Sunday, December 14, 2014

Today, I’m continuing the series “Ways to Improve Writing.”

Play with your memory. Relax. Think back to your childhood. What made you worry? What was fun?  What made you laugh, cry, or hide? The events that evoked your emotions are likely to do the same in readers.
Christmas is a time that floods my mind with memories. The sense of smell is the hardest to incorporate into a story; yet, the sense of smell is a vivid memory, especially when I think of Christmas: the spicy whiff of a fresh-cut tree from the hillside behind our house, the distinctive aroma of oranges, and turkey roasting in the oven. Mmmmmmmm. But one scent ranked above all others. The best smell in the world for this six-year-old gal was the enticing, magical fragrance of a new doll. Today, those enchanting aromas have the power to transcend me back in time in an instance and with only one sniff.
List a few memories from your childhood, maybe four or five. Toss them around to see if they could work as a children’s book. Use the memory as inspiration for the story, not the actual plot.
Mine your memories. Dig deep and write.
Call for Submissions for Young Writers:
Rattle We like poems of any length. Send up to four poems at a time. We’re looking for poems that move us, that might make us laugh or cry, or teach us something new. We like both free verse and traditional forms—we try to publish a representative mix of what we receive. We read a lot of poems, and only those that are unique, insightful, and musical stand out—regardless of style. Since our issues include about 70 pages of poetry, one of the main things we’re looking for is diversity; we have enough room to be eclectic, and we plan on using it. So while most magazines suggest reading their back issues to get a sense of what they like to publish, we’d suggest reading to get a sense of what we’re having trouble finding—if you notice a style or subject matter that we don’t seem to be publishing, send us that!
Call for Submissions for Young Writers:  
Clear Creek Writers 2014 Contest: Clear Creek Writers is having their second annual writers contest with hundred dollar prizes for both prose and poetry. As the contest is new, the contestants are limited and your chances are good.
Deadline: January 4, 2015

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