Right There, Right Then: Immediacy

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Peace to you! Maureen Pratt here with my monthly blog about specific aspects of the writing process. Today, I thought I'd highlight some suggestions about immediacy in our writing. Whether we're writing fiction or non-fiction, we want our prose to carry the feel of immediacy, or a sense of time and place that draws the reader in to the exclusion of all other distractions and detractions. Compelling central plots do this to a certain extent, of course, but to carry someone along for the duration of a book requires some hooks-within-the-hooks. Immediacy boosts action to a more lively level, and it helps root scene and character…

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The Power of Positive Prose

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  Hello! Maureen Pratt, back again, for my monthly CAN Blog post. I’m very happy to be blogging today about the craft of writing and, specifically, the huge difference "writing positive prose" can make in describing characters, painting pictures, and conveying the heart of a story, be it fiction or non-fiction. What do I mean by "positive?" Given two possible ways of writing the same sentence, the more positive can be the strongest one to choose. Consider this description: "Amy didn’t necessarily think she was beautiful, but she couldn’t believe that the casting director put her in secondary roles that…

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MESSY DESK, PRISTINE PROSE?

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Hello! Maureen Pratt here with my monthly CAN blog about writing. Today, I pose a question, "Messy Desk, Pristine Prose?" or, "Does your writing environment help you or hurt you?" I recently saw a picture of a writer at work. Everything about her desk and surroundings was streamlined and clean. Not a pencil out of place, not a book up-ended. There were no sticky notes affixed to the computer screen, and no cork bulletin board groaning with mock-ups of book covers, flyers, and a scribbled-upon calendar. Even this writer's shirt looked as if it had just been ironed! If this…

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READING AND WRITING THE FINE PRINT

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                                           Greetings! Maureen Pratt here with my latest CAN blog post about the craft of writing. Today, I thought I'd steer clear of the "big picture" – that is, the major aspects of writing that we so often focus on in our work – plot and character arcs, basic personal attributes, action points. Instead, I thought I'd "sweat the small stuff" and talk about the importance of seeking, seeing and writing about the "fine print," those details that can truly make a huge difference between a piece that is okay from one that is, "Oh! Hey! [That really strikes home/makes this a…

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Help! Where’s my story?!

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  Hello, again! Maureen Pratt here with my monthly CAN blog about the art and craft of writing. This month’s topic is, “Help! Where’s my story?!” or, “What to do when your story goes one way while you go another.” Whether we write fiction or non-fiction, plotting or outlining is often an essential part of the publication process. From the first query to the last book cover blurb, most of us try to envision the beginning, middle and end of a work before we dive in. But, as we authors know, as hard as we might work on those early…

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When Something Happens

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Hello, again!  Maureen Pratt here for my monthly blog post. And what a month it’s becoming! No doubt many of you have multiple works in progress gracing your keyboards, computer screens, notebooks, and imaginations. Some deadlines, too. The life of a working writer. And then…something happens. How do we handle health and other emergencies and keep our writing in mind and heart, too? We are writers, after all, and writers, well, we write. As I write this, I am in the midst of a significant family emergency. One minute, I was working on a new magazine article, and hours later,…

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Making Poems Different I

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Hello, I’m Donn Taylor, here again to talk about poetry and ways to achieve the “higher voltage” that distinguishes poetry from most prose. In my last few posts, I spoke of several basic ways to organize a poem. Now we turn to several ways of making your poem different than many, perhaps most, that editors will see. The vast majority of new poems I’m seeing are written in the poet’s own voice, with the poet as the speaker (persona) of the poem and one or more aspects of the poet’s self as the subject. It’s safe to assume that editors…

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Laughter

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Sherry Kyle here writing from my laptop in California.  Have you had a good laugh lately?  I’m not talking about a slight chuckle, but a good ‘ol belly laugh—the kind that makes your stomach hurt and the tears roll out of your eyes. There are certain friends and family members that bring it out of me. My husband is one of them. I love his sense of humor and how he can brighten my mood. Who makes you laugh?  I’m so glad God loves laughter. He wants us to enjoy life.  Psalm 126: 2-3 says, “Our mouths were filled with…

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Got Hope?

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Hi! Sherry Kyle, here, writing from my laptop in central California with a word of encouragement for you. Romans 15:13 says, “May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.” (def) hope:  1. to have a wish to get or do something or for something to happen or be true, especially something that seems possible or likely. 2. To believe, desire, or trust. What is your hope today?

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Writing Short

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    Then God said: "Let there be light," and there was light. Genesis 1:1 Hello! Maureen Pratt here with my first CAN Blog post. I've been asked to write once a month about writing – one of my favorite topics! Today, I'm going to start off with a topic that sometimes confounds many writers – "writing short." As I'm the author of a 600-word syndicated, international column, I'm steeped in this style with each piece I file. And, more than ever before, we use this kind of writing, especially on the Internet. But it can be so difficult to adapt…

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