Showing posts with label Websites. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Websites. Show all posts

Thursday, July 2, 2009

Blog Me, Baby

Today in St. Peters, MO, it's partly cloudy, 76 degrees.

Recently I've received e-mails from two writing friends asking me to add links to their websites on my blog. I'm more than happy to do that. It got me to thinking about how closely connected networking and marketing are. Linking with other writers via blogs or websites or social networks helps to stay in touch--and possibly connect with publishing industry folks who visit blogs like mine.

I used the title "Blog Me, Baby" from Amy Willoughby-Burle's e-mail to me, which gives you a hint at Amy's wit and wisdom--not to mention her elegant writing!


Amy Willoughby-Burle’s fiction has appeared in Potomac Review, Sycamore Review, Inkwell, The MacGuffin, Summerset Review, Reed Magazine, and Cuivre River Anthology. Her story “Stone Jesus in the Front Yard,” which appeared in The MacGuffin was nominated for a Pushcart Prize in 2007.
Amy is a graduate of East Carolina University. Born and raised and now back in North Carolina she has also lived in Virginia, New York, California, and Missouri working as an event planner, a receptionist, a cashier, a housekeeper, a newspaper editor, a certified nurse’s aide and much more. What some would see as a fear of commitment she has used as a map of life and knowledge, allowing all that is awful and beautiful to permeate her fiction--living in that moment of transition. Amy resides in Candler, NC just west of Asheville, with her husband and two adorable daughters.



Claudia Shelton lives where summers are hot with humidity and winters are cold with snow; but, the other two seasons provide her world with colors and scents enough to spark her feelings. In spring, her imagination tiptoes through the daffodils, sits beneath trees bursting with blossoms and relishes the sound of birds returning from their winter vacation. Leaves in all their colorful reds and golds mix in her fall imaginings with the call of geese on their way south or the smell of an early morning get-the-chill-off fire. These all become the backdrop for her stories of relationships and love, patriotism and duty...and second chances in life.

Claudia is a member of Romance Writers of America (RWA), Missouri Romance Writers of America (MORWA), Missouri Writer’s Guild, Saturday Writers and a few critique groups. Her short fiction has received numerous recognitions, plus being published in Sweetgum Notes and Cuivre River Anthology, Volume III. Sharing time with her family and two dogs brings her happiness. And, relaxing on her swing with a good book is always a great way to start the day.


If you get a chance, visit Amy's and Claudia's websites to see what wonderful and unique ways they express themselves through their writing.

Wednesday, November 5, 2008

Websites and Blogs

Today's weather in St. Peters: Expected high 79, with a chance for thunderstorms this evening.

Most writers have heard the ABC’s of being productive—Apply Butt to Chair. But (no pun intended) spending so much time in isolation makes writing a lonely profession. One way I keep in touch with other writers is through a weekly critique group and a writers’ organization that meets each month. I also find information on websites and exchange ideas on blogs.

Here are two sites I visit regularly:

WOW! Women on Writing http://wow-womenonwriting.com/ isn’t just for women. The site features articles with writing advice, contest announcements, and other helpful stuff. Entering their contests can be fun--and rewarding. In Spring 08 my flash fiction story, “Ida’s Rocking Chair,” was among the honorable mentions. As a winner my story was published on the WOW site, I was interviewed for their blog, received a year subscription to their Premium Green newsletter, and will be receiving a prize package sometime soon. So, if you’re looking for a caring, helpful, and active writing community, check out WOW.

One blog I visit regularly is Literary Agent Nathan Bransford’s. If you need advice on how to write a query letter or synopsis, how to format your manuscript, or how to find a literary agent, this site is golden. Seriously. I always learn something after reading postings on his site. Just the other day there was one about the word count “sweet spot” for query letters being between 250-350 words. Who knew?

Copy and paste this link in your browser to visit his site: http://nathanbransford.blogspot.com/

That’s all for now about websites and blogs.

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