Australian Writers’ Centre- Travel Writing & A Novel Idea & Many Writing Courses

Having trouble viewing this? View in your browser.   Home Sydney Melbourne Online Courses Contact Us 13 June 2013 Sydney: (02) 9929 0088 In this issue TIP: Suspensive hyphens Sydney Meetup TIP: Substantive or substantial? 25 Most Daunting Reads Plan ahead – Travel Writing WEBPICK: A Novel Idea This week, I’ve been catching up on all the mail that piled up on my desk while I was overseas. I’m always amazed by the quality of the written correspondence from banks, electrical utilities, even the local cafe – some of it is impressive, others read like they’ve been written by someone who can barely construct a sentence. If you need to write emails or letters to customers or other groups in your line of work, remember that you only have one chance to make a first impression. Like it or not, your written communication is a reflection on your professionalism and competence. If you want to make sure you – or your team – are following sound business writing conventions, you’ll discover this at our one-day seminar: Business Writing Essentials. You’ll learn: 11 Golden Rules of business writing   Four key questions you must ask before writing any document A step-by-step guide to writing business documents Valuable templates and protocols to help you structure letters and emails How to use apostrophes correctly The ins and outs of hellos and goodbyes – writing salutations, honorifics and signoffs Tactful tactics – or how to deliver bad news in writing A clear framework on how to write clear and concise sentences and paragraphs Pitfalls – identifying frequently confused terms Plenty of practical exercises and much more!       TIP: Suspensive hyphens What’s a suspensive hyphen? This isn’t a term many Australians would be familiar with (it seems to be an American English term), but it describes a particular hyphen many of us use in our writing.   Sometimes you’ll come across hyphenated words that occur in more than one set, while the compound word is used only once. For example:   For your next assignment you will write a 300- to 500-word story. The company was hiring for both full- and part-time positions.   The hyphen in these sentences is called the suspensive hyphen. You must always use one when you’re implying that the incomplete phrase has the same form as the complete one. So “nineteenth-century and twentieth-century” can become “nineteenth- and twentieth-century”, and “small-size and medium-size businesses” can become “small- and medium-size businesses.” Sydney Meetup with Jessica Shirvington We’re holding our next informal networking event on Tuesday 2 July 2013 – and you’re invited! This is your chance to get together with fellow graduates and the wider community of the Australian Writers’ Centre, hear from a great presenter, and hopefully leave just that little bit more inspired to achieve your writing dreams. Date: Tuesday 2 July 2013 Time: 6.30 pm – 8.00 pm Where: The Kirribilli Club, Milsons Point (right next door to us) Who: Australian Writers’ Centre graduate and best-selling YA author, Jessica Shirvington will join us to talk about her incredible writing journey.   Tickets cost $10 each to cover venue costs. Any excess funds will be donated to the Doggie Rescue charity. Numbers are strictly limited! You can buy your tickets here. Can’t wait to see you there! 25 Most Daunting Reads Looking for a reading challenge? Check out this list of the 25 Most Challenging Books You’ll Ever Read. Some of these books will come as no surprise – James Joyce’s Finnegans Wake and William Faulkner’s The Sound and the Fury are considered the two most difficult books to read. In fact, these two authors have two books each on the list.   Virginia Woolf’s To the Lighthouse is there, as is Umberto Eco’s The Name of the Rose. Some more modern authors who make the list are David Mitchell for his novel Cloud Atlas, and Cormac McCarthy for his 1985 novel Blood Meridian.   If you really want a challenge try Being and Time by Martin Heidegger or Gravity’s Rainbow by Thomas Pynchon. (Better yet, pick up a copy of all these challenging books and impress visitors with your “daunting” book collection.)   Check out the full list here.   ONLINE COURSE: Creative Writing Stage 1 It’s getting cold outside, so what better way to learn than from your own home! Our next Online Course: Creative Writing Stage 1 is coming up and in this course, you’ll learn all the elements of a good story – voice, plot, character, and structure – and how to apply them to your writing. The course is perfect for absolute beginners or writers who want to refine their work. Five week online course starting the week beginning Monday 17 June 2013 Time: Whenever it suits you Cost: $395 Write a Chick-Lit Novel Australian author Lisa Heidke has written four best-selling chick-lit novels including Stella Makes Good and Claudia’s Big Break, so who better to teach you how to write for this growing genre. You’ll learn all about the chick-lit market and why it’s so popular and how to craft your own chick-lit manuscript. By the end of this two-day course, you’ll be well on your way to writing your own chick-lit novel. Saturday 22 June and Sunday 23 June 2013 Time: 10 am – 4 pm Cost: $395   Writing Picture Books Think writing a picture book is simple? Maybe not. In this five-week course, editor and picture books expert Cathie Tasker will show you the secrets to writing a wonderful picture book. You’ll learn about language and rhythm, how to find the right voice for your book and how to get it published. Five-week course starting Tuesday 25 June 2013 Time: 6.30 – 8.30 pm Cost: $395 Create and Sell Your eBook Thursday 20 June 2013 Only 3 places left! Blogging for Beginners Monday 24 June 2013 Only 4 places left!     TIP: Substantive or substantial? Here’s how Fritz Spiegl describes the difference between substantive and substantial in his book, Contradictionary:   Politicians and others who love the sound of their own words like to say substantive when they mean substantial. Substantive means independent and self-sufficient; substantial, having substance that is absolute or, more often, considerable, as in substantial size.  As well as meaning “independent; essential; real or actual”, substantive is also used to describe grammatical terms, like substantive adjective or substantive verb (for example, “to be”). It’s often used to mean meaningful or real. For example: No substantive changes were made to the document. If something is substantial it’s “of ample or considerable amount, quantity, or size” or “of real worth or value”. For example: We were hoping for something more substantial to eat than sandwiches.   Plan ahead – Travel Writing with Sue White   If you love travelling and love writing you can combine the two and fund your adventures with a career in travel writing. A good travel writer knows how to develop the right angle for their story, is always on the lookout for interview subjects and interesting travel topics, and can even craft great travel stories from their own hometown. In our Travel Writing course you’ll learn all that and more, including how to pitch your articles to editors and get them published. Freelance travel writer Sue White will guide you through this popular course and show you how you can turn your travels into a career.       WEBPICK: A Novel Idea Want to write a novel on your iphone or ipad? The new app, A Novel Idea, can help you do that. This tool will help you plot your story and record ideas and inspiration as they come to you. You can arrange scenes, link ideas to story elements, add goals and objectives for your characters and much more. With this app you can work on your novel anywhere. The best thing about this app? It’s free! Check it out here.   “Not a wasted word That has been a main point to my literary thinking all my life.” Words of wisdom from – Hunter S. Thompson       Upcoming courses   Online Course: Creative Writing Stage 2 with Cathie Tasker/Pamela Freeman When: Week beginning Monday 17 June 2013 for five weeks Time: Whenever suits you Cost: $395 Online Course: Travel Writing with Sue White When: Week beginning Monday 17 June 2013 for five weeks Time: Whenever suits you Cost: $395 Online Course: Magazine and Newspaper Writing Stage 1 with Sue White/Allison Tait When: Week beginning Monday 24 June 2013 for five weeks Time: Whenever suits you Cost: $395 Online Course: Travel Writing with Sue White When: Week beginning Monday 1 July 2013 for five weeks Time: Whenever suits you Cost: $395 Online Course: Writing Books for Children and Young Adults with Judith Ridge/Cathie Tasker When: Week beginning Monday 15 July 2013 for five weeks Time: Whenever suits you Cost: $395 Seminar: Grammar and Punctuation Essentials with Deb Doyle When: Friday 14 June 2013 (one-day seminar) Time: 9.00 am – 5.00 pm Cost: $450 Course: Creative Writing Stage 1 with James Roy When: Every Monday starting Monday 17 June 2013 for five weeks Time: 6.30 – 8.30 pm Cost: $395 Seminar: Self-Publishing: How to do it with Geoff Bartlett When: Monday 17 June 2013 (two-hour evening seminar) Time: 6.30 – 8.30 pm Cost: $85 Seminar: Introduction to Travel Writing with Geoff Bartlett When: Tuesday 18 June 2013 (two-hour evening seminar) Time: 6.30 – 8.30 pm Cost: $85 Seminar: Business Writing Essentials with Kate Hennessy When: Thursday 20 June 2013 (one-day seminar) Time: 9.30 am – 4.30 pm Cost: $395 Seminar: How to Create and Sell Your eBook with Anna Maguire When: Thursday 20 June 2013 (two-hour evening seminar) Time: 6.30 – 8.30 pm Cost: $85 Weekend Course: Write a Chick-Lit Novel with Lisa Heidke When: Saturday 22 June and Sunday 23 June 2013 (2 consecutive days) Time: 10.00 am – 4.00 pm Cost: $395 Seminar: Blogging for Beginners with Kim Berry When: Monday 24 June 2013 (two-hour evening seminar) Time: 6.30 – 8.30 pm Cost: $85 Course: Writing Picture Books with Cathie Tasker When: Every Tuesday starting Tuesday 25 June 2013 for five weeks Time: 6.30 – 8.30pm Cost: $395 Seminar: From Blog to Book with Kerri Sackville When: Thursday 27 June 2013 (two-hour evening seminar) Time: 6.30 – 8.30 pm Cost: $85 Weekend course: Life Writing with Patti Miller – FULL When: Saturday 29 June and Sunday 30 June 2013 (2 consecutive days) Time: 10.00 am – 4.00 pm Cost: $450 Weekend course: Writing About Food with Carli Ratcliff When: Saturday 29 June and Sunday 30 June 2013 (2 consecutive days) Time: 10.00 am – 4.00 pm Cost: $395 Program: Write Your Novel with Pamela Freeman – FULL When: Every Monday starting Monday 1 July 2013 for six months Time: 6.30 – 8.30 pm Cost: $2150 Course: Magazine and Newspaper Writing Stage 1 with Holly Nott When: Every Thursday starting Thursday 4 July 2013 for five weeks Time: 6.30 – 8.30 pm Cost: $395 Daytime seminar: Blogging for Beginners with Kim Berry When: Friday 12 July 2013 (two-hour morning seminar) Time: 10 am – 12 noon Cost: $85 Course: Writing About Interiors, Style and Design with Nigel Bartlett When: Tuesday 16 July and 23 July 2013 (2 evening classes) Time: 6.30 – 8.30 pm Cost: $175 Seminar: How to Get Your Book Published with Geoff Bartlett When: Wednesday 17 July 2013 (two-hour evening seminar) Time: 6.30 – 8.30 pm Cost: $85 Course: Travel Writing with Sue White When: Every Wednesday starting Wednesday 17 July 2013 for five weeks Time: 6.30 – 8.30 pm Cost: $395 Course: Thriller Writing with L.A. Larkin When: Every Thursday starting Thursday 18 July 2013 for five weeks Time: 6.30 – 8.30 pm Cost: $395 Seminar: Professional Business Writing with Sue White When: Friday 19 July 2013 (one-day seminar) Time: 9.00 am – 5.00 pm Cost: $450 Seminar: Writing for the Web with Grant Doyle When: Monday 22 July 2013 (one-day seminar) Time: 9.00 am – 4.00 pm Cost: $450 Course: Screenwriting Stage 1 with Tim Gooding When: Every Monday starting Monday 22 July 2013 for five weeks Time: 6.30 – 8.30 pm Cost: $395 Seminar: Editing Essentials with Deb Doyle When: Wednesday 24 July 2013 (one-day seminar) Time: 9.00 am – 5.00 pm Cost: $450 Seminar: Build Your Profile Using Twitter with Kerri Sackville When: Wednesday 24 July 2013 (two-hour evening seminar) Time: 6.30 – 8.30 pm Cost: $85 Weekend course: Travel Memoir with Claire Scobie When: Saturday 27 July and Sunday 28 July 2013 (2 consecutive days) Time: 10.00 am – 4.00 pm Cost: $395 Seminar: PR and Media Releases that Get Results with Catriona Pollard When: Wednesday 31 July 2013 (one-day seminar) Time: 9.00 am – 5.00 pm Cost: $495 Course: History, Mystery and Magic with Kate Forsyth When: Saturday 3 August and Sunday 4 August 2013 (2 consecutive days) Time: 10.00 am – 4.00 pm Cost: $395 Seminar: Grammar and Punctuation Essentials with Deb Doyle When: Wednesday 7 August 2013 (one-day seminar) Time: 9.00 am – 5.00 pm Cost: $450 Weekend course: Life Writing with Patti Miller When: Saturday 31 August and Saturday 7 September 2013 (2 Saturdays) Time: 10.00 am – 4.00 pm Cost: $450 Course: Screenwriting Stage 2 with Tim Gooding When: Every Tuesday starting Tuesday 15 October 2013 for five weeks Time: 6.30 – 8.30 pm Cost: $395 Course: Introduction to Novel Writing with Pamela Freeman When: Every Thursday starting Thursday 17 October 2013 for six weeks Time: 6.30 – 8.30 pm Cost: $495 Course: Writing Books for Children and Young Adults with Judith Ridge When: Every Wednesday starting Wednesday 23 October 2013 for five weeks Time: 6.30 – 8.30 pm Cost: $395 OVERSEAS WRITING TOURS Writing the Senses in Bali with Patti Miller When: Saturday 10 August to Saturday 17 August 2013 Memoir Writing in Paris with Patti Miller – FULL When: Thursday 24 October to Saturday 9 November 2013 Writing About Food in Vietnam with Carli Ratcliff Dates for 2014 TBC   Thanks for signing up to this newsletter. Wishing you much writing success, About Valerie: Valerie Khoo is a journalist, author of six books and founder of the Australian Writers’ Centre. Valerie writes regularly for smh.com.au, theage.com.au, brisbanetimes.com.au, watoday.com.au, canberratimes.com.au and businessday.com.au. The Australian Writers’ Centre runs a range of popular writing courses in Sydney, Melbourne and online. She is author of Power Stories: The 8 Stories You MUST Tell to Build an Epic Business (Wiley). Australian Writers’ Centre Suite 3, 55 Lavender Street Milsons Point NSW 2061 www.WritersCentre.com.au

 

 

Barbara McNichol Editorial- How to STRENGTHEN Everything You Write Wordshop

Dear Writing Friend in Tucson, Ever heard the expression “Sharpen the Saw” from Stephen Covey? It’s one of his 7 Habits of Highly Effective People. Chances are, you’d like to be more effective in EVERYTHING you do, including how you write. Want to have a few more tools in your kit that can help you now and for a lifetime? When you’re able to sharpen how you write emails, reports, books, proposals—whatever is important to you—you can: feel confident you can communicate concisely and clearly. save time and effort because you’re not rewriting and clarifying. impress, not confuse, your readers! Join the fun in this interactive, saw-sharpening How to STRENGTHEN Everything You Write Wordshop. In June, I’m offering two dates and a choice of length: Friday, June 21—3.5-hour session – 8:15 – 11:45 a.m. Whack Wordiness & 7 Top Techniques for Improving Your Writing   Only $66/person, includes my printed word choice guide, Word Trippers (retail value of $11.00). Or Tuesday, June 25—1.5-hour session – 1:30 – 3:00 p.m. Making Your Writing Come Alive Only $33/person, includes my printed word choice guide, Word Trippers (retail value of $11.00). Where: Tucson College, 5151 E. Broadway, Tucson   Look good in the eyes of others by sharpening EVERYTHING you write in June. For full details, go to this link: Registration is easy; just call me at 520-615-7910 or email me at editor@barbaramcnichol.com Best, Barbara P.S. If you sign up and pay before June 16 (Father’s Day), you’ll save 10%. So register ASAP to save your place. Call 520-615-7910 or email me at editor@barbaramcnichol.com today. Please forward this email to others who want to hone their writing skills.

Copyright © 2013 Barbara McNichol Editorial, All rights reserved. Our mailing address is: Barbara McNichol Editorial 5090 N Camino de la Cumbre Tucson, AZ 85750 Add us to your address book

 

 

The Society of Southwestern Authors- SSA 2013 WRITING CONTEST

      SOCIETY OF SOUTHWESTERN AUTHORS 2013 WRITING CONTEST

      Ladies and Gentlemen, Start Your Pens! 

      It is time for the annual SSA Writing Contest.  You too can be a winner!  Gather up and send in all your unpublished short stories, memoirs and poems.  You could get published in SSA’s publication, THE STORYTELLER, and could win cash!  All entries will be judged by professional judges and you will receive comments from them about your writing.  This is a wonderful way to get feedback and recognition from your writing. 

      Applications and rules are posted on SSA’s web page at ssa-az.org/contest.html.  Please send all submissions to the P.O. Box listed on the application.  Each short story, poem, or memoir sumbission must include $15US.  We accept checks, and credit cards through Paypal.  Hurry, we only accept submissions until August 31, 2013.  All winners will be notified and awards will be presented at the Sunday, October 20 forum.  Please remember to read all the rules carefully to avoid having your entry disqualified. 

      On these hot dog days of summer, instead of sweating like crazy from the heat, you can be nice and cool inside your home, while you are typing away on your computer.  And just think, you could win $25, $75, $125 or $250!

      On your mark, get set, go! 

      Taken from THE WRITE WORD, the newsletter of The Society of Southwestern Authors  Vol. 42, No. 3  June/July 2013

Storyline Publishing- The story line is the bottom line

      Storyline Publishing- The story line is the bottom line 

      Partnering with authors 

      Books available at indie bookstores, Amazon.com, bn.com or from website. 

      For more information: info@storylinepublishing.com

THE WRITERS STUDIO- IMITATION, CONSCIOUS IMITATION, IS ONE OF THE GREAT METHODS & Writing Courses

THE WRITERS STUDIO- IMITATION, CONSCIOUS IMITATION, IS ONE OF THE GREAT METHODS & Writing Courses

“Celebrating 26 years of helping writers reach their potential”

>> “IMITATION, CONSCIOUS IMITATION, IS ONE OF THE GREAT METHODS, perhaps THE method of learning to write….The final triumph is what the language does, not what the poet can do.” Theodore Roethke.

>> “THE WRITERS STUDIO BROUGHT ME BACK FROM THE CREATIVE DEAD.”

“Therese Eiben, my first instructor and former editor of Poets & Writers magazine, instilled the one reading habit that has had the most influence on me: seek out the limestone. Since writers are coming into the Studio with drastically different life experiences, ages, and expectations (unlike a traditional MFA program), I found a great deal of diversity in the voices I was hearing. I was also trained by Joel Hinman and Cynthia Weiner, two wonderful writers and instructors who taught me how to create persona narrators, masks, for each of my narrators….And the poet/instructor Peter Krass provided invaluable feedback in my attempts to separate tone from mood…. The Studio’s weekly deadlines provided me with both structure and discipline in an encouraging, non-pretentious environment. And that last element was key. Even though I took my courses live in NYC, I found that the students, instructors, and administrators were extremely down-to-earth, plain personable.” – Jamez Chang, Writers Studio’s former student. Read the full interview in Counterexamplepoetics.com 

>> EXERCISES TURNED INTO PUBLICATIONS AND PUSHCART PRIZES: 

* Taymiya Zaman‘s short story “Thirst,” which received the Third Prize in Narrative Magazine‘s Fall 2012 Short Story Contest, will appear in the Pushcart Prize 2014 anthology. Taymiya is a student in the San Francisco Workshops, She wrote “Thirst” as an exercise in last summer’s beginning workshop and is a firm believer in the Writers Studio’s method. * Christina Frei’s “The Botanist” (which started as an exercise in Peter Krass’ class) has also been nominated for a Pushcart Prize. Her poem “Pierre” was accepted by the Canadian journal, Sterling. * Three poems by Jo Ann Baldinger were recently accepted for publication: “Mazurkas” (Monarch Review), “Swallows” (White Whale), and “Eve” (Burningword). All the poems began in Lisa Bellamy’s Online Advanced Poetry workshop. * Writer’s Studio alumnus, Karen Hildebrand, has a play, “The Old In and Out” running June 14, 15, 21 and 22 at Stage Left Studio in Manhattan. The play is based on her poetry, with some of the pieces started in Philip Schultz’s master class. For more info, click here. MORE SUCCESS STORIES FROM OUR STUDENTS.

>> NEW CLASSES BEGIN EVERY WEEK:

> ONLINE LEVEL I, taught by Anamyn Turowski, begins Wednesday, May 15 <wait list only>
> ONLINE LEVEL I, taught by Michele Herman, begins Monday, June 3
> ONLINE LEVEL I, taught by Rachael Nevins, begins Tuesday, June 4

> NYC LEVEL I, taught by Whitney Porter, begins Monday May 20
> NYC LEVEL I, taught by Elliot Satsky, begins Monday, May 20
> NYC LEVEL I, taught by Therese Eiben, begins Tuesday, May 28

> SAN FRANCISCO WORKSHOP (Financial District), taught by Lorraine Babb, begins June 18
> SAN FRANCISCO WORKSHOP (Rockridge), taught by Lela Scott MacNeil, begins June 12

> TUSCON WORKSHOP, taught by Lela Scott MacNeil begins June 18

> AMSTERDAM WORKSHOP, taught by Lynn Kolbe, begins May 22

COMPLETE SCHEDULE OF CLASSES | TO REGISTER. 

>> BECOME A FB FAN AND FOLLOW US ON TWITTER to receive news and special offers about cultural events, publishing opportunities, and free workshops in your area.
 
 www.writerstudio.com / 212-255-7075 / TWITTER / FACEBOOK / question@writerstudio.com
 

Australian Writers’ Center- Writing Books for Children and Young Adults & Many Writing Courses

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Home Sydney Melbourne Online Courses Contact Us 2 May 2013 Sydney: (02) 9929 0088   In this issue TIP: Can you start sentences with “and” or “but”? Student success – Patricia Barton Best Australian Blogs 2013 Competitionwinners announced Plan ahead – Writing Books for Children and Young Adults WEBPICK: Qwiklit
It was wonderful to meet so many students last week in Brisbane and Perth. Thank you all for coming to the meetups, it was such a pleasure to catch up with you. Hope you enjoyed meeting each other too! One of the best things about my job is seeing people achieve their writing dreams, or taking the first steps towards getting there. It honestly makes me happy to see other people find joy or feel creatively fulfilled in this way. So bring on more meetups I say! (Stay tuned for more dates soon). Without a doubt, a rewarding – but slightly daunting – journey can start when you’re thinking about writing your own novel. If you’ve already done one of our foundation courses – like Creative Writing Stage 1 or Writing Books for Children and Young Adults – you might be ready forIntroduction to Novel Writing. This six-week course makes the process a lot less daunting and you’ll be with a group of peers who are at the same stage in their journey as you are. This is a powerful course with many groups of students ending up firm friends or forming their own on-going writers group to support each other after the course is complete. This course will suit people who have: started a project and have already written a few thousand words or have a reasonable idea of their story’s structurebut haven’t started writing. You’ll be mentored by the wonderful Pamela Freeman who will guide you in workshopping and provide you with themomentum you need to get your own novel underway.
	TIP: Can you start sentences with “and” or “but”? There are some pedants and old-school grammarians who cringe at the idea of starting a sentence with a conjunction like “and” or “but”. Maybe you were taught this golden rule at school and have stuck by it ever since. Well, language has to move with the times, and it’s not wrong – or right. It depends. Starting a sentence with “and” or “but” is not some heinous sin that can never be forgiven. It’s informal and casual. So it’s acceptable when informal language is the tone you’re going for. Let’s say you’re writing a report on a serious issue that’s to be tabled at the next board meeting, or writing policy that’s going to become legislation, or an invitation to Kate and Will’s wedding – then don’t use conjunctions to start a sentence. But, if you’re writing an article for Dolly magazine, or connecting with surfers on a surf website, or a brochure about fun online dating methods, then using informal language like this is perfectly acceptable. And you’ll see it all the time. But just don’t go nuts and use it at every opportunity. Student Success – Patricia Barton One of the many things we love about working at the Australian Writers’ Centre is seeing students realise their writing dreams. One of our graduates, Patricia Barton, who went on the “Writing in Paris” tour in 2009 and found it life-changing, has released an inspiring memoir Why God Hates Me. It’s the beautifully written story of her determination to triumph over the homelessness and abuse that marked the early years of her life and find lasting happiness. Why God Hates Me will be officially launched on 11 May at Gleebooks. Here’s what Patricia had to say about the Writing in Paris tour with Patti Miller: “Patti Miller suggested I come to ‘Writing in Paris’ and I needed no coaxing. We were the first ones to go. I resolved to fill my notebook by writing in cafes like Hemingway did. Twice a day. I still found time for shopping, music, and making friends. “I had to buy a new notebook, a new bag, and a French beret for my return to Sydney but I had 78 foolscap pages to take home with me which was the substance of my memoir. Now, Why God Hates Me is available on Amazon and in bookshops. If it is meant to happen make it happen in Paris! You can do it. I did. And it changed my life. Thanks Patti.” Winners announced in the Best Australian Blogs 2013 Competition This week we announced the winners of the Best Australian Blogs 2013 Competition, which was sponsored by publishing company Random House Australia. With 1122 entries and over 16,350 votes for the People’s Choice Award, the competition for the category winners was tight. Congratulations to Suzi Dafnis (Business winner), Clint Greagan (Personal/Parenting winner), Sneh Roy (Personal/Lifestyle winner), Stephanie Campisi (Words/Writing winner) and Paula Matthewson (Commentary winner). The overall winner and Best Australian Blog for 2013 was Sneh Roy’s Cook Republic. The People’s Choice Award was won by Chris Lang’s blog, Home I Own, with 1,468 votes. This year’s competition also had a series of special awards for smaller blogs, as well as for outstanding new blog. You can see the full list of winners and links to their blogs here. ONLINE COURSE: Creative Writing Stage 2 If you’ve completed our Online Course: Creative Writing Stage 1 and want to take your writing to the next level, then join us for Online Course: Creative Writing Stage 2. In this course you’ll take those skills you’ve learnt in stage 1 and really start to put them to good use. This course is packed with practical exercises that will give you a chance to workshop your writing in a collaborative and positive environment. Five week online course starting the week beginning Monday 13 May 2013 Time: Whenever it suits you Cost: $395 Editing Essentials Reviewing and editing someone else’s writing can be a little intimidating, but it doesn’t have to be. Editing Essentials will equip you with the skills and confidence you need to bring clarity to any piece of writing. You will learn all the rules and standard conventions you will ever need to know to edit with speed, accuracy and efficiency. One-day seminar on Friday 16 May 2013 Time: 9 am – 5 pm Cost: $450 Creative Writing Stage 1 Whether you’ve been writing for a while or just starting your creative writing journey, knowing all the elements of good fiction can only enhance your stories. If you’ve decided it’s time to let that book you’ve always had in you out, ourCreative Writing Stage 1 course will help you. In this five-week course author James Roy will show you how you too can write engaging and inspiring stories. Five-week course starting Thursday 23 May 2013 Time: 6.30 pm – 8.30 pm Cost: $395 PR and Media Releases that Get Results One-day seminar on Thursday 23 May 2013 9 am – 4.30 pm Only 4 places left Did you know? Where exclamation and question marks come from We use these punctuation marks every day but have you ever wondered where they originated? Thanks to oxforddictionariesonline, I have the answer: Both these punctuation marks were originally manuscript abbreviations in Latin texts. To take the exclamation mark first: it derives from a vertical version, written in the margins, of the Latin word Io, meaning ‘exclamation of joy’. The vertical stroke was the ‘I’ above the ‘o’, in which the ‘o’ eventually became a dot. The question mark, meanwhile, goes back to the word Quaestio meaning ‘questioning, investigation’ and indicating a question. Quaestio was eventually abbreviated to a curly ‘q’ above the ‘o’, while the ‘o’ became a dot. Why were these marks needed in the first place? Their prime function in Latin manuscripts was to show people the right intonation: a question, a surprise, a shout, etc. If you combine them you get a different effect: ?! delivers an immediate sense of incredulity: a little like smileys or emoticons in our text messages today. TIP: To boldly go We covered this a while ago in this newsletter but we get asked about it so many times, I thought it was worthwhile to clarify again. Grammar sometimes has atendency to sound more complicated than it needs to. For example, split infinitives. What’s an infinitive? And how do you split it? Here’s the simple answer borrowed from Star Trek. This is a split infinitive: To boldly go where no man has gone before! The infinitive is to go, and it has been ‘split’ by the adverb boldly. Here’s what http://www.askoxford.com says: Split infinitives are frequently poor style, but they are not strictly bad grammar. In the example above, to avoid the split infinitive would result either in weakness (to go boldly) or over-formality (boldly to go): either would ruin the rhythmic force and rhetorical pattern of the original. It is probably good practice to avoid split infinitives in formal writing, but clumsy attempts to avoid them simply by shuffling adverbs about can create far worse sentences.
	Plan ahead – Writing Books for Children and Young Adults
	Are you overflowing with great book ideas for children and young adults but aren’t sure what to do with them? Writing Books For Children and Young Adults gives you the skills you’ll need to bring your ideas to life in a way that captures the imagination of young readers. You’ll learn how to work out what age group your story will best suit, vocabulary rules for children and teens, and what topics are suitable for that age group and much more. And of course, you’ll also cover the essentials of good writing – voice, plot, character, and structure. So come and join us for the five-week evening course, or if you can’t get to our training rooms in Milsons Point, we also have an online course available.
	This week on Writing Bar We interviewed successful author, Allison Rushby. She is about to release her new book The Heiresses so we thought that made this the perfect opportunity to ask her about all things writing-oriented … and naturally, find out about her cider making skills … We also took some time out to meet Kylie Ladd, who is a novelist and freelance writer, and the presenter of the Australian Writers’ Centre’s Creative Writing Stage 1 course in Melbourne.   WEBPICK: Qwiklit You may not be able to gain a literature degree without a few years at university, but you canenhance your knowledge of classic fiction, thereby impressing your fellow book clubbers with your literary insight, by giving Qwiklit a visit. This is a new site and still under construction. In fact, I’ve been watching it for a while waiting for it to launch its series of five-minute videos on selected novels, plays, poems and non-fiction. And they’ve started in style – their first featured novel is Henry James’s Portrait of a Lady. The video includes an overview, analysis and Qwikfacts on this classic 1881 novel. There’s currently just the one video on the site but you can also check out a series of blog posts on essential reading, including 15 Modern Classics You Should Read and 50 Reasons You Should be a Bookworm. Check it out here.
	“No tears in the writer, no tears in the reader. No surprise in the writer, no surprise in the reader.” Words of wisdom from – Robert Frost
	Upcoming courses
	Online Course: Creative Writing Stage 1 with Cathie Tasker/Pamela Freeman When: Week beginning Monday 6 May 2013 for five weeks Time: Whenever suits you Cost: $395 Online Course: Travel Writing with Sue White When: Week beginning Monday 13 May 2013 for five weeks Time: Whenever suits you Cost: $395 Online Course: Magazine and Newspaper Writing Stage 1 with Sue White/Allison Tait When: Week beginning Monday 13 May 2013 for five weeks Time: Whenever suits you Cost: $395 Online Course: Creative Writing Stage 2 with Cathie Tasker/Pamela Freeman When: Week beginning Monday 13 May 2013 for five weeks Time: Whenever suits you Cost: $395 Online Course: Writing Books for Children and Young Adults with Judith Ridge/ Cathie Tasker When: Week beginning Monday 13 May 2013 for five weeks Time: Whenever suits you Cost: $395 Seminar: Business Writing Essentials with Kate Hennessy When: Friday 3 May 2013 (one-day seminar) Time: 9.30 am – 4.30 pm Cost: $395 Seminar: Writing for the web with Grant Doyle When: Monday 6 May 2013 (one-day seminar) Time: 9.00 am – 4.00 pm Cost: $450 Seminar: Grammar and Punctuation Essentials with Deb Doyle When: Wednesday 8 May 2013 (one-day seminar) Time: 9.00 am – 5.00 pm Cost: $450 Course: Introduction to Novel Writing with Pamela Freeman When: Every Thursday starting Thursday 9 May 2013 for six weeks Time: 6.30 – 8.30 pm Cost: $495 Daytime seminar: Blogging for Beginners with Jen Bishop – FULL When: Friday 10 May 2013 (two-hour morning seminar) Time: 10 am – 12 noon Cost: $85 Course: Plotting and Planning with Kate Forsyth When: Every Monday starting Monday 13 May 2013 for two weeks Time: 6.30 – 8.30 pm Cost: $175 Course: Magazine and Newspaper Writing Stage 1 with Sue White When: Every Tuesday starting Tuesday 14 May 2013 for five weeks Time: 6.30 – 8.30 pm Cost: $395 Seminar: Blogging for Beginners with Jen Bishop – FULL When: Thursday 16 May 2013 (two-hour evening seminar) Time: 6.30 – 8.30 pm Cost: $85 Seminar: Editing Essentials with Deb Doyle When: Thursday 16 May 2013 (one-day seminar) Time: 9.00 am – 5.00 pm Cost: $450 Course: Creative Writing Stage 1 with James Roy When: Every Thursday starting Thursday 23 May 2013 for five weeks Time: 6.30 – 8.30 pm Cost: $395 Seminar: PR and Media Releases that Get Results with Catriona Pollard When: Thursday 23 May 2013 (one-day seminar) Time: 9.00 am – 5.00 pm Cost: $495 Seminar: Build Your Profile Using Twitter with Kerri Sackville When: Monday 27 May 2013 (two-hour evening seminar) Time: 6.30 – 8.30 pm Cost: $85 Seminar: Introduction to Travel Writing with Geoff Bartlett When: Tuesday 28 May 2013 (two-hour evening seminar) Time: 6.30 – 8.30 pm Cost: $85 Seminar: Professional Business Writing with Sue White When: Thursday 30 May 2013 (one-day seminar) Time: 9.00 am – 5.00 pm Cost: $450 Weekend course: Creative Writing Stage 1 with Pamela Freeman When: Saturday 1 June and Sunday 2 June 2013 (2 consecutive days) Time: 10.00 am – 4.00 pm Cost: $395 Weekend course: Magazine and Newspaper Writing Stage 1 with Sue White When: Saturday 1 June and Sunday 2 June 2013 (2 consecutive days) Time: 10.00 am – 4.00 pm Cost: $395 Seminar: How to Get Your Book Published with Geoff Bartlett When: Monday 3 June 2013 (two-hour evening seminar) Time: 6.30 – 8.30 pm Cost: $85 Seminar: From Blog to Book with Kerri Sackville When: Tuesday 4 June 2013 (two-hour evening seminar) Time: 6.30 – 8.30 pm Cost: $85 Seminar: Blogging for Beginners with Kim Berry When: Wednesday 5 June 2013 (two-hour evening seminar) Time: 6.30 – 8.30 pm Cost: $85 Course: Writing Books for Children and Young Adults with Judith Ridge When: Every Wednesday starting Wednesday 5 June 2013 for five weeks Time: 6.30 – 8.30 pm Cost: $395 Course: Screenwriting Stage 2 with Tim Gooding When: Every Tuesday starting Tuesday 11 June 2013 for five weeks Time: 6.30 – 8.30 pm Cost: $395 Course: Creative Writing Stage 2 with Jeni Mawter When: Every Wednesday starting Wednesday 12 June 2013 for five weeks Time: 6.30 – 8.30 pm Cost: $395 Daytime seminar: Blogging for Beginners with Jen Bishop When: Thursday 13 June 2013 (two-hour morning seminar) Time: 10 am – 12 noon Cost: $85 Seminar: Self-Publishing: How to do it with Geoff Bartlett When: Monday 17 June 2013 (two-hour evening seminar) Time: 6.30 – 8.30 pm Cost: $85 Seminar: How to Create and Sell Your eBook with Anna Maguire When: Thursday 20 June 2013 (two-hour evening seminar) Time: 6.30 – 8.30 pm Cost: $85 Weekend Course: Write a Chick-Lit Novel with Lisa Heidke When: Saturday 22 June and Sunday 23 June 2013 (2 consecutive days) Time: 10.00 am – 4.00 pm Cost: $395 Course: Writing Picture Books with Cathie Tasker When: Every Tuesday starting Tuesday 25 June 2013 for five weeks Time: 6.30 – 8.30pm Cost: $395 Weekend course: Life Writing with Patti Miller When: Saturday 29 June and Sunday 30 June 2013 (2 consecutive days) Time: 10.00 am – 4.00 pm Cost: $450 Weekend course: Writing About Food with Carli Ratcliff When: Saturday 29 June and Sunday 30 June 2013 (2 consecutive days) Time: 10.00 am – 4.00 pm Cost: $395 Program: Write Your Novel with Pamela Freeman – FULL When: Every Monday starting Monday 1 July 2013 for six months Time: 6.30 – 8.30 pm Cost: $2150 Course: Screenwriting Stage 1 with Tim Gooding When: Every Monday starting Monday 15 July 2013 for five weeks Time: 6.30 – 8.30 pm Cost: $395 Course: Writing About Interiors, Style and Design with Nigel Bartlett When: Tuesday 16 July and 23 July 2013 (2 evening classes) Time: 6.30 – 8.30 pm Cost: $175 Seminar: Successful Freelancing with Gayle Bryant When: Wednesday 17 July 2013 (two-hour evening seminar) Time: 6.30 – 8.30 pm Cost: $85 Course: Travel Writing with Sue White When: Every Wednesday starting Wednesday 17 July 2013 for five weeks Time: 6.30 – 8.30 pm Cost: $395 Course: Thriller Writing with L.A. Larkin When: Every Thursday starting Thursday 18 July 2013 for five weeks Time: 6.30 – 8.30 pm Cost: $395 Course: Travel Memoir with Claire Scobie When: Saturday 27 July and Sunday 28 July 2013 (2 consecutive days) Time: 10.00 am – 4.00 pm Cost: $395 Course: History, Mystery and Magic with Kate Forsyth When: Saturday 3 August and Sunday 4 August 2013 (2 consecutive days) Time: 10.00 am – 4.00 pm Cost: $395 OVERSEAS WRITING TOURS Writing in the Senses in Bali with Patti Miller When: Saturday 10 August to Saturday 17 August 2013 Memoir Writing in Paris with Patti Miller – FULL When: Thursday 24 October to Saturday 9 November 2013 Writing About Food in Vietnam with Carli Ratcliff Dates for 2014 TBC
	T Wishing you much writing success, About Valerie: Valerie Khoo is a journalist, author of six books and founder of the Australian Writers’ Centre. Valerie writes regularly for smh.com.au, theage.com.au,brisbanetimes.com.au, watoday.com.au, canberratimes.com.au andbusinessday.com.au. The Australian Writers’ Centre runs a range of popular writing courses in Sydney, Melbourne and online. She is author of Power Stories: The 8 Stories You MUST Tell to Build an Epic Business (Wiley).

The Society of Southwestern Authors- May 19, 2013 Forum Rajendra Kumar WRITING FROM EXPERIENCE

The Society o f Southwestern Authors Hosts Rajendra Kumar at May 19, 2013 Forum

Writing From Experience

Rajendra Kumar, a retired psychologist, has been immersed in literary writing since the age of 12.  He has two English language publications: THE DEVILS AND THE DAMNED (2009), a novel that deals with the issue of white supremacists in US prisons, and MEMORIES OF A DISTANT STAR (LOVE STORIES FOR HEAVEN AND HELL), about relationships.

“Raj” will cover questions writers ask every day: What is personal experience?  Why is personal experience important in writing?  How can personal experience help when writing fiction?  How can you use personal experience to enhance creativity?

Raj will break down examples from his own publications to illustrate how he used personal experiences to make his fiction come alive.

You don’t want to miss this one!  Sunday, May 19, 2013.  11 am to 2 pm,

Forums are now at the Tucson City Center Innsuites Resort   (Granada & Saint Mary’s Tucson)  11am-2pm, every third Sunday

Please R.S.V.P. by WEDNESDAY before the Forum

520-546-9382 or ssabrunches@gmail.com

$25 with registration   $30 at the door  includes lunch & speaker

(No Credit Cards)

Taken from THE WRITE WORD, the newsletter of The Society of Southwestern Authors   Vol. 42.  No. 2  April/May 2013