to actually set one up. I love this one with the great wooded view and the giant cup of coffee. What more could a writer want?

Book Cover Design

This morning I'm wrestling with a book cover. I know what I want it to look like, but I'm having trouble getting the design program to cooperate.

We're told that book covers are very important to the success of the book. I'm a visual person, so I understand that.

When my oldest son was little, he wanted to do everything himself. He wanted to put on his own jacket, button his own shirt, velcro his own tennis shoes. Whenever I tried to help him he loudly proclaimed, "Me do it! Wet me do it!" He got that from his mom who likes to do things herself too.

Since I plan on writing other books, I would like to learn how to do it myself. Do you design your own book covers or pay someone to do it for you? What software do you use to design your book covers?

Writing in Slow Motion

I read all the time about writers who spend months researching before they start writing. I have a lot to learn and spend a lot of time each day figuring out how to do things on the computer that I'm not familiar with; the research is the easy part.

Lately, I'm learning something every day. Most writer blogs give advice on how to do things. One of these days I'll feel comfortable advising people, but for now I'm learning by experience, reading a lot of other people's sage advice, and working on my books.

I would say the actual writing is much easier than all the rest. These days writers have to be all facets of the publishing process as well as marketing. Most of us didn't sign up for this, but this is the direction things have gone so far. It, unfortunately, takes up a chunk of the time we could be writing and being productive.

I trudge onward and upward toward the shining goal of a wildly successful book. Some people make it. Why not me?

Working Away

I'm happily working away on two books at the moment. One of them will be ready soon and I'll fill you in on it when it's ready. I'm brain storming for a title.

Have a great day and a productive week!

The End of a Season

It's the last official day of summer and I plan to take the laptop outside and enjoy it. I know we'll still have Indian Summer, those hot fall days that bridge the gap between summer and fall's crisp days.

Working in a different setting makes my mind react in different ways - sometimes good and sometimes not so good. A crowded airport isn't the most conducive to work, though some of you may be able to shut out all the noises and get productive in that setting, but working outside on the patio with the birds chirping and an occasional sound from a neighbor's house or an airplane going by is just my cup of tea.

I have a new/old project to work on today and I'm looking forward to seeing it with older more experienced eyes and making it better than before.

Have a great day and enjoy the last day of summer.

Never Pass Up An Opportunity

The past few months have brought opportunities that I never could have imagined. Some I accepted because friends asked me to do them and some I felt obligated to do, but they have all been enriching.

As writers, we are more internal people than external, and would rather shut ourselves up in a room with a computer and play out things on the page.

Yesterday was Constitution Day and at the last minute, I was asked to tell the story of Emily Geiger, a teenage Revolutionary War heroine. It was WAY out of my comfort zone to speak to hundreds of people and tell a story to them, but I felt obligated since they couldn't find a teenage girl who would do it.

People came by in groups of a dozen or so and I did my best to tell them the story as if they were sitting in my living room and I was relaying a great story to them. The feedback was encouraging to say the least! Teens shook my hand and thanked me. You could see on their faces they were all getting into the drama of Emily's story. The expressions changed as the drama unfolded and ended with smiles, clapping, thanks, and hand shaking.

After the first round, when my voice stopped shaking, I really got into it and had fun. After all, a writer is also a storyteller. It was a lovely day and I met some great people.

The point of all this is to say: Opportunities are everywhere. Don't automatically say no because you don't think you have time or it's not your forte or whatever excuse you may want to give. I keep a running list with dates of all the events, projects, achievements (no matter how small) to remind myself of how far down the path I have traveled. I've just begun on my route, but I'm looking forward to reaching the point where I can look backwards too. Every writer started with that first article, book, play, or engagement. Each of our paths is different and mine is different than I thought it would be, but it's my path and I'm enjoying watching it bloom and grow.

My motto these days is to accept things outside my comfort zone. It kind of reminds me of a fence I built in my early 20's. We bought brick that matched the house and I laid brick posts every 10 feet around the perimeter of the yard. Because the yard sloped up, I used a level string to keep the posts looking neat and even. After the posts were up, I put up privacy wood sections, also leveled with the use of the string to fill in the spaces between the brick posts. It was a lot of work. I had never done something like that and once I got started, I wished I hadn't ever begun, but at that stage, it had to be finished or it would have looked horrible. I developed a rash from the cement, but I persevered. When the wood was cut, I rounded the top of each board using a dinner plate. The result was quite nice.

I have begun many projects in my life, not knowing what I was getting myself into, and having to finish them because leaving it half done was not an option I was willing to accept. Along the way, I've learned how to do many things I never thought I could do. Now, people call me for advice on how to do things.

It's funny how that works - do a few things and suddenly everyone thinks you are the expert.

My writing experience did not start with a degree in journalism, English, or anything else applicable. It began with a life of stories, a big imagination, a love of reading and a love of knowledge. I have no mentor watching over me, but people have come into my path and given me opportunities, encouragement, and tasks to do that have been wonderful additions to my journey. Now, when someone asks me to do something that I automatically want to say "no" to, I think about it before answering. What new avenues could this open up for me? Can I help someone or teach something along the way? Will I meet new people who I can help or who might be helpful to me? It's give and take and makes you feel great when you can help someone else. Don't always expect something in return.

Looking at opportunities in a new light may keep you from passing on something that could be a wonderful break for you and a blessinig to others.

And the Winner Is

The winner of the autographed copy of The Doctor's Lady by Jody Hedlund is

(drum roll)

Debi from Eufala, OK. Debi, please send me your address by email: to karinawrites@yahoo.com

Book Giveaway

Don't forget to leave a comment here with your name for a chance to get an autographed copy of Jody Hedlund's The Doctor's Lady. The drawing is on Friday.

Good Advice

Jody Hedlund guest posts on Rachelle Gardner's blog and gives excellent advice to all writers.

http://www.rachellegardner.com/2011/09/the-highs-and-lows-of-a-writers-life/

Betty Davis's line "Fasten your seat belts. It's going to be a bumpy ride." fits a writer's life. There will be ups and downs, highs, and lows, and emotions swinging like a pendulum. Not letting those extremes affect you are part of the road we travel.

11 Reasons to Own a Kindle or other E-Reader

1. You can carry a whole library on one device.

2. You don't have to touch the germy magazines at the doctor's office.

3. It fits in your purse or brief case and hardly weighs anything.

4. You can always carry it with you. Then if you sit next to someone on
the bus, plane, train, tram, or dentist's office that you don't want to
talk to, READ.

5. There are many free books and e-books are less expensive in general.

6. If you want a new one, you can have a new book in 60 seconds -
anywhere.

7. An e-reader is easier to hold than a book if you have arthritis.

8. Adjustable type!

9. When you travel, you aren't loaded down with several books and your
Bible.

10. Time standing in line at the bank, Post Office, DMV, etc. goes much
faster.

11. Thousands of great skins.

I'm sure you have your own reasons for loving your e-reader. That said, there are a few books I prefer to have an actual physical copy of than an electronic copy. These are: cookbooks, art books, decorating books, how-to books, and I just can't for the life of me picture an e-coffee table book.

Book Giveaway

Here's your chance to get an autographed copy of Jody Hedlund's new book, The Doctor's Lady.

If you read the interview with Jody (scroll down) you know this Inspirational Historical Romance is about the first white woman to travel across country on what became known as the Oregon Trail.

To enter, leave a comment here with your name. Do not sign in as anonymous. The drawing will be held on Friday, September 16th. Be sure to check back and see who won. If the winner does not respond, I'll re-draw from the remaining names. Good Luck! U.S. mailing addresses only, please.

What Do You Eat (Or Drink) While Writing?

I see this question everywhere lately. Writers nosh on donuts, coffee, specific candies, fast food, and countless other specific foods that put them in the writing zone.

Maybe it's a habit. Maybe their best seller was written while they nibbled on Cheeto's or ate bags of Snickers candy bars. Maybe it is considered a good luck charm.

I might bring a cup of homemade soup to the computer desk, but I really hate crumbs, sticky stuff, or spills on the keyboard, so I tend to go eat somewhere else and then go back to writing. I think the walk from office to table is good for me and keeps the blood flowing. No specific food or beverage turns on my writer switch, although I've been known to keep a bottle of water handy.

How about you? Do you have a "writing" snack?