I've been a widow for almost three years and I have to say I'm not used to it yet. And I don't think I ever will be used to it. I miss my husband of almost fifty years very much. And I don't find a way to live a full life without him. However, I have found a way to keep busy and useful. I'm a writer - a published author and poet - and those skills help me a lot. With that said, I'd like to share an essay I recently wrote and read at my writing class: To Live Again by Madeline Sharples When my husband of over fifty years died, I had to give myself the opportunity to become completely new. I went through all our possessions in the house we lived in for forty-two years and divided them up into four categories: stuff to sell, stuff to give away, stuff to throw away, and the littlest pile of all – stuff to keep. Then I sold my house and found a new place to live. I didn’t buy anything new when I moved to the retirement community where I now live. I was able to furnish my new apartment … [Read more...]
On a conference panel? Come prepared
Since the publication of my memoir, Leaving the Hall Light On (Dream of Things), and now the publication of my historical novel, Papa's Shoes (Aberdeen Bay), I've been asked to appear at many writers conference panel discussions. Actually I've been asked to speak on my own - which I did once - but I always prefer to among three to four others on a panel. This last Friday evening I appeared on the Greater Los Angeles Writers Conference panel "Writing a Best-Selling Memoir" with four other authors. One authored two biographies of well-known television stars, one wrote a book she called a fictionalized memoir, one was an agent and lawyer who discussed some of the legal issues of writing memoirs, and the moderator, who was a public relations specialist and editor. That said, I was really the only true memoir author on the panel. By the way, the agent/lawyer emphatically said there is no such thing as fictionalized memoir. It's either fiction or memoir, but not both. And I … [Read more...]
Please welcome award-winning author Fiona Ingram
Our Choices guest today is Fiona Ingram while on her WOW! Women on Writing tour of The Temple of the Crystal Timekeeper - the third in the series of award-winning books for middle grade students. Please help me welcome Fiona. I also welcome her thoughts about writing for kids - something I've never attempted. Here are her wise words about how to create characters kids will relate to. Writing and Creating Characters by Fiona Ingram Creative writing for kids is one of the most challenging and fulfilling aspects of the classroom. Many teachers who are not writers may struggle to explain the nuts and bolts of writing in relation to the imaginative and creative process involved in making a story. Children may also not grasp the solid hard work involved in creating the structure and plot of a good story. Here are some easy tips to make the creative writing process both successful and fun. Writing can be one of the most rewarding and fulfilling experiences of your life. There are … [Read more...]
Comparing writing a proposal to writing a book
I finally have a break from work. Yes, it's Sunday and I have the day off. For the last five weeks I've been knee-deep in working with a team of engineers writing a proposal to the U. S. Air Force. And, I'd like to share some of the steps they have gone through some very similar to those we take as fiction and nonfiction authors and some not. Plan. Start with an outline or a plan the engineers produced annotated outlines and planning documents called story maps that showed where on each page of their sections their graphics and text will layout on the page. I started both my memoir and novel with outlines. I know some of you are panzers, but I like to have a plan before I write. Review. We spent a lot of time reviewing these plans for compliance with the proposal instructions and technical soundness. I was very fortunate to have a friend review my original memoir outline and another person review my revision plan when I was getting it ready for publication. Having fresh eyes … [Read more...]
Ask the author
One of the best experiences I had while we were on our recent trip to New England and the East Coast was being a guest at my great niece, Anna's first grade class in Fairfax, Virginia. The class was working on a poetry unit. They had spent a lot of time in the last two months writing and illustrating Ouch, Acrostic, Animal, Color, and Haiku poems in preparation for a program for family and friends called Poetry and Punch. At first I thought Jessica, the teacher, wanted me to give them a lesson in writing Haiku the poetry form they were currently working on. But, no. They already were writing them and knew all about the form. So I was pleasantly surprised to find out that I was going to have a Question and Answer session with them. Jessica had the children sit on the rug in the front of the room and introduced me as Anna's Aunt Madeline, the author. She then gave them the opportunity to ask me any questions they had about my work as a writer and author. And from the very first … [Read more...]
