Dear Editors, As far back as I can remember I have loved language...whether it's the spoken or written word. Saying that... Two things have happened in the last two weeks. First, I was finally able to see the heart-warming film: Akeelah and the Bee. Both beautifully written and directed by Doug Atchison. The main character was growing up on the South Side of LA. Really though, in my mind, it's not the location, it is the insecurities within her, and how she overcomes them. As women,...
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The Power of Variety, Learning and Detail
Friday, October 13, 2006
If you’ve been with us for our September and October issues, you know we have had two authors that have beautifully written, albeit—quite humorously, at times, memoirs. They would be Maralys Wills, A Circus without Elephants, and Diana Abu-Jaber, The Language of Baklava. There’s a book, On Writing Well, by William Zinseer, that I have been referring back to for quite a while. Chapter 14 is Writing About Yourself and there were a few things that stuck out in my mind. One thing is if...
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Email Questions About the Flash Fiction Contest
Thursday, October 12, 2006
We received an e-mail from a reader who wanted to enter the Flash Fiction Contest, but she had a question concerning the prompt and genre. We thought we'd post it here for anyone who had a similar question.To refresh your memory, here is the prompt: "You receive the pom-pom that you thought you had lost ten years ago in high school. There is no return address on the box."Q: "For the contest, can...
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'Don't Make a Black Woman Take Off Her Earrings' Wins Book of the Year
Wednesday, October 11, 2006
Tyler Perry's book Don't Make a Black Woman Take Off Her Earrings, published by Riverhead, was voted Book of the Year by readers last night in the second annual Quill Book Awards. Tyler's book also won in the Humor category.Now I have another book to put on my reading list! Here's the blurb:"In 2005, Tyler Perry took Hollywood by storm. The movie he wrote, produced, and starred in, Diary of a Mad...
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Aury Wallington on Booksie!
Friday, October 06, 2006
Our friend Sol over at Booksie.com has some exciting news! Newton, MA - Aury Wallington, a writer for Sex and the City, Veronica Mars, and The Wedding Album, and author of a series of novels based on the popular television show The OC is teaming up with the new site Booksie.com to debut her novel POP! “We’re really excited about helping Aury get the word out about her novel. We think the readers on the site will enjoy the advance peek they are getting,” said Sol Nasisi, the Founder...
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Why enter a writing contest?
Thursday, October 05, 2006
Our writing contest is turning out to be more fun than we ever imagined. In addition, our respect for writers, at every stage of creativity, has grown immensely--since the inception of our flash fiction contest.The variety of stories that are inspired by the same few words has amazed us. Writers, you are showing great imaginations, gifts of expressions and courage to hit that SEND button. We are impressed.We read and laugh, cry and/or drop our jaws. What power words have, whether...
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Rubbing Shoulders with the Best
Sunday, October 01, 2006
When you're new to writing, it's like anything else, it's easy to feel awkward, etc. As time has progressed with my writing, I forgot something. I forgot that I'm still working feverishly to turn out the best I can, still learning what I can do to improve (thankfully, on that one), and many other things that I felt when I started writing.As we have had the opportunity to interview very talented and successful authors, guess what I found out. Some things never change. They feel the...
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