beloved friends...

by Lisa Cook

Well. Autumn means dwindling daylight hours here in our great Northwoods of Wisconsin. My laptop computer is down...again. And since I'm a terrible cheapskate who sees no reason in paying an extremely high light bill, here I sit, writing with ink and paper, by candlelight.

Sitting in my quiet apartment, I find myself thinking rather symbolically. Writing by candlelight. What ARE the "lights" in life? Church and faith would likely be foremost. Home. Music. Family and friends are great light, certainly. Writing itself is a light, in a very metaphorical way. The simple joys, you know? These are perhaps not "deep" thoughts...but symbolic ones, to be sure. All the above are my "lights. They give me both reasons to write and subjects to write about.

 As Edith Wharton so aptly stated, "There are two ways of showing the light; to be the candle or the mirror that reflects it." Very wise. Where and what are YOUR candles? Can one not be both candle and mirror at times?

And here I sit, on my own in my quiet apartment, writing by candlelight

God Bless you, Beloved Reader. Write on !

words

by Anna Maria Hansen

 
I love writing.

That might seem obvious -- I call myself a writer after all; have written in many different forms; and do so on a daily basis. So yeah, obviously I love writing.

But I'm talking on a far deeper level... I love the feeling of a pen in  my hand, shaping letters. Shapes that transmit feeling from one person to another. 2D doodles that can change a person's mood. I love the subtle power of words and the way a single word can sometimes make you feel something, think something, see something. I collect words; gathering them from different sources. Simple words, extraordinary words, paradoxical words, magnificent words. Then I put them in my invisible box of writing tools and pull them out, one at a time, to explain thoughts I have to other people. So that they can see, feel, smell, hear, be, want, fear, know... what I want them to.

I love that these shapes us humans made up can hold such power. People say, "Paint a picture with words." That's exactly what all writers should be doing. The recognition that words are art. Each shape has meaning that can be transmitted from person to person.

I love when a sentence comes out just the way it should. I love reading a sentence that is so good I mark the page so I can come back and re-read that one sentence again and again. I love words that are put together in such an out-of-the-box fashion that I see them -- and what the writer is saying -- in a completely and utterly different way. That, in a flash of eternity, other people's words can become something of you.

word  (wûrd) 

n. A sound or a combination of sounds, or its representation in writing or printing, that symbolizes and communicates a meaning

outside the box

by Karen Dums

At tonight's meeting a Guild member came up with what I felt was quite a unique idea. He proposed self-publishing his book, then attempting to market it through traditional publishing channels; ie getting an agent or an editor to pick it up.

His idea raised some interesting questions. Initially I wondered why he would go through the self-publishing process when his work has good merit; he could undoubtedly be published traditionally in my opinion.

That being said, his idea is a rather unique one and could work. Nothing ventured, nothing gained? In his hand would be a nearly complete project. I say nearly complete because as another member remarked, he would need to be open to suggestions and possible editing or be viewed as unyielding in his ideas and then who would want him as a possible client!?

Thinking outside the box has become a rather trite phrase, and annoying at times. But it causes creative growth when we step outside our comfort zones; when we become willing to risk. Risk our time. Risk our financial resources. Risk our egos being deflated.

I could probably do some research to learn how many authors have been published the first time they sent a manuscript out. Off the top of my head I can think of only one, Sandra Kring, a fellow Wisconsinite who's novel Carry Me Home was the quickest start I've ever heard of!  There may be more, but probably not too many more. Even mega-hits such as Stephanie Meyer's Twilight series took some time to get off the ground.

So where's the harm in attempting something new? Is rule-bending so horrible?

In the future perhaps you'll be hearing the rest of the story.

eavesdropping 101

by Karen Dums


A tried, true and taught technique for writer's is eavesdropping. Finding yourself in a situation, any situation, can provide fodder for the pen.

You are dining in a small cafe'.  At a table near you is a young couple. They are engaged in a heated exchange. Your powers of observation kick in! Conjure a scenario that could make it to your page, or if you have a notebook handy, jot it down immediately. Possibilities are easy. Since the observer has no true knowledge of the situation, he/she can make one up. Is there a ring on her finger? No. She wants to get married, he doesn't. Or, both are wearing wedding rings. His mother is coming to visit, he's happy, she's not. Perhaps one of them just lost a well paying job. "How will we make the rent?" One of them just had an affair. "What do you mean you slept with Jack?!"

Recently I was a vendor at a flea market. To my right was a man with a small Jeep and one table. "How is he going to make a dime?" thought I. A pony saddle for sale plus three fish filleting knives and three bone pullers on his small table.  Would he take orders for delivery? Would buyers trust him to do that? His table was approached, people listened to his spiel. When we were packing up to leave he shared some info -- not one sale. Hmmm. Was my guess correct? Or do folks already know how to fillet fish without gizmos and trinkets? I don't know, but I could make something up...

On my left were an older man and a younger one. His grandson? They were selling cabinet pulls made from rocks and a type of mineral found in Mexico. "I spend my winters in Mexico," I heard the older man tell a potential customer. He didn't sell much either, nor was he as friendly as the man on my right. Rude? Shy? Unsociable? I don't know, but I could make something up...

Across the way was a couple, one male, one female, with six or seven tables loaded with household items. "Bet they're selling off their "inheritance" thought I. They did a brisk business all day. As we were packing up they said their folks had passed on. They'd been selling off what they could at flea markets and rummage sales all summer. Thus the hodgepodge of lamps, dishes, knick knacks, were what I had earlier guessed. Someone else's "stuff."  Did I know the entire story? No. But I could make something up...

Eavesdropping 101. Stop. Look. Listen. One never knows from whence the muse shall come.