Writing help from A Writer's Edge--Georganna Hancock

A Writer's Edge

WRITING, EDITING, GHOSTWRITING

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Name: Georganna Hancock
Location: San Diego, California, United States

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Tuesday, April 22, 2008

Parents Reading for Children

reading a bookNotice the title is not "parents reading TO children" for a change. On "Today", First Lady Laura Bush and daughter Jenna discussed what the Bush parents did to encourage their children to read. Jenna mentioned that her parents read rather than watching TV. Then she advocated that all parents should read

for as much time as they want their children to read.

Not reading to children, adults reading for themselves. Children emulate their parents' actions. Veg out before the TV, your kids will grow into couch potatoes. Read books, and your progeny will read books. O.K., maybe comics at first, but later graphic novels.

Now, go do as Miss Haueisen, our high school librarian taught: sit up straight, under good lighting, hold a book at a 45-degree angle to your eyes and about 18 inches away, and read. Read.

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Thursday, March 27, 2008

Writing Free Books

Last month, did you snatch your copy of Suze Orman's Women & Money: Owning the Power to Control Your Destiny ($24.95 retail price for the hardcover)? I got mine, thanks to a Florida friend, Bonnie Boots. The book was available only for a day, but word-of-mouth spread across the 'net faster than fall flames in southern California. By day's end, more than a million electronic versions were downloaded.

According to the NY Times, HarperCollins is offering a limited selection of free downloadable books on its website, although I was unable to find such a listing to link.

Tara at ResearchBuzz offers tips on how to search for free books from university presses:

... try this search on Google or Yahoo along with your favorite keywords: “university press” free download site:edu .... You’ll get some irrelevant stuff, but you’ll also get pointers to small university presses which are making their books available online for free.

To get other general overviews of what’s available, try site:edu free book downloads “university press” oxford yale harvard.... try free books download “university press” inurl:2008 (The inurl: portion is because many blogs archive by date, and inurl:2008 is an easy way to find recent entries.)

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Sunday, March 23, 2008

Books by the Month

booksThose interested in how books are marketed and sold, might like to read, well, OK, try to wade through, a scholarly initial look at the early history of the Book-of-the-Month Club by Daniel M.G. Raff, presented to the Columbia Economic History Seminar last May.

I have fond memories of Book-of-the-Month Club selections that populated my family-of-origin's meager library. I think those included Hemingway's The Old Man and the Sea, Dinner at Antoine's, and I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith. The latter encouraged me to become a writer, although not the fictionalist I had dreamed about. Other books I suspect arrived via the BOTMC included Zotz! and Cheaper by the Dozen. I also still have my father's copy of Dale Caniege's How to Make Friends and Influence People and remember an inspirational one by Bishop Fulton J. Sheen, as well as something like, How to Make a Million Dollars in Real Estate.

If nothing else, my parents were eclectic readers.

According to Wikipedia, the BOMC is now just one of many book clubs operated under the Bookspan logo, owned by the giant German publishing conglomerate, Bertelsmann AG.

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Sunday, February 24, 2008

eBook Reader Review

ebook reading deviceMuch of the buzz about reading books revolves these days around "readers", the electronic devices that can store books available in an electronic format. Readers, of course, want to know about them (and argue). Writers want to know if: they should be considering releasing their books in an electronic format, what about the rights, how must should one cost? And publishers want to know if people will buy these products (reading devices and ebooks). Visionaries are all over the spectrum as to whether or not ebooks and readers will replace tree books. Some of us see a place for both in the future. The trick is to make both forms economically attractive. I've asked Sam Warren, owner of San Diego WriteWay to comment on his experiences with a reader:

I love my eBook Reader

This editor recently bought an eBookwise Reader on the Internet for $120 and fell in love with it. Previously, I was too busy to read for recreation. Now I read at the bus stop, coffeehouses, doctor's offices, etc. There are better ones such as a Palm Pilot PDF, Amazon Kindle, Sony & Borders, iPod, and various cell phones. But they cost a lot more, and I am perfectly happy with my simple eBookwise Reader. In addition to all the best sellers, there are the thousand of free out of copyright ebooks, ebooks of the classics.

Self-publishing guru Dan Poynter told me that he reads ebooks on his PDF while flying from one speaking engagement to another. Many Luddites knock them, saying that they prefer the feel of a real book; but then, they haven't tried the convenience of having multiple books and a dictionary at their finger tips, plus the easy-to-read backlight and the adjustable font size.
— Sam Warren
Read more on Sam's page about ebooks.

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Thursday, February 14, 2008

Owed to Readers

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Tuesday, February 05, 2008

Celebrate Granta Magazine of New Writing

Another innocuous-appearing brown mailer lay in my back yard. "What book have I agreed to review now?" I wondered. Out slid what looks like a trade paperback and a thick one at that. But wait, Granta is a magazine, bearing an ISSN, interesting advertising and all. But wait again! There's that new book fragrance ... what kind of ink do they use in the UK? Sniff, sniff ... mmm ...

The book, er, magazine is a special 100th anniversary issue. Special it is, from the DavidGranta Hockney front cover to all 152 pages crammed with new pieces by the likes of:

Julian Barnes
Salman Rushdie
Isabel Allende
Martin Amis
Ian McEwan
Harold Pinter
Zadie Smith

I'm going to be dipping into this box of literary chocolates for a long time. Granta subscriptions are available through Amazon.

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Wednesday, January 09, 2008

Amazon's Best Books of 2007

Best Books of 2007At this time of year, traditional material for regular nonfiction writers are either "Top or Best ..." or "Resolutions". I try to live just one day at a time, instead of proclaiming annual resolutions . If I am in a change process, that's about as long as I can focus or handle. I do, however, believe in setting goals and offered a system for reaching them last month.

I wasn't going to give in to the "tops" tug until I ran across this page at Amazon: Amazon.com: Best of 2007: Books. It is most handy because in addition to the editors' top picks (with no explanation of the selection process), Amazon lists Customer Favorites, the "100 topselling books on Amazon.com during 2007. (Ranked according to customer orders through October. Only books published for the first time in 2007 are eligible.)" At last, a measure with a metric rather than whimsical evanescent criteria. "Top selling" I can understand, even if Amazon has contracted the words into one. There's still time for you to vote on that page for your favorite from among the top 25 best sellers of the year.

Back on the main page of Best Books of 2007, bonuses are the breakdowns of Customer Favorites into 30 "top ten" categories, (find the list in the right column). That's enough sections to enable market research for anyone considering writing a book. What's more, you can also study similar rankings for the last sevan years! (See box at the bottom of the left column.)

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Tuesday, December 25, 2007

Get Free Books


Here's a holiday season gift for the readers via the Frugal Panda: 17 resources of free reading! The Panda clause:

You can never have too many books, so we are delighted to share with you some ways to get them for free. From children’s books to technical books, there are numerous links to resources that offer literature for free. Some of the following sites offer actual printed books, while others feature electronic books (aka "ebooks").
Not only does the Frugal Panda list the sources, but also comments on the kinds of books available and tips on uses of the sites.

Among those mentioned: WOWIO, Memoware, and socialbib and others I'd never heard of.

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Friday, November 30, 2007

Kindle Some Reading

Amazon's Kindle ReaderWhat could be nicer on Christmas eve than cuddling up to a blazing Kindle? Amazon's new reader boasts that it "is a revolutionary portable reader that wirelessly downloads books, newspapers, magazines and blogs to a crisp, high-resolution electronic paper display that looks and reads like real paper, even in bright sunlight." Finally! ePaper for the masses. Well, maybe the rich masses, for the price tag is $399.

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Saturday, October 20, 2007

How to Read a Book

Bonnie Boots rooted out a perfect video for writers, especially authors, at YouTube. See Help Desk Matters | The Internet Wizards Blog for an hilarious lesson on "How to Read a Book".

Video on how to read a book

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Tuesday, October 09, 2007

Reading in Stores for Writer's Block

Reading for Writer's BlockWhen you have Writer's Block, especially the "no idea at all!" type, treat yourself with a dose of reading. Read anything and everything, not necessarily about writing. Reading something from which you learn is especially helpful, but whatever you choose, it should be an enjoyable experience. One method to accomplish this has a bonus: visit a big book store, the type that also has a newsstand. Read some of the books, but also look through a few magazines. Maybe buy a different newspaper and read all of it. Leads for articles or bookish thoughts will creep insidiously into your mind and wrap themselves around your creativity, waking it from slothful slumber.

And you can people-watch! See what others are reading. Maybe strike up a conversation with someone who looks like a fellow scribbler. Even if they aren't writers, chances are they'll have interesting stories to tell. One of them could become the nubbin of a story you'll tell. And all because you went to read when you couldn't write.

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Sunday, August 19, 2007

Readers Go Shelfari

Shelfari website for readers and book loversPhil Gerbyshak, ringleader, oops! I mean ringmaster over at 100 Bloggers invited me to join his Shelfari community. To do that, I'll have to join the website which advertises itself as "a free site that lets you share book ratings and reviews with friends and meet people who have similar tastes in books. It also lets you build an online bookshelf, join book clubs, and get good book recommendations from friends. You should check it out." I wonder if Phil is aware of my predilection for horror? When I visited, I discovered it is actually a social networking site for bibliophiles. How cool is that?

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Friday, July 20, 2007

Poetic Rhetoric Discourages Readers

Poetic tastes and audiences differIn a forum recently someone asked, "How do you judge poetry?" I sensed an explosive topic immediately, probably posted by a frustrated poet . Frustrated at not getting work published, not winning a contest and most likely not appreciating someone else's poem that won a contest. I didn't step into the fray, feeling that critiquing poetry is even more intensely personal than writing a book review. As Nancy Breen points out in her post in Poetic Asides:

No wonder it's so hard to attract readers to poetry. Once they sense that one way or another they're going to get dragged into an intellectual throw-down ("Ewww, you read that guy?" "Oh, please--poetry that doesn't rhyme is just crap!"), they run for the hills.
You don't have to defend your work, style or taste if others don't appreciate it--you probably don't like theirs, either. Let's de-escalate the rhetoric that surrounds poetry and get on with the enjoyment!

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Friday, July 13, 2007

Based on the Book

Books are made into moviesMy real-life book club met yesterday to discuss Debra Ginsberg's Blind Submission. Several members remarked about striking similarities to The Devil Wears Prada, one irate lady declaring that the author had just taken the plot and changed the names and location. Eventually, in a discussion of just how bitchy a major character is, another member commented that the character in the movie was toned down quite a bit from the one in the book. It turned out that she was the only one who had read the Prada book and seen the movie. All the rest of the members were referring to the movie. This whole "book varies from movie" discussion reminded me that the Mid-Continent Public Library, based in Independence, Missouri, has a high-tech branch online with an applicable resource anyone can use: Based on the Book, a catalog of over 1,200 books, novels, short stories, and plays that have been made into motion pictures.

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Monday, June 04, 2007

Top Books

Top 25 fiction and nonfiction books?The USA Today folks have pulled together their list of 25 Books that leave a legacy. It's part of their 25th anniversary celebration with room for you to make an impact: a poll on which of their top five selections should be number one. What if you think another book--one that isn't Harry Potter, The Deep End of the Ocean, The Da Vinci Code, The 9/11 Commission Report (that's a book?), or Chicken Soup for the Soul--should be first? Well, then you can vote for "none of the above" but no write-ins allowed. No indication is given as to the criteria used by the USA Today editors and critics who chose the top 25. Frankly, some make me gag. The notion that The Da Vinci Code represents the best writing our country can offer is offensive, or that What to Expect When You're Expecting ranks in the same class with A Brief History of Time is ludicrous! Nonetheless, there they are. Take a look and vote for none of the above. Send them a message. Or send me a message if you disagree. Last time I looked The Bible was still the top best-seller.

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Wednesday, May 09, 2007

Crisis in Reading

Reading books is a must for fiction and nonfiction writersDavid Kipen, former San Francisco Chronicle book editor and critic, hopes the current campaigns to save newspaper book reviews will restore reading to the heart of American life. He claims, from his current lofty position of the NEA's director of literature:

Still, as important as the crisis in American book reviewing is, the underlying crisis in reading is practically sawing the country in half. Forget red states and blue states. The implications of a republic where half reads and the other doesn't -- not can't, just doesn't -- are simply horrifying.
Read Kipen's whole essay at Salon.com in Last exit to book land (may require subscription).While we know people here read, who are the people who don't read (besides adolescents with their ears plugged to I-Pods)? One of the rites of adulthood in the 60s was getting a subscription to the newspaper. At a certain point in the 80s, I read three papers daily. Now I go to Starbucks and scarf down a Hazelnut decaf with the freebie papers lying around. What's happened to us? Yes, I buy the Sunday paper only for the TV guide insert. Papers just don't seem relevant anymore.

But not reading books? Is it the short attention span everyone blames on TV and the Internet? Are we not human adults, capable of controlling our own bodies, changing habits to improve our lives? Just as we can learn to calm ourselves, we can also increase our patience with reading material and again find the joy and satisfaction books can bring. That's the campaign we need!

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