July News and Announcements

July is here and summer is in full swing. Happy belated Summer Solstice my fair readers! I’m happy about the warmer temperatures because I can’t function well when I’m freezing cold. I’m not saying the heat doesn’t get to me every now and then, but it’s a lot better than shivering my teeth off.

I’m also happy that the blanket of fire smoke that recently covered the state of California has finally decided to travel elsewhere. Life is much more pleasant when you can breathe.

Last month, posts here at Writing Forward were a bit sporadic. I used to stick to a regimented blogging schedule but then I got really sick back in March and discovered that people seem to like it better when I post a little less frequently but a lot more thoughtfully. This turned out to be a good thing because now if I have life overload, I don’t go into full panic over missing a post every now and then.

Posting might be scarce again in July since I have a busy month, full of work and family obligations. But I’ll be here. Even if I don’t post a blog, I’m usually around in the comments section or conversing on other blogs.

We’re shining the spotlight on journaling this month. This is something I think almost all writers have some experience with. What I’m curious to find out is how other writers use journals. What kind of journals do you keep or have you kept over the years? Do you have separate journals for your various projects or are you the all-in-one type? Plus, there are oodles of journal themes, from dream journals to art journals. We’ll look at some of those and discuss the benefits they can bring to our writing endeavors.

As always, feel free to leave a comment if you have any ideas, suggestions, or questions that you’d like me to address this month. Remember, journaling might be the spotlight topic, but it’s not the only one, so all suggestions are welcome. Guest posts are welcome too!

I hope everyone is enjoying the summer so far. I also wonder — do the seasons affect or inform your writing? Do you get more creative during summer or are you so busy enjoying the outdoors that your writing actually suffers?

Shine on everyone, and enjoy the sunshine!

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June Announcements

May has come and gone so fast I barely had time to say hello to it. We focused on freelance writing throughout the month of May, and it proved to be a popular topic.

I want to thank everyone who participated in comments with thought-provoking questions and also those who shared their own freelancing experiences. I always say that freelancing isn’t for everyone but for those who choose it, there’s a wonderful community of bloggers and freelancers that will help you find your way and offer support and encouragement.

I also want to thank everyone who linked here this past month. I’m always immensely flattered when anyone feels the posts here are valuable enough to share.

Now that June’s here, it’s time to shift gears a little. This month, blogging is all the rage at Writing Forward. That doesn’t mean freelancing is a thing of the past. As always, the spotlight will guide the topics this month but it will not dominate them. I’ll be wrapping up the series on five ways to improve your writing and sharing some more of my favorite poets and poems.

Blogging will be an interesting topic though, because there is a lot to cover. In fact, there are many (and by many, I mean hundreds of thousands) of blogs that focus entirely on blogging. So, is there anything about blogging that you guys want to discuss specifically? If so, leave a comment with a question or topic idea and I’ll try to address it in a post. Or, we can just chat it up in the comments.

I’m working on a few different ideas for posts this month. Last month, I revealed how I launched my freelance writing career, so this month, I’ll talk about my experience to date with blogging. I’ll also talk about what I’ve learned about blogging from a personal perspective. And of course, we’ll talk about blogging from a writer’s point of view (did you guys know that many bloggers do not consider themselves writers?). I don’t think the greater writing community has fully embraced blogging yet but we’re getting there and it’s an issue worth exploring.

That’s it. Summer’s around the corner and it’s the month of dads and grads, so be sure to honor them. And yourself. And me. June happens to be my birthday month and there will be more candles on the cake than ever before!

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May Announcements

It is with a sad and heavy heart that we say goodbye to poetry month at Writing Forward. Don’t worry my fellow poetry pals, there will more poetic posts in the future (and sooner than you might think). Remember, the monthly spotlight doesn’t dictate every single post during the month.

But now we move into May and before summer rears its burning head we are going to explore freelancing, and more specifically freelance writing. Since I started eight months ago, I’ve learned a lot of things about freelancing that I’d like to share with you.

A Sneak Peek

I’ve already started planning my headlines but I want to know what YOU want to know about freelancing. If you have any questions, ideas, or topics, then just say the word and I’ll do my best to add them to this month’s roster. And if you have some freelancing expertise, feel free to send in a guest post.

In the meantime, here’s the sneaky peeky:

Many people hanging around the blogosphere (which is highly populated with freelancers) find themselves thinking about freelancing as a career option. Should you quit your day job and make the full time freelancing leap? I’ll ask some questions to help you determine if you’re cut out for freelancing.

I’ll also share tips on planning your business (yes, freelancing is a business) and launching yourself into the madness that is a freelancer’s life. I’ll even tell you how I got those first clients and how I got my best clients. Plus, as always, I’ll put together a comprehensive list of resources for you to enjoy and explore.

Remember That Book I Mentioned, Like, Two Months Ago?

A couple of months ago, I showcased a book I had started to read titled Snow Crash by esteemed sci-fi writer Neal Stephenson. Well, I finally finished it and let me tell you, that’s not a book, it’s a ride! Check out my review on Snow Crash by Neal Stephenson at my other blog, melissadonovan.com and find out why you should read it as soon as possible!

In Other News

We saw the end of Grammar Mondays here at Writing Forward with the Grammar Wrap-Up announcing that while grammar will still be a beloved topic, it will no longer be a weekly feature.

Who knew writers were so interested in underwear? If there is one thing I’ve learned from this whole blogging experience, it’s to loosen up, be yourself, and let your personality shine through. Believe me, it’s not that easy to do after over a decade of mostly business and technical writing. Now that I know you guys don’t mind getting down and dirty, I’ll have to see if we can’t just get downright dirty a little more often.

Who’s with me?

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How to Spot a Poetry Fraud

Guest post by Jaden with introduction by Melissa Donovan

In recent weeks, there have been some heated debates in the blogosphere about writing snobs – high browed literary types that look down on folks who write for the Web, who have not been published in print, or who do not write high literature or esteemed nonfiction. James Chartrand of Men with Pen calls these folks arTEESTS.

photo credit: ooberayhay

Frauds are a slightly different breed. They pretend to be something they are not. If you poke around the blogosphere for a day or two, you’ll see countless “pro blogging” blogs where it’s obvious whoever’s running the show only just discovered blogging within the last week or so, yet they are dishing out tips on how to become a full time professional blogger.

Snobs and frauds amuse me. I know some folks are really annoyed by them, but I tend to laugh them off pretty dismissively. Clearly, they have larger issues than snobbery and fraudulence that they should be addressing. Hopefully, snobs will learn to let go of their superiority complexes and frauds will eventually become an expert in something or admit they don’t know what they’re talking about.

I know, that’s not likely to happen. So we’ll just have to let them be. Ah well, live and let live is what I always say.

So when Jaden of Screenwriting for Hollywood sent a humorous little ditty about how to spot a poetry fraud and asked if I’d like to use it as a guest post, I thought it would be a refreshing break from our serious writerly discussions and give all of us lowly web writers and hardworking poets some much-needed comic relief. Enjoy!

photo credit: zachstern

HOW TO SPOT A POETRY FRAUD
by Jaden

1. Drops the names of poets you never heard like they were pistachio shells.
2. Doesn’t have a job.
3. Says he is a poet.
4. Passes off obscure poetry as his own.
5. Never pens a single piece of original poetry himself.
6. Gets you to pay for lunch because, well, he’s a poet.
7. Sits in cafes smoking and drinking coffee while reading Mina Loy.
8. His name never appears in print, except on police reports.

Jaden blogs at Screenwriting for Hollywood. Writing fiction and nonfiction stories in all formats is Jaden’s passion.

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April Announcements

I’d like to kick off the first post of April by saying thank you to everyone who sent get well wishes and cards over the past couple of weeks. It means a lot to me! I’m much better now. Having the flu is such a pain and now I know what a special pain it is for freelancers!

National Poetry Month

April is here and it’s National Poetry Month. Poetry is near and dear to my heart because poetry is what I started out writing.

According to poets.org:

National Poetry Month was established by the Academy of American Poets as a month-long, national celebration of poetry. The concept was to increase the attention paid-by individuals and the media—to the art of poetry, to living poets, to our poetic heritage, and to poetry books and magazines.

Now, I’m not a big fan of days, weeks, and months that are assigned themes, except when it’s something I’m crazy about, and I’m definitely crazy about poetry. So Writing Forward will be participating in National Poetry Month this month. I’ve already planned some poetic posts. We’ll talk about poetry terms and vocabulary (what, exactly is iambic pentameter?). I’ll share with you some of my favorite poems and poets, and also some excellent poetry writing resources. I have a lot of books on writing and most of them are about poetry.

There’s More to Life Than Poetry

Poetry might be the theme for April, but there’s more to life and more to writing. We’re only halfway through the “Improve Your Writing” series, and I’ll be wrapping that up with two or three more posts during the month of April. As always, there will be grammar on Mondays and writing exercises on Fridays.

Up Around the Bend

Here’s a look at what’s coming up after April:

May - freelancing
June - blogging
July - journaling

I recently decided to start accepting guest posts, so if you’d like to write one for Writing Forward, let me know!

As always, if you have any questions, comments, or suggestions, leave a comment or send me a message. I love to hear from you!

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