Miscellaneous

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Miscellaneous







Below are several archived tips from the “Miscellaneous” category. Though some tips have been edited by the current guru, James Gapinski, most are the original creations of past Life Tips gurus.

Online Diaries

Scribbling on paper isn’t the only way to record your thoughts these days. There are plenty of online journal services that will give you space to vent and philosophize. Most are free!

Check out:

Diaryland

www.diaryland.com

Diarist.com

www.diarist.com

SFWA Nebula Award

Given annually by the Science Fiction Writers of America. Search winners and finalists for great writers to learn from.

http://dpsinfo.com/awardweb/nebulas/

Haiku

Haiku’s ideally include some element of season or nature in them & are a clever form on their own.

The Basics:

_______________

Haiku has 3 lines and 17 syllabes distributed in 5, 7 and 5. The haiku conveys a "snapshot" impression of a moment, feeling, or observation from nature.

You can find more detailed resources & even submit your haikus on A Haiku Homepage.

http://home.clara.net/pka/haiku/haiku.htm

Links for Crime Writers

Officer.com. Click here for info on just about anything police related.

http://www.officer.com

Romance Writers links

http://www.geocities.com/charlottedillon2000/

Journal Writing Links

Journal For You--a vastly informative site for those wanting to develop their journaling experience.

http://www.journalforyou.com/

Writers Workshops

The Erma Bombeck Writer’s Workshop is a hub for humor writers and features articles & general info on the business. There is also an annual writing contest and a conference.

http://www.humorwriters.org/

Online Resources

HumorLinks provides an astounding wealth of humor related resources. It’s worth flipping through, even though it also includes a fair amount of joke sites and such.

http://www.humorlinks.com/cgi-bin/sites/page.cgi?d=1&g=index.html

Science writing links

http://www.research.att.com/~andreas/sci.html

Online Workshops

If you’re looking for a journaling workshop, but are low on spare time, consider going online.

http://www.writingthejourney.com/

Nature Writing links

http://www.connix.com/~fmusante/nature/nature.htm

Memoir writing links

Memoir Writing community at Suite 101

http://www.suite101.com/welcome.cfm/memoir_writing

Places that might consider your screenwriting manuscript

StudioNotes.com

http://www.studionotes.com/StudioNotes/index.html

ScriptPimp.com

http://www.scriptpimp.com/home/

Dave Barry´s Miami Herald Column

Dave Barry is a humor writer who manages to be naturally funny (hilarious, even) without ever really going over the top.

http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/living/columnists/dave_barry/

How to be funny on demand (link)

http://www.wsws.ca/humor.shtml

Good Writers to Learn From

Contemporary Writers

________________________

Rick Bass

Annie Dillard

Gretel Erlich

Barry Lopez

Farley Mowatt

Terry Tempest Williams

Classical Writers

________________________

Henry David Thoreau

Reading List

Deadly Pleasures is a site that stays up-to-the-minute on crime writing publications. This page provides a good list of crime novels that have received acclaim.

http://www.deadlypleasures.com/dplist2001.htm#U.S. Novels

Writers to Learn From

Isaac Asimov

Ursula K. Leguin

Ideas for entries

Journaling can often be a place to lazily record your thoughts as they meander. But sometimes you will want to experiment with focused writing exercises on a specific topic. Here are some random ideas--add your own to the list.

*My earliest memory

*The sounds of nature

*A terrifying experience

*Being single/involved/married/divorced/widowed

Handmaking a Journal Book

You might enjoy the physical craft of building a journal from scratch. Many cultural centers and craft stores offer workshops on how to put one together. For a reasonable fee, you’ll get materials, fabric, instruction and a place to work. Definitely worth checking out.

Finding an agent

The best place to research agents is with the Writer’s Guild. They keep a log of agents who are active and, most importantly, legit.

http://www.wga.org/agency.html

Independent Mystery Booksellers

The Independent Mystery Booksellers Association is a good resource if you want to find quality crime fiction. You can search for books on the site. Check out their Top 100 list!

http://www.mysterybooksellers.com/favorites.html

Reading List

Leaving a Trace: On Keeping a Journal

by Alexandra Johnson

The best book resource I have come across for journaling. It emphasizes the importance of journaling to creative development and touches on many personal aspects of the genre. Includes great exercises to get you started and stoke your creativity.

Screenwriting links

The Mad Screenwriter

(Download scripts from your favorite movies!!)

http://www.madscreenwriter.com/

Screenwriting Directories & Resources

http://www.dvshop.ca/dvcafe/writing/screenres.html

Sci Fi Writing Associations

Science Fiction & Fantasy Writers of America

Be sure to check out the page for "Craft." It gives great resources on the basics of Sci Fi Writing.

http://www.sfwa.org/

Links for FanFic writers

Fan Fiction on Force.Net. A community of fan fic writers, with a huge archive and mailing lists.

http://fanfic.theforce.net/

   

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