Continuing Our Community Short Story Project
Sunday, August 29, 2010
With Writing Show listener Brian Martin
Round 1 of our community story project is complete, and now it's time to go on to rounds 2 - 5.
Interviewee: Brian Martin
Host: Paula B.
Date: August 29, 2010
Running time: 24:56
File size: 12 megabytes
Rating: G
Promoting Your Book at Film Festivals
Sunday, August 15, 2010
With author/film festival organizer Jason R. Davis
You don't have to be a screenwriter or filmmaker to promote your books at film festivals.
Interviewee: Jason R. Davis
Host: Paula B.
Date: August 15, 2010
Running time: 27:12
File size: 13 megabytes
Rating: G
Jason R. Davis' Web sites: IAmDavis.com; FoF Publishing; DarkArtsMag.com; Festivals of Fright; Chicago Horror Fest; Indy Horror Filmfest; Gatlin Pictures
Presenting Yourself on the Web
Sunday, August 08, 2010
With Web site marketing expert Andy Hayes
This week, Andy Hayes offers quick tips for presenting yourself effectively on the Web and tackles two case studies involving Writing Show listeners.
Interviewee: Andy Hayes
Host: Paula B.
Date: August 8, 2010
Running time: 01:04:22
File size: 31 megabytes
Rating: G
Andy Hayes' Web sites:AndyHayes.com ; Travel Online Partners
A sample Web site that's well done: Unconventional Guides
Martin Hale's Web sites: Thoughtstones; Solar Drift
Download and listen to "Presenting Yourself on the Web"
Community Story Project: Round 1 Voting
Wednesday, July 28, 2010
With Writing Show host Paula B.
It's time to vote for your favorite round 1 entry. In this brief podcast, Paula B. explains how to express your opinion.
Host: Paula B.
Date: July 28, 2010
Running time: 01:19 minutes
File size: 1 megabyte
Rating: G
A Conversation with Kelley Armstrong
Sunday, July 25, 2010
With Kelley Armstrong, author of the Otherworld paranormal suspense series, the Darkest Powers YA urban fantasy trilogy, the Nadia Stafford books, and more, featuring guest host Mark Leslie
The Writing Show's very own Mark Leslie interviews multi-genre author Kelley Armstrong.
Interviewee: Kelley Armstrong
Host: Mark Leslie Lefebvre
Date: July 25, 2010
Running time: 19:08
File size: 9 megabytes
Rating: G
Kelley Armstrong's Web site: Kelley Armstrong: Step into a New World
Download and listen to "Kelley Armstrong"
Text Management for Writers #4
Sunday, July 18, 2010
With guest host Ricardo Amigo
Host: Ricardo Amigo
Date: July 18, 2010
Running time: 20:40
File size: 10 megabytes
Rating: G
The Amigo Audio Web site: AmigoAudio.com
Slush Pile Workshop #4
Sunday, July 11, 2010
With freelance editor Ann Paden and Writing Show host Paula B.
Our new podcast series is designed to help you practice capturing readers’ attention. Inspired by literary agent Kristin Nelson’s two-page pitch sessions, freelance editor Ann Paden and Writing Show host Paula B. will play agent and comment on your anonymous submissions on the show.
Host: Paula B.
Interviewee: Ann Paden
Date: July 11, 2010
Running time: 01:03:37
File size: 30 megabytes
Rating: PG (language)
About Procrastination
Sunday, July 04, 2010
With self-help author and creative writing teacher Zhana
If you procrastinate, this is the show for you!
Interviewee: Zhana
Host: Paula B.
Date: July 4, 2010
Running time: 52:21
File size: 25 megabytes
Rating: G
Zhana's Web sites: Writers' Secrets blog; Write Your Book in Two Days; Interview with Lisa See - Why Visualization Doesn't Work; Nonviolent Communication; Interview with Buchi Emecheta
A Community Project for Writing Show Listeners
Saturday, June 26, 2010
With Writing Show listener Brian Martin
The Writing Show announces a new community project: first a short story, then music, narration, artwork, and maybe even animation to supplement it!
Interviewee: Brian Martin
Host: Paula B.
Date: June 26, 2010
Running time: 35:36
File size: 17 megabytes
Rating: G
Writing Show listener Jessica Bell is having a fundraiser for us!
Sunday, August 29, 2010
She's offering some great prizes in return for your donations.
See her blog entry detailing the rules of the contest.
Prizes include an appearance on the show and a $100 Amazon gift certificate, as well as additional publicity for your work.
Thank you for your support, Jessica! We love you!
Writing Show cash shortfall
It costs us $5000 to $10,000 per year out of pocket to run The Writing Show.
So far this year we've received around $750 in donations, for which we thank you profusely.
We've been subsidizing the balance, but we're not going to be able to keep doing that. After five years, the financial burden is becoming too much for us.
If you enjoy our podcasts, forum, and other features, won't you help support The Writing Show?
Please make a donation using the PayPal button below. We'll thank you by sending you three of our e-articles on writing.
Everyone who contributes $150 or more gets a free first-chapter critique and a follow-up email discussion, both courtesy of moi.
Thank you!
-- Paula B.
The Writing Show announces our first ever summer reading club!
It's easy to participate. Just read a book of your choice, then post your comments about it in the summer reading club category in our forum. Please make a thread for yourself and post all your reports there, although you can certainly comment on other people's threads. When you report on a book (eeek! book reports!), please tell us what the genre is as well as the author, title, and year of publication (don't worry too much about the last; sometimes there are multiple editions, and it's hard to tell).
You can comment from the viewpoint of a reader and/or a writer, but please be as substantive as you can. (Don't just say, "I liked it." Tell us why.)
Everyone who reads and comments on at least two books by September 7, 2010 becomes eligible for a drawing for a free 750-word critique (written by moi, Paula B.) on a first chapter of a novel or memoir. (That's 11:59 p.m. on Tuesday, September 7, 2010, the day after Labor Day in the U.S.) I will put all the names in a bowl and draw a winner on September 8, 2010.
Brian Martin's Community Short Story Project
Listener Brian Martin and The Writing Show would like to invite you to contribute to a 2500-word short story that will be written in five approximately 500-word installments.
The author of each entry chosen for the final story will be able to selecte a prize from a list of options. Prizes are: an appearance on The Writing Show; a 750-word critique of a first chapter from Paula B.; a perfect-bound paperback from the Espresso Book Machine at the McMaster University bookstore; a copy of Maralys Wills' inspiring book Damn the Rejections, Full Speed Ahead: The Bumpy Road to Getting Published; help with a query letter from Paula B.
Round 1 of our community story project is complete, and now it's time to go on to rounds 2 - 5.
The winning entry for round 1 was contributed by Robert Scoville.
There were three second-place entries, submitted by Leigh Alver, Brandon Petersen, and Martin Finn, which will also go on to round 2.
Here are the guidelines for rounds 2 - 5:
- Select a story line and post your approximately 500-word installment to the story in our forum.
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- Please precede your contribution with the entire story you're adding to so we get the context. Separate the previous portion from your own so we know where yours starts. You can use a line of hyphens or asterisks. By the time we get to round 3, the entries will be very long, but we think this method will make it easier for everyone to follow the stories.
- The schedule is:
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- Round 2 submissions close September 11.
- Round 2 voting September 12 - September 18. Winner announced September 19.
- Round 3 submissions September 19 - 25.
- Round 3 voting September 26 - October 2. Winner announced October 3.
- Round 4 submissions October 3 - October 16.
- Round 4 voting October 17 - October 23. Winner announced October 24.
- Round 5 submissions October 24 - November 6.
- Round 5 voting November 17 - 14. Winner announced November 15.
- Winners of any given round will not be able to contribute to their own story in the next round, but may do so after that.
All segments of the story, submissions, and the work as a whole will be licensed under Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial Share Alike licenses: "This license lets others remix, tweak, and build upon your work non-commercially, as long as they credit you and license their new creations under the identical terms. Others can download and redistribute your work just like the by-nc-nd license, but they can also translate, make remixes, and produce new stories based on your work. All new work based on yours will carry the same license, so any derivatives will also be non-commercial in nature."
Don't miss being part of this great new project. Start writing your installment now!
Download and listen to "Community Project" here
Announcing The Writing Show Slush Pile Workshop
Listen to our slush pile workshops:
Download and listen to "Slush Pile Workshop #1"
Download and listen to "Slush Pile Workshop #2"
Download and listen to "Slush Pile Workshop #3"
Download and listen to "Slush Pile Workshop #4"
The Writing Show announces a new podcast series designed to help you practice capturing readers’ attention: “The Writing Show Slush Pile Workshop.” Inspired by literary agent Kristin Nelson’s two-page pitch sessions, Writing Show host Paula B. and freelance editor Ann Paden will play agent and comment on your anonymous submissions on the show.
We’re sure you know by now how important it is to hook a prospective agent or publisher in your first couple of pages. But if you send your work out before it’s ready, you could squander an important opportunity. Don’t risk it. Try your material out on us first—for free!
For each work, there will be two possible outcomes:
- We stop reading before we get to the end. If that happens, we’ll tell you why.
- We like it! If we were agents, we’d be asking to see more.
Submissions selected for the show will also be available as PDFs, linked from our site at WritingShow.com. We may make some of our comments available within each document. Haven’t decided yet.
We know how hard it is to put your work out there, so we want to stress that all pitches will be anonymous! (We must know who you are because we need a disclaimer from you, but we won’t divulge your identity.)
More...Story and nonfiction consulting from Paula B.
Are you having trouble writing your story or nonfiction work? Getting nowhere with agents? Writing show host Paula B. helps writers get unstuck. Time to break through that barrier and achieve your dreams. Details here.
"It's not always easy working with writers; the egos, the authorial control, the tightly defined visions of our stories. Paula has the special kind of patience and knowledge that is required for the task."
-- Mayowa Atte
"I knew working with Paula was going to be helpful, but her insights and encouragement have been truly inspiring."
-- Scott Middlemist
Paula's new Self-Mentoring Checklist for Novelists now available at the Amazon Kindle store and Lulu.com for 99 cents!
Paula B.'s Ebooks for Writers Now Available.
Get Paula's ebooks and articles at the Amazon Kindle Store and Lulu.com. Check out "Point of View in Fiction," my series of articles on writing dialogue, my book of creativity exercises for writers, and more.
Sunday, August 29, 2010
Our Most Popular Shows This Week
Our Most Popular Show of All Time
A Different Kind of Detective, with C.J. Box
Upcoming Shows
Sunday, August 29, 2010
September 5, 2010: "Making a Living as a Novelist?" with commentator Bart Silverstrim.
September 12, 2010: "A Conversation with Author Sarah Willis" featuring guest host Alanna Klapp.