Travel Article

Just started writing a humorous travel article - and it's a real challenge. Whilst my experiences in Hawaii were extremely hilarious at the time, I am not sure that reading them will have the same effect. I am attempting to keep my sentences succinct and not over "fluff" them...

At the moment I have a backbone to the story, but my favourite part is actually moulding it to be synthesised and easy to read. I have hand-picked a few photos to send into the Travel magazine which include panoramic shots with my underwater camera, so I hope that they will be accepted too. I think photographs can really make your article seem more appealing. See:






Proscuitto wrapped asparagus that I made

Anyway, now that I have got you hungry...Before you dash off to eat some food, let me know about your article writing experiences. Have you had something published? What method worked for you? What photos did they like?

No Motivation

Ah. NaNoWriMo is almost out the door, but my novel is certainly not.

In fact I haven't addressed my dear characters in over two months and am beginning to lose some hope. I feel so tired in the evenings to sit down and gather my thoughts. Even as we speak my eyelids are closing and only my fingers are tapping away with certainty.

What can I do to motivate myself? Any tips or suggestions would be GREATLY welcomed!

My first publication



My first publication

 I am so terribly excited that I was published as the Letter of the Month in this issue (November 2011) of the Women's Health Magazine. I sent the letter off as my third assignment from the WB course and within 2 weeks the magazine had gotten in contact to let me know that they were going to publish it! (I must admitt that I did "wooop" out loud and make every family member read it)

I haven't received the products yet, but I have posted an image of my publication so that you can see.




 I would be really interested to know of anyone else who has had something published. What was it? Were you as shocked as I was?

Planning, Writing, Rewriting and Editing

Harry Potter is almost a household name. And it is one thousand percent a testament to the creative genius, J.K. Rowling. When reading the series I often am awe-struck in admiration for the level of detail, careful planning and imaginative levels that she reaches. If you have ever looked on her website you can see the "extra" info on her characters that she had filled out; details that never got to the publishing stage.

 I think that writers often make that key mistake where they have thought of all these fabulous quirks of their character and then proceed telling us everything in the story, leaving no stone unturned. It demonstrates quite clearly that their Planning stage of their novel has been limited (I am also guilty of this) because they simply cannot wait to start writing (the best part).

I came across this article which relates to both J.K.Rowling and how important the stages of PLANNING before Writing, Rewriting and Editing are. J.K. Rowling herself is rumoured to have planned for approximately 5 years before setting out to write her novels.

Take a look and let me know what you think:

http://www.streetdirectory.com/travel_guide/15730/writing/are_you_the_next_jk_rowling.html

Sharing: A writing piece and a useful link

Blog #2...(I made it!)

I thought for my second blog, I would theme it on "sharing".

I love fiction, and the kind that is in novel format. I have always hated writing short stories, poetry and articles. It makes me cringe. But recently, I have attempted writing two short stories and they have both been finished and have left me feeling triumphant. They are challenging and much quicker to finish than the ever-present novel. This is a link I found for short story competitions in Australia, however, some competitions accept international entrants:

http://www.austwriters.com/AWRfiles/competitions.htm#COMPETITIONS%20ON%20NOW

As mentioned in my first blog, my second passion is tutoring. This week, when I tutored a year 7 high school student (13 years old), I decided to combine my two passions and get her to attempt a short story competition as featured on the link provided. However, I did not tell her that it was for a competition AND I only gave her 20 mins to formulate her response SO I am absolutely pleased with her attempt at writing and I think we can maybe see a writer for the future?
She attempted the:'First line' Short Story Competition and here is her entry (and yes I am aware there are grammatical errors but I preferred to leave her entry untouched):

QUESTION: WRITE A SHORT STORY BEGINNING WITH :
EDWIN SPOTTED THEM THE MOMENT HE STEPPED OFF THE TRAIN...

Edwin spotted them the moment he stepped off the train. Hand in hand, his parents stood in front of him, their tears running uncontrollably down their faces like raindrops racing down a window pane. Their hair, the same thick, curly locks but instead of distinct red and brown, a dark grey had replaced it.
Edwin pulled them both into a tight hug as his mother whispered in his ear, "I'm glad to have you back, safe and sound."

No one mentioned Daniel. He had died fighting a young man. Edwin preferred to leave the cabinet of sad memories untouched.

Edwin was there when Daniel died. If only...only Edwin had taken the driver's seat like he was ordered to, Daniel would still be alive. The roadside bomb had taken Daniel's life. The explosion was nothing but a mass of pressured fire, but all the same, Edwin had lost his brother, a military dog and an arm.

Pain struck Edwin's heart as he walked with his parents, now an only child, but not one to begin with.

First Time Blogger

First time blogger.

Three words that frighten those that cannot fathom the ever-increasing presence of technology.

Or

You could be someone like me, who has never quite gotten in to it.

And yet here I am.

I would like to thank the writers on the student forum from the Writer's Bureau whose constant reminders of blogging has at last persuaded me to begin my journey in the public domain.

Welcome. I am a Financial Analyst with a deep and passionate desire to write. I write in every moment that seems possible, whether its scribbling on my blue notebook at work, typing a note into my Iphone or marking my student's essays.

I tutor 7 students ranging from primary to high school students in the fields of both English and Mathematics. I would consider that my second passion.

And my aim here is to let my passions unfold. I will write about my obstacles, my successes and random thoughts that overcome me.

I look forward to hearing your comments and suggestions.