About SharingwithWriters Blog


Named to "Writer's Digest 101 Best Websites," this #SharingwithWriters blog is a way to connect with my readers and fellow writers, a way to give the teaching genes that populate my DNA free rein. Please join the conversation using the very tiny "comment" link. For those interested in editing and grammar, go to http://thefrugaleditor.blogspot.com.

Tuesday, May 30, 2023

Special Offer: One for You, One for a Writing Friend!

Many of your know I am not crazy about paid-for ads when authors can learn to do so much "advertising" for themselves, but something like this one from WinningWriters.com is very effective on two counts. That website is well respected and well-known and their audience is "my" audience. That is, the advertising is well targeted! Of course, offering a discount or special promotion doesn't hurt. (Thanks to my publisher Modern History Press for this one!)


MORE ABOUT THE BLOGGER MORE ABOUT THE BLOGGER

 Carolyn Howard-Johnson is the multi award-winning author of fiction, creative nonfiction, and poetry. She is also a marketing consultant, editor, and author of the multi award-winning #HowToDoItFrugally Series of books for writers including "The Frugal Book Promoter" (https://bit.ly/FrugalBookPromoIII), now offered in its third edition by Modern History Press. Others in that series are "How to Get Great Book Reviews Frugally and Ethically," "The Frugal Editor" and two booklets, both in their second editions also from Modern History Press. The booklets, "Great Little Last Minute Editing Tips for Writers" (https://bit.ly/LastMinuteEditsII) and "Great First Impression Book Proposals" (https://bit.ly/BookProposalsII) are career boosters in mini doses and both make ideal thank you gifts for authors. The one on writing book proposals is also available as an Audio Book. "The Frugal Editor "(https://tinyurl.com/TheFrugalEditor), was recently released in its third edition. It is the winningest book in this series for writers. 

 Carolyn also has three frugal books for retailers including one she encourages authors to read because it helps them understand what is needed to convince retailers to host their workshops, presentations, and signings. It is "A Retailer’s Guide to Frugal In-Store Promotions: How To Increase Profits and Spit in the Eyes of Economic Downturns with Thrifty Events and Sales Techniques" (https://bit.ly/RetailersGuide).

 In addition to this blog, Carolyn helps writers extend the exposure of their favorite reviews at https://TheNewBookReview.blogspot.com. She also blogs all things editing--grammar, formatting and more--at "The Frugal, Smart, and Tuned-In Editor" (https://TheFrugalEditor.blogspot.com). Learn more and follow for news on her new releases directly from Amazon at https://bit.ly/CarolynsAmznProfile.

Sunday, May 21, 2023

Intent and Writing Success

 


Contributed by Karen Cioffi

 To know your intent is crucial to writing success. But what exactly does this mean?

According to Merriam-Webster, intent is an aim, a clear and “formulated or planned intention.” It is a purpose, “the act or fact of intending.”

Intent is a necessary factor on any path to success, including your path to writing success. You need to know what you want, what you’re striving for. And that knowledge has to be clearly defined.

An unclear destination or goal is similar to being on a path with low-hanging branches, an assortment of rocks that hinder your forward movement, uneven and rugged terrain, and even logs strewn across the road; you get the idea.

You step over the debris and look around or through the branches; you don’t have a clear view of where you’re going.

A clear-cut goal is akin to walking on a smooth and clear path. No goal-related obstacles hinder your forward momentum or vision.

But let me add to the sentence above: while intent is crucial it’s an active and passionate pursuit of your intent that will actually allow you to achieve success. 


While the intent is there, if you don’t actively take the needed steps to get from A to B, walk the walk rather than just talk the talk, you’ll never reach your goal.

In order to realize your intent, it would be beneficial for you to create a list of questions and statements outlining its specifics.

A few questions you might include are:

- What is your ultimate success goal?
- What does the obtainment of your goal mean?
- After picturing it, what does success look like to you?
- How will you reach your goal?

So, how would you answer these questions?

As a children’s writer, your goal may be to write for one or two major magazines. Or you may want to be published in several smaller magazines. Possibly you want to author a book a year and have them published by traditional publishing houses. On the flip side, you may want to self-publish your own books at a faster pace.

Maybe to you, success is to make a comfortable living, or you may be very happy with simply supplementing your income. Maybe you want to be a professional, sought-after ghostwriter or editor. Maybe you want to be a coach, a speaker, offer workshops, or present webinars. These are some of the potential goals for a writer.

Whatever your vision of success is, you need to see it clearly, write it down (it’d be a good idea to also create a vision board), and take the necessary steps to get you where you want to be.

If you find you have a realistic success vision and are taking the necessary steps to achieve your envisioned intent, at least you think you are, but you still can’t seem to reach the goal, then perhaps your efforts aren’t narrowly focused enough. Maybe your success vision is too broad.

Wanting to be a writer is a noble endeavor, but it’s a very broad target. There are so many niches within the writing arena that if you don’t focus on one or two, you’ll be known as a ‘jack of all trades, master of none.’

Try narrowing down, fine-tuning your goal. Remember, it’s essential to be specific and focused.

It might be to your advantage to create success steps that continually move you forward on the path to reaching your ultimate goal.

For someone new to writing, the first step in a writing career would be to learn the craft of writing. Give yourself a year or two to join writing groups, take advantage of writing workshops or classes, write articles, or create stories. You should also be part of at least one critique group. This would be your first step to achieving your intent, your success vision.

Instead of trying to go directly from A to B, it might be more effective to go from A to A1 to A2 to A3 . . . to B. But, again, for each step, the intent, a clear-cut vision, and the driving passion all need to be front and center.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Karen Cioffi is an award-winning children’s author and children’s ghostwriter, editor, and coach with clients worldwide. In addition, she offers self-publishing help for children’s authors with WRITERS ON THE MOVE PRESS.

Karen’s children’s books include “Walking Through Walls” and her DIY book, How to Write Children’s Fiction Books.” 

If you need help with your children’s story, visit: https://karencioffiwritingforchildren.com.  

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A feature in the right column of this blog lets you subscribe to #SharingwithWriters so you don’t miss any of Karen’s posts on writing for children.  

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MORE ABOUT THE BLOGGER MORE ABOUT THE BLOGGER


 Carolyn Howard-Johnson is the multi award-winning author of fiction, creative nonfiction, and poetry. She is also a marketing consultant, editor, and author of the multi award-winning #HowToDoItFrugally Series of books for writers including "The Frugal Book Promoter" (https://bit.ly/FrugalBookPromoIII), now offered in its third edition by Modern History Press. Others in that series are "How to Get Great Book Reviews Frugally and Ethically," "The Frugal Editor" and two booklets, both in their second editions also from Modern History Press. The booklets, "Great Little Last Minute Editing Tips for Writers" (https://bit.ly/LastMinuteEditsII) and "Great First Impression Book Proposals" (https://bit.ly/BookProposalsII) are career boosters in mini doses and both make ideal thank you gifts for authors. The one on writing book proposals is also available as an Audio Book. "The Frugal Editor "(https://tinyurl.com/TheFrugalEditor), was recently released in its third edition. It is the winningest book in this series for writers. 

 Carolyn also has three frugal books for retailers including one she encourages authors to read because it helps them understand what is needed to convince retailers to host their workshops, presentations, and signings. It is "A Retailer’s Guide to Frugal In-Store Promotions: How To Increase Profits and Spit in the Eyes of Economic Downturns with Thrifty Events and Sales Techniques" (https://bit.ly/RetailersGuide). In addition to this blog, Carolyn helps writers extend the exposure of their favorite reviews at https://TheNewBookReview.blogspot.com. She also blogs all things editing--grammar, formatting and more--at "The Frugal, Smart, and Tuned-In Editor" (https://TheFrugalEditor.blogspot.com). Learn more and follow for news on her new releases directly from Amazon at https://bit.ly/CarolynsAmznProfile.

Friday, May 19, 2023

A Poem for Endangered Species Day

I wrote this poem a few years ago but have never used it on social networking before.  That sorta seems a shame.  It won the Franklin Christoph's Prize for poetry a few years ago, too. They are the only makers of fountain pens I know of located here in America!). That's ore than I ever expect to make from poetry again!  I have the check photographed and hanging on my wall.  I kind sad to keep it hidden in the bowels of computer.  Here it is for your enjoyment. If you'd like to know more about endangered species, you can sign up for the organization's newsletter by Googling "Endangered Species Day 2023."  Ta Da!

Endangered Species

 

A dragon, hiding as dragons 

do, to pounce upon prey, shock

 

them into submission with forked 

tongue, spiked tail, blue-green 

 

scales, brimstone breath. But not

a sea dragon, this—nearly misnamed

 

a seahorse—dainty—

disguises herself in briney 

 

fronds, sways with the current. 

her delicate horn-shaped

 

snout trumpets silence.

Long like a dragon, 

 

long as a water-lily stem, 

soft, and—presumably, 

 

slick. She flourishes

her leaf-like fins, the translucent

 

shade of her underwater forest 

of amber seaweed pads, exactly,

 

matches her dance to that of the kelp

—ballet in slow motion 

 

so the visitor to her underocean

home will not see her. She will take

 

them by surprise

with tenderness.

~~~By Carolyn Howard-Johnson

       Winner Franklin Christoph's Poetry Prize



 PS: This poem appears in a book I wrote with Aussie Magdalena Ball called Sublime Planet (https://bit.ly/SublimePlanet). Cover Photography by Anne Howley.



MORE ABOUT THE BLOGGER

 Howard-Johnson is the multi award-winning author of fiction, creative nonfiction, and poetry. She is also a marketing consultant, editor, and author of the multi award-winning #HowToDoItFrugally Series of books for writers including the multi award-winning The Frugal Book Promoter (https://bit.ly/FrugalBookPromoIII), now offered in its third edition by Modern History Press. Others in that series are How to Get Great Book Reviews Frugally and Ethically, The Frugal Editor and two booklets,  both in their second editions, also from Modern History Press. 

The booklets, Great Little Last Minute Editing Tips for Writers (https://bit.ly/LastMinuteEditsII) and Great First Impression Book Proposal (https://bit.ly/BookProposalsII) are career boosters in mini doses and both make ideal thank you gifts for authors. The one on writing book proposals is also available as an Audio Book. The Frugal Editor (https://tinyurl.com/TheFrugalEditor), was recently released in its third edition. It is the winningest book in this series for writers.

Carolyn also has three frugal books for retailers including one she encourages authors to read because it helps them understand what is needed to convince retailers to host their workshops, presentations, and signings. It is A Retailer’s Guide to Frugal In-Store Promotions: How To Increase Profits and Spit in the Eyes of Economic Downturns with Thrifty Events and Sales Techniques (https://bit.ly/RetailersGuide). 

 In addition to this blog, Carolyn helps writers extend the exposure of their favorite reviews at https://TheNewBookReview.blogspot.com. She also blogs all things editing--grammar, formatting and more--at The Frugal, Smart, and Tuned-In Editor (https://TheFrugalEditor.blogspot.com). Learn more and follow for news on her new releases direct from Amazon at https://bit.ly/CarolynsAmznProfile.

Sunday, May 14, 2023

Mystery Writing Prompts PDF Instant Download for Writing Groups and Teachers

Mystery Writing Prompts PDF Instant Download for Writing Groups and Teachers

The other night my daughter was shocked when the doorbell rang during a thunderstorm. She could see the outline of a person against the backdrop of lightning. It was the police! Thunder! Lightning! Police! More lightning! 

Although she was scared, she did answer the door. On a different evening, a friend was in a similar situation. Police were at her door, but she called 911 to verify it was the police. In some situations,  there may be a suspicious person in the neighborhood, or they are looking for information about a neighbor. The police do not explain outside the door. This could be a frightening experience. 

Mysteries often begin with murder(s), detectives, and police. I wonder how some of the little towns in the murder mysteries series settings have anyone left living. I wonder if the shows may have to end for lack of possible victims! Not really, but this is a popular genre on television and in books. Romance is number one, and mysteries are second in popularity. 



Mystery Writing Prompts PDF Instant Download for Writing Groups and Teachers

One of the prompts is, "the floor creaked from footsteps one floor above." Of course, this storyline may be taken in a different direction. It is up to the writer. This PDF is my usual, with several pages of pictures with text prompts and the same pictures without text. Writers can choose whether to use a text prompt, create their own stories just using one of the pictures, or write something else independently.  

Mystery Writing Prompts PDF Instant Download for Writing Groups and Teachers

Detectives are usually included in mysteries as they are needed to follow clues and lead the reader to a possible conclusion. Red herring clues help with plot twists and surprises at the book's conclusion. Usually, one detective is in charge and disagrees with a younger one, and then the younger one proves he is right to the embarrassment of the one in charge, as in Endeavor by Masterpiece Theater. The younger detective is more handsome or beautiful, clever, smarter, and more insightful than the one who is about ready to retire. Ya know. So here is the dashing young man. Perhaps he is shown up by a female, like in Miss Scarlet and the Duke, also from Masterpiece Theater. 

Mystery Writing Prompts PDF Instant Download for Writing Groups and Teachers

Police might knock on the door at night. Usually, detectives and others work to gather clues, which necessitates visiting houses and places of employment. This page might be part of a mystery or another genre altogether. 
Mystery Writing Prompts PDF Instant Download for Writing Groups and Teachers

There are 16 pages of writing prompts and also one coloring page, as usual. Sometimes children are invited (perhaps being dragged along, kicking and screaming) to a writing class or group and need something to do. 

Thank you for reading. I hope you find these prompts helpful! 
Carolyn

Mystery Writing Prompts PDF Instant Download for Writing Groups and Teachers


MORE ABOUT THE BLOGGER Howard-Johnson is the multi award-winning author of fiction, creative nonfiction, and poetry. She is also a marketing consultant, editor, and author of the multi award-winning #HowToDoItFrugally Series of books for writers including the multi award-winning The Frugal Book Promoter (https://bit.ly/FrugalBookPromoIII), now offered in its third edition by Modern History Press. She is also the author of" How to Get Great Book Reviews Frugally and Ethically." She has two booklets in the #HowToDoItFrugally Series, both in their second editions from Modern History Press. "Great Little Last Minute Editing Tips for Writers" (https://bit.ly/LastMinuteEditsII) and "The Great First Impression Book Proposal" (https://bit.ly/BookProposalsII) are career boosters in mini doses and both make ideal thank you gifts for authors. The one on writing book proposals is also available as an Audio Book. "The Frugal Editor" (https://bit.ly/FrugalEditor), recently released in its third edition, is the winningest book in the series. Carolyn also has three frugal books for retailers including one she encourages authors to read because it help them understand what is needed to convince retailers to host their workshops, presentations, and signings. It is "A Retailer’s Guide to Frugal In-Store Promotions: How To Increase Profits and Spit in the Eyes of Economic Downturns with Thrifty Events and Sales Techniques" (https://bit.ly/RetailersGuide). In addition to this blog, Carolyn helps writers extend the exposure of their favorite reviews at https://TheNewBookReview.blogspot.com. She also blogs all things editing--grammar, formatting and more--at The Frugal, Smart, and Tuned-In Editor (https://TheFrugalEditor.blogspot.com). Learn more and follow for news on her new releases direct from Amazon at https://bit.ly/CarolynsAmznProfile.