Finding Something Friday on Alexa and Fairy Tales

I somehow managed to roll myself into the office so I could share what I found on this Friday after Thanksgiving. I mean, besides the three extra pounds I found around my waist.

So, I opened my Inbox to find a lovely email from Enchanted Conversation where I'd sent a poem having to do with Sleeping Beauty. Which turned out to be a very good thing, what with Sleeping Beauty being the theme of their first issue, due to come out in January 2010. So whee! I can't wait to read this online magazine that celebrates all things Fairy Tales-ish.

Now, I know you're thinking hold on a pea-pickin' minute. Is this the same woman who wrote The Nano Lament (sung to the tune of I've been Working on the Railroad)? Well, as it happens, I can write delightful, not to mention, deeply moving poetry when the lyrical muse whacks me upside the head. But you shall just have to take my word for it until January, 2010 (when I shall give you a firm but kind push in the direction of Enchanted Conversation).

And since Enchanted Conversation is a new magazine, it will be trying to grow its readers. That reminded me of a nifty little tool I use to see how my blogs are growing, so to speak. It's called Alexa, and I'm totally enamored with this web traffic whatchamacallit. You can install the Alexa toolbar or you can install the statusbar. I use the statusbar so I can check my blog's ranking.

I'm not really all that sure what affects blog ranking. I know that the number of hits to a blog affects ranking, but I'm guessing there's more to it than that. Links back to your blog might help your ranking, or a variety of visitors vs. the same old, same old crowd of visitors may have something to do with it, too. All I do know is that I like to check those numbers to see how my blog's ranking goes up and down.

Kinda like my weight during the holidays. Which is not nearly as fun as you think.

Tooting My Horn Tuesday on TH Stuff

The Nano Lament (Sung to the tune of "I've Been Working on the Railroad")

I've been working on the novel, all the livelong day.
I've been working on the novel, and I've got a lot to say.
Don't you see your shouting hubby? He's starving and he's mad!
Don't you see I've got to finish? Peanut butter's not that bad.

First TH: 30, 000 words on my novel-in-progress! Count 'em and weep, fellow writers. (Come to think of it, the Beneficent Mr. Hall is almost on the verge of tears himself. Perhaps for an entirely different reason. Perhaps it has something to do with my personal hygiene. Perhaps I've shared a little too much.)

A quick word about Thin Threads, which is a new book series based on stories about thin threads or life-changing moments. Many moons ago, I sent a story and forgot all about it. Until I received a recent email saying, Whee! You're a finalist! (I'm paraphrasing, but it was something along those lines.) Then, I received another email saying, Whee! Your story's been selected for a Thin Threads book or whatever we decide to do with it! (Second TH) So, check out their recent contest if you've got one of those thin thread moments.

Finally, when I looked back at the Tooting My Horn Tuesday posts, I realized I had more toots than last year (Um, you know what I mean, right?). And I'm darn thankful for the throngs (Third TH) of folks who put up with my tooting, and always have such nice things to say. (Okay, maybe throngs is stretching it. But I'm all about the THemes.)

Oh! And have a blessed and bountiful THanksgiving! (Gee, I sure hope the Beneficent Mr. Hall picks up a turkey for us or it's going to be a very peanutty holiday at the Hall house!)

Finding Something Friday : Soul-Making Literary Competition

The annual Soul-Making Literary Competition is calling my name this Friday. And not a moment too soon. 'Cause entries need to be postmarked by November 30th!

There are 12 different categories for which you can send your own soulful entry, and you know what I really like about this contest? Previously published works are okay-dokay! So, shake off that scathingly brilliant piece you love, add the five buck entry fee, and send it to the fine folks all the way in San Francisco. Oh, and make sure you include enough postage.

A wing and a prayer might help, too.

Finding Something Friday: Words, Words, Words

I found the funnest contest for you word lovers! (Um, is funnest a word? The red line thingie is not showing up under it, so I guess funnest is okay. But P.S. Thingie is not.)

The Georgia Review decided to honor Ambrose Bierce with a Devil's Dictionary for the 21st Century. Now, you may recognize old Ambrose as the guy who wrote that short story you had to read in high school ("An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge"). But he also penned The Devil's Dictionary, a dictionary of common terms with some rather uncommon, not to mention, satirical definitions. Take his definition for Dictionary: A malevolent literary device for cramping the growth of a language and making it hard and inelastic. This dictionary, however, is a most useful work.

Oh, that Ambrose was a hoot and a half. Until he took off for Mexico and disappeared. Still, I'm sure Ambrose regaled the local ruffians with his usual wit right up until the moment that they, well, made him disappear. But you want to know about the contest. Send in your new and satirical entries by December 1 (maximum length, 200 words) and if your word is chosen, you'll receive a lovely honorarium, or perhaps even the 1st, 2nd, or 3rd place prize. You have to mail that submission, so start thinking and writing. Get all the details here.

If you read about the Abilene Writers Guild contest over at Finders & Keepers, then you can skip ahead because you already know that the contest has a category for children's writers. But if you write short stories, poetry, flash fiction, articles, or even novels, there's a category for you, too. And prizes! And an entry fee (but it's only 5 bucks, unless you're sending in your novel excerpt). You only have till November 30th, so go check out the details here and jump on that contest!

And finally, a quick update on that National Novel Writing Month. Yes, I signed up. That would explain the neat little badge I added to my blog (I'm not gonna lie. I'm a sucker for blog stuff like that. Not enough of a sucker to add the word count widget, though). And I've written a ton of words. They may not necessarily be good words, but they are words (and not words like thingie, either). Which reminds me of Ambrose Bierce's definition for novel: a short story padded.

Which brings me to the end of this rather wordy post. I'm sure you're wondering about that picture of the monks, working on the sand painting. It's simple, really. A picture's worth a thousand words. (Wonder if the nanowrimo folks will let me throw in a couple of pics?)

For the Veterans

It's not enough, to just say thanks
to men and women in the ranks

who served so well, and gave their all,
and answered swiftly to the call.

It's not enough-mere words, a nod.
Unless you're sending prayers to God

for the veterans.

Finding Something Friday: Dark and Light Connections

This week, a friend asked me about Linkedin. She wanted to know a little something something about this business network, and since I'm on LI, she thought I could answer her questions. Namely, what do I use it for?

Hmmmm. So, I had to think a minute. What DO I use it for? Well, connecting with other writers, and interesting folk. This week, I joined in a discussion about the noir genre, and met Mike, who edits the Noir Journal. Which I zipped over to check out, and found lots of fantabulous stuff about Noir.

Now, I don't write Noir, but I enjoy a good, dark, nobody wins read every once in awhile. And I like when folks kindly link to me in their publications. So, go read Journal 4 (www.noirjournal.typepad.com/noir-journal)and find something dark to read. And if you're on Linkedin, give me a shout and we'll make a connection.

And now for something completely different, and a bit lighter. And all about the dog connection. I'm not gonna lie. This video made my day.

What Not to Do Wednesday When Publishing a Book

I'm excited to have a guest here today at the old Hall of Fame! And not just because it gives me a day off.

Claudine Wolk is the author of It Gets Easier! and Other Lies We Tell New Mothers, so you can see that she and I already share a similar world view. But she also had some deep thoughts to share about the "behind the scenes" stuff with her book. As you know, I'm always looking for insider writer info. And you are, too, right? Take it away, Claudine! (Presumably she's telling the truth here...Okay, I'm kidding. Claudine would never lie to fellow writers in the trenches, right? Right????)

"Publishing is a tricky field. There are a few ways around the land mines, though. Below are a few of the most important things NOT to do when trying to find a publisher.

Don't ever send a manuscript without doing your research on the publisher. Each publisher has a specific set of submission requirements. If you think that your Manuscript is so great that those requirements do not apply to you, think again! There is no bigger turnoff to a publisher than an author who can't follow their requirements. Failing to follow these requirements to the letter is an easy way for a publisher to weed you out as a potential author. Look at it from their side-How can you work for a publisher when you can't follow the first instruction they ever give you?

Don't ever submit a manuscript to a publisher without knowing the meaning of the following five terms: Author Platform, Marketing Plan, Book Proposal, Hook, and Chapter Summary.

Don't ever go to a publisher without the answer to the question: Why are you the right person to write this book? The publisher wants to know why you uniquely are the right person to write this book. What do you bring to the table to sell this book? Do you have commitments for sales for this book in hand? Do you have a target market already in store for this book? Do you already have a vehicle to reach this target market? Do you have a special skill that lends credence to your book? Are you willing to speak, promote, and online market this book? Can you do the artwork for this book? Do you have a rich cousin who has promised to buy cases of this book? (In case you were wondering, I've just defined "Author Platform" for you!)

Don't ever go to a publisher without knowing your competition. You never want to be caught with your pants down in this area. You need to do the research. Make sure the title of your book is not taken. Make sure you know similar books in your genre and how yours is different. By the way, never diss another book; it's bad karma and it's unprofessional. Simply let the publisher know that you know that the book is out there and how your book is better and different.

If you are starting to think that finding a publisher is going to be tough, you are right. As my mother used to say, birthing the baby is the easy part, the raising of the kid is a challenge. So, too, with book publishing-writing the darn thing is indeed the easy part. Which leads me to my last "don't."

Don't ever give up. As monumental a task as publishing may seem, it is doable. Never give up on your message and the need to get that message out there. Consider all the work and potential rejection as part of the landscape of the journey and keep on going. You owe it to yourself and the audience who will benefit from your expertise. Go get 'um."

That, grasshopper, is about as good as it gets when it comes to publishing your book. Big thanks to Claudine Wolk for stopping here on her blog tour!

Claudine is a mother of three (Wow! So am I!) who writes columns and magazine and newspaper articles (Wow! So do I!) on the subject of new motherhood (Um, never mind). She's got a very spiffy website (help4newmoms.com) and a witty blog. And if you've got a new mom hanging about somewhere, you should get Claudine's book, It Gets Easier! And Other Lies We Tell New Mothers. Maybe even give the book to the new mom.

Or, you know, you could give the book to an old mom (Wow! Just like me!).

Tuesday Tip: So You Wanna Write A Series

You don't have to start out writing a series to end up with a series.

That's the tip I got from Fiona Ingram, who's over at Finders & Keepers today, discussing her book, The Secret of the Sacred Scarab. Well, technically, she's discussing the writing of the book, and it's good stuff.

Fiona started out to write a simple book about two boys and their adventure in Egypt and ended up with a series. How does that happen? I could explain it, but Fiona does a much more eloquent job. So give her a visit, ask her a question or two. She's a lovely person (really, she's kinda gorgeous), and quite the interesting writer. Oh, and she self-published her book (and then got a contract from a traditional publisher...how'd that happen?)

Um, I should probably dash over to my other blog and ask Fiona myself! Follow me...cathychall.wordpress.com