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Issue 63
August 2015
IN THIS ISSUE
ANNUAL SHORT STORY CONTEST ENDS SEPT. 1
Be Published with Best Selling Authors!
$$$ WRITING COURSE SALE ENDS SEPT. 1 $$$
Welcome to Planet Earth, Emery Cawley
New Column - What's Hot and What's Not!
National Senior Citizen's Day
Honoring our Senior Citizens
A Service that Publicizes New Authors
Writing Terminologies
Book Review on The Ten Year Nap
Competitions, Literary Agents, Writing Jobs
Trivia Quiz
Points to Ponder
Connect with our CEO
A Word Fitly Spoken
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Annual Short Story Contest Ends Sept. 1
No Fee
First place: a FREE 8-week writing course with a personal tutor, comparable to a $900+ course at other schools
Second place: $50 Amazon gift card OR a credit of $150 USD toward a writing course with a personal tutor, valued at $260 USD
Third place: $25 Amazon gift card OR a credit of $100 USD toward a writing course with a personal tutor, valued at $260 USD
First three places, two honorable mentions, AND ten Judge's Choice stories will receive publication in CWI's annual anthology and eBook. ALL winners must agree to granting first rights to Creative Writing Institute and Deborah Owen, CEO. (Rights return to author upon publication.)
This is a themed contest and this exact sentence must appear in the story:
I got more than I bargained for!
We would like to encourage mystery stories this year, but the genre is open. Read the hints on how to write a mystery at http://www.CreativeWritingInstitute.com and follow guidelines on the site.
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Your First Chance to be Published with Best Selling Authors!
This year's anthology will include BEST SELLING AUTHORS and if you are among the top 15 winners of the short story contest, your story will join theirs along with the judge's and CWI staff stories! What a great way to become a published author. The anthology will be on sale in December, so hurry! Enter the free contest, which has been extended to September 1.
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Sale on ALL courses ends Sept. 1
Payment plan available - no interest
No registration fees! No administration fees!
No school terms! No kidding!
Sign up today and start within 24 hours
Hurry! Only ten seats per class
http://www.CreativeWritingInstitute.com
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Welcome to Planet Earth, Master Emery Cawley
Congratulations to Punctuation Review tutor, Kim Cawley and her husband, on the birth of their new son, Emery Cawley. Emery was born July 23 at 12:50 p.m., weighed in at 6 lbs. 13 oz., and measured 18 1/2 inches long. Kim is doing well and has returned to active duty. She said Emery's big brother, Mason, loves the new baby but isn’t sure he wants him “to stay around all the time.”
If you're rusty on punctuation... and who isn't... consider a review in punctuation skills. Kim has a Master's Degree in Literacy Education from Walden University and teaches at a public school. She has the experience to bring your writing up to par. Review the class at http://cwinst.com/classes_view.php?classid=1. And it's on sale until Sept. 1.
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Greetings to our new columnist, Kevin Keeney, who has a zany sense of humor.
What's Hot and What's Not
by Kevin Keeney
Volunteer Writer
The word processing spellchecker is so last year. Old. Vintage. Unexciting. Uninteresting. But it does offer unique spellings for each word and works in the background without fanfare, highlighting misspelled words. First used in personal computers in the 1980's, the spellchecker quickly rendered bound dictionaries and thesauri as useless, dust-covered objects on a bookshelf.
Boom! Enter the new IBM Watson Tone Analyzer. The Tone Analyzer checks written communications for the tone of your writing. It reads the words, assigns them into categories, maps the percentages to classify the writing and shows trends within the results. Each classified word adds to the percentages, giving an overall “feel” of the writing. The Tone Analyzer scans for words related to three tones:
- Emotional
- Social
- Writing style
Emotional Tone: the Tone Analyzer classifies words associated with emotional categories such as cheerfulness, joy, optimism, sadness, fear, despair, annoyance, rage, and humiliation. Emotional words have both positive and negative connotations that transfer from you to the reader. For instance, writing with energy incites results while writing without enthusiasm flattens it.
Social Tone: agreeableness, openness, and conscientiousness are the three categories within this realm. The social tone reflects how you interface with the world, as a solitary being or as a team player. Readers receive insight into your social skills – like how well you get along with others. Many companies use web-based tests to find prospective employees, quizzing candidates on customer service skills and tolerance for others.
Writing Style: the Tone Analyzer will examine your writing for tentativeness and confidence. For example, if you are a tentative writer, you will transfer that unsettled feeling in your work. If you are a self-assured writer, you will transfer confidence. Think of it this way. The spellchecker scans the surf for fins. The Tone Analyzer swims with the sharks.
For instance, the phrase, “The weather is beautiful; wish you were here,” scores as positive, agreeable, and open but, “The weather is terrible; I want to come home,” arouses a negative attitude and stirs anxiety.
The Tone Analyzer is similar to a blood pressure cuff in a pharmacy. It isn't as accurate as the one at the doctor's office, but if you use it several times to get a range of readings, you’ll know if you should check into the emergency room on the way home.
Like a magic trick, the IBM Watson Tone Analyzer will examine your writing to classify the moods within. Take it for a test drive at http://ibm.co/1eAgreeablecQjZW.
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National Senior Citizen’s Day
by Lynn Carroll, CWI Tutor
Americans celebrate National Senior Citizens Day on August 21st of each year. It began on August 19, 1998, when President Ronald Reagan declared this day to honor our senior citizens, saying, “For all they have achieved throughout life and for all they continue to accomplish, we owe older citizens our thanks and a heartfelt salute. We can best demonstrate our gratitude and esteem by making sure that our communities are good places in which to mature and grow older.”
Americans are not the only country to honor their senior citizens. Asians venerate their elderly by treating them with utmost respect. Even after their eventual death, families celebrate the death anniversary with picnics at the gravesite, playing games, and generally enjoying a festive day. If the families live far away and visiting the gravesite is impractical, they celebrate by setting a place for the departed at the feast table. Unfortunately, as these countries become more westernized, traditions are falling away.
More and more of our senior citizens are living longer and enjoy better health than in past years. Untold numbers are still productive members of society and younger citizens would be wise if they took advantage of their heritage before it is lost forever. Take the time to talk to a senior citizen and you may find an amazing gold mine of information.
It would be a nice gesture if you would set aside a little time each week for volunteer work at our local senior citizen centers. You might even consider random acts of kindness on a senior citizen that you know. Businesses show their appreciation by making special discounts available on this day, so if you are a senior citizen like myself, don’t forget to take advantage of the many specials offered on August 21, on National Senior Citizen’s Day.
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Creative Writing Institute saluted senior citizens August 21. SIX seniors hold jobs as writing tutors, board members, and/or content writers. Our hat is off to you, dearly beloved. Thank you for giving us the benefit of your maturity and wisdom. We honor all of you during the month of August.
As a special tribute, this article was written by a 90-year old CWI volunteer named Bill Battis! This is a man who keeps on giving. Thank you, Bill.
Honoring Senior Citizen’s on August 21
by William Battis
Volunteer Columnist
Our great United States hasn’t always recognized the contributions Senior Citizens made, so allow me to vent my private observations on the subject, viewing it from my own experience of 91 years… or did you even know August 21 is Senior Citizen’s Day?
Senior Citizens, (a term coined in an election campaign in 1938), weren’t always revered as contributors to the national fabric. Way back when, Congress and the workplace viewed them as detriments to progress, a drain on the economy, and obsolete in the workforce.
In the 1930’s census, the venerable “senior citizens” consisted of people above 60 years of age that accounted for 8.5 % of the population. When they reached retirement age, bureaucracy cast them aside in favor of a younger generation. No education was offered. No opinions sought. Just “go away and retire,” the work force seemed to say. “We have to move on.”
Today’s attitude is far more positive. Now we have online courses, junior college courses, institutions that promote lifelong learning, and we even have financial aid for education. Older folks can conduct or learn hobbies and crafts and other types of training that enrich their lives. In the 21st century, it is not uncommon to watch seniors earn college degrees that they had neither time nor resources for in the past. That draws a sharp contrast to the lack of senior jobs in days of yore. If you didn’t find desirable employment by age forty-five, your opportunities were pretty much gone. Employers looked for someone younger and faster who would work for less.
Today’s companies recognize the value of older workers. They are more faithful in attendance and suffer fewer distractions. As a department-director, I frequently promoted older workers because of their skills, maturity, and dedication.
In the old days, if retired seniors didn’t have private funds or a family to shelter them, they faced dire times. Some of the local doctors and individual hospitals offered care on a charity basis, but back in the 1930’s, counties provided minimum facilities for the elderly. Wealthy citizens frequently endowed these facilities, but County Homes suffered for lack of adequate funds.
Today’s senior citizens are more prepared. They can purchase insurance programs during employment or choose other health care programs that continue into retirement. States, counties and cities now offer Medicare and other health coverage, so today’s seniors have an assortment of funded private programs that supplement Medicare.
Even so, the problem of senior health coverage is not completely solved. The 2010 census states 18.4% of the senior population is over 60 years of age, but we DO see light at the end of the tunnel. Education is on the rise. The Small Business Administration uses senior citizens to train younger generations to be entrepreneurs.
Today’s “youth” (ages 40–55-years of age) show more respect to seniors who have devoted their lives to society. Our thanks go to President Ronald Reagan who proclaimed August 21, 1988, as the day to honor and commemorate the elderly. The once overlooked senior citizens suddenly became an asset that enhances the social fabric of the United States.
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A Marketing Expert, Inc.
A Service Review
by Michelle Kaye Malsbury, BSBM, MM
I review books for Amazon.com and Bookpleasures.com as it exposes me to a variety of new and old authors that I may not have had opportunity to read otherwise. I learn about the various authors writing styles, how they move their plots forward and how they showcase characters. Through this reading and review process, as well as, connection through Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn, I’ve also met people who specialize in publicizing authors. One such organization is A Marketing Expert, Inc. headed up by Penny Sansevieri and Paula Krapf. Fantastic people.
Paula and I met on Twitter and began a series of e-mail inquiries. I enrolled in two coaching sessions to help determine the best way to market my newest book, The Swindler, which is available through All Things That Matter Press.
My first 30-minute coaching session with Penny hinged on my book's synopsis and cover design, website design, target audience and compiling a pitch letter to set the hook for future sales. From my session with A Marketing Expert, Inc., it appears Penny Sansevieri spearheads the coaching of this finely honed publicity team and Paula Krapf handles the actual publicity.
In the second session, Penny provided insight on how to highlight myself as the author and promote my works secondarily. Together we discussed the target audience and how to reach them, how to generate a pitch letter and what ingredients should be included therein. We put a great deal of thought into how my book differs from others and how to capitalize on that.
Since my book is set in Florida, Penny said that would be my target audience so it was important to appear in public events there. She also said blogs are a viable component in generating interest and sales.
A Marketing Expert, Inc. typically works with new or smaller press writers versus the major leagues because they like to help new authors get a leg up in the marketplace. For more information into the various services these ladies provide, check them out at www.amarketingexpert.com. They have a variety of plans and will tailor them to fit you. Having the right mix of press and publicity can lead to increased sales and royalties.
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Book Review on the Ten Year Nap
Written by Meg Wolitzer
Reviewed by Karen Johnson
Volunteer Book Reviewer
The Ten Year Nap is an interesting 379-page novel with a New York setting around the turn of the century. The story depicts the cumulative struggles of four fortyish women (ex-lawyers, painters, math wizards, and daughters of the 90’s), who swapped their careers to raise a family.
Ten years later, when Amy Lamb’s son wasn’t as needy, the story follows her newfound identity crisis. Amy wondered how other stay-at-home moms felt. To find answers, she turned to friends Jill, Roberta and Karen, who began sharing their thoughts at a NYC neighborhood café.
Choosing to be stay-at-home mothers brought both drawbacks and rewards. As all of them depended on their husbands to pay the bills, it seemed Karen Tang was the only blissfully happy homemaker.
Author Meg Wolitzer rewinds time to include the mothers of her protagonists. These flashbacks summarize the Women’s Movement to the reader. The questions are intriguing, such as, what became of feminism and is it lost or preserved for women in the future? The answers come through contrasting the lives of the mothers in different generations.
It is no surprise that The Ten Year Nap, published by the Penguin Group in 2008, became a New York Times best-selling novel. This is a challenging page turner with pros and cons about stay-at-home moms.
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Contests, Agents, and Jobs
by Michelle K. Malsbury, BSBM, MM
Creative Writing Institute Staff Intern
August marks a time when we can sit back, relax, and forget about the Dog Days of Summer. There are numerous Fall season writing contests highlighted in this month’s newsletter. We hope you enter some of them!
Creative Writing Institute
No entry fee!
Closes Sept. 1, 2015 -- Hurry!
Open genre, but must include this sentence: "I got more than I bargained for."
*1st place: a FREE writing course with a personal tutor, comparable to $900+ at other schools.
*2nd place: $50 Amazon gift card OR a $150 USD credit toward any writing course, comlete with a personal tutor, comparable to $900+ at other schools!
*Third place: $25 Amazon gift card OR a $100 USD credit toward the writing course of your choice, complete with a personal tutor, comparable to $900+ at other schools!
First, second and third place winners, two honorable mentions and TEN additional Judge's Choice stories will receive publication in our anthology and Ebook along with best selling authors, contest judges and CWI staff. Our anthology will be available in December. See guidelines and instructions at http://www.CreativeWritingInstitute.com
Brooklyn Non-Fiction Prize
Presented by the Brooklyn Film & Arts Festival, this annual prize awards $500 cash for “the best Brooklyn-focused non-fiction essay which is set in Brooklyn and is about Brooklyn and/or Brooklyn people/characters.” (So it’s Brooklyn-centric, if you haven’t picked up on that yet.)
Submissions should be 4 to 10 pages (up to 2,500 words), and five authors will be chosen to read and discuss their submissions at the annual December event.
Deadline: Annually in mid-November
Website: http://thewritelife.com/27-free-writing-contests/#.tigvwr:mn2Q
The William F. Deeck-Malice Domestic Grants Program
The organization will award a cash prize of $2,500, plus free registration to next year's convention. This competition is open to unpublished authors who write in the malice fiction genre. Malice Domestic, Ltd. awards the grant based on a demonstrated commitment to the malice domestic genre ... (more)
Deadline:
11/01/2015
Prizes:
$2,500
Fees:
$0
Genre(s): Fiction
The RRofihe Trophy Short Story Contest
The RRofihe Trophy Short Story Contest, sponsored by literary publisher Anderbo.com, is inviting writers to submit unpublished short stories. First-place winner receives a cash prize of $500, a trophy, and publication ... (more)
Deadline:
10/15/2015
Prizes:
$500
Fees:
$0
Genre(s): Fiction
Shaughnessy Cohen Award for Political Writing
Writers' Trust of Canada, a volunteer-driven organization supporting writers and artists, sponsors the Shaughnessy Cohen Award for Political Writing, which offers a grand prize of $25,000 to an author of the best political-theme non-fiction book for a Canadian readership ... (more)
Deadline:
11/11/2015
Prizes:
$25,000
Fees:
$0
Genre(s): Nonfiction
Essaymama's Essay Writing Summer Contest
EssayMama Essay Writing Contest will award cash prizes to aspiring and experienced writers who have written the best topical essay. First prize is $500, second prize is $350, and third prize is $200. Winning essays will also be featured online ... (more)
Deadline:
10/01/2015
Prizes:
$500
Fees:
$0
Genre(s): Nonfiction
The Marfield Prize
The Marfield Prize is a national literary award recognizing superb arts writing published for a universal readership. The judges will award a cash prize of $10,000 to the author who writes the best book on the arts ... (more)
Deadline:
10/31/2015
Prizes:
$10,000
Fees:
$0
Genre(s): Nonfiction
The Brooklyn Film and Arts Festival Non-Fiction Prize
The writer of the best Brooklyn-themed non-fiction essay will receive a prize of $500, publication in a digital anthology at the organization's website, and a public reading at the Festival ... (more)
Deadline:
11/15/2015
Prizes:
$500
Fees:
$0
Genre(s): Nonfiction
** The above contests came from the following website http://www.freelancewriting.com/creative-writing-contests.php
Literary Agents
What can a literary agent do for you? If you have been busy writing and wondering how to get your material in front of those who can and will publish you then this list is for you. Most publishers will not accept unagented material. Therefore, you will need to find someone who actively works to sell your work to a credible publisher. That means you will need an agent. Not all literary agents accept new material or clients, but here are a few who make it their business to look for and represent new talent. Here are a few agents looking for new writers and fresh voices!
Karen Solem says, “Even though a number of my clients have become New York Times bestsellers,” I …like “discovering and developing new talent.”
David Hale Smith is self-confessed foodie! He enjoys the world’s great BBQ joints, taco stands, and finding new writers. His author list includes well-known authors like New York Times-bestselling novelist Greg Rucka and CBS medical correspondent Jennifer Ashton, M.D.
Bill Contardi worked as an editor for NAL, Berkeley, Popular Library and Avon Book (among other things). Bill is seeking new writers. He says, “I am looking for fresh, smart voices, in control of the story which have some resonance to today.”
Michelle Brower says that early on in her career, she “found herself in love with the process of discovering new writers… and greatly enjoys working with emerging writers.”
Michelle Witte has held a variety of positions in publishing. She enjoys all aspects of a project from idea generation to writing, and editing. Michelle loves finding fascinating new writers and manuscripts.
Jessica Sinsheimer is “always on the lookout for new writers.” She’s specifically likes women’s, and Young Adult fiction, and—on the nonfiction side—psychology, parenting, self-help, cookbooks, memoirs, among other things.
** The above agents originally appeared on this website: http://literary-agents.com/finding-a-literary-agent/literary-agents-looking-for-new-writers/?gclid=COXSicejpMcCFRc2gQodyWUNLg
Writing Jobs
Who doesn’t want to make money writing? For those of you seeking a place to hang your proverbial writing cap take a look at these.
Are you passionate about writing? If so, you might enjoy a career where you spend all day pursuing your dream.
As a job, writing takes hard work, drive, and dedication to the craft. When you think of people who make a living through writing, novelists and/or journalists usually spring to mind but there are jobs for creative writing that will put food on the table. Here are a few places to check:
- Writing Comic Books
- Novelist
- Writing creative advertising
- Screenwriter
- Songwriter (Lyricist)
- Freelance Short Fiction Writer
- Legacy Writer (write people’s bios and family histories)
- Ghostwriter (write for someone else)
- Travel Writer (sell your travel experiences)
- Article Writer (on every subject you can imagine)
- Columnist
- Personal Poet (write personalized poems for weddings, funerals, childbirths, etc.)
- Playwright
- Blogger (don’t tell me you don’t have a blog yet!)
You may not make enough money to live on with some of these creative writing careers, but if you are doing what you love, the money (i.e. the success) just might follow.
*Our thanks to http://www.writingforward.com/creative-writing/creative-writing-careers and original author, Melissa Donovan, but we have revised same to reflect client needs at Creative Writing Institute.
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August Trivia Quiz
by Julie Canfield
Volunteer Writer
Classic books fill your life. You read them, but how much do they impact you? In this month’s trivia quiz, you get a clue to the character, but you have to remember their name and the book they live in. Give yourself bonus points if you can remember the author. Start thinking. Good luck!
- Named for a flower, this female character steals the heart of the male character for whom the book is named.
- The birth of teenage angst began in this character introduced to us in 1951.
- This poor young man is surrounded by four females for which the book is named.
- Considered to be the first female heroine, this character was created by a male author from New England.
- Lucie Manette finds her life entwined by three male characters, two countries and two cultures.
- In this book, a jewelry thief teaches us how desiring an object can cost you your soul.
- This character is not a writer’s friend. His job is to burn books.
- This is what happens when parents send their teenage daughter to visit friends in another town. She falls in love and goes to meet his family.
- Although this character is dead, she still casts a shadow over the house she lived in.
- Writer’s spin tales. This character spins webs.
Answers to Trivia Quiz
Character Book Author
- Daisy The Great Gatsby F. Scott Fitzgerald
- Holden Caulfield The Catcher in the Rye J.D. Salinger
- Laurie Little Women Louisa May Alcott
- Hester Pyrnne The Scarlett Letter Nathaniel Hawthorne
- Dr. Manette A Tale of Two Cities Charles Dickens
Charles Darnay
Sydney Carton
- Gollum The Hobbit J.R.R. Tolkien
- Guy Montag Fahrenheit 451 Kurt Vonnegut
- Catherine Morland Northanger Abbey Jane Austen
- Rebecca Rebecca Daphne Du Maurier
10. Charlotte Charlotte’s Web E.B. White
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Points to Ponder
by Julie Canfield
Volunteer Columnist
To honor our seniors on Senior Citizen’s Day, consider the following verses:
Ecclesiastes 7:10 - Do not say, “Why were the former days better than these?” For it is not from wisdom you ask this.
Proverbs 16:31 - Gray hair is a crown of glory. It is gained in a righteous life.
Psalms 37:25 - I have been young, and now am old, yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken or their children begging for bread.
Proverbs 20:29 - The glory of young men is their strength, and the beauty of old men is the gray head.
Psalms 92:13-16 - 13 Those that are planted in the house of the Lord shall flourish in the courts of our God. 14 They shall still bring forth fruit in old age; they shall be fat and flourishing to show 15 that the Lord is upright. He is my rock, and there is no unrighteousness in Him.
Someone said we spend the first fifty years of our lives learning and the second fifty, living. There is some truth in that. The first part of our lives, we’re busy working, raising families, making memories, and hopefully, aging gracefully. It is during these years we gain wisdom. We discover what we like in life, make bucket lists of places we want to visit, things we want to try, books we want to read, etc.
During the second half of our life, when we get a little breathing space, we wonder - When did I get grey hair? When did my figure go south? Why do I tire so easily? How did the good days move by so fast? What haven’t I done on my bucket list?
The aches, pains and longings that surround us during this time are not battle scars but medals, reminders of the blessings we got from God. Aging is not to be taken as an undeniable, unpreventable fact. It is to be embraced and enjoyed.
As writers, we recall the wisdom we gained from life and we fashion stories and characters that ring true to our experiences and readers. We breathe new life into our memories.
Writers are blessed, not only with the gift of writing, but also with new beginnings. You might call it a rebirth or a new breath of life.
With age comes experience, with experience comes wisdom, with wisdom you appreciate the trials and blessings of a life well lived.
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Connect with our CEO, Deborah Owen
Have a suggestion for the newsletter?
A question?
Comment?
Write to our CEO at DeborahOwen@CWinst.com. She'd like to hear from you! Connect with Deborah at:
Twitter: https://twitter.com/DeborahOwen
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/deborah.owen.31
LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/deborahowen1/
Blog: https://DeborahOwen.wordpress.com/
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A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in pictures of silver.
Proverbs 25:10
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