Profile of a Successful Writer

So what does it take to be a successful writer?

Jane Friedman--editor and media maven for Writer's Digest--posted a fantastic piece on Writer Unboxed (a blog about the craft and business of fiction) that outlines the defining characteristics of a writer who shows promise. Surprisingly, she often doesn't even need to read a word... for her it's more about attitude.

Read the full post here

You also may want to check out Jane's award-winning blog There Are No Rules, which covers all things writing and publishing as it is changing and evolving.

SOS ~ kg

The Rumpus Book Club

The author Stephen Elliott (The Adderall Diaries, Happy Baby) is launching a book club via his online literary magazine site "The Rumpus." It's a pretty interesting concept... The Rumpus Book Club will be distributing books pre-publication--either hard covers or advanced reader copies--allowing readers to engage in a fresh discussion about a book before the media world has put its spin on it.

First up: Josh Brandon's forthcoming book Citrus County, published by McSweeney's.

One Sentence Stories

Last October I bought a unique kind of diary called One Line A Day, which asks you to capture each day in just one sentence. How is this different from our collective obsession with social networking status updates? Well, this journal is private--and that makes all the difference.

What I love is that One Line A Day is a five-year memory book, allowing you to compare your daily entries as the years go by. Each date has room for five entries... one for each consecutive year.


I have since come across several other hubs for one-liner memoirs:

Common Ties

Common Ties collects stories in response to 20 featured questions on topics ranging from Intimacy to Confessions, and then publishes their favorite 50-word answers with artwork each week. Look out for their soon-to-be-released book published by Santa Monica Press.

Post Secret

PostSecret is an ongoing community art project where people mail in their secrets anonymously on one side of a postcard. 

Not Quite What I Was Planning: Six-Word Memoirs by Writers Famous and Obscure
Can you sum up your life in six words? That's what Smith Magazine challenged readers to write. Six words--no more, no less. One thousand of the submissions are printed in this 300+ page biography.
 
One Sentence

One Sentence is about telling your story, briefly. Insignificant stories, everyday stories, or turning-point-in-your-life stories, boiled down to their bare essentials.

Do you have any other sources to add to the list?

SOS ~ kg

Spring Workshop Announced

Do you have a story to tell? Well now's the time to write it...

The spring workshop for UNLOCKING YOUR STORY is taking place April 6th - May 25th on Tuesday evenings (7-10pm) at the wonderful Santa Monica Playhouse in downtown Santa Monica. Space is limited, so enroll now!

This 8-week workshop is designed for those looking to explore, develop and write their personal stories. Click here for full details

Los Angeles: Save the Dates!

Apparently, Los Angeles is the place to be, a bona fide storytelling hub. There are two big events in 2010 that you must mark on your calendars:

The 9th Annual LA Storytelling Festival

Saturday, November 13, 2010


Culver-Palms UMC Complex


4464 Sepulveda Blvd.


Culver City, CA 90230

If you're interested in being a performer or workshop leader at the festival ACT NOW... the application deadline is March 17th! Click here to download the application.

Also, Los Angeles is hosting the National Storytelling Network's annual conference this year:

The 2010 National Storytelling Conference

July 29-August 1, 2010
The Warner Center Marriott


21850 Oxnard Street

Woodland Hills, CA 91367

* early bird registration for NSN begins March 1st!

Both events will feature workshops, performance showcases, concerts, and lots of networking opportunities.

And if that's not enough, then visit the new "About Town" section on my website for a list of storytelling events across Los Angeles. Come one, come all... be an audience member or get up on that stage!

SOS ~ kg

Nathan Bransford's Literary Blog

If you don't know it already, check out Nathan Bransford's literary blog... listed as one of the "101 Best Websites for Writers" by Writer's Digest in both 2008 and 2009.

Bransford is a publishing agent at Curtis Brown (and an author in his own right), who offers wide-ranging topical information--from the latest controversy surrounding e-books to current trends in the publishing industry, including a categorical breakdown of his recent author queries. He is also full of creative tips and insights!

Thank you to my dear friend Lisa Cron for the tip... a stunning writer and story expert whose "Inside Story" class at UCLA Extension Writers' Program I highly recommend!

SOS ~ kg

Writing & Quilting

Two of my mom's quilts: Yankee Doodle Quilt (left), Ohio's Bicentenniel Quilt (right)

My mom is a quilter. I know this because my childhood bedroom is now abounding with all sorts of colored patches of fabric and works in progress. I hadn't ever considered the similarities between our creative processes, until I came across this musing on storytelling and quilt-making - enjoy!

- A quilt takes months.
- A story takes months.

- You choose a pattern, something formal or an idea to cobble together. 
- You choose a theme, ideas that you will piece together.

- You try to think how much fabric you will need…
- You try to think how much material you will need and how long your story will be.

- Cut out fabric into required pieces…
- Write out the material into required blocks of text.  You can fill in the gaps later.

- Fit these [blocks of fabric] together in an agreeable way…
- Fit these blocks of text together in an agreeable way.

- Baste together with big stitches…
- Baste your writing together with rough transitions.

- Then you can quilt.
- Then you can draft and re-draft.

- Make the tiny stitches which draw the layers together and create texture.
- Make tiny edits which draw the layers together and create texture.
 
Then be sure to share your creation with others.  Hang up your writing, share it with everyone who will listen.

Authored by Kari-Lynn Winters; inspired by Theresa Kishkan's book Phantom Limb.

William Zinsser on Memoir and Truth

A thought-provoking interview with William Zinsser - author of “On Writing Well” - about writing memoir and the elusive nature of truth. He says the writer’s *intention* is perhaps the most important aspect to consider.

SOS ~ kg

Credit: NPR’s All Things Considered, April 13, 2006 

* if you cannot play the audio, be sure to refresh the page.

She Writes

Calling all female writers!

Check out this new social networking site “She Writes.”

I am very new to it, still figuring it out. I know, I know... yet another FB, Twitter, etc. Something else to eat up time and distract us from far more worthy creative endeavors and face to face connections. However, some of my dearest mentors, also stunning writers, are active on it.

More importantly...

In this new era of marketing, authors are finding themselves without much support from the publishing houses, so SheWrites is looking to create a grassroots network of salons in cities across the country to help promote the books of its members.

It appears to be a worthy resource. And growing.

Come join me!

SOS ~ kg

Rosa Parks 'Cause & Effect'

A mighty little story - and a great example of 'cause and effect'.

Photo credit: Larry Hirshowitz