The Pen of a Ready Writer

Hi everyone! I’m Emily Ann Putzke, author of It Took a War , Ain’t We Got Fun , and my newest novel Resist which released this week. Today I’m going to share five of my favorite writing websites. The Online Etymology Dictionary is a wonderful resource for historical writers. If you find your characters saying things you’re not sure are historically accurate, this site is your friend. It will tell you the year the word was first used. Helping Writers Become Authors is a great website chocked full of advice. Peruse their site for advice on both the writing and publishing process. The author, K.M. Weiland, also posts daily writing quotes on her Facebook page that are either encouraging or downright funny. I love the layout of She’s Novel. I especially liked her post on deep point of view, and overcoming writing doubts. I’ve been a fan of Go Teen Writers f or years. There’s timeless advice on all aspects of being a writer, contests, giveaway...

     If the fog hadn't cleared in time, Lucy might have stepped over the edge.  The path dropped away beneath her feet, leaving her on the edge of a precipice.      "Why do you stop, Lucy?" Peter asked, sounding both curious and annoyed.      "Well, hullo!" Edmund stepped to her side, suddenly seeing what she did.  "We're on a cliff, Peter."      Peter and Susan joined their younger siblings on the edge.  The clouds below them parted somewhat and they could see the sheer cliff -- smooth and straight -- and the bottom several thousand feet below them.      "It makes me dizzy." Lucy said, reaching for Edmund's hand.      "Well, there's no way across here.  We'll have to go back and look for another way." Susan sighed.      "We can't."  Edmund stared into the depths in front of him.      "Edmund's right.  Aslan told us that we could no...

I read a post today by K.M.Weiland about compounding conflict in your story, and it was brilliant.  (If you want to read it yourself, check out this link: http://www.helpingwritersbecomeauthors.com/compounding-conflict/ ).  She used the Jurassic Park movie to illustrate her point.      As a disclaimer, you should know that I have not seen this movie myself.  As a warning, you should know there are semi-spoilers written below.      We have all probably guessed that at some point in this movie, dinasaurs are on the loose trying to eat people.  But you probably also know that at the beginning of the movie, the dinasaurs are safely contained.  And we can surmise that something happens to set the dinos free.      The point that K.M.Weiland made in her post is that it is not ONE thing that sets the ball in motion.  There are multiple conflicts that coincide to make a big impact.  And we can create that i...

For this one, you have to read the whole story (in I Samuel 15) to understand the betrayal that Samuel uncovered.  And how Samuel cried to see a great man placing trust in himself instead of remaining humble before the Lord.  It was the beginning of Saul's downfall. But Samuel said, “What then  is  this bleating of the sheep in my ears, and the lowing of the oxen which I hear?”

“Entreat me not to leave you, Or to  turn back from following after you; For wherever you go, I will go; And wherever you lodge, I will lodge; Your people  shall be  my people, And your God, my God. 17  Where you die, I will die, And there will I be buried. The  Lord  do so to me, and more also, If  anything but  death parts you and me.”                                                                           ~Ruth

     I am going to start a new quote challenge.  Who's with me!?!      This one is Bible-based.  As you read the Bible, look for story-type quotes.  This could be some epic scene, or a word of wisdom such as would be shared by a wise character.  It could be from a story, or it could be about stories.  The purpose is to learn from the greatest Storyteller of all time -- the One who is writing the story of life.      Every Friday for the next month, I am going to post a quote from the Bible.  To join me, search your Bible and find a good quote.  Then post it on your own blog and leave the link in my comments.  Or, if you don't have a blog, simply put the quote into my comment section.  I look forward to see what you guys find!

     A friend of mine was blogging about wealth (among other things) and how it is meant to be shared.  You think about the lonely miserable old miser.  You think about the joy they would have if they had someone to share with.  Wealth is not meant to be squandered but neither is it meant to be horded.      My friend went on to say that God did not give us wealth as a trick test to see how much we would give away.  And, as I read that, I thought of how many times it has been portrayed that way.  "God gave you good things just to see what kind of person you are.  You will be graded on the percentage of your goods that you distribute to the needy."  Is that how it is?  No.       But are we supposed to share our wealth?  Yes.       God gave us good things for us to enjoy them.  And we already established in the first paragraph that you will enjoy your wealth so much more when yo...

I read a post recently that struck me rather hard.  It pointed out the common error of writers now-a-days, trying to write their story as if they were a movie director. Guilty. I totally was trying to do this error on purpose, too.  Whoops. When we watch a movie, we see the glances and sighs and pointed glares.  So much emotion is conveyed in these "glances." In my attempt to "show" and not "tell," I started using acting-script as a language. But it doesn't always work in a book form. Writing is its own art form.  Don't try to copy movie form. It was an interesting admonition. If you want to read more, check out this post by K.M. Weiland: Show What Your Character is Feeling and Thinking (and Do It Like a Writer, Not a Director)

This is a song about how God calls you to things SO BIG that you can't possibly take credit for them.

There are many reasons she is called the Penslayer. But the title suits her...or at least, it suits her writing.  And it is only through her writing that I know her.  Through her blog and her two published books. What is it that she slays?  There are many things, no doubt, slain by her pen.  But tonight I came to realize that she slays my chains. Chains of fear. There is a part of me that shrinks back from being seen.  How can I share my deepest philosophies?  Who would understand them?  How can I speak the poetry that beats in my soul?  What if people laugh at it?  Or a Mrs. Barry is offended by my Anne-speak? I don't know exactly how Jenny slays these fears.  All I know is that there is a depth in her writing that speaks to me, calls out to my most inner thoughts.  And when I pick up my pen again, the fears are gone -- at least for a little while. I do not agree with everything she writes.  And maybe she doe...

           Jill, on Go Teen Writers, was talking this week about the unpredictability involved in "making it big."  You can write flawlessly and still never be a well-known author.  Maybe you didn't find the right publisher.  Maybe you didn't pick the hot topic of the year.  There's a certain elusiveness in fame that has nothing to do with the skill of the writer.       Her topic tied into one that I have been thinking about lately.  What makes a great leader?  We've all seen the stories...and, on a smaller scale, we've seen it in real life.  The dynamic leader The band of men who swear allegiance to him, willing to follow him to their deaths if need be. It's an inspiring story.  But what makes that leader?  Is it his own charisma?  People cannot help but rally to his cause?  Perhaps he has the skill of the Pied Piper, no? Or is it the people?  ...

Remember this post ?  I talked about the way your attitude affects your writing.   Well, it's true.   And this time, you guys had a big impact on me.   I was looking at TCK and trying to figure out why I liked it so much.  Was my confidence level stronger?  Or was the book better?   I think the answer is yes, to both.  When I first thought of this story, I posted in Beautiful People.  Then you guys spoke up, expressing interest.  I started writing, feeling like I had a story with potential.  And because I felt good about it, the story flowed more easily...which made for a better tale and a more confident author.   So...   ...thanks, guys.  

     Last night, I watched a BBC movie based on Wuthering Heights...well, most of it.  I fast-forwarded a few scenes.      I started the movie with absolutely no idea of the plot.  I only knew that it was a famous "classic" by a famous author -- perhaps like Jane Eyre or a book by Austin or Dickens.      *****If you don't want spoilers, don't read on.*****      I wish people had been nice to Heathcliff.  How different might he have turned out if people poured good things into him instead of telling him how he was destined for badness?  He had so much potential at the beginning and it shrivelled smaller and smaller as the story went on.      But you know, Heathcliff did have at least two people who loved him and stood up for him.  Maybe even three or four.  He didn't have to turn dark and vengeful.      I wish Heathcliff and Cathy ha...

Hello, friends!      I thought I would pop in to give you a quick update.  I hope you don't mind.      First of all, Broken Clouds is back in full swing.  This story is a bit of a learning curve for me, full of new things that I haven't tried before.  And I've added yet another new thing: I am now writing it with two POV characters.  So far, so good.  I am now on Chapter 19, more or less, but some of my chapters are really short and may need to be fleshed out later.  Also, I sent the first 5 chapters to a reader to get her initial reactions and received positive feedback.  So I am happy with the way things are coming -- at least for a first draft.      In reading lately, I devoured Jill Williamson's Safe Lands trilogy.  It had pros and cons to it, but I did learn some useful things for writing.  And her multiple POVs gave me the courage to write with two POVs in Broken Clo...

Hi, Rachel!  Welcome to my blog!  I am so excited to have you here today to talk with my readers about your new book, Anon, Sir, Anon . Readers, I hereby introduce to you Rachel Heffington.  To learn more about her and her book, you can read my earlier post here or you can go to her blog . Rachel kindly permitted me to interview her today.  Below you will find my questions in bold and her answers in regular print. Ready, Rachel? When did the idea for Anon, Sir, Anon occur to you?  Did you start writing immediately? The idea occurred to me rather randomly after reading a book on Classic British Detective Fiction. I love mysteries, in theory, and wanted to write one of my own. And I did begin writing fairly quickly. The whole thing worked up very easily the first draft. It was the second draft that bit my tail. Looking back on your finished product, name one thing (an element, technique, or scene) that you are extremely pleased with. I am very pl...

Announcement Blurb: Whodunnit? Rachel did! At least, she did as long as the "it" refers to writing a cozy little mystery novel. Ladies and gentlemen, you have heard me predict this day for some time now, and it is finally here: Rachel is releasing her new book, titled Anon, Sir, Anon . Round of applause, please! Thank you, thank you. In honor of this auspicious day, Rachel has typed up some information on the book and its author and has permitted me to post them. You will see those below. She is also hosting a giveaway -- there is more about that to come. And today's release date is a kick-off for a whole week of festivities (some of them here on my blog) so be sure to check out her blog for more information. Enjoy! Back Cover Blurb: The 12:55 out of Darlington brought more than Orville Farnham's niece; murder was passenger. In coming to Whistlecreig, Genevieve Langley expected to find an ailing uncle in need of gentle care. In realit...

Thomas Warloe Did anybody see this today?

Enjoy.

via Pinterest I had so much fun on Go Teen Writers last week, reading the comments.  The post was about the adventures that we, as writers, have through our stories.  Maybe one writer feels like she has been wandering through a parched desert with her main character.  Maybe another writer has been kidnapped by pirates.  Maybe a third writer helped 100 Jews escape from Germany.  If you think about the adventures that we go on (through our characters...while sitting in front of a Microsoft Word screen), we lead pretty amazing lives! So go to this post: http://goteenwriters.blogspot.com/2014/09/writing-to-boldly-go-where-no-man-has.html and read the comments! I hope it delights you as it did me.  :)