Master Class 2015: Finding Normal

Life is starting to slow down a little bit. I can see more “free” time in my future and I hope to get some writing done. There are a lot of interesting things coming up that I want to submit stuff to, so there may be less blog posting and more writing in the future, as I’ve learned that most publishers prefer non-published stuff, which includes on the blog. I will have to focus on the blog only serials, I suppose, for the Master Class prompts. What a challenge!

Speaking of Master Class….

Here are 2 excellent examples of Master Class writing in response to last week’s prompt “Door Number Four”:

AL Mabry

Tara

And now for this week’s assignment…

Welcome to the Master Class, a writing meme with the sole purpose of  keeping you writing. I’m a firm believer that the more you write, the better you get.

“Writing isn’t something you master, it’s a craft that you’ll spend the rest of your life working on.” — Patricia Bray, author of the The Sword of Change and The Chronicles of Josan fantasy trilogies.

I’m going to leave the prompts open for interpretation, and only ask that you link to Master Class, care of the badge. Share the prompt you chose, even if you don’t use the actual wordage in the story itself. I only ask that the prompt is clearly understood. There are no word count restrictions, though from time to time, you will be challenged with them.

For those of you who need rules:

1. Use the prompt as a title or within the story.
2. Keep it within 700 words.
3. Any genre is welcome.
4. Submit it by 6:00 PM EST Sunday

And now, for your prompts:

Bruised crown

Finding normal

Liquid salt

And, as a new twist, you are welcome to choose any line from any one of your original stories to use as the inspiration for your submission.

Add the link to your story (NOT your blog) in the comments. You are welcome to submit more than once, but no more than three times before the deadline, which is Sunday 6:00 PM EST.

Here’s your badge (just right click and save as a picture or copy the url. I recommend saving it so you don’t have to look for it each time):

I can’t wait to read what you come up with!

Ready? Set? Write!!

*Insert Drum Roll Here*

I’m a couple days late, but if you recall, I’ve been hinting around about a top secret project I was working on for Valentine’s Day.

I can now tell you all about it! Sometime before Christmas and Thanksgiving, my publishing house, Bannerwing Books, and its editors posted a collage of pictures on our Facebook page and then assigned each of us a picture. Our stories were due by New Years Eve, and with the only guideline being “love”, the creative juices flowed.

I was assigned the picture of an old fashioned motel sign in the sky. I immediately thought of “Psycho.” Here’s a little blurb for you:

While fulfilling a promise to her dying mother, Del gets more than she bargained for when a lonely, heartbroken ghost tries to claim her soul.

In addition to my little ghostly tale of lost love, you will find several other short stories from dark to light, from tear-jerking to heart-warming, written by this century’s up and coming literary stars, all within the pages of Bannerwing’s newly launched e-zine, Open Studio.

And the best part is? You can get it for free. Follow this direct link and let the words of Cameron Garriepy, Elizabeth Yon, Kirsten Piccini, Mandy Dawson, Trisha Oksner, Sara Healy, Ericka Clay, Angela Amman, Roxanne Pixel, Duffy Batzer, and yours truly take you to new places and remind you that love is everywhere, even in the darkest of places.

11 pictures, 11 stories, all from the heart. You can’t go wrong.

Get your copy of Open Studio now, and join in one of the best writing groups on the internet!

On Writing

I haven’t been very writery (yes, my friend AL Mabry  made the word up) of late, but my imagination has not been idle. Hopefully soon I will find time to put the stories in my head on a page.

Today, I wanted to take a moment to thank you all for reading. Without you, I would have no purpose to write. To help you understand exactly what you mean to me, Ursula K. LeGuin offers this quote:

The unread story is not a story; it is little black marks on wood pulp. The reader, reading it, makes it live: a live thing, a story.

I hope that you will continue to have patience with me for I need your breath to bring my stories to life. I have lots of exciting things coming up, like…

~a special little something for Valentine’s Day.

~the publishing of a story I wrote a few years ago in an ebook an online magazine I used to submit to is putting out later this year.

~more Master Class assignments

while I try to focus on writing new stuff, revising old stuff, and sticking my neck out to submit, submit, submit.

In the meantime, if you miss me, you can always chat with me on Goodreads. Feel free to utilize the question and answer section to get to know me and my writing better!

And you know, you don’t need to be shy. Any comments I receive go straight to my email, so I always know when you comment and will answer as soon as I can.

So…tell me. What’s on your mind?

Master Class 2015: Peculiar Ending

Life has been like a rollercoaster with a broken rail lately. I’m putting this up today, since I missed the Monday slot, and you get a couple extra days to work on it. The deadline is Sunday, February 15.

Not sure what to do? Here are 2 excellent examples of Master Class writing in response to last session’s prompt “Ancient Mutterings”:

November Rain

Tara

And now for this week’s assignment…

Welcome to the Master Class, a writing meme with the sole purpose of  keeping you writing. I’m a firm believer that the more you write, the better you get.

“Writing isn’t something you master, it’s a craft that you’ll spend the rest of your life working on.” — Patricia Bray, author of the The Sword of Change and The Chronicles of Josan fantasy trilogies.

I’m going to leave the prompts open for interpretation, and only ask that you link to Master Class, care of the badge. Share the prompt you chose, even if you don’t use the actual wordage in the story itself. I only ask that the prompt is clearly understood. There are no word count restrictions, though from time to time, you will be challenged with them.

For those of you who need rules, here are some for you:

1. Use the prompt as a title or within the story.
2. Keep it within 700 words.
3. Submit it by 6:00 PM EST Sunday

And now, for your prompts:

Peculiar ending

Door number four

Recycled emotions

And, as a new twist, you are welcome to choose any line from any one of your original stories to use as the inspiration for your submission.

Add the link to your story (NOT your blog) in the comments. You are welcome to submit more than once, but no more than three times before the deadline, which is Sundays (February 15) 6:00 PM EST.

Here’s your badge (just right click and save as a picture or copy the url. I recommend saving it so you don’t have to look for it each time):

I can’t wait to read what you come up with!

Ready? Set? Write!!

In Memoriam

 

If I could black out this space, I would do so. My household is reeling from the passing of three family members, all of which were important, but two of whom we were close to. I’ll be back soon.