Archive for the ‘Writing’ Category
Posted on August 24, 2009 - by Nicole Humphrey Cook
Past Writing Positions
I was browsing around today looking at some of my older articles I have written at a variety of locations, and ended up laughing when I landed on one site in particular.
I left them back several months ago, because the pay was pretty bad for what the article entailed – I had received a pay increase that was worth it awhile back, but a year later still no pay increase again, and it left me with no desire to write for them anymore. The research was costing me more time than actually article writing and it wasn’t worth it.
So I was re-reading some of the articles I wrote, and I came across two new articles posted by someone. I cannot tell if they hired someone new or if they are just asking someone to fill in occasionally. The articles were two weeks apart from each other, but they were so filled with typos, and mistakes that it was difficult for me to read. Plus the website has injected one of those stupid programs that highlights key words and article pop up. Not a fan. At all.
So, for me it was kinda of nice to look back and see that they really haven’t progressed much at all. You can give a site a makeover and call it “all new”, but it surely doesn’t make your articles worth writing. But at least now, they are paying for the quality they are receiving. LOL
Have you ever gone back and looked at articles you have written for a site you no longer work for? Is anyone new there now and what do you think of their writing?
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Posted on July 17, 2009 - by Nicole Humphrey Cook
Embarking on a Journey
Ha! I seem to sign my life over on a regular basis and commit to huge projects that take up my time. Why do I do that? Truly it is because I am passionate about my writing, so much so that I love to be involved in all sorts of different types of projects.
So I just finished editing a huge batch of articles. They were interesting to say the least, (read: bad) but now they look great. It was a good paying gig though, so I’m not complaining. So I was working a bit on my own novels and editing a few pieces I’ve written over the past couple of years to pass the time until my next client – when someone close to me approached me with a proposal to co-author an amazing book/project she is working on.
I’ve never worked on a non-fiction book before, only articles – so it should be an interesting ride. It’s a very personal journey for her, but I am truly excited about the project. I’ve also never collaborated with anyone except on articles for certain clients, but not a project of this magnitude, so I’m of course excited about that.
So do my reader’s mostly dabble in fiction, article writing or non-fiction? What is your favorite?
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Posted on April 2, 2009 - by Nicole Humphrey Cook
Word Padding – Why?
So I was visiting the NaNoWriMo message boards, which is where I go when I am looking for a little inspiration or just writing topics to read through. I came across a post that I have seen every year since I began doing NaNoWriMo. It entails what I call cheating, even though it is cheating only to the one who deems it to be. For me, it is definitely cheating.
Word padding. Why?
There were suggestions to have a character run around singing the lyrics to a song over and over, there were suggestions to do flash backs and dream sequences, suggestions to make the character a list maker, have their name be longer (Billy Joe Bob), use cooking scenes with recipes and all the steps listed as part of the story (first she added the egg, and then she beat it with a beater. After that she added the two cups of flour and one cup of sugar, blending the entire concoction well until it was smooth. Then she added two tablespoons of vanilla which is said to have been what gives the cake its main flavor, and …. you get the point), include journal entries and letters… etc.
But again, I ask – why?
I am completely at a loss as to why someone who actually wants to write a novel and have it published, and who is taking the time to actually write 50,000 words or more in a month…. why word pad? Why make your novel useless? Unless of course you can actually incorporate those things into a novel, but unless the novel is supposed to be comical it simply isn’t going to be readable.
What are your thoughts on word padding?
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Posted on January 1, 2009 - by Nicole Humphrey Cook
Is It Copyrighted?
I just had to share this hilarious email I got back in September to an email account I don’t use very often but it cracked me up and wanted to share:
from: Anne Peterson
to: *******@gmail.com
date: Tue, Sep 16, 2008 at 2:18 PM
subject: saying
mailed-by gmail.comHi Nicole,
I am the author of one of the sayings you have on your site. It is part of a copyrighted poem.
The saying is, “When they placed you in my arms you slipped into my heart.”
My name is Anne Peterson.
I’ve read your site and wondered if you could tell me where you found that saying.
I really would rather you didn’t offer it to others.
Thank you,
Anne Peterson
As a freelance writer, I completely empathize with other writer’s however, you cannot copyright a quote like that. Here is my reply to her:
from: Nicole < ******@gmail.com>
to Anne Peterson
date: Thu, Jan 1, 2009 at 11:45 AM
subject Re: saying
mailed-by gmail.comAnne,
Sorry, I don’t check this email address too often and actually forgot about it for awhile. I just noticed this email you sent. Anyway, in reply to your questions, the following places have this quote that are NOT attached to a poem (your poem) in any way.
http://www.pattisprimitives.com/store/WsDefault.asp?One=784
http://www.renewexpressions.com/WHEN-THEY-PLACED-YOU-IN-MY-ARMS-YOU-SLIPPED-INTO-MY-HEART_p_20-97.html
(a friend of mine has something similar on her son’s bedroom wall from a different company – she custom ordered it)
http://www.target.com/When-Placed-4-Photo-Collage-Frame/dp/B001G0QUAW
Are you going to contact Target??
http://www.geocities.com/heartland/lane/2470/babies.htm
http://www.wowletters.com/kids_quotes.html
I am a freelance writer, and just for the record, my lawyer explained that you cannot copyright a quote like that. It’s been around a LONG time. I’m not sure you realize how easy it is to create a quote that is similar to something someone else wrote. I write poetry as well, and you’d be amazed at how often I see my own words.
Just do a google search for that direct quote and you should have hours of entertainment tracking down the source. Good luck!
Nicole
Well, I don’t know what else to add, except that it is quite difficult to copyright a quote such as that one where it seems as if I’ve seen it before. My son is 14 years old, and I vaguely remember seeing it back that far ago. So I’m not removing it from the site in question, as it seems to be all over the Internet – what do you guys think? I would give her credit except nobody else does, so who’s to say she wrote it?
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Posted on October 26, 2008 - by Nicole Humphrey Cook
Need Help With Your Novel? Great Tips!
Try any of these spots for a little help on writing your novel or getting inspired. I plan to keep this fairly updated and eventually turn it into a link up at the top.
Looking for a first name?
First Names and What They Mean
Looking for a last name?
Looking for a pet name?
Looking for a location?
Most Popular Cities World Wide
Want a Blue Print of your house, castle, store, building?
Looking for a house?
Figure out what city you want it to take place in, then in google type the city name plus real estate or homes for sale to find what would be commonly found in that area.
Looking for a job?
This is one of my favorite sites for finding your MC an occupation – this site not only gives you ideas for occupations but also tells you the training and education needed for that job, how much you will make at that job, what types of places hire that type of occupation and what kind of working conditions each occupation has. It’s awesome!
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Posted on October 18, 2008 - by Nicole Humphrey Cook
How Fast Are You?
I’m not competitive by nature. In fact, I usually don’t enjoy playing any game with other people because well, I tend to suck at lots of games. LOL I’m actually okay with that.
But when I found TypeRacer, everything changed. I found it fun to play with other people, because it challenged me to get better. So – what is TypeRacer? It’s a typing speed game where in a race-like situation, you type a quote they give you while little cars move across the screen and whoever types fastest – wins. After you have raced, they provide you with your stats - how fast you typed, your accuracy, etc.
Here is a screen shot of my first three attempts at playing:
This was my first attempt – I typed 68 wpm and it was the first time I played (and I won – no I swear I am not gloating – I knew I could type faster than 68wpm!)
The second time I was less than thrilled that I lost. I was happy because I definitely typed faster, I took second place with 78wpm. But then Ethel must have lightening fingers because she finished with 107wpm! Holy bionic!
This was the last time I did a screen capture but was not my fastest. (my computer was starting to go nutty with all the cutting and pasting) I took first place here with 85wpm. I have since scored 92wpm but only once. And guess what – I wasn’t in first place. I took second with that one. The other person typed like 98wpm or something!
The game is fun but it also helps to increase you typing speed. You cannot beat that. Let me know if you play it, and if you like it too.
ETA: I finally got 92wpm and won! LOL
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Posted on October 10, 2008 - by Nicole Humphrey Cook
Numerous Manuscripts
Do you have more than one story/book going at one time? I do. Actually I have dozens from over the years, along with dozens of outlines and just text files with a paragraph or two or even just descriptions of something I planned to use.
Every once in awhile I open up a file or two and read what I have. I’m always amazed and sometimes wonder if I actually wrote that. Isn’t that weird?
Well, I was going through old files on my back-up drive and came up with a concept I had started back in August of ’07 to prepare for NaNo. I actually wound up going with something totally different for NaNo after several random tries.
When I ran a word count this morning, I had 16,037 words. I spent a few minutes (okay like a half hour to hour) writing earlier. I just ran a word count – 19,532 – plus the story is flowing in a totally different direction than I think I was taking it back then. Weird. But good.
Do you ever do that?
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Posted on August 2, 2008 - by Nicole Humphrey Cook
What Genre Are You Writing?
I’ve spent a great deal of time lately thinking about the different genre options out there. There are so many and even within a genre, there might be sub-genre’s that continue on and one possibly with even more sub-genre’s. Confused yet? Yeah.
So, what genre do you find yourself writing a lot of? What genre’s do you potentially avoid? Have you ever stepped outside the box and tried one that you hadn’t before.
Last year when working on a new novel idea I had, I decided I wanted to take a crack at Chick Lit which was a genre I never really thought I’d be any good at. Guess what I found out? I wasn’t.
That isn’t what you thought I was going to say is it?
The whole book started out as a Chick Lit tone and before I got to chapter 5, my MC’s were practically screaming at me to stop the insanity.
I learned a valuable tip several years ago. When you want to write a genre, you need to read at least 100 books in that genre before you attempt to write it. Why? For several reasons.
1. It gives you a good sense of the writing style and point of view and character traits that you must use in your book. Nobody says you have to stick to them, but it certainly gives you a good beginning.
2. It allows you to see what is out there already. I can also tell you it is a wonderful Writer’s Block tool when you are simply stuck and not sure what to write. Sometimes reading a book in a specific genre might give you an idea you might not have thought of before. It will also give you an idea of what stories might have run their course and what works and doesn’t work.
3. Consider it research. Reading so many books in a particular genre puts you in the mood, gets you thinking outside the box hopefully, and accomplishes the research needed to see what styles certain authors seem to go with.
4. It just makes sense. It might not make sense to you, but here’s the scoop. A good writer usually enjoys reading. If you aren’t willing to put in the time to read what’s out there, what makes you think that what you have to say is interesting enough or even special enough that anyone else should take the time to read it?
5. One hundred books seems like a lot, but if you really think about it, you’ve probably already read some, and if you can estimate a number it just looks smaller. Can you read fast? If you can read fast you might be able to read a book or two a week (or more for some speed readers).
So don’t put it off anymore. Just figure out the genre you want to write, and go with it. Best of luck!
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Posted on May 17, 2008 - by Nicole Humphrey Cook
Picking a Title for Your Book
Do you have any idea how hard it is to find a title for a book? For some writer’s, the title comes before the plot, or the characters. And for others, the entire book is written and there is time spent painstakingly thinking about what to call the masterpiece they slaved over.
A couple of years back I was reading a writing magazine and inside it said, if you have trouble naming a book, there is an equation you can use.
pick a color + pick a noun = a title
Okay, well that would explain Red Sea, Blue Moon, etc.
But that isn’t very realistic is it?
Sometimes its easy to summarize your book into a quick, witty title, and other times you might wish to go for a metaphorical title. Try a few on for size before settling on the final title. For many of the novels I am working on, I have a working title while I am writing. Often times during it, I will think of a better title and change it. Sometimes the original title remains throughout the entire writing process.
Honestly, the title of your book is your own decision. The only thing you need to watch for, is finding a great title that will catch someones attention. “You can’t judge a book by it’s cover”. Well, maybe not – but if your title doesn’t grab them, you just lost a potential sale because they never even picked the book up.
Do you find the title particularly hard to come up with?
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Posted on January 29, 2007 - by Nicole Humphrey Cook
Thinking About Better Writing
I was sitting today, just thinking about some of the ways I go about trying to be a better writer. I think the most important way that I accomplish this, is by reading. And reading, I do a lot of. I am the girl in which when you pull up my library card information, have twenty three books checked out, seven sitting on the shelf at the library waiting for me to come get them, three in transit, and four waiting to be filled. I read EVERYTHING. Even magazines.
However, my obsession for reading has expanded beyond the walls of the library or our local bookstore. In fact, it has gone beyond magazine subscriptions and junk mail. It has now landed on the Internet. In the form of blogs. I have become a hopeless addict and born stalker to several blogs currently active. I even get upset when I go to read one, and there has been no update for awhile. Not upset, mad. Just upset, “I wish there was something new to hear about”.
I’ve also discovered that by reading others blogs, I develop new styles of writing, new vocabulary, and often new statements or cliche’s that I utter from time to time. Interesting really.
I was thinking about all this today, because I have been talking to my daughter, who wants to be an author when she grows up, about ways to improve your writing and learn more about what your style is. I told her everything I just shared with you.
She was curious about the blogs I read, and thankfully I am proud to say, with the exception of small handful, I can share most of them with her. They are clean. So she has been browsing blogs since yesterday afternoon, learning about everything from scrapbooking, ADHD and parenting. It’s been rather enlightening, but mostly she just giggles when she reads it.
If you are looking for a way to improve your writing, and find a “voice” that might be slightly hidden within you, just start reading other people’s blogs, and then sit down and write your own blog entry. You might be surprised what pops out.
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