I hope you all had a wonderful (and writerly) Christmas!
Earlier in December, we looked at some of the basics of writing efficiency. With New Year’s (and hopefully more vacation time) approaching, we’re going one step deeper into the world of efficient writing. Let’s dive in!
Thanks to everyone who sent us stories written on the theme, “Away from Home for the Holidays.” We loved reading all of the intriguing and moving entries.
The winner of our Holiday Story contest is: Kris D. Keith, with a story entitled, The Stranger. It is published below for your enjoyment! Her other writing can be read here and Gotham Writers recently selected Krystal’s twitter story for their cover art for their winter class schedule, view that here.
It isn’t fair, Christina thought. I haven’t been home in over a year. I missed last Christmas, thanks to Babette. The baby girl, born last Thanksgiving, was a constant reminder of all Christina’s mistakes. Alone and almost homeless, the pair survived day by day in their tiny apartment, complete with ants, silver fish, and the occasional spider.
Babette wiggled then whimpered in her sleep. “Sshhh,” Christina whispered as she bounced the tot on her legs, still clutching her to her chest. Continue reading
At one point in writing history, writers began their stories by setting the scene. Setting was once used as a reflection characters emotions or actions. For example, a storm arises as a disagreement to your evil plot of revenge… But setting in books have changed today with things like TV. We still need setting, but it is not nearly as important as our characters and plot.
Seattle’s physical setting compared with Albuquerque’s is night and day– one is high desert, with dusty browns and golds; the other is sea-level, with fertile flora and greens and blues. But they also eat different foods. ABQ leans more towards a Mexican flavor whereas most anyone in Seattle can list 5-20 favorite Asian foods. Continue reading
It’s the holiday season, y’all! And whether you’re shopping for friends, family, host/hostess gifts for a party, birthdays, a gift exchange, or maybe just to treat yo’self, I’m guessing you’ve got a list of people you’re hoping to show that you care.
And who here doesn’t love all things bookish? If you’ve got a bookworm in your life, they probably love anything that has to do with their favorite books, series, and fandoms. I know I do. Continue reading
Not checking your success is like getting up in the morning and going into work without checking the mirror. Hair sticking up at odd angles? Tooth paste all over your chin? You’ll never know!
Same goes for your marketing strategy. Without measuring, you’ll never know if what you’re doing is crazy off and you certainly won’t know how to fix it.
So how do you track your success?
Details: For the holiday season, we would love two things: a story that will draw us into all of those sentiments surrounding Christmas or the holiday season. Makes us yearn for home. Make us laugh. Make us cry, or both! As for the second, we want a challenge! We want to practice writing something we might not write otherwise. Join us!
Rules: In 2500 words or less, give us your best story based on the theme: Away from Home for the Holidays. Send your story to thespinningpen@gmail.com
Deadline: December 23 at 12 noon Pacific time is the last day you can turn in your story.
Prize: The winning story will be posted on our blog and all social media sites ON CHRISTMAS DAY for everyone to read. *We will also give you feedback on your writing and why we chose your story.
Surprise: We will post something unexpected that day — so watch for it!
The holidays are here! Hopefully this means more writing time, but even if it doesn’t, this post is here to help you to make the most of whatever time you have. So grab some wassail and get ready to become wickedly efficient this December. (Seriously though, go grab something warm and cozy to drink while you read this– it’s Christmastime!)
Writing fantasy is fun. Why else would so many people do it? Why would so many read it? There’s more than a monetary investment when a reader picks up a fantasy novel. They are taking on faith that the world the writer has created is going to engage them and spark their imagination. As an author, you have to think through more than loving your own world and story – it has to be easily comprehended by a reader so that they don’t get fed up and abandon the attempt to enter into your written world.
And drumroll…..WE HAVE OUR 4 WINNERS!!
Drawn at random through Rafflecopter are these four writers:
Congratulations! You have made it to the end of November. And if you’re in certain parts of the globe, you’ve already arrived in December.
I don’t know about you, but between writing like crazy this month, and getting caught up in the flurry of the holiday season, I’m already exhausted. Happy, but exhausted. Honestly, I can barely function after pulling a crazy marathon writing day yesterday in order to finish NaNoWriMo, so I’ll keep this short. 🙂
The Spinning Pen 