Holly Michael's Writing Straight

~ Connecting and Inspiring Along Life's Crooked Lines by Author Holly Michael

Holly Michael's Writing Straight

Monthly Archives: October 2012

What Do You Really Want?

25 Thursday Oct 2012

Posted by Holly Michael in Best Web Sites for Writers, Family, Guest Blogger, Writing

≈ 23 Comments

Tags

Best Writing Web sites, Blog, Don McCandless, Holly Michael, internet writers workshop, IWW, Jake Byrne, Nick Byrne, word count, Writing, www.writingstraight.com

What Do You Really Want? Author and critque partner, Don McCandless, posted this question and some great advice on Internet Writing Workshop (IWW) after some grumbling posts about trimming words.

I know what I want. I want to write a lot of books. I want to keep my agent busy selling my novels. I want to continue mastering the craft of writing.

To make this happen, I depend on IWW and excellent critque buddies like Don McCandless. IWW is like writer’s boot camp. We work out, tearing apart each other’s chapters, toning our grammar, paring down our prose, trimming our beloved darlings, and wiping out those sagging clichés.

Below is Don’s post from IWW. It’s great advice, not only for writers, but for anyone. Thanks Don!

What is it that you really want? Why do you write?

Once upon a time, when I was an aspiring athlete, I worked out hours and hours every day. I sacrificed many things most people take for granted. This isn’t something you can hide from anyone. Everyone who  knows you, is related to you, works with you, knows you’re paying a price they’d never consider. And yet, many of these same people would ask, we have this league, this team, this event, this company picnic. Come and play with us.

To a trained athlete, there is no situation more dangerous than being in close quarters with a recreational athlete. They don’t know what they’re doing, and you’ve reduced what they see as exceptional, to trained reflex.

So what does this have to do with writing and word counts, you ask. The answer is, simple logic.

Literary agents make their living by representing writers the general public support by purchasing their product. If this is your goal, to be one of these writers, then one must learn the rules of the game, perform the required exercises, build yourself up to  completion level, and compete. One must be lean and mean. No fat. None. Zero. Nada.

Traditional publishing is a game. If you don’t play by the rules, you automatically lose. If the game isn’t for you, there’s always the co-ed recreational league that meets at the Salvation Army Hall on Tuesday nights. Sign up, and have fun. It’s easy. Anybody can play. But no one will ever read about you in the paper. So what is it that you really want? What price are you willing to pay?

Do you really need every one of those 100,000 words? Or could you work off ten or fifteen thousand. No pain, no gain.

*****

Thanks Don!

My first novel, Crooked Lines, landed on my agent’s desk at a hefty 126,000 words. She insisted I trim it to under 100,000 words. It wasn’t easy, but I did. Hoping for a sale soon.

I’m spending this week finishing my second novel, “I’ll Be Seeing You,” and hope to have it to my agent by November 1 to begin NANOWRIMO, National Novel Writing Month. NANOWRIMO is a fun, seat-of-your-pants approach to novel-writing. Participants begin writing on November 1. The goal is to write a 50,000 word, (approximately 175 page) novel by 11:59:59, November 30.

I probably won’t be blogging much during November. No Pain. No Gain.

Sitting on my butt writing, I won’t gain muscles (like my athlete boys, above) but I do hope to gain a new novel by November 30!  Write on!

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Need Directions?

18 Thursday Oct 2012

Posted by Holly Michael in Christianity, Family, Inspiration

≈ 56 Comments

Tags

Betsy Byrne, Blog, Directions, God, google maps, help, Holly Michael, London, Lost, www.writingstraight.com

My daughter had her wallet stolen while in London and needed help. A hacked email scam message? Frantic situation for a worried mom?

Neither.

Betsy is studying abroad in London. I’d known about the wallet she’d thought she’d left at a restaurant and she’d already taken necessary steps to deal with the situation.

A couple of days later, she was on the way to the police station to file a report in case someone turned in “Wally.” While in my living room, at my PC, a Facebook message from Betsy popped up on my iPhone.

Can’t find the police station. Think I’m lost.

I immediately called her using Vonage, my international calling plan, and discovered she wasn’t far from the university where she was studying. I plugged her address in Google Maps, found the street she was on and searched for the nearest police station. The conversation went something like this:

“Did you pass Roberts Street?”

“Yes.”

I zoomed in. Is there a Starbucks on your right?

“It’s across the street.”

“Go to the other side of the street.”

I clicked on satellite view while she crossed the street. “Are you passing three large trees on your right now?”

“Yes. You can see them?”

“Yes and I see that you are going in the opposite direction from the police station. Turn around and go the other way.”

I kept her on the phone, noting shops along the way, directing her, until she reached her destination. It was almost like I was right there, walking beside her.

At one point she giggled and said, “Can you see me?”

“No,” I said, “but I’m with you, Sweetie.”

We chatted about how comforting it was that, though she was far away, I could help her.

If modern technology can allow mother and daughter, oceans apart, to connect so easily, then imagine how close God, our loving Father, is to us, and how easy it is for Him to help and direct us. He knows the trees along our path and even the sparrows singing in the branches. (He created it all). He’s like a wonderful, loving, super GPS in the sky, able to zoom in on us, warn us when we are going the wrong way, and help us get to our destination.

So whether we are going the wrong way, slightly confused, need a little direction, or totally lost, we can easily connect with God. He’s only a thought…a prayer away.

Proverbs 16:9 The mind of man plans his way, But the LORD directs his steps.

For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Jeremiah 29:11

 

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What would a “Blog-You-Mentary” look like?

15 Monday Oct 2012

Posted by Holly Michael in Monday's Connections

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What would a “Blog-You-Mentary” look like?.

Steven Watkins has some big ideas and on my Monday’s Connections, I’d like to point others to his blog. I hope to be working with Steven in the future, blogging to make a difference. Check out his blog! Holly

 

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In Honor of Down Syndrome Awareness Month….

12 Friday Oct 2012

Posted by Holly Michael in Books

≈ 4 Comments

Tags

Down Syndrome, Down Syndrome Awareness Month, Downs Syndrome, Matt Patterson, My Emily

… for the rest of October Matt Patterson is offering My Emily for only .99. This is an incredible heartwarming little book of hope and faith. Check out my review from a few months ago.

Book Review: My Emily by Matt Patterson.

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Journeys in Writing and in Life: Boulder, Colorado and Miracles at Baaaaa.com

06 Saturday Oct 2012

Posted by Holly Michael in Journeys: In Writing and Life

≈ 17 Comments

Tags

baaaaa.com, Blog, Boulder, Colorado, God, Holly Michael, Inspiration, journeys, Miracles, Vicky Sclafani, www.writingstraight.com

Today, I’m journeying over at baaaaa.com (bleats from God’s Sheep) for a guest blog gig about a recent event and a journey taken shortly after to Boulder, Colorado. Please check out my photos from Boulder below, then meander over to baaaaa.com to read…what happend only weeks before this trip.

If you think God’s handiwork is fantastic in these photos, wait until you read what He did in the life of my friend, Vicky. The rest of the story can be read at baaaaa.com.

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Holly Michael

Holly Michael

Done this: Regular freelance ghostwriter and online editor for Guideposts for Teens/Sweet 16 Magazine, creator/editor of a magazine for Wal-Mart Corp., journalist, newspaper features writer, published in a variety of national magazines and local newspapers, script writing/editing for corporations. Doing this now: author of fiction and nonfiction, blogger, and editor of Koinonia Magazine. I’m the wife of Rt. Rev. Leo Michael, an Anglican Bishop in the Holy Catholic Church-Anglican Rite. Mom to three great kids: Nick (#81 Rajin Cajuns), Betsy (Super cute professor) and Jake (T1D & NFL player) Also, enjoy my travels extensively across the United States and internationally.

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