A Writer's Edge

How to Cripple a Book

Writers.Edge@gmail.com (Georganna Hancock M.S.) — Wed, 17 Mar 2010 15:32:00 +0000

Some of my books are crippled, disabled, handicapped. Oh, sorry. I mean challenged. Others are outright banned--cut out of library circulation and/or schools. I'm so proud of my little defectives!

Banned Books Week 2010 will occur September 25 through October 2. I mention it now, because I doubt this blog will be active at that time. BBW will focus attention to the harms of censorship by spotlighting actual or attempted bannings of books across the United States. It highlights the benefits of free and open access to information--the foundation of writers everywhere, all times. (Challenges are failed attempts to ban).

See the latest list. Can you believe Harper Lee's To Kill a Mockingbird still meets challenges - last time it was because someone thought that reading it might upset black children. Well, I should hope so. It certainly upsets me!

Brag About Yourself

Writers.Edge@gmail.com (Georganna Hancock M.S.) — Tue, 16 Mar 2010 16:37:00 +0000

Where do you find topics to write about? Both beginning bloggers and other types of nonfiction writers often ask this. Instead of my usual "everywhere, all around you" response, I'll detail exactly how this post came about: social media networking. A member of one of the groups I belong to in LinkedIn posted a link to the Psychology Today article as a discussion topic. I saw that item listed in an updates email that LI sends me regularly. I clicked, read the article and thought, "Whew. I'm doin' it right," as the LOL Cat People say. Just last night I'd been adding information to my Amazon Author Page biography section, bragging really. And in third person. Feels weird.

Sooner or later every kind of writer is required to provide a blurb or bio. For me, it's the most difficult writing of all. Worse than a synopsis. It's the same for pitching your services (yourself, really) to potential clients, or bragging about yourself in your website.

If this is difficult for you too, read How to brag about yourself without being seen as narcissistic | Psychology Today by Joshua D. Foster and Ilan Shrira. The secret, it seems, it to mention ONLY yourself, your accomplishments, and not compare them to others. I thought of the latest round of campaign ads in which one politician tries to run down the opposition. Makes me want to vote for the latter.

How about you? When you are dressed to impress, do you denigrate a competitor's accomplishments? Are you positive you write better than ...

Adopt a Cat Here

Writers.Edge@gmail.com (Georganna Hancock M.S.) — Sun, 14 Mar 2010 18:23:00 +0000

I know, I missed inserting a LOLcat for silly Saturday. Herewith, in honor of Adopt-a-Pet week or month or whatever is my recommendation for writers:

When is Rewriting Writing?

Writers.Edge@gmail.com (Georganna Hancock M.S.) — Fri, 12 Mar 2010 16:20:00 +0000

Of course rewriting is writing, but is the real writing in the rewrites? In a long work, maybe or maybe not so much. I'm one who writes an article in my head before I commit it to paper or bits. Granted, I couldn't do this with a book-length piece. However, I learned long ago in watercolor painting to get it almost perfect the first time, otherwise you "make mud." Watercolor is a very unforgiving art medium requiring planning before painting.

In writing shorts, the skills of brevity, concision, and picking exactly the right word might emphasize the rewrite. (Just think of Twitter!) The shorter the piece, the easier it is to be misunderstood, hence the most urgent need for clarity. But with a book, especially a novel, some urge you to vomit out the first draft; all the art is in the rewriting, they say, which is more than simply refining. How could it go wrong? Just listen to what Anne Rice has to say:

How many time has a writer outlined (maybe only roughly) a novel and then had one of the characters "simply run away" with the plot? Incidentally, that kind of thinking is as surely a crutch, a rationalization, as saying you couldn't help hitting someone because they "made me mad." Who is in charge of your [writing] behavior? Where does the story come from? You are responsible for both.

Don't write to "see where the story goes," and then moan about being unable to finish anything or having writer's block. Maybe you wrote yourself into a blind alley! Get the story straight before you write the manuscript. If "outline" is too mechanical a term for you to apply to creative writing, how about "framework?" Still too concrete? Try this: write the synopsis before you write the book. This will probably force you to research only necessary parts, too. Then you will not only have completed the most difficult writing of all, you'll also have a "literary guide" to "just write the damn thing!"

Book Review of UNFORGIVABLE

Writers.Edge@gmail.com (Georganna Hancock M.S.) — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 18:30:00 +0000

Just noticed my review of Philippe Djian's Unforgivable is an editor's pick today on the Books page at Blogcritics.org. The review itself begins there, but the whole article starts here. This was one of those smallish books I didn't know was going to arrive. That always irritates me, and inevitably I cannot resist peeking inside.

I must admit that European literature seldom satisfies due to the usual lack of a happy ending (which many American readers expect) and the authors' penchant for leaving loose ends dangling all over the place. Well, what happens to the writer, Francis? What was Jeremie going to do with the gun? And will Judith (Francis' second wife) simply carry on in her down-to-earth practical manner? Saaay ... this sounds like a good book for a book club to discuss.

Any book mentioned may have been a gift from the publisher.

Mein Fuhrer, Blogger & FTP

Writers.Edge@gmail.com (Georganna Hancock M.S.) — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 20:09:00 +0000

This is about how I feel towards Blogger these days. Little by little they are nibbling away services. Rinky-dink little aggravations like slow uploads, no more deleting spam comments (or any for that matter), glitchy image uploads. I could go on and on. Oh, and the "edit post" button has disappeared. But I may have found a White Knight in Erik Aronesty. PAGING DR. ARONESTY, PLEASE REPORT BY EMAIL TO EDITOR @ THIS DOMAIN NAME. I may have a job for you!

Women's Day - International

Writers.Edge@gmail.com (Georganna Hancock M.S.) — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 17:08:00 +0000

Tune your browser channel to http://bit.ly/9L5Wj8 for the Google live feed of material appearing on the Internet about today, National Women's Day. The topic is so popular that I can't slip through any openings in the movement's official website.

Rather than waxing poetic about the women who have grown, carried, birthed, and fed us from their bodies, then raised, taught, and cared for us in sickness and health, and those who loved us as relatives, friends and partners, I choose to honor some of my fine friends for who I can find photos. In the top row are Maryam in Tehran and Barbara with Tyler in Guam. Middle row is Betsy in California and "Gran" in Washington. In the bottom row are Bonnie in Florida and Paula of The Writing Show, in California.

More Caturday!

Writers.Edge@gmail.com (Georganna Hancock M.S.) — Sat, 06 Mar 2010 17:34:00 +0000

Bringing back Silly Saturday because this is definitely how I feel:

Get Fuzzy Potty SM Chat

Writers.Edge@gmail.com (Georganna Hancock M.S.) — Fri, 05 Mar 2010 19:10:00 +0000

I could tweet all day about last night. Thanks first to Melodie Tao a.k.a. @MyMelodie on Twitter. She arrived at the SDbloggers Meetup bearing gifts. As soon as I hear the words, "Who wants...?" My hand shoots up, in this case, to grab the "Get Fuzzy" desktop daily calendar Melodie gave away. I was so busy marveling over my good luck, that I didn't hear which generous company donated them -- maybe it was MarketingMelodie as the online marketing specialist bills herself.

Just before the meetup started, I was staggering through Lowe's (warehouse stores disorient me 'til I'm sick, bad sick). I tried to see the distinctions among $99 toilets and ones that cost up to $500 but are still without a plasma screen and Internet connection. That's as far as I could tell, because the models were all mounted above my head on tilted shelves, and I feared the headline if an earthquake shook them down on me:

"Woman Dies in Potty Tumble"

I felt my way back to the customer service counter (weirdly vacant of customers), to learn that the company delivers for a fee, even if I hire them for installation. Separate trucks, separate crews, separate charges, I guess.

Preceding this plumbing excitement was a Twitter Chat on balancing your time between building an online presence and actually writing the damn thing. As usual I questioned the question. I'm all about the context and data. The notion seemed to be that all the publishing industry and related personnel (agents) want all writers to have a burgeoning existence on the Internet. No data were offered.

Yes, I know you can cite some agents who advise this tactic. And I've read of a few authors whose publishers expect it. And do the majority? Throwing up a blog, Facebook page, Twittering, etc. seems fairly easy to start. But wait! These are for people who have already acquired an agent, sold a manuscript. It's for established writers more than people trying to break in to the publishing industry as writers. Show me the data that say it helps beginners.

Here's what I think happened. When the Web became available (early 90s) many rushed to put up a "personal page," to link a few together for a site. It was a fad until marketing people latched on. A new medium to exploit! They brought in businesses. Internet use exploded. People with products to sell shifted to pages/sites about products. It seems to me that the same cycle repeats for each new social medium (SM) introduced. Eventually, if you have anything to sell you were/are required (by social pressure) at least to have a site.

Then pundits (myself included) warbled praises of digital devotion, forgetting that we were watched by beginners as well as established writers. No wonder newbies are so confused about platforms and which SM to use, and exhaust themselves trying to do it all. One at a time, it seems easy, at least to jump in. The work is in the long haul, and now in coordinating your broadcasts.

What is the result of all this self-promotion for people who want to become published authors or establish themselves as writers: a lot of time lost. Not all wasted, but nothing productive accomplished in terms of producing writing to sell. SM tidbits are not credits in the writing world. Tweeting is not writing poetry. Maintaining a FaceBook fan page is not enticing people to buy your work. It's all playing around. "Time suck" is a term I see more often in discussions about this arena of battling media.

Sometimes I think a better term would be "social seduction."

Why Editors Say No

Writers.Edge@gmail.com (Georganna Hancock M.S.) — Wed, 03 Mar 2010 18:12:00 +0000

Ring! Ring! "Hello, editing central."
"I can't find your rates anywhere on your website!"
"That's because it depends on the work, the complexity and length, and the kind of editing services desired."
I convinced the caller at the other end of the country to email her "short story" for me to look over. It turned out to be a rather nice story poem, written in contemporary verse. I wrote back:

Hi REDACTED,

Your lovely story poem is something I would not edit. Poems are so personal and so much creative writing rather than something to convey information. Although I might punctuate it differently, I wouldn't know if I were violating your intentions. In poetry, copyediting matters are as much the author's tool as rhyme and word selection.

I will offer this advice, however: read the poem out loud, maybe even into a recorder, and listen for the places where you want the reader's voice to continue to the next line without a break, and where you want pauses or stops. Take away any punctuation that causes a break where you don't want one, and add the appropriate marks where you want a pause or stop.

Punctuation ranges from "snatch a breath" (comma) to full stop (period). Semicolons formally separate phrases that could stand alone as complete sentences; a colon indicates a medium pause but continuing in the same tone of voice because what follows is an explanation of what came before the colon. Use ellipses and em dashes sparingly. An ellipse marks a place where the voice trails off and pauses before starting a new sentence, while an em dash is a pause like a comma, only longer and the voice continues in the same tone. As Jay Leno says: exactly the same, only different!

I see no capitalization problems, but have you seen poetry by ee cummings? That is another poet's choice!

My minimum fee for any service is two hours of my maximum charge, $70 per hour. So, if you still want me to edit it, that's what you'd have to pay. I suspect you can tweak it yourself with the information above.

Please keep me in mind for your future editorial needs.

Yours truly,

Georganna Hancock
10725 Escobar Drive
San Diego CA 92124
858-571-5390
A Writer's Edge http://www.writers-edge.info
Hancock Websites http://www.hancockwebsites.com

Just yesterday, I had to explain why I would/could not help a woman with her novel--she wanted developmental editing (POV, pacing, plot) and only on a partially written manuscript. If I could do that type of editing fiction, I told her, I would be writing novels myself!

Quick! Somebody send some solid nonfiction so I can get all up in your words.

Humor in Writing

Writers.Edge@gmail.com (Georganna Hancock M.S.) — Mon, 01 Mar 2010 19:02:00 +0000

I have a headache. Can't think. You'll have to amuse yourselves today with my storehouse of humor resources:

Sites Tagged 'Silly'

Oddly Specific
Bitstrips: Living with Shakespeare
Action Figures, Play Sets & Nodders - Archie McPhee
Andertoons Cartoons About Writer
Cat Boxes
LOLcats and other icanhascheezburger sites

Please respect the copyrights and licensing protocols.

And while I have your focus on humor, on April Fools Day, the #scribechat at 6 p.m. (PT) may have as a guest, the inimitable Ultimate Cheapskate, Jeff Yeager. The Twitter chat topic is writing humor. No foolin'!

Christie Mystery Character

Writers.Edge@gmail.com (Georganna Hancock M.S.) — Sun, 28 Feb 2010 17:29:00 +0000

I couldn't resist sharing this Christie mystery character:

Write a Best Blog

Writers.Edge@gmail.com (Georganna Hancock M.S.) — Fri, 26 Feb 2010 18:09:00 +0000

What to do while writing. More writing! But this more writing is for marketing and promotion purposes. If writing is a lonely task, then why do we find many top writers engaging in Social Media (SM) activities? They are promoting themselves, building platform and marketing their products. Don't cringe--your stories, poems, articles and novels are as much a product as detergent and dog food are.

Blogs were among the first and remain a linchpin in writers' SM strategies. (the fate of AWE notwithstanding). Beginning bloggers often fail to see the advantages of blogging, laid out so well in "Why Should Writers Blog" by The Urban Muse, Susan Johnston. That post was one of Top 10 Blog Posts for Writers (The Best From The Best in 2008!).

If you're still not convinced, take a look at the Beginners part of the Blogging Your Brand free ebook where Dan Schawbel lays out what a blog can do for you. The book proceeds to advanced level blogging, so there's something for everyone. Get yourself started with his advice, then graduate to How to Write a Better Weblog from A List Apart.

One product For Bloggers | Zemanta Ltd. I've not used, but seen the results in other writers' blogs. It can be an impressive shortcut to help plump out posts. Marko Saric also offers help getting started and I found 58 ways to build a better blog very useful.

Ted DeMopoulos' Secrets of Successful Blogging is another free ebook that offers 101 tips on running your blog like a business. Download the podcast about it. And if the experience grabs you, look over his new book What No One Ever Tells You About Blogging and Podcasting: Real-Life Advice from 101 People who Successfully Leverage the Power of the Blogosphere

Finally, when you get your blog going, trimmed and tuned, there's even more free advice from Leo Babauta on, let's call it, the zen of blogging at Branding 101: How to Promote Your Blog Like the Big Guys Do | Write to Done. There you have my creme de la creme of info about blogging. These are resources above and beyond what you'll find from the usual suspects like Copyblogger and Problogging (both great for when you want your blog to be your business).

Twitter Mystery Solved, Maybe

Writers.Edge@gmail.com (Georganna Hancock M.S.) — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 18:01:00 +0000

Solved: the mystery of DEBBY BUCHANAN a.k.a. "DangerousDeb" a.k.a. "DeadlyDeb" a.k.a. DEBBY HALL of Las Vegas. It was a twisted trail that lead to unraveling and discovering the apparent identity of the person who invited me to join Twitter about a year ago. I'm still unsure of the degree of our connection (probably 6th Black Belt or some other tortured combination of metaphors).

When I first began with Twitter's then malfunky website, I suspected that the "Debby Buchanan" account was a bogus marketing ploy. Send a 'bot out to scout the 'net for mentions of Twitter with some key words like "help," "join" or "questions;" note the author; and pump out this bogus invite with the tantalizing tease that someone wants to follow you. Sounds like something Biz would come up with and Ev could certainly whip up the necessary program with both hands tied behind his back.

At this stage of investigation, I thought I had the perfect April Fool's Day blog post title: "Twitter Dirty Tricks Uncovered" or possibly "Debby Buchanan Exposed". One morning I caught a lucky break and typed the wrong handle into a functioning people search I finally found on Twitter. It displayed an account with a link to a website with a link to a LinkedIn identity that...well, eventually they all converged on a "Debby" with a different last name. Go figure.

See what I mean about leaving a trail through the Internet and not posting anything you would not want someone to discover some day? About practicing consistency within your online identities? I haven't found (by quick search) a link between the disparate last names. Maybe there isn't one, and my face will soon be real red.

Grammar & Style

Writers.Edge@gmail.com (Georganna Hancock M.S.) — Wed, 24 Feb 2010 17:46:00 +0000

Let's say you're writing or editing. If you're not, why are you reading this? It's a summation of handy resources about styles and grammar goofs. I've mined some of these sites for individual post topics, as Constant Readers will notice.

If you just like learning about grammar (who doesn't?) cruise the Archives of the Grammarcheck newsletters at FreeLists / grammarcheck. It is sad they didn't continue, but the Grammar Girl probably has something similar, and an RSS feed no doubt. The Online Universities Blog offers Fun and Informative Blog Posts Every Grammar Geek Should Bookmark

The next three spots highlight good writing practices. Good editing includes being alert for such violations as those found in Forbidden Words, Misused Words and Missed Spellings. That last is an article on tips to avoid spelling and word errors. Read the whole page for more useful links and a new classic poem Owed to Spelchek by Jamy Schuler.

Moving on to style matters, the eternally sticky wicket among writers and editors. Which one to follow? It depends on what you are writing and who is publishing it. One of my fave starting points is Diana Hacker's site because she keeps me straight on which style applies to which discipline (MLA for literature, e.g.). She provides a descriptions of the major manuals or style guides with some links to them or sites about them.

A specific search at Yahoo! yielded such an interesting list of style guides, that I've saved it for reference. Just in case that link goes wonky, here's the whole URL:

http://dir.yahoo.com/Social_Science/Linguistics_and_Human_Languages/Languages/Specific_Languages/English/Grammar__Usage__and_Style/Style_Guides/

Find an even more comprehensive listing at A Research Guide for Students. Hey! We never stop learning, so we are all always students. Scroll down that page and visit some of the links to other helpful sites.

Finally for a little comic relief: Everything You Know About English is Wrong blog (and book by the same name). See labels in the sidebar for entries about particular problems. Enjoy!

Emptying the Email Trash

Writers.Edge@gmail.com (Georganna Hancock M.S.) — Tue, 23 Feb 2010 17:54:00 +0000

Ways to waste your money, time and talent: Some guy just emailed me to call him. That's all he said. I have no idea who he is, and I am certainly not going to open his attached file or call him.

Last week someone said he had found my website through an image search for "California Spangled Cats." He wanted me to hire him to optimize my site for better image search returns, because mine was 22nd in the list. Like, I care? Anyway, it's "California Dreamcats," the first one I did for a class in site design, and I don't think it's on the web. Now, that's creepy.

Another persisted (until I blocked the address) in telling me that my writing site can't be found in foreign search engines. Why should I be concerned when it is only for English-speaking people, or those who want to learn and search on English terms.

Other hilarious favorites are the vendors who tell me that they have redesigned my websites, and I can see the improvements by clicking on a link. They fail to notice that I design and optimize sites. Often they fail to discover my name, too.

But the all-time best is the guy who sent me the same message three times in an 18-month period, offering free articles. Now, I like to feature guest posts, and some of the free articles on this site are by other writers who I know. But this guy signed his emails with three different female names and directed me to the same two websites where the articles appeared. Only, he kept mixing up the signature names and the by-line names. I'm not sure he knew who he was. A little research discovered his true gender and name.

I'm also a little sad because yesterday I turned down two book manuscript editing jobs. Ironically, one was too well-written. I told the author that most of the changes I might make, I thought amounted to quibbles. The other manuscript looked like a brain dump with little punctuation or capitalization and no quotation marks. I told the author that either it is a new form of a novel, or the manuscript needs to be rewritten, which is a very costly effort.

Sometimes I wonder if I'm being tested.

Novels

Writers.Edge@gmail.com (Georganna Hancock M.S.) — Mon, 22 Feb 2010 18:35:00 +0000

Creative writers need help at many points in their pursuit of success. Mainly it is a chase to get a novel published. These are some of the most helpful online resources I've retained in the drafts file for this blog. The first contains a common grammar error in its title--using the wrong word that sounds like the right one (expedite). Don't let that put you off.

Hard-Won Lessons from Artists to Expediate the Learning Curve is by Suzanne Falter-Barnes, who writes about overcoming the fears that impede creativity. Equating writing to creating art seems quite reasonable to me. In this fairly short article for creativity coaches, she provides seven insights to the "real nitty gritty" of the creative process and persisting to completion.

While you are writing your masterpiece, undoubtedly you'll encounter specific problems. Chances are that Australian writer/editor Marg McAlister has it covered in the Writing4Success Tipsheet Archives. I've received her newsletter for years and learned much about creative writing from it. She has also operated a private writers' club online, but in her recent newsletter (No 173), says she will open "up most of the content to everyone as a free site." She also wrote:

Opening the site to all writers is in the nature of an experiment. Since I have limited time to administer the site, I won't be adding 5-6 new articles each week as I did last year. However, I WILL welcome well-written articles from writers in all genres. If you would like to share some of your expertise, send your article to me at tipsheet.article@gmail.com for consideration.

Once you master your masterpiece, you will benefit from The Blog of Fantasy Author Paul Genesse: How do I get published? I have pointed out this piece in the past (it's three years old) and I think the advice Paul provides is still invaluable for any "real, serious writer" who intends to have a book published in the traditional manner.

Going for the gold standard may appear an Olympian feat these days, but honestly, I don't think it is truly any different from the past. The best way to find an agent is still by referral. The best way to have your manuscript submitted to an acquisitions editor is still by an agent talking the editors into taking a look at it. And if you are aiming for publishers who consider unagented mss, personal contact is still holds the best chance for this to take place.

You may not yet be an Author, but you certainly are a Writer and deserve the best--the best advice, the best help, and the best publishing.

Technorati to the Rescue (not)

Writers.Edge@gmail.com (Georganna Hancock M.S.) — Sat, 20 Feb 2010 20:13:00 +0000

What sent me ROFL hysterically this morning? Only Technorati could make this blog situation worse! Many months before Blogger announced its abandonment of FTP blogs, Technorati reformed itself and old timers lost Fans, Authority, and listings. I had tried for weeks before that to have the listing there (since 2004) link to my blog's new address. No go. When Technorati wiped out most of the blog's data, I gave up and resubmitted it as a new blog, having lost precious Technorati history. See how empty it is? And my Profile?

Now with Yahoo probably closing down MyBlogLog where I have 483 community members, 514 followers, and 45 friends; Google monkeying around with the search algorithm again; and more people subscribing to the RSS directly and by email...I have pretty much decided to draw this blog to a close.

Then I found this in my Outlook Express Inbox today:

To: Writer@Writers-Edge.info
Subject: Technorati Claim Complete
From: "Technorati"
Date: Sat, 20 Feb 2010 09:21:03 -0800 (PST)

Congratulations, your claim is now complete! Please allow 24 to 48 hours for Authority and recent posts to begin showing for your site now that it has been successfully claimed. Once they are there, we will update your site's Authority once per day.

At first you may not see your site listed in the Technorati Blog Directory for all of the categories you've selected. As you write blog posts around those topics, you should see your Topical Authority in those categories begin to rise.

Goody. How about a Cleveland clap for Technorati?

Writing About Writers

Writers.Edge@gmail.com (Georganna Hancock M.S.) — Fri, 19 Feb 2010 17:35:00 +0000

More secrets of a successful writer revealed! Two of these resources are so valuable, I keep them hidden in my browser's bookmarks toolbar. That also means that I use them so often, I want them right at click, which is the same as at hand. Garrison Keillor's The Writer's Almanac, a service of American Public Media, is more than a database of poetry and authors. Each day Keillor writes about authorial anniversaries (birthdays, publication dates and other events) providing background and details you might not know.

The Library Booklists and Bibliographies contains an enormous amount of material on books and writers. The part that I've used the most is similar to The Writer's Almanac, and that is the section on Literary Births. The beauty of both of these resources is the additional information delivered about some of the authors. Pick your favorite writer and search both sites to find useful material.

Finally, if I'm writing about a particular writer, or even a specific subject, I know I can always find a cogent quotation at Famous Quotes and Quotations at BrainyQuote. For example, the Quote of the Moment is "Every artist was first an amateur." Ralph Waldo Emerson said it, and I am fond of reminding some that we were all unpublished writers when we began.

Please, don't introduce yourself as such. If you're a writer, you're a writer, published or not. If being published is a criterion for something or someone, you'll discover it soon enough, so don't start out one-downing yourself. Hmm. I feel an "Inspiration" message in the making.

Bag of Writing Tips

Writers.Edge@gmail.com (Georganna Hancock M.S.) — Thu, 18 Feb 2010 17:33:00 +0000

Here's a nicely mixed bag of tips for successful writing. These links comprise some of the fundamental resources I've hoarded throughout this blog's life. Before I delete them from the "Drafts" I will gather them into posts. Make note of these resources and mine them for yourself:

Ed 2010 is the place to go for, as Ed says, "your magazine dream job." The WhisperJobs is it's great feature, and now a message board is functioning. Ed's blog seems to have died out a couple of years ago, possibly around the time Ed joined Twitter as @Ed2010news. Do we see a what's what here? ~~BLOG~~ Twitter.

Allen & Unwin is an Australian book publisher with a very useful service called The Writing Center. I especially like the Writers on Writing section. They currently feature a Q & A with Elizabeth Gilbert, author of Committed and Eat, Pray, Love.

Chris Gobel's Writing Help Page displays his to ten list of "no-no" hints for writing in general. Some of the links may be outdated, but the easily- understood guidance is evergreen. This is part of his website, HUMDINGER LITERARY E-ZINE: All kinds of writing for all kinds of readers. This site is now an archive, nay, a treasure, to be plundered systematically for all it's worth.

Another deep, deep resource is the English Usage FAQ Home Page of http://www.yaelf.com/ -- also housing the FAQ page for the old alt.usage.english Usenet group (anybody here old enough to have belonged to Usenet groups? Waaaay back, predating the World Wide Web.) It might be easier to use this huge website via its site map.

Just as the classics become references to have at hand, while experts and authorities take up more techy methods to communicate, A Writer's Edge Blog will remain right here, while I continue on Twitter. Also available via RSS.

GLHancock 4,801 tweets

To Be or Not Passive

Writers.Edge@gmail.com (Georganna Hancock M.S.) — Wed, 17 Feb 2010 17:46:00 +0000

To be or not to be. That is the question, except to editors. We eliminate "to be" verbs (is, are, was, were, to be, be, being, been) whenever we can. The worst constructions littering the language are "there is" or "there were" and similar.

"But whyyyy?" some clients whine. "What's so bad about sentences starting with "there is?" Here's your answer: because they are extraneous words and signs of wordiness in the writing in general. Example:

There is alot [sic] of snarkiness going around the Internet these days.
We see a lot of snarkiness on the Internet now. (Better)
Now snarkiness abounds on the Internet. (Even better)

State of being (to be) verbs also crop up unnecessarily as helper verbs. Variations include forms of "to do" "to have." My favorite example:

James had been being a bad boy, but Santa had been good to him anyway.

To my ears, that reads like nails drawn down a blackboard. Screeeee!

"Although James was naughty, Santa still rewarded him" is a slightly more succinct and sophisticated version. In the context, you might be able to leave out the "still." Or turn the sentence around: Santa rewarded him, although
James was naughty/a bad boy/bad. Reversing the phrases is often the cure for passive sentence construction, too. Example:

Most of the damage was done to New Orleans by the flood waters. (Passive)
Flood water damaged New Orleans the most. (Active)
Flood water caused the most damage to New Orleans. (Active)

More Blog to Book

Writers.Edge@gmail.com (Georganna Hancock M.S.) — Tue, 16 Feb 2010 17:50:00 +0000

Alarming trends are evolving in the digital writing world. Major publishers are using more Demand Media material.

The "Blog to Book" phenom raises it's tempting head once more, as chronicled by Iris Blasi in The New Farm System: From Blog to Book | Digital Book World. "What about getting a book deal from a blog?" Here's a summary by the Union Square Press editor:

1. Consider your category. The web is a goldmine for humor writers in particular. “If you’re funny and your voice is unique, people will come to it,” said Mulligan.

2. Pay heed to tradition even in a digital environment. The best way to catch the attention of an agent or editor? “A good, old-fashioned, well-written query,” said Lee. “There’s really no substitute for that.”

3. Think ahead. In standard publishing contracts, the burden of obtaining permissions for reprinted material falls on the author. For sites dependent upon reader submissions, do yourself a favor and have readers surrender rights to their content prior to posting, as TextsfromLastNight.com smartly does at sign-up.

4. Don’t show all your cards. Added value is essential to publishers, as they don’t want to reproduce what is already available for free online. Be mindful from the outset about holding back some add-ons that might work best for the book.

5. Show you can drive traffic. If a blog launches in the forest, does it make a sound? Great content will only get you halfway. Focus on links from other websites, as they act as a kind of endorsement and quality control, demonstrating your proven ability to promote.

Easy peasy, huh?

Political Grammar

Writers.Edge@gmail.com (Georganna Hancock M.S.) — Mon, 15 Feb 2010 17:42:00 +0000

Politician misappropriates grammar, caught waffling by comedian.

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart

Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c

Waffle House

www.thedailyshow.com

Daily Show
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Political Humor

Health Care Crisis

It used to be "how to lie with statistics," now it's "how to lie with words." I like that part about using an auxiliary verb with a slightly more passive mood.

Happy Valentines Day!

Writers.Edge@gmail.com (Georganna Hancock M.S.) — Sun, 14 Feb 2010 19:07:00 +0000

We're all dancing through this frog pond together! Happy Valentines Day to all friends, followers, fans, frequent fliers, Friday Follows, Thursday Thanks and visitors to A Writer's Edge.

Should Business Tweet?

Writers.Edge@gmail.com (Georganna Hancock M.S.) — Sat, 13 Feb 2010 17:54:00 +0000

Should businesses do SM, particularly Twitter? The efficacy and PR value is difficult to doubt, and I'll give you a hot example in a moment. Remember, the principle here is that writing--any kind--is a business.

Earlier in the week I received an email message (is there any other kind now?) "inviting" me to list my business in a relatively new database used by PR and publicity people. The very notion elicited a delicate frisson of fear--scared me pantsless. I took to Twitter:

Someone wants to list AWE in a new database for PR reps. Oh, no! My Cision listings bring in quite enough crap, thank you. 4:18 PM Feb 10th

Notice I mentioned a major media services company without an @ sign or a hashtag. In my haste to post, I did not consider repercussions. Within two minutes, the phone rang. As soon as the caller identified herself as a VP with Cision, I knew why she had called. We had a pleasant and productive conversation.

The focus here, however, is on the business' use of social media. Obviously, Cision closely monitors mentions of its business name. I can think of several ways it receives nearly real-time notices. It is able to respond quickly to perform damage control (in this instance) and help its customers. At least 10 of the top managers are active on Twitter.

Although I'm not a client, if I were, I'd be impressed with this company and probably delighted with its service. See the elephant dance!

Disclaimer: If this post is viewed as a product or service endorsement please note than I do not use it, but Cision uses me, very gently and with grace.