Night stops at the edge. /
Clouds crawl from the horizon. /
Stars gather the sunrise.
Monthly Archives: November 2014
Haiku to you Thursday: “Dawn”
Night stops at the edge. /
Clouds crawl from the horizon. /
Stars gather the sunrise.
Filed under Haiku to You Thursday, poetry by author
Writing tip Wednesday: “New Millennium Writings”
New Millennium Writings contest
Details at: http://newmillenniumwritings.com/awards.php
To apply online, follow these guidelines:
- No restrictions as to style, content, number of submissions, or nationality. Enter as often as you like.
- Send between now and November 17, 2014, Midnight, all U.S. time zones.
- Simultaneous & multiple submissions welcome. Previously published material welcome if under 5,000-circulation or if previously published online only.
- Each fiction or nonfiction piece is counted as a separate entry, and should total no more than 6,000 words except Short-Short Fiction (no more than 1,000 words).
- Each poetry entry may include up to three poems, not to exceed five pages total per entry. All poetry Honorable Mentions will be published.
- Save cover sheet or letter with the submission you’ll be uploading and send as one file. Should you forget to include such covers, however, it’s OK, as contact information is automatically forwarded to us when you pay online.
- Payment is $20 per submission in order to cover our many expenses and reserve your book. Payment will be by credit card or echeck through PayPal (See Rule 10).
- Each entry must be in a separate file (up to 3 poems in one file (See #6)). Many file formats are accepted.
- Enter file to upload:
- After clicking Upload, allow five seconds, then follow payment instructions to conclude your submission.
$4,000 offered in Literary Grants and Awards, Plus Publication
$1,000 for best Poem
$1,000 for best Fiction
$1,000 for best Nonfiction †
$1,000 for best Short-short Fiction
† Nonfiction includes humor, memoir, creative nonfiction, travel, opinion, essay, interview, features, investigative reporting, etc.
Details at: http://newmillenniumwritings.com/awards.php
Filed under writing tip, Writing Tip Wednesday, writing tips
cARtOONSDAY: “iNFORMATION”
It was almost enough to drive a man to drink.
Filed under cartoon by author, CarToonsday
Monday morning writing joke: “Correction”
Two writers were sitting at a bar, as writers are sometimes known to do.
A woman at a table near the bar was doing her best to get the attention of one of the writers. The other writer noticed this and asked the first writer what was going on.
First writer: “She sent me a text message.”
Second writer: “A fan of yours?”
First message: “I hope not. Her message said: ‘Y-o-u-r cute.’ I sent her back a message that said: ‘No. Y-O-U-R-‘-E cute.’ I was only correcting her misspelling.”
Second writer: “And?”
First writer: “And now she thinks I like her. I can’t get her to leave me alone.”
Second writer: “Here, let me see you phone.”
First writer hands the second writer his phone. Second writer types a message and sends it. The woman looks at it, shows it to her friend, puts a sour look on her face, and then gets up and leaves.
First writer: “What did you write?”
Second writer shows him. The message read: “You’re not my typo.”
Filed under Monday morning writing joke
New words to live by: “Auto Body Experience”
It is the first weekend of the month and time again for a new word to live by. This is a word or phrase not currently in use in the U.S. English lexicon, but might need to be considered. Other words, such as obsurd, crumpify, subsus, flib, congressed, and others, can be found by clicking on the tags below. Today’s New Word is a compounding of three words: Auto, Body, and Experience. Without further chattering, Auto Body Experience is the new word / phrase for this month:
Auto, n. an object, such as a car or truck that propels itself by way of an engine.
Body, n. the physical structure of a plant, animal, or human, dead or alive.
Experience, n. a specific instance of personally undergoing, encountering, or observing something.
Auto Body Experience, n. The total of what happens when you experience a wreck while you are in your own car. It similar to but not the same as an out-of-body experience. With an Auto Body Experience, there is often a jolt of unreality, particularly if you get hit from behind and are at first confused as to what is happening.
Whether you see it coming or not, whether it involves other cars, or only your car, you, and a stationary object — such as a guard rail after you and your car have started spinning on a thin sheet of ice — there is nothing quite like an Auto Body Experience.
And then there is all the paperwork.
Filed under new word, New words to live by
Saturday: “Halloween Round-up”
Santa and a “demented” little Red Riding Hood.
As a side note, a fellow in an adjoining historic neighborhood complained that as the weather turned colder and rain and wind picked up, he had parents come to collect for their kids who stayed in the cars. I saw one or two examples of that, but mostly I saw kids and adults with umbrellas making the best of it.
Regardless, as you can see, that is quite a few tricksters who came to Old North Knoxville. I dressed as Santa Claus and handed out candy, while my wife and daughter went trick-or-treating with some friends. I surprised a few young tricksters when I would open the sidelight window next to our front door and stick my head out. Some were rendered speechless. A few asked if I was real, to which I replied, “I’m as real as you.” Two or three wanted to touch my white-gloved hand or my beard. A few older, more “seasoned” kids started into their Christmas wish list, including one young lady who wanted both an iPad and an iPhone among the items on her list. I just don’t know if she has been good enough to receive both or even one. She looked a little naughty to me. Then, again, I guess Halloween was the night for a little naughtiness.
Santa Claus and the Pink Unicorn Lady. Nothing says Halloween quite like a woman in pink with a horn on her head.
Filed under holiday
Booker's Blog 