Posts Tagged ‘writing’
The Daily Prompt #9 The Art of Stalking
May 22nd, 2010 | Author: admin
The Daily Prompt #9 The Art of Stalking
Today’s activity is the art of stalking. There are several areas of writing that require observations to acquire the fluidity needed to make a piece sounds both realistic and intriguing. It is crucial, particularly when writing dialogue, to observe humans and their habits when interacting with each other and with their environments.
You will be listing two things: Observations and assumptions. Observations are what you see plainly, facts, actions, and tangible objects. Assumptions are ideas sprouted from facts…
| Observations | Assumptions |
| Ex: The man has a backpack. | Ex: Inside the backpack is A) parts of a bomb B) All of his worldly possessions left after his escape from Cuba C) his security blanket and the receipts from his last ten therapy appointments. |
Try writing a list of both observations and facts. This should help you to think outside the box and come up with story ideas for future pieces of work.
You will also be listening to conversations. Insert yourself as covertly as possible beside a couple or group having a conversation. Observe not only their words–but their hand motions, facial expressions, and body motions. Attempt to discern their emotions. Are they disgusted? Dumbstruck? Afraid?
What is the relationship between the two? Are they brother and sister? Boyfriend and girlfriend? Husband and wife? Father and daughter?
Try to piece together as many elements as you can about what is happening. Those few elements you can’t figure out–you assume, and then you write.
Now what? When you’ve finished writing your prompt response you can post it– or a link to it below for feedback! Take a look and see what others have come up with.
Have an idea for a daily prompt? Send it to Ilanawrites@gmail.com
Responses can also be posted in The Daily Prompt Forum: http://ilanawrites.com/?page_id=279
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The Daily Prompt #5 Lyrics
May 19th, 2010 | Author: admin
The Daily Prompt #5 Lyrics
"And then John Mayer fell swiftly and violently in love with one, Miss Ilana Jacqueline."
Behind every great song are great lyrics. Behind every great set of lyrics is a great story. Your job is to tell the story that inspiried the song.
The purpose if this exercise is to teach you how to get specific. Try to choose a song with a strong message and dominant emotion–but a vague explanation. Give a reason for the songstress to feel the way they did when writing the song. Your piece should have a concrete plot with characters and a setting.
Have fun with this one!
Now what? When you’ve finished writing your prompt response you can post it– or a link to it below for feedback! Take a look and see what others have come up with.
Have an idea for a daily prompt? Send it to Ilanawrites@gmail.com
Responses can also be posted in The Daily Prompt Forum: http://ilanawrites.com/?page_id=279
The Daily Prompt #4 Opening Lines
May 18th, 2010 | Author: admin
The Daily Prompt #4 Opening Lines
"For starters, she needed her lip waxed."
You can write 400 of the most brilliant pages ever written in the history of literature, but if it’s behind one really lackluster opening line–then you might as well forget about winning the Pulitzer Prize.
Here are some opening lines that grabbed readers:
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“There was nothing left to say. He covered her body with his, and as she put her arms around him she could picture him in all his incarnations: age five, and still blond; age eleven, sprouting; age thirteen, with the hands of a man.”–Jodi Picoult, The Pact
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| “The thing you can count on in life is that Tennessee will always be scorching hot in August.”- Ann Patchett, Truth and Beauty
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| “All this happened, more or less.” —Kurt Vonnegut, Slaughterhouse-Five
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| “It was a wrong number that started it, the telephone ringing three times in the dead of night, and the voice on the other end asking for someone he was not.” —Paul Auster, City of Glass
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| “I have memories of you before you were even born.” –Philip Beard, Dear Zoe
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| “Lolita, light of my life, fire of my loins.” —Vladimir Nabokov, Lolita
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| “My name was Salmon, like the fish; first name, Susie. I was fourteen when I was murdered on December 6, 1973.”– Alice Sebold, The Lovely Bones
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| “Once there was a tree….and she loved a little boy.”– Shel Silverstein, The Giving Tree
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| “If you really want to hear about it, the first thing you’ll probably want to know is where I was born, and what my lousy childhood was like, and how my parents were occupied and all before they had me, and all that David Copperfield kind of crap, but I don’t feel like going into it, if you want to know the truth.”- J.D Salinger, Catcher in the Rye
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| “It’s so hard to talk when you want to kill yourself.” — Ned Vizzini, It’s kind of a Funny Story.
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| “It was a pleasure to burn.” —Ray Bradbury, Fahrenheit 451
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I’ve given you a list of great opening lines. What I’d like you to do is to take one of these opening lines that worked so well for other writers–and continue them. Write a story using one of these introductions as the basis for your plot. Make sure your story logically follows the introduction.
Now what? When you’ve finished writing your prompt response you can post it– or a link to it below for feedback! Take a look and see what others have come up with.
Have an idea for a daily prompt? Send it to Ilanawrites@gmail.com
Responses can also be posted in The Daily Prompt Forum: http://ilanawrites.com/?page_id=279
“There is no money in publishing” and other lies they told us
May 4th, 2010 | Author: admin
Growing up, the advice I got from most authors was: Don’t do it for the money. There is no money in the publishing industry.
It was that sort of disheartening advice that almost made me want to stop writing, because no matter how passionate I was about the art—I was more passionate about having clothes on my back and food on my plate. I felt concerned that I would do the work I was passionate about, only to fall deeply into debt. Or worse, I would move away from this field and do something I didn’t enjoy, simply to maintain a semblance of my lifestyle.
I chose to keep writing. During the first four years of my career I worked my butt off writing articles, books, and doing interviews and during those four years I made exactly $20. (Which was really only because I sold an ad alongside a review I did in a teen magazine!)
Twenty measly dollars. Was this going to be my yearly stipend as a professional writer?
The problem, I realized all came back to that advice I’d been given to not expect money. If I didn’t expect money, I couldn’t receive it. More importantly, if I placed so little value on my talent—how could I expect to incur any monetary value from it?
The fact that so many young and talented writers suffer from the delusion that their work isn’t worth being paid for—either because they enjoy doing it, or believe it isn’t equal to a dollar’s value—is the very reason that they won’t get paid.
Not being paid for writing pieces is a cycle in this industry that has to be stopped. Writing is a profession just like any other. We work to produce a product. Just because we enjoy making it, or it is cathartic for us doesn’t mean that it should go financially unvalued.
For me, the obstacle that stopped me from getting paid was not asking for payment. When I sent out introduction letters to editors and publishers I never mentioned a rate. There was no discussion about it.
I was so excited to have the opportunity to be a published author (an excitement that dwindles magnificently in the face of rent, grocery, and gas bills) that I never sought any further payment besides my own delight. Big mistake!
Once I started valuing my work, the more valuable it became, and thus the more indignant I became when I was asked to do work without pay. Writing is one of the hardest professions. We are asked to synthesize information and output it in an organized way. This is not a monotonous, repetitive job by any means. It’s mentally laborious, and driven by focus.
To operate under the mindset of “Well I like to write so I don’t need to ask for money to do it,” Is the same as watching your housekeeper scrub your bathroom floor and when you go to hand her the check she says, “No, it’s alright! I enjoy bloodying my knees to keep your tiles clean!”
Many people derive pleasure from their jobs, but a job is still a job.
Consider this: For every writer who does their work for free, a writer who seeks payment is denied. (Why pay for what you can get for free?)
I urge all young writers to invest in the future of their careers (as possible sources of income) to stop accepting non-paying jobs.
The publishing industry doesn’t have to be a thankless one, and writers don’t have to be penniless and destitute–Which is a relief; because $20 doesn’t even begin cover my Skittles and Chex Mix addiction!
