Intentions

I am on vacation this week. Well, since Wednesday, so it hasn’t been all week. Still, it counts.

I brought some writing-related things, intending to work on them and to work on Navajo Rose. So far, I haven’t.

I remind other people they need to refill their creative well, but lately, I haven’t been doing that myself. I’ve been working on day job stuff, sending out queries, and writing. The writing has been getting harder than necessary. I should have recognized that clue immediately that I needed to take some time to refill my well.

I’m at Robbers Cave State Park in Wilburton, Oklahoma. It’s beautiful. My own intentions of writing aside, I’ve been swimming, hiking, taking pictures, and just observing.

It’s what I needed in so many ways.

I have a new 3-subject notebook. With as much writing as I have been doing lately, actually since last October, I think I’m going to try morning pages again. Previously I didn’t do them because if I wasn’t writing — and I wasn’t much — I felt like the three pages in the morning got my writing in for the day. I’ll see if it works better for me this time around.

(If you don’t know, “morning pages” is an exercise used and recommended by Julia Cameron in The Artist’s Way to get the garbage out first thing in the morning so you’ll be open to creativity and inspiration throughout the day.)

At the very least, I understand better how I work now than I did then, so I won’t let myself use the “I already wrote today when I did morning pages” as an excuse.

So…

Excuse me while my subconscious asserts itself into the conscious world and takes me back out on its intentions to refill my creative well.

Filed under: not writing, photography, writing , creative, creativity, intentions, Jen Nipps, jennipps, Julia Cameron, morning pages, Navajo Rose, Oklahoma, refill the well, Robbers Cave, Robbers Cave State Park, subconscious, The Artist's Way, writing

Lyrics

Have you ever considered song lyrics as poetry?

I do from time to time. Tonight, as I’ve been on the computer, I’ve been paying extra attention to song lyrics, for some reason.

I have no intention of writing a song, but the rhythm of them has been catching my attention. Probably especially because I’ve been thinking of the poems-of-place projects I’m kicking around in my mind.

One time, I bought a book of poems, A Night Without Armor by Jewel Kilcher. They were poems and pictures she had taken. A couple years later, I heard one of the poems she had put in the book on the radio as a song. I’d have to find the book to be able to tell you which one it was. (The book is in storage.)

I remembered that book tonight, too, as I was paying attention to the lyrics.

One time, several years ago, a RL friend and I were talking. I said I wasn’t a songwriter. (I don’t remember how we got around to that.) He said I did, that my poems were songs. I still didn’t agree. He offered to put some of them to music to prove it to me. Time passed and that never happend.

Now, as I record some of my poems to burn to a CD for an aunt who lives in California, I wonder how they would have been put to music.

Another project for another time, perhaps. (Or perhaps not as I don’t play an instrument or compose music.)

Filed under: writing , A Night Without Armor, compose, Jen Nipps, jennipps, Jewel, Jewel Kilcher, music, poems, poetry, write, writer

FreeMind

You’re familiar with the concept of mindmapping, right? Some people call it clustering. Some call it a wagon wheel.

Generally, it’s done with pen/cil and paper. Well…

Courtesy of Hope Wilbanks on Plurk, I found out about a free software that does that: FreeMind.

I tried it out for a couple days before I decided to post about it here. I did a mindmap of an article I’ve previously written and on Kiernan’s Curse. It works great for small and large projects.  It’s definitely a keeper.

The only drawback I’ve found about it is that with the large projects, if I print the map, it either takes way too many pages or (when condensed to one page) the print is too small to read.

But, hey, that’s quite all right.

You can download the basic or master versions. The master version has a .pdf converter and some other features. (The PDF thing is the only thing I remember off the top of my head.)

It was a bit confusing at first, but that passed quickly.

I am definitely going to add this to my collection of creativity tools.

Filed under: writing , article, creativity, FreeMind, Hope WIlbanks, Jen Nipps, jennipps, Kiernan's Curse, mindmapping, Plurk, software, writing

Some Good News

After “Kiernan’s Curse” was rejected last week, a couple days later, I sent it to another publisher.

Today I got an e-mail with “Re:” my subject info.

My first reaction? “Uh-oh.”

Have you ever tried to click on an e-mail subject, cover your eyes, and read the e-mail?

It doesn’t work.

But since it was good news, it didn’t matter. 

They requested the first 50 pages!

And believe-you-me, they have already been sent.

Filed under: writing , first 50 pages, historical romance, Jen Nipps, jennipps, Kiernan's Curse, partial, rejection, romance, write, writer, writing

Rejection Hurts

You get a two-fer today.

Not too long ago, I sent “KIernan’s Curse” out to a publisher.

Tonight, I got the rejection in my inbox.

This one stings more than most of them do.  I really really want Kiernan to find a good home.  One that will also accept Devon and Benen and whoever else comes next.  *s*

Onward & upward…but not tonight.

Filed under: writing , historical romance, Jen Nipps, jennipps, Kiernan's Curse, rejection, romance, writing

WorkingWriters.com: A Website Review

By definition, any writer working toward publication is a working writer. WorkingWriters.com, a newsletter “for and by people who write,” offers a resource for those of us in that situation, whether we are just starting out or if we are established in our careers.

Jennifer Lawler started WorkingWriters.com, but when she changed focus, Maggie Frisch took over as editor in 2000. The newsletter is published bimonthly. The home page states, “WW offers tips and solid info from writers across the country, served up with a large dose of humor and a spirit of writing-camaraderie.”

Writers’ Digest has called WorkingWriter a “Must See ‘Zine” in the Writers’ Digest ‘Zine Scene.

The web site itself appears to be a vehicle for promoting the newsletter. It is hosted on freewebs.com and has ads on the top, right, and bottom margins, which can be distracting. There are other features of the site, however. Sample articles are hosted to give a sampling of what is typically available in the newsletter. On the subscription page, there are options for print or e-mail versions of the newsletter. Payment options are available through the US mail or PayPal. Visitors can also order back issues of the newsletter through the web site.

Additionally, by sending a request, again either by US mail or e-mail, a sample issue of the newsletter is available at no charge. When I submitted a request for a sample newsletter, it took about a week to get it via e-mail. I expected a past issue. However, it is the new May/June 2008 edition. The newsletter is 12 pages.

The newsletter’s sub-title is “Solid Information and a Sense of Humor.” It opens with an admission of a mistake made by the editor in a previous issue with a look at the difference between a mistake, error, goof, flub, blunder, botch, etc. There is also a “bad word” the editor feels should be eliminated. The May/June word is “decisioned.”

There are solid articles with a bit of humor lightening the information. Some articles have tongue-in-cheek comments from the editor at the end. There are no market listings in the newsletter.

The report generated by www.dead-links.com shows there are only three invalid links throughout the web site. These may be on the links page where contributors/sponsors are listed.

WorkingWriters also accepts submissions. However, it is a non-paying market.

Rating:  * * * *

# # #

BIO

Jen Nipps is a member of the Tulsa NightWriters, McAlester McSherry Writers, and Web Writing Wonders.  Her web sites are www.jenifernipps.com and www.theideapocket.com.

 

# # #

Previously published in the July 2008 OWFI Report.

Filed under: writing , freewebs, Jen Nipps, jennipps, newsletter, PayPal, review, web site, WorkingWriters.com, writing

Happy 4th of July

If anyone is around to read this, I hope you’re having a good holiday with family & friends.  We had some festivities last night and more planned for tonight.  In the meantime, I decided to get some writing done.

I printed the style guide for eHow.  I started to print some notes and source articles.  Now, keep in mind my current day job is as a medical transcriptionist, which includes a lot of printing in and of itself.  Although we went to town yesterday, I didn’t pick up any printer ink.

You see where this is going, don’t you?

Yeah.  I ran out of ink and can’t print the rest of my source notes.

Ideally, I could flip back and forth between windows and write an article like that.  But it doesn’t work for me like that.  I don’t know if it’s the act of going from window to window or if I’m just hardwired weird (OK, scratch that, I know I’m weird) or my eyesight or what, but it just makes things easier to me to have the notes/source material printed and at my elbow (literally).

I can start the opening, but the rest will have to wait until I can get to Staples tomorrow. 

My only point is this: Make sure you have all the supplies you need on hand and buy a new ink cartridge when you put your last one in.

That’s more a reminder to myself than anything else.  I guess I’ll work on Navajo Rose now instead.

Filed under: writing , 4th of July, article, eHow, family, festivities, friends, holiday, Independence Day, Jen Nipps, jennipps, Navajo Rose, Staples, write

Easily Amused

A couple days ago, I mentioned in another post that I got a rejection from Realms of Fantasy. I also mentioned it to a few writing friends.

The majority of them said, “Don’t give up.”

I have no intention of giving up.  It’s one of my dream markets and I will have a piece in there eventually.  (Speaking of, I need to print the next one that I want to send and get it out to the mailbox before the mail runs.)

I must be easily amused because I wanted to laugh when people kept saying “Don’t give up.”

After I get that in the mail, I need to work on some queries, an article, and a book proposal.  Perhaps I shouldn’t have typed that all out.  It looks daunting, especially when I also take into consideration that I want to work some more on my current fiction WIP.

What are you easily amused by? What is it that people tell you that makes you want to laugh out loud, literally?

Filed under: writing , amused, article, book, book proposal, don't give up, fiction, Jen Nipps, jennipps, laugh, nonfiction, persistence, proposal, query, Realms of Fantasy, rejection