Writers Unbound

Writing poetry - whether or not you’re a poet - is one of the best ways to strengthen your expression, cull your dead words, and become more aware of the sound and flow of your writing.
Even if you are a poet, getting started can be difficult.

Guardian Books hosts a Poetry Workshop each month. Here’s the summary: “Every month, our poetry workshop is hosted by a different poet who sets an exercise, chooses the most interesting responses and offers an appraisal of them…” Past poets include Sean O’Brien in February, David Morley for January, and Jean Sprackland for the last month of 2007. Matthew Francis was the poet for March’s workshop; he received submissions until April 27 and will, I assume, soon post his short list and responses. I don’t see a new workshop listed for April/May, but I’m hoping that’s just a delay on the part of the WebMaster.

I took a little time to go through Francis’s workshop for March. His first instruction is simple: Complete the sentence, “When I think of summer, I think of…”
Easy enough, and not exactly inspiring yet. My list was lack luster and predictable at the beginning: grass, playgrounds, vacations. (For some reason I went straight to summers as a child, not summers now, as an adult. Hm.) But, as Francis said, I started thinking of things “very personal to you, the sort of associations that not everyone else would have, while others may be general experiences that nevertheless wouldn’t occur to many people.” Thing such as (more…)

I know I know: I write about freelancing way too much. Let’s veer away from that for a bit, shall we?

On Monday, my 7 year old had the day off school, so it was just her and I here at home, which she doesn’t get a whole lot of. I was helping her fill out her iPOD with song selections from the the video library on cable TV. I was happy with her tastes in music: J. Lo, (Latina) and Ingrid Michaelson (talented writer) among others. (Although I’m a little dismayed with her crush on Justin Timberlake- but, hey, she’s 7, she can’t be perfect. Yet)

I was also pleased that she wanted to read the captions during the videos. Sometimes the words just pop, you know, and you can tell the songwriter is also a poet. People like Tori Amos come to mind here. I was happy to introduce my little to-be writer to the concept.

I was reminded of this one teacher I had in high school who actually got my younger brother interested in poetry by exploring Pearl Jam lyrics (yes it was the 90s).

Another place I’ve found some inspiration lately is from my photo albums. My WIP is set mostly in Mexico, and it helps to access the photos and get me into the right frame of mind.

I’ve mentioned my WIP before, and that it’s set in Mexico, partially, and that I wrote it in Mexico. I’ve talked about this before. I’ve really got to make it come to fruition, so that I don’t reread this post someday and want to kick myself.

I’ve really got to get rid of the IP part of my WIP.

Gonzalez was an award-winning poet and writer originally from Spain who taught in New Mexico.

He is closely aligned with the generation of literary figures who opposed the Franco regime (other literati identified with this group include Garcia Lorca, Langston Hughes, Pablo Neruda, Orwell and Hemingway).

I highly recommend further reading of Gonzalez works, and exploration of the literary opposition to Franco’s Spain to anyone who enjoys poetry or Spanish literature, or to anyone who is interested in the juxtaposition of politics and literature. 

In the interest of fairness to all my readers (yes, I am a freelancer, but yes I will try to diversify more!) I’d like to impart some advice to emerging/wannabe poets.

In college I read for a literary journal, and although I judged in Long Fiction, I often did backup for Poetry, so please keep in mind the following is based on solely that (with a smattering of backgroud from an undergrad degree in English).

1. Read the journal first. You’d never guess how many inappropriate, too edgy, too ….whatever….. submissions we received. I know it can get expensive, but I’d recommend reading more than one copy. Perhaps you could put a day aside to set up camp in the library, instead of purchasing your own copies.
2. Make the first poem the best. Although we were instructed to read all the submissions, it was difficult to give the 2nd, 3rd, 4th poems a fair read if the first one left a bad taste.
3. Let it sit. And then let it sit again. Get some distance from your poems. I have 3 or 4 pieces that I’ve been working on for months. They get filed away, and then I drown myself in “good” poetry before I reread them. After filling my head with decent poetry, I can then go back and read my own pieces, and more readily notice glaring differences. 
4. Follow the directions! I know, you see this specific piece of advice on every “How To Get Published” column, but seriously, it needs to be said.
5. Don’t.Stop.Submitting. Whatever you do, keep going. It’s ambition that’s going to get you published.

Best of luck!

poetry, getting published

WELCOME BACK and Happy New Year! I am well rested and ready to offer you the best blogging year I’ve got in me. Let’s get to work! Ok, I’ll admit that the “top 5 genres” is subjective, but whether you’re a freelancer, biz-tech writer, blogger, novelist, or poet I’ve got something for you today!

Freelancers: Now is the time to find out the editorial schedule of your targeted magazine for the following year! Editorial calendars basically tell you what topics the magazine has planned for the year. Many will also indicate the amount of lead time needed for each issue. You can then tailor your pitch to fit their needs. So, how exactly do you find the editorial calendar? 

The easiest way is to subscribe to a service such as CyberAlert or MediaCalendars. Designed and aimed at PR professionals, these subscription-based services offer a searchable database of thousands of publication’s editorial calendars. Of course, I said it’s the easiestway- it’s not necessarily the cheapest. For example, a subscription for CyberAlert costs $499.

Don’t want to invest $500? I don’t blame you. Another way to find editorial calendars is the old fashioned way- search their website. If you can’t find the info on the writers page, be sure to check the advertising page.

Biztech Writers: Tired of trolling the same old places for jobs? Yes, it sure is convenient, but how about creating your own list of weekly job board bookmarks to check? Advantages include:

• Job searching on your own schedule
• That whole “early bird gets the worm” adage means that your resume and email are in front of the hiring manager’s eyes before he is buried under an avalanche of queries.
• Keeping your bookmarks up to date means that you’ll build a series of multiple leads that are tailored to your preferred job boards. 

Ready to go? Start building your list by checking out my list of 20 Links to Find Your Next Job. (Full disclosure: this link is to my guide site at About.com.)

Continue building your list by bookmarking every job board you happen upon. Soon you’ll have a huge list (like me! 85 and counting!) 

Poets: Do I ever have a great resource for you! Check out this listing of over 25 poetry contests with deadlines coming up soon. (Hurry, some require submission as soon as January 15- how’s that for motivation?)

Novelists: I’d never wish writer’s block on anyone- the frustration level is outright horrific. However, if you suffer from this infliction, there’s a multitude of resources out there. Here’s one of my faves.

Bloggers: How do you get great blogging jobs? Have a great blog! Aren’t bloggers lucky in that we don’t have the chicken and the egg issue that freelancers have? (How do I get clips, no one will hire me without clips!) Just about any literate individual with an internet connection can start a blog.

Now, that doesn’t mean it will be great, or that it will get traffic. Luckily, I can help you with one of those. Submitting your blog to directories is one way to increase the flow. Here’s a couple to try out:

• RSSFeedSubmission.com keeps a huge list of directories.
• Search Engine Watch offers these step by step tips on blog submission.
• Give Best Web Directories a try.

Thanks for reading!

writing tips, writing resources, freelance, poets, poetry, blogs, novels, business writer

I had a great view of the nation’s capitol as I stood in the poetry rooms at the U.S. Library of Congress. (photo by Dorothy K. Fletcher)

The U.S. Library of Congress has named poet Charles Simic America’s new laureate. Technically the position is called the Poet Laureate Consultant in Poetry. In keeping with custom, Simic will serve a one or two year term. Our new laureate was actually born in Yugoslavia. He arrived in the United States in 1954 and has been a U.S. citizen for 36 years. “I am especially touched and honored to be selected,” said Simic, “because I am an immigrant boy who didn’t speak English until I was 15.”

Simic has said he started writing poetry in high school “to get the attention of girls.”

Simic’s accomplishments run as long as the Mississippi River. He’s authored 18 books of poetry. Simic is also an essayist, translator, editor and professor emeritus of creative writing at the University of New Hampshire where he’s taught for 34 years. He’s won a Pulitzer and the Griffin Prize, and he also was a national Book Award finalist. His new collection of poems ‘That Little Something’ will be released in February, 2008.

Simic’s work is very elegant, but it’s also accessible on different levels. Anyone can read his work and take something away. But those who study poetry will see elements and techniques reflecting skill and dexterity. A unique, darkly amusing poem is archived at the Verse Magazine blog. “Night Clerk in a Roach Motel” manages to impart beauty created through dark lines like, “Doors that show traces/ Of numerous attempts at violent entry…” It’s easy to envision a seedy hallway full of doors that have seen better years in a hotel we’d really prefer not to be in.

Simic follows Ted Kooser as laureate. Kooser and former laureate Billy Collins did so much to return poetry to the forefront of American literature. Here’s hoping Simic will do the same.

Word Press, Technorati, Tags, Library of Congress, new U.S. Poet Laureat Charles Simic, poetry, consultant, Washington, capitol, American Literature, American Poetry

Not long ago we were cleaning out our very messy garage. We came across a box of old photographs. We were on a roll until we found those pictures. As soon as I opened the box, all activity halted. My husband and I strolled down memory lane, recalling days when we both had long hair, big dreams and near-empty pockets. A bonus from that memory walk came in the form of inspiration. Thumbing through those photos inspired a new poem and an essay. Sometimes, we find inspiration not by seeking it but by accident.

It’s hard for a writer to gauge her own work, but one of the poems I consider my best occurred quite by accident. I was facilitating a Community Poetry Series for our local Barnes and Noble here in Jacksonville. Poet and author Steve Kowit emailed to tell me he’d be in our area, and we set up a poetry workshop for him.

Of all the workshops I’ve ever participated in, Kowit’s stands out for the remarkable experience every attendee had. Suddenly I found myself on the other side of the table. Instead of conducting a workshop, I was participating in one.

Kowit used several prompts to encourage us to pen an off-the-top-of-your-head poem. I chose, “I remember.” Within 15 minutes I’d sketched a draft of a poem about my youngest brother who died when he was a baby. Until that moment, I had never been able to write a poem about him. Ultimately, the poem “Sibling Blue” was published in the afterword to my memoir Killing Earl. It will also be included in my new poetry collection ‘Notes from a Florida Village.’

What made Steve Kowit such a great workshop leader?

He was kind and encouraging. His attitude towards poetry was very democratic because he likes many different kinds of poems. He wasn’t one of those, “Do NOT rhyme your poems!” types. In addition, his knowledge of poetry is extraordinary. He was able to listen to each participant’s poem and offer solid suggestions without intruding on the rights of the poet. I suppose those are a few of the reasons Kowit’s book ‘In the Palm of Your Hand’ is a wildly popular poetry handbook.

We all have dry spells where writing is concerned. So next time you have one, thumb through some photos, or use a prompt like, “I remember,” or “I regret.” The results may amaze you.

RELATED LINKS:

http://search.barnesandnoble.com/booksearch/isbnInquiry.asp?z=y&EAN=9780884481492&itm=1
Book page for ‘In the Palm of Your Hand’ by Steve Kowit at Barnes and Noble online.

http://www.flagstaffcentral.com/bookfest2000/Authors/kowit.html
Page about Steve Kowit from Northern Arizona Book Festival.

Word Press, Technorati, Tags, Books, Poetry Handbooks, Kowit, Poems, Inspiration, Writers, Book Festivals, Writing Workshops

The St. John’s River has inspired my pen many times–resulting in poems, articles and essays.

Thomas Wolfe, William Faulkner and Edith Wharton are three of my favorite classic authors who have become well-known standard bearers when it comes to writing place. Wharton with her renderings of society and the class system of her day, recreates a place that grows far beyond geography.

Today authors like Khaled Hosseini, Rick Bragg and Tim Dorsey grow characters and plot from the places where they have lived and the cultures that arise in those places.

Novelist Carol Goodman does this with her intriguing mysteries. She may not have lived everywhere she’s written about, but she weaves the mythology of places into her plots.

Florida is a great opportunity for writerly exploitation—the state where I live is politically conflicted, green year-round and quirky. Where else do cops dress up like Uncle Sam and pull speeding motorists?

The poetry collection I’m finishing now—“Notes from a Florida Village”—delves my own experience with Florida. Poems about the St. John’s River, a favorite restaurant nestled beneath great oaks and the small green lizards that line up like soldiers on my front walk all grew from observing and experiencing place.

If there isn’t a place you want to tackle directly in writing, you can always do what J. K. Rowling does—make one up while you’re sitting in a café.

The world has never been so accessible—even if you can’t go somewhere in person, the Internet offers so many options for learning about a culture or locale.

But in my opinion, starting at home is one of the best options for a writer to explore his or her craft. My backyard has probably inspired more poems than any exotic place I’ve traveled. All around us are common objects and familiar faces. I think reshaping the familiar into something uncommon is a great challenge, but it’s also a comfort.

I don’t necessarily think you always have to write what you know. After all, a different journey begins when you set pen to paper, one you perhaps didn’t envision when the crystallization for a piece of writing formed in your brain.

But in writing about the familiar, you may discover things you never knew about—true epiphanies—sitting right under your nose.

Word Press, Technorati, Tags, novel, place, history, mythology, writing, style, technique, Wolfe, Faulkner, Wharton, contemporary novelists

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This is my first column for a new topic at 451press.com. I hope you’ll join me each week day for news, interviews and general information about writing.

I’ve worked as an independent journalist for years, and naturally, I have seen many changes in my profession. But these last few years have brought about trends and developments I never envisioned.

Now working writers often use the term “content provider.” The impact of the Internet cannot be understated. Years ago, I never envisioned having 24/7 access to most of what I write for different publications and sites. Now, if an essay or article comes out in Christian Science Monitor or The Florida Times-Union, I can pick up the link and archive that link permanently. This makes it handy for prospecting editors to see my work in a convenient way. Gone are the days of mailing bulky introductory letters and packages with clips. Email is one of the best blessings an independent writer has.

I also do a lot of poetry—my first book was a poetry collection that’s still on the publisher’s list. I’ve learned a lot about this quirky genre and will share some of those experiences in future columns. Who’d have ever thought poetry would be alive, courtesy of former U.S. Poet Laureate, Billy Collins, on youtube.com?

I’ve had the pleasure of interviewing Collins for The Writer, and I’ve also enjoyed hearing him in person at a reading. In my opinion, no other laureate has done as much for American poetry as Collins. I like the animation for Collins’s poem “The Dead.”

There are a number of resources I depend on, among them, membership in the American Society of Journalists and Authors. I also pay for a subscription to Freelance Success, a network that has truly earned its keep for me. I pay for a listing and subscription at Media Bistro as well. I’ll profile these and other organizations in upcoming columns.

I’ll also include writing prompts and handouts for use by educators or writers. I often speak to classrooms, and I’ve found teachers to be very receptive to new ideas to get those student pens (or keyboards) in motion.

Meanwhile, stop by each day to see what’s up in the writing business. If you have tips or suggestions for columns, please leave a comment here.

Above all, if you’re a writer, keep at it. Perseverance is one of the most valuable qualities a writer can have. (text by Kay B. Day)

Ed. Note: All columns by the previous editor are now archived in the category, “Wildcard,” for your convenience.

Word Press, Technorati, Tags, Writing, Freelance, Content Provider, Journalist, Educators, Teacher, Curriculum, poetry, Media