Pages & Paws

Writing, Reading, and Rural Life With a Border Collie


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Missing It

Fall trees and skyI missed it. One day summer was in full swing. I blinked. Next thing I knew, frost feathered rooftops, morning air started biting and pachyderm clouds unpacked for the duration.

Last year fall seeped off the calendar and slid into winter when I wasn’t looking. And I missed it.

When You Aren’t Lookin’

It’s easy to say that same about writing, isn’t it?  It’s easy to slide your writing into “some day.” To get buried in busyness and say, I was going to finish chapter twenty-two today, but…  I haven’t actually finished the proposal… I planned to, but… thought about… talked about… considered… maybe…

Yet that novel, article, short story, essay, or writing contest entry sits on your desk or in your hard drive unfinished, poised to creep out the back door when you aren’t lookin’.

Bristling

Some writers I know practically bristle with ideas and unfinished manuscripts.  They talk about writing in sentences punctuated with “one of these days” and “when I get around to it” or “when it slows down some.”

Truth?  If you’re waiting to write until you “have time” or life “slows down some,” chances are you never will.

Tractor in fall fieldDon’t Miss It

Don’t do what I did last fall. Don’t dump your writing on the back burner and leave it there untended. Don’t miss another favorite, be it book, author, opportunity or idea. And don’t feel like you’re alone. I learned from last year.  I re-arranged some priorities. Set some new boundaries. I’m working on some new writing projects.  And believe you me, fall has taken on a whole new flavor this year – much better than last!

What’s “missing” in your writing? How can you get it back? 


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‘Where Do We Get Such Men?’: A 9/11 Reflection

Where do we get such men? They leave this ship and they do their job. Then they must find this speck lost somewhere on the sea. When they find it, they have to land on its pitching deck. Where do we get such men?

– RAdm Tarrant, The Bridges at Toko-Ri

It wasn’t unique. In fact, the day was pretty average. Gallons of sunshine poured out of a flawless cyan sky. Temperatures hovered in the nineties. The long, lazy days of summer washed into another school year like breakers on Sunset Beach.

September 11, 2011 was pretty much like every other Indian Summer day in southern California. In other words, it was perfect –  until two airliners tore into the Twin Towers.

And America has never been the same.

Amid the shock, confusion and grief, one of the things that stood out on that terrible, tragic day was the quiet. Southern California skies usually hum with air traffic of all shapes of sizes, everything from thundering commercial flights to lumbering military cargo planes to the mosquito whine of light aircraft. It was all gone on September 11, 2001, when the FAA ordered all flights grounded. The result? A suffocating silence, terrible in its unnatural eeriness.

Remember?

Up to my eyeballs in homeschooling and other pursuits, I didn’t even hear about the tragedy until my husband came home from work that evening. “Turn on the news” Chris said when he walked through the door.

“Why?” I said. “What’s going on?”

“Didn’t you hear?”

“Hear what?”

“About New York?” Blank stare.

“Two planes flew into the Twin Towers this morning.”

“Was anyone hurt?” I thought he meant two Cessnas with engine trouble. Someone got confused. Strayed off the flight plan. An accident.  Minor injuries and a dozen insurance claims. Turning on the TV, it took about five seconds for reality to sink in.

Years Later

Years later, this event and those responsible are household words. Oceans of ink have been spilled and scores of song, words and commentary have been filed on the subject of 9/11. Documentaries have been produced. Testimonials shared. Solemn memorials observed. And we remember.

Many Americans set September 11 aside as a “day of infamy” – and something else. We mourn the lives lost. But we also remember the heroes. And in remembering,  we honor the sacrifices of first responders – law enforcement, firefighters, EMS, and scores of “ordinary” Americans who were anything but. We saw countless Americans  go above and beyond the call of duty to protect and serve others.

Remember the days that followed? The fund-raisers? The Red Cross blood drives? Prayer services? An entire country awash in a sea of stars and stripes?

American Eagle and US FlagIt’s been a few year, but the events of that ‘Indian Summer’ day in September still reverberate. They aren’t quiet. They touched a chord.  For those who looked, the immediate aftermath of 9/11 showed America at her best: Generous. Selfless. Resourceful. Resilient and resolute. United. Uncowed.

The Bridges at Toko-Ri is set during the Korean War, but RAdm Tarrant’s question lives. We see answers every day if we know where to look.

 


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How A World-Class Acrophobic Survived Pyramid Peak (sort of) & Writing It Real

Disclaimer: I may have done some pretty stupid things back when I was young and foolish – like yesterday – but nothing like hiking Pyramid Peak. At least not in the last 10 minutes. (Kids, don’t try this at home.)

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You know that saying about “There’s dangerous and doable and then there’s dangerous and stupid?” (If you’ve never heard it before, don’t worry. I just made it up.) Well, guess which category the Pyramid Peak hike fell into?

My husband, aka Snuggle Bunny, and I planned to do what we always do to celebrate our anniversary: hike the hinterlands. I mean, who needs romantic candlelit dinners and tiramisu when you can chug through every mosquito-ridden, rock-strewn traipse known to man in knee-deep mud and cushion your every fall with a nice, thick slab of granite while enjoying The Great Outdoors?

Pyramid Peak 2

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The Best Days

He was one long drink of water. Thirty-ish. Long and lean. Sweat shirt and tennis shoes. Spare as a scarecrow, with enough energy to power Seattle for a fortnight, solo. Maybe more.

It wasn’t quite how I had our Friday planned. It was supposed to be a quick library in and out. Swoop in. Return some checked-out books. Pick up some new ones. Dash out. Head for the nearest Hershey’s with almonds, lickety-split.

But Sarah the Intrepid Youth Services Librarian hornswoggled my son into attending a YA author’s presentation in the downstairs meeting room. Which meant she also hornswoggled me.

Sometimes the best days are unplanned.

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Finishing Touches

Hoq River Sunset 2Hey there, sports fans. It’s that time of year again.  Another school year’s in the rear view mirror. Whew. The Stanley Cup’s been awarded – way to go, Kings! – but there’s plenty more summer sports on tap. Baseball. Wimbledon tennis. The Tour de France (Yes, I confess. Been following that epic bicycle race for years).

Ditto summer reading programs. Fresh starts. New projects while the good weather holds and one summer-gilded day glides into the next.

Recent projects around here this summer include putting the finishing touches on my new web site. You won’t find any box scores or time trials here, but if you’re even a teensy-weeny bit partial to Mozart, have I got a deal for you! :)

Visit me at: Kristine Lowder, Author. Don’t forget to leave a comment.

By the way, if you’re an author or know an author looking for some exposure for your work this summer, check out my Author Avalanche page.

In the meantime, Batter up!


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Guest Post: ‘Why You Should Never Skimp on Editing Services’

How Professional Editors Can Help

cropped-writing-photo.jpg          Professional editors became editors for a reason: they want to make better, grammatically-accurate content. They want to help writers reach their goals and love to take weak sentences and polish them into a shine. Professional editors know the market, what sells and what doesn’t, what their readers want to know about, and what style of content best suits their needs. If you’re self-publishing your novel, an investment you should not try to skimp on is editing.

When you become too familiar with your work, you can glaze over obvious errors, miss key plot mistakes, and end up publishing work that lacks readability. A professional editor can look at your work from an outsider’s perspective. They can see what you’re trying to achieve and help you reach it while also helping make it sell to readers. Their experience and knowledge is honestly, invaluable. They see cracks that you may not and their services are worth the high dollar they charge.

Why You Should Pay the Most You Can for the Best Editor

Low-balling or offering less money than you should for editors will show in your work. If you grab a freelance editor that will read your novel for $20, they won’t spend the necessary time to understand it and will give you bad advice. You may save money in the short-term, but your work will for sure suffer.

A great editor is worth the cost because of their reading and editing skills. You can read your work 100 times and still miss the spelling mistake on page 125. They understand where you need changes, what should be cut that doesn’t forward the story, and know the market. If you can only afford $200 for a good editor, make sure they have the best skills available. You want to have someone who will work with you to change your work into something great. You want an editor you can feel comfortable asking stupid questions to that you know will give you the right answers. Someone you can continue to use for any writing you have in the future. Editing really can change your story from a great promise to a throw away.

Online Proofreaders for Penny Pinchers

Money may be tight for you right now and hiring a good editor is out of reach. There are free proofreading tools, such as Grammarly, that find mistakes in your work while teaching you how to overcome your most common errors. Although it doesn’t cost a dime, Grammarly provides top tier services to writers. It can check for plagiarism, grammar, punctuation, offer stylistic changes, teach you how to avoid mistakes, and teach you new writing techniques. It also offers a community for writers to connect through their question and answer boards. I’ve used the boards a few times and the response was fast, friendly, and correct. Grammarly offers everything a writer needs without the expense.

Editors are Here to Help

Editors want to help you and can push you to be a better writer. Many famous writers, including Stephen King, have been using the same editor for years. They find a good fit and stick with them. Editors also offer excellent advice on where the market is going, style, and PR. They can help you find the right people to promote your book while making it your best possible material. Cheap editors may not always know what’s the best direction for your material and they don’t offer all the same quality services. You don’t have to break the bank to get a great editor but you also shouldn’t sacrifice the quality of your manuscript over a few dollars.

By Nikolas Baron

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About Nikolas:

Nikolas discovered his love for the written word in Elementary School, where he started spending his afternoons sprawled across the living room floor devouring one Marc Brown children’s novel after the other and writing short stories about daring pirate adventures. After acquiring some experience in various marketing, business development, and hiring roles at internet startups in a few different countries, he decided to re-unite his professional life with his childhood passions by joining Grammarly’s marketing team in San Francisco. He has the pleasure of being tasked with talking to writers, bloggers, teachers, and others about how they use Grammarly’s online proofreading application to improve their writing. His free time is spent biking, traveling, and reading.


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Why You Won’t Turn Into a Pumpkin if You’re Not Blogging Every Day (Part 2 of 2)

I recently re-evaluated the writing blogs I follow.  In the process  I deep-sixed some, kept a few, and skim most.  I simply don’t have time to read numerous posts on a daily basis, particularly if they’re the blog equivalent of War and Peace.  I mean, I’m lucky if I get the dishes done on a daily basis!

A Crackly Crisp and Criteria

Trying to read and crank out quality posts every day had me fried to a crackly crisp.  Been there, done that?  If so, it’s okay to scale back.  You won’t turn into a pumpkin. Really.  Read Luke’s complete post here  (Check Part 1 for full context.  That’s okay.  I’ll wait.)

Here’s the basic criteria I used to pare my blog “read list” down to something manageable:

  • Will I turn into a pumpkin if I miss a week or two of this blog’s content?
  • Is the content interesting, relevant, and engaging on a regular basis?  Is it fun?
  • Does the blogger reciprocate, offer guest posts, share links, retweet, etc?
  • Will this blog help my writing, outreach, insight, or all of the above?
  • Is the blogger genuine?  Does he or she blog from the heart?
  • Does this blogger have a personal account at Hershey’s?  (Couldn’t resist.)

In case you’re wondering, here are some blogs I recommend:

– The Writing Life – Terry Whalin

– A Step in the Write Direction – Donna Clark Goodrich

– Kathy Macias

Bottom line:

Daily blog posts may be over-rated.  If you’re a writer, you know better than anyone how much time blogging can swallow away from other writing.  Prioritize accordingly.  More on that in a minute.

Okay, okay.  I admit.  At first I felt a little guilty about scaling blog posts back to a more realistic schedule.  Something that I could handle.  Not anymore.  I decided that when it comes to “building a platform” and the like, it’s okay to not be in a hurry.  Ditto avoiding cranking out noise just to fill the screen.

A Matter of Priorities

Blogging vs. working on your writing comes down to a question of priorities.  If your first passion is blogging, then get at it and go to it.  But if it’s working on your next novel, short story or creative non-fiction piece, concentrate on that first and blog when you can.

Neither you nor I will turn into a pumpkin if we’re not blogging every day.   It’s okay.  Really.

Who’s with me?

How often do you blog?  What do you look for in a blog post?  Who are your favorite bloggers?  Share in the comments section.


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Why You Won’t Turn Into a Pumpkin if You’re Not Blogging Every Day (Part 1 of 2)

If you’re a writer, chances are good you’re also a blogger.  Chances are equally good that you’ve heard: 1)  If you’re a serious writer, you need a blog like peanut butter needs jelly; and 2)  Daily blog posts are the one and only way to build your audience and create a platform.

Not Anymore

I used to buy that.  Frankly, it fit like a rhino in leotards.  I thought it was me.  Not anymore.

Check out Ali Luke’s post, “How Often Should You Blog? (Hint: The Answer Might Surprise You)” by Ali Luke. She says:

“Over the past couple of years, there’s been a shift in the blogging world. More and more prominent bloggers-on-blogging are moving away from daily posting—and reassuring their readers that you don’t have to post every day in order to be successful. “

Luke continues, quoting Darren Rowse of Problogger:

“I once surveyed readers here on ProBlogger about the reasons they unsubscribed from RSS feeds, and the number one answer was ‘posting too much.’ Respondents expressed that they developed ‘burnout’ and would unsubscribe if a blog became too ‘noisy.’”

Is Daily Best?

Let’s face it.  Your life is full.  So is mine.  I’ve subscribed to several primo writing-related blogs, followed them for awhile, read every word.  Most post daily.  And I couldn’t keep up.  So I bailed.

Then there are the folks who offer a free ebook, webinar or other resource, capture your email, and turn your In Box into their personal rainstorm reminiscent of Noah.  A few showers are one thing, but a deluge?  Don’t these folks realize how busy we writers are?  I battened down the hatches and rolled up the welcome mat on those folks right quick…

Stay tuned for Part 2.


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Cozy Quilts and ‘Cave-Dwelling Neanderthals’

It’s no coincidence.  The writing compulsion most often grabs me by the neck and shakes me till my teeth rattle when I’m surrounded by books.  For a writer, there’s something inspirational about a library.  Being in the massed presence of so many other authors is like snuggling under a cozy quilt on a snowy day.

Here in the warm embrace of some of my favorite dead people, I’ve engaged in an experiment: I’m re-reading some of my favorite stories from childhood. There’s something steadying and bracing about unearthing and enjoying a book that’s still in circulation some forty years or so after finding it the first time.  It’s like digging up a pot of gold or swan-diving into an Olympic-sized pool of Hershey’s chocolate with almonds.

It’s also kind of strange.

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Four Tips (and one secret) for Finding Your Writing Voice

If you’ve been around the writing world for any length of time, you’ve probably heard endless minions talk about “finding your writing voice.”  Maybe you’ve wondered what that means.  Or how to go about it.  Here are some tips:

First off, your writing voice is yours.  This may seem self-evident, but it’s amazing how many “writers” try to mimic someone else rather than work at developing their own style or “voice.”  Don’t be one of them.

Secondly, think of your writing “voice” as you would your spoken voice.  How do you sound aloud?  What kind of tone, accents, or intonations do you use?  Do you declare, express, state, proclaim, utter, whisper, echo, articulate or assert?  How do you express yourself verbally?  Is your voice strong, sweet, gentle, smooth, raspy, high-pitched or low?  Evaluate your writing “voice” in the same terms.  Whatever you do, be genuine.

Thirdly, realize that “finding your writing  voice” isn’t like searching for the lost city of Atlantis.  It’s not all that mysterious.  Jettison the cagey cloak-and-dagger stuff, and practice.  It’ll come.

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