Miscellaneous Monday

Time to share a few links - hopefully something will strike your fancy. :) Have a great week!

We can all use a reminder of the basics sometimes, right? Writer's Digest's 5 Writing Rules Everyone Should Know provides a fun graphic offering just that.

Is it just me, or is finding a remedy for passive voice challenging sometimes? Jerry Jenkins offers solutions in this post, How to Fix Passive Voice.

Need help with Twitter? The Writing Life's Terry Whalin has been active there since 2008 and has it down to a science. He shares his insight in Twitter Tips: Who to Follow and Who to Block.

Your learning style can help direct you to the right writing course. How? Pen and Prosper's Jennifer Brown Banks explains in How to Match Your Learning Style to the Right Writer's Training.

Speaking of courses, the Coffeehouse for Writers offers year round writing classes. From Basic Boot Camp and Blogging for Profit or Pleasure to Writing for Chicken Soup for the Soul and E-publishing and more, they have something for everyone.

Are you a fiction writer who has difficulty infusing humor into your stories? C. S. Lakin at Live Write Thrive highlights her take on the topic in 4 Ways to Use Humor in Your Fiction.


Have any good resources to share? What are you working on this week?

Happy writing,
Karen 


Photo credit: Karen Lange's iPhone :)

It's All Good

The basket of goodies is overflowing! Thought it was time to share. :)

Do commas and quotations trip you up? C.S. Lakin offers advice in Get a Handle on Commas. If you need more help, check out another post, Commas That Are, Indeed, Useful.

When it comes to submissions, the basics really do count. Terry Whalin tells us why in this post at The Writing Life.

What makes a great metaphor? A fabulous simile? Sally Apokedak, associate agent at the Leslie H. Stobbe Agency shares her thoughts in A Metaphor Is the Fizz in the Soda Pop over at Novel Rocket.

Having a tough writing day? Check out YoungPrePro Bamidele Onibalusi's tips in this post, 18 Challenges Writers Face and How to Overcome Them.
 

Tyrean Martinson's ebook Champion in the Darkness makes its debut today. Congratulations, Tyrean! Check out the details on this YA Christian Fantasy here. Tyrean has agreed to stop by and share the details later this spring. Looking forward to it!

The Christian Fiction for Your Kindle blog offers regularly updated posts for free and great deals on ebooks. Offerings include fiction and non-fiction for all ages.

Sweet blogging friend Maria Morgan's new website is up! Stop by for a bit of encouragement. You'll be glad you did.

Sending a big congratulations to Marja Meijers for My Neighbor's House! It's the newest book in the Ten Commandments series. If it's anything like her previous books, it's sure to be a treasure. 

Have you visited the hippo? The Word Hippo, that is. You'll find synonyms, antonyms and a whole lot more. I know I've shared it before, but it is one handy site, so if you haven't been there, hop on over!

Don't forget that L. Diane Wolfe joins us next week to discuss her new book, How to Publish and Promote Your Book Now! Hope you can join us!

What are you writing this week? 

Happy writing,
Karen


Photo credit: Stock Exchange

It's in the Details

There you are. 

Writing. 

The words flow.

It's a happy day!

After while, you pause. 

And lean closer to the computer screen. 

  
You squint, and think, 

Should I use that or which in this instance? 
 

Who put that twist in the plot?

Should I place a comma there?

Is that active voice? Or passive? 

What IS passive voice, anyway?

Wait, no. That wasn't in the outline. 

And then...

 

It hits you.

You feel like you're tangled in a ball of twine.  

Does this ever happen to you? What do you do? 

Depending on the extent of untangling needed, I pray, consult resources, take a break, or ask another writer for input. Or all of the above. 

After all, writers need to be expert un-tanglers, don't we?

As challenging as this aspect of writing is, I believe it's important.

Why? 

Because it provides the opportunity to persevere. And this is key to reaching the finish line. 

It also stretches thinking skills, and teaches us new things.

The details, whether grammar, content, or otherwise - when properly attended to, help our writing shine.

So if you're feeling tangled over details today, take heart. It's all meant to take us to a better writing place.

Do details get you down? What helps you work out the tangles? 

Happy writing,

Karen

Photo credit:  Stock Exchange